jammasterjamie's review against another edition
4.0
Really solid anthology here and most of the stories were surprisingly strong and original, which with how much has been written about fairies and robots over the years. For me, the first two thirds of the book were the strongest and the stories towards the end were a little disappointing for various reasons, but they hurt the overall experience for me and left me just wanting it to end. Not to say that the stories towards the end weren't good, they just weren't as enjoyable for me as the first two thirds of the book and maybe could have been stronger representations had they been placed elsewhere in the anthology. Still, an all in all good reading experience and I'm glad to have read this book.
cuddlesome's review against another edition
3.0
As always with anthologies, some hits and some misses. I love the theme for this one even my kneejerk reaction is to dislike fairies, hahaha. Ironically some of the stories themed around them were my favorites while some of the robot stories were too hard sci-fi for my taste. I've come to realize that I definitely like the Pinocchio-esque woo-woo "what does it mean to be real" Robocops and Android Kikaiders and Terminators and etcs of the world more than anything else with robots. On that note, I enjoyed how many of these stories were inspired by familiar literature like Pinocchio and Peter Pan and the like.
Build Me a Wonderland, Quality Time, The Blue Fairy's Manifesto, Bread and Milk and Salt, Work Shadow/Shadow Work, and Second to the Left, and Straight On were my favorites. Around 50/50 for stories I liked versus stories that weren't my speed, not bad odds at all.
Bread and Milk and Salt was my absolute favorite thanks to the tragedy of it all and the extremely vivid imagery that I'm going to think about for a while. Definitely managed to make me like fae for a hot second with that one especially. Work Shadow/Shadow Work was my favorite robot one thanks to it scratching that "what does it mean to be real" itch I mentioned liking as well as a portrayal of dementia that felt refreshing in that it wasn't just a drawn-out story about how horrible the woman's life is due to it but rather how she's still getting on despite it.
The only story that I thought was truly awful to the point of being entirely unreadable was, unfortunately, the last one, A Fall Counts Anywhere. It's formatted in this unbearable way where it's predominantly DOMINATED BY CAPITAL LETTERS for entire giant blocks of the page. I understand the style choice and the indications of tone but my brain just shut off when I saw it. It felt reminiscent of a fanfic I wrote when I was fourteen where I chose to do everything in bold. Yeesh.
Build Me a Wonderland, Quality Time, The Blue Fairy's Manifesto, Bread and Milk and Salt, Work Shadow/Shadow Work, and Second to the Left, and Straight On were my favorites. Around 50/50 for stories I liked versus stories that weren't my speed, not bad odds at all.
Bread and Milk and Salt was my absolute favorite thanks to the tragedy of it all and the extremely vivid imagery that I'm going to think about for a while. Definitely managed to make me like fae for a hot second with that one especially. Work Shadow/Shadow Work was my favorite robot one thanks to it scratching that "what does it mean to be real" itch I mentioned liking as well as a portrayal of dementia that felt refreshing in that it wasn't just a drawn-out story about how horrible the woman's life is due to it but rather how she's still getting on despite it.
The only story that I thought was truly awful to the point of being entirely unreadable was, unfortunately, the last one, A Fall Counts Anywhere. It's formatted in this unbearable way where it's predominantly DOMINATED BY CAPITAL LETTERS for entire giant blocks of the page. I understand the style choice and the indications of tone but my brain just shut off when I saw it. It felt reminiscent of a fanfic I wrote when I was fourteen where I chose to do everything in bold. Yeesh.
norinori's review against another edition
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
3.0
jefffrane's review against another edition
4.0
For the most part, this is a thoroughly delightful anthology, full of stories from the likes of Tim Pratt, Kat Howard, Mary Robinette Kowal, John Scalzi, and Delilah S. Dawson. As in any anthology, some stories resonate and others lightly amuse. There was, for me, a dramatic fall-off in quality near the end of the book.
