scottishben's review against another edition
5.0
Caitlin Kiernan is one of my favorite writers and this collection features many excellent stories. In her second best of collection due out later in 2015 over half of these stories feature which gives an idea as to the quality of these stories compared with her overall work.
All the stories are either dark or weird or both with a mix of myth retellings, SF, fantasy and contemporary weird/dark tales.
So far I have read the following
The Maltese Unicorn - Kiernan sometimes embeds short fiction in her novels and I read this as part of the second Quinn book she wrote under a different name and then used the McGuffin in the story as the McGuffin for that Quinn book - had mixed feelings about the Quinn book and this coloured my experience of the story. Will need to reread to judge it on its merits but I am sure if approached in the right mood there is fun to be had here
Ape's Wife - didnt leave much of an impression on first read but given how many people love and talk about the story I probably need to give it a second try
Random thoughts before a Fatal Crash - The artist featured in the story plays a big part (though not directly) in her novel The Drowning Girl so I was really reading this with that perspective...Then part of the novel visits Inverness and the surrounding area where I grew up so I got a bit distracted reading this - Still a very well written and satisfying tale
Hydraguros - I am not massively into the Neo Noir SF of this story. In SF I like to get a sense of wonder, extrapolation, different world etc - with Kiernan SF is more a setting for the mood and atmosphere of the story. It was genuinely creepy and strange. Best approached I think like a Lynch movie and not trying to understand or make sense of but very satisfying.
Slouching Towards.... - Kiernan does interesting things with SF linguistics but I wasnt in the mood to take that journey with her and it distracted me - still an interesting story.
Tall Bodies - really enjoyed this short, strange story - Inexplicable, weird and raises more questions than it answers
The Steam Dancer - read and dont really remember, need to reread
One Tree Hill - Kiernan at her best - this was a wonderfully creepy story that I felt covered similar ground to her novel The Red Tree in some respects. Like many of her stories there was an unreliable narrator and elements of autobiography buried in and enriching the fiction
Tidal Forces - A story that would appeal to both horror and fantasy readers and I found the writing here particularly effocative and strong. Although I didnt react to this as personally as I have to a couple of her stories I think this is one of her best and one of my favorites
The Sea-Troll's daughter - utterly brilliant! Quite different from the other stories and many readers of fantasy will love this even if they do not normally like Kiernan. This is set in either long ago in our world or in a similar secondary fantasy world. It is a great example of editors asking for something a little bit different from a writer and getting something wonderful that wouldnt have otherwise happened. Some of kiernans work can be a bit jarring and confusing to read where as this was much more straightforward. A sort of feminist retelling of beowulf.
All the stories are either dark or weird or both with a mix of myth retellings, SF, fantasy and contemporary weird/dark tales.
So far I have read the following
The Maltese Unicorn - Kiernan sometimes embeds short fiction in her novels and I read this as part of the second Quinn book she wrote under a different name and then used the McGuffin in the story as the McGuffin for that Quinn book - had mixed feelings about the Quinn book and this coloured my experience of the story. Will need to reread to judge it on its merits but I am sure if approached in the right mood there is fun to be had here
Ape's Wife - didnt leave much of an impression on first read but given how many people love and talk about the story I probably need to give it a second try
Random thoughts before a Fatal Crash - The artist featured in the story plays a big part (though not directly) in her novel The Drowning Girl so I was really reading this with that perspective...Then part of the novel visits Inverness and the surrounding area where I grew up so I got a bit distracted reading this - Still a very well written and satisfying tale
Hydraguros - I am not massively into the Neo Noir SF of this story. In SF I like to get a sense of wonder, extrapolation, different world etc - with Kiernan SF is more a setting for the mood and atmosphere of the story. It was genuinely creepy and strange. Best approached I think like a Lynch movie and not trying to understand or make sense of but very satisfying.
Slouching Towards.... - Kiernan does interesting things with SF linguistics but I wasnt in the mood to take that journey with her and it distracted me - still an interesting story.
Tall Bodies - really enjoyed this short, strange story - Inexplicable, weird and raises more questions than it answers
The Steam Dancer - read and dont really remember, need to reread
One Tree Hill - Kiernan at her best - this was a wonderfully creepy story that I felt covered similar ground to her novel The Red Tree in some respects. Like many of her stories there was an unreliable narrator and elements of autobiography buried in and enriching the fiction
Tidal Forces - A story that would appeal to both horror and fantasy readers and I found the writing here particularly effocative and strong. Although I didnt react to this as personally as I have to a couple of her stories I think this is one of her best and one of my favorites
The Sea-Troll's daughter - utterly brilliant! Quite different from the other stories and many readers of fantasy will love this even if they do not normally like Kiernan. This is set in either long ago in our world or in a similar secondary fantasy world. It is a great example of editors asking for something a little bit different from a writer and getting something wonderful that wouldnt have otherwise happened. Some of kiernans work can be a bit jarring and confusing to read where as this was much more straightforward. A sort of feminist retelling of beowulf.
moonlit_shelves's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
jsmithborne's review against another edition
4.0
Some really amazing stories here, the kind that will float up into my mind at odd times probably for the rest of my life. I especially loved the ones that tied into [b:The Drowning Girl|11515328|The Drowning Girl|Caitlín R. Kiernan|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1404243835s/11515328.jpg|16451704].