phngtrnreads's review against another edition
3.0
They rlly picked the goofy ahh one to adapt. No offense to John Scalzi tho I just thought many other ones in the collection could also have stood a chance
digililly's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
inspiring
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
Spoiler
The shortstory of the music Band turned robot was wow!motherbeetle's review against another edition
adventurous
3.5
Robots Ratings:
Quality Time by Ken Liu - 2.5 stars
The Blue Fairy’s Manifesto by Annalen Newitz - 3 stars
Ironheart by Jonathan Maberry - 2.5 stars
Sand and Fury by Mary Robinette Kowal - 3.25 stars
Work Shadow/ Shadow Work by Madeline Ashby - 4 stars
The Buried Giant by Lavie Tidhar - 3.5 stars
Three Robots Experience Objects by John Scalzi - 5 stars
All the Time We’ve Left to Spend by Alyssa Wong - 3.5 stars
To a Cloven Pine by Max Gladstone - 4.5 stars
Average rating for Robots- 3.5 stars
Fairies Ratings:
Build Me A Wonderland by Seanan McGuire- 3 stars
Murmured Under the Moon by Tim Pratt - 4 stars
Bread and Milk and Salt by Sarah Gailey - 4 stars
Just Another Love Story by Kat Howard - 3.5 stars
The Bookcase Expedition by Jeffery Ford - 2.5 stars
Second to the Left and Straight On by Jim Hines - 3 stars
Ostentation of Peacocks by Lila Bowen - 3.25 stars
Adriftica by Maria Dahvana Headley - 4 stars
A Fall Counts Anywhere - 2.5 stars
Average rating for Fairies- 3.3 stars
Robots win!
Quality Time by Ken Liu - 2.5 stars
The Blue Fairy’s Manifesto by Annalen Newitz - 3 stars
Ironheart by Jonathan Maberry - 2.5 stars
Sand and Fury by Mary Robinette Kowal - 3.25 stars
Work Shadow/ Shadow Work by Madeline Ashby - 4 stars
The Buried Giant by Lavie Tidhar - 3.5 stars
Three Robots Experience Objects by John Scalzi - 5 stars
All the Time We’ve Left to Spend by Alyssa Wong - 3.5 stars
To a Cloven Pine by Max Gladstone - 4.5 stars
Average rating for Robots- 3.5 stars
Fairies Ratings:
Build Me A Wonderland by Seanan McGuire- 3 stars
Murmured Under the Moon by Tim Pratt - 4 stars
Bread and Milk and Salt by Sarah Gailey - 4 stars
Just Another Love Story by Kat Howard - 3.5 stars
The Bookcase Expedition by Jeffery Ford - 2.5 stars
Second to the Left and Straight On by Jim Hines - 3 stars
Ostentation of Peacocks by Lila Bowen - 3.25 stars
Adriftica by Maria Dahvana Headley - 4 stars
A Fall Counts Anywhere - 2.5 stars
Average rating for Fairies- 3.3 stars
Robots win!
bookswithzaya's review against another edition
2.0
Stunning cover.
Unfortunately I didn't care about any of the stories. It is a good thing they were all short. I kept waiting and waiting for something to spark an interest.
Unfortunately I didn't care about any of the stories. It is a good thing they were all short. I kept waiting and waiting for something to spark an interest.
saguaros's review against another edition
4.0
I actually didn't dislike any of the stories in this collection, which doesn't happen that often, but here were my faves:
The Blue Fairy Manifesto, by Annalee Newitz (Team Robot)
Bread and Milk and Salt by Sarah Gailey (Team Fairy)
Ironheart, by Jonathan Maberry, (Team Robot)
Work Shadow/Shawdow work, by Madeline Ashby (Team Robot)
Ostentation of Peacocks, by Lila Bowen (Team Fairy)
All the Time We've Left to Spend, by Alyssa Wong (Team Robot)
Adriftica, by Maria Dahvana Headley (Team Fairy)
Even though this makes it 4-3 in favour of Team Robot, I am and always will be Team Fairy first :)
The Blue Fairy Manifesto, by Annalee Newitz (Team Robot)
Bread and Milk and Salt by Sarah Gailey (Team Fairy)
Ironheart, by Jonathan Maberry, (Team Robot)
Work Shadow/Shawdow work, by Madeline Ashby (Team Robot)
Ostentation of Peacocks, by Lila Bowen (Team Fairy)
All the Time We've Left to Spend, by Alyssa Wong (Team Robot)
Adriftica, by Maria Dahvana Headley (Team Fairy)
Even though this makes it 4-3 in favour of Team Robot, I am and always will be Team Fairy first :)
shelf_husk's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0