m_is_for_awesome's review against another edition
1.0
This might be brilliant for other readers but for me it fell flat. The worlds are lovely but the stories just didn't hit the right notes for me.
littleowllost's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
invisibleninjacat's review against another edition
4.0
A mix of fantastic and puzzlingly creepy stories which I liked to varying degrees. Some were absolutely fabulous and others fell a little flat, for me.
scarlettsims's review against another edition
4.0
I'm in the habit of not usually giving more than three stars to collections, mainly because I feel they can be hit or miss and while I might like some of the stories, I don't like all of them enough to give a 4-star rating. However, I really enjoyed the majority of the stories in here and the ones I didn't love, I still thought were pretty good.
My favorite was probably The Tall Men. It had a great creepy vibe with nothing ever really explained. The title story may have been my least favorite, but I can appreciate wanting to explore your own headcanon or think about how things in a favorite work could have gone differently.
The stories range in genre from Steampunk to post-apocalyptic to urban fantasy to just plain weird. Many of them had hints of Lovecraft, if Lovecraft were a queer woman. I think the ones with a more Lovecraftian tone were the ones I liked best, and they definitely made me want to read some of Kiernan's other work.
My favorite was probably The Tall Men. It had a great creepy vibe with nothing ever really explained. The title story may have been my least favorite, but I can appreciate wanting to explore your own headcanon or think about how things in a favorite work could have gone differently.
The stories range in genre from Steampunk to post-apocalyptic to urban fantasy to just plain weird. Many of them had hints of Lovecraft, if Lovecraft were a queer woman. I think the ones with a more Lovecraftian tone were the ones I liked best, and they definitely made me want to read some of Kiernan's other work.
ctgt's review against another edition
4.0
It's an awful cliche, I know, but also a point I cannot stress strongly enough. There are sights and experiences to which the blunt and finite tool of human language are not equal.
Upon further review........I upped this to 4 stars. As I was going over the table of contents to point out the stories I really enjoyed, I came to the realization that there were only two or three that I didn't really care for. So a hit rate of ten out of thirteen really deserves more than three stars.
In the introduction the author talks about enjoying diversity in types of stories in short collections that she had read and wanted to bring that same sensibility to her set. From sci/fi to steampunk to weird to horror, Keirnan touches on many different genres and displays an imagination that shows no bounds. Stretching from a dancer with steam powered appendages to a twist on Ann Darrow and her view of Kong, I found the range of stories fascinating.
By far my favorite story was Tidal Forces which involves two women and what happens to one of them after a "shadow" passes over her. I found it to be a fantastic concept and it is one of the best shorts I have read this year. Recommended if you enjoy collections that aren't "themed".
I leave behind shadows for light. Wondrous and terrifying glimpses of the extraordinary for the mundane.
Upon further review........I upped this to 4 stars. As I was going over the table of contents to point out the stories I really enjoyed, I came to the realization that there were only two or three that I didn't really care for. So a hit rate of ten out of thirteen really deserves more than three stars.
In the introduction the author talks about enjoying diversity in types of stories in short collections that she had read and wanted to bring that same sensibility to her set. From sci/fi to steampunk to weird to horror, Keirnan touches on many different genres and displays an imagination that shows no bounds. Stretching from a dancer with steam powered appendages to a twist on Ann Darrow and her view of Kong, I found the range of stories fascinating.
By far my favorite story was Tidal Forces which involves two women and what happens to one of them after a "shadow" passes over her. I found it to be a fantastic concept and it is one of the best shorts I have read this year. Recommended if you enjoy collections that aren't "themed".
I leave behind shadows for light. Wondrous and terrifying glimpses of the extraordinary for the mundane.
nakedsteve's review against another edition
3.0
A collection of Kiernan's shorts, this book is ... interesting.
Some of the shorts are excellent, and some confusing. It seems to me that the stories at the start of the book are generally better than those toward the end, which has the odd effect of making you want to read more, but disappointed in the quality by the end.
And "quality" is the wrong word. Kiernan writes in a dense style that's a slap in the face to those who enjoy reading straightforward things. A few of the stories I immediately started over when I finished, because I just didn't feel like I got it the first time around. So were the things I didn't like low in "quality"? I suspect not. I suspect I just didn't want to spend the brainpower to give them the treatment that Kiernan expected me to.
Ultimately, most of the stories weren't my cup of tea, but it's clear Kiernan has talent for what she does.
3 of 5 stars.
Some of the shorts are excellent, and some confusing. It seems to me that the stories at the start of the book are generally better than those toward the end, which has the odd effect of making you want to read more, but disappointed in the quality by the end.
And "quality" is the wrong word. Kiernan writes in a dense style that's a slap in the face to those who enjoy reading straightforward things. A few of the stories I immediately started over when I finished, because I just didn't feel like I got it the first time around. So were the things I didn't like low in "quality"? I suspect not. I suspect I just didn't want to spend the brainpower to give them the treatment that Kiernan expected me to.
Ultimately, most of the stories weren't my cup of tea, but it's clear Kiernan has talent for what she does.
3 of 5 stars.
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