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librarian_barbie's review against another edition
5.0
One of the few books to get me fully invested during my reading slump. Each story was amazingly well told. I loved it.
potatoaficionado's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
mysterious
slow-paced
4.0
Mainly traditional short stories, but I liked that there were a few different formats - including a review of an art exhibit featuring fictional artists from a fictional art movement.
Favorites:
The Ashes of Vivian Firestrike by Kristen Koopman
The Last Good Time to Be Alive by Waverly SM
8-Bit Free Will by John Wiswell
Runners Up:
Everquest by Naomi Kanaki
Salt and Iron by Gemma Isherwood
Monsters Never Leave You by Carlie St. George
Favorites:
The Ashes of Vivian Firestrike by Kristen Koopman
The Last Good Time to Be Alive by Waverly SM
8-Bit Free Will by John Wiswell
Runners Up:
Everquest by Naomi Kanaki
Salt and Iron by Gemma Isherwood
Monsters Never Leave You by Carlie St. George
alexfromatlanta's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.5
ryttu3k's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
rynaissanceenby's review against another edition
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
This book is a lovely collection of all sorts of queer stories. Reading it really resonated with things I've experienced, and also helped me understand the variety of queer experiences better. Some of the writing was not as strong as I was hoping, but all the stories were good. My favorite was definitely The Wedding After the Bomb.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child abuse, War, Bullying, Emotional abuse, Transphobia, Hate crime, Medical trauma, Death, Dysphoria, Body horror, Grief, Deadnaming, Homophobia, and Death of parent
sydneyraereads's review against another edition
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
This anthology is well-curated. There are tales involving a video game, movie, monsters, witches, a plum farmer, immigration, hiking, trains, the apocalypse, AI, joy, love, self-doubt, fury, and more. The through line of the stories is obviously being queer and being speculative, but they are very diverse in focus. This made the collection engaging and avoided unnecessary redundancy. I would have preferred some of the stories in a different order during my reading experience, but I am sure every reader may feel that way. Some of these stories stood out as favorites and I would reread them in lieu of having a full book to pick up with the characters and story.
Listed below is my star rating, story title, author, and (the order I would've liked them in).
*3.5* "Escaping Dr. Markoff" by Gabriela Santiago (16)
*4* "The Currant Dumas" by L.D. Lewis (11)
*4* "The Ashes of Vivian Firestrike" by Kristen Koopman (6)
*3.5* "Portrait of Three Women with an Owl" by Gwen C. Katz (3)
*4* "If You Take My Meaning" by Charlie Jane Anders (9)
*3.5* "A Voyage to Queensthroat" by Anya Johanna DeNiro (13)
*3* "Body, Remember" by Nicasio Andres Reed (7)
*3* "Rat and Finch Are Friends" by Innocent Chizaram Ilo (1)
*4* "The Last Good Time to Be Alive" by Waverly SM (4)
*2.5* "Everquest" by Naomi Kanaki (2)
*2* "8-Bit Free Will" by John Wiswell (8)
*5* "The Wedding After the Bomb" by Brendan Williams-Childs (15)
*5* "Thin Red Jellies" by Lina Rather (10)
*3.5* "Salt and Iron" by Gemma Isherwood (5)
*5* "Monsters Never Leave you" by Carlie St. George (14)
*2* "To Balance the Weight of Khalem" by R.B. Lemberg (12)
Listed below is my star rating, story title, author, and (the order I would've liked them in).
*3.5* "Escaping Dr. Markoff" by Gabriela Santiago (16)
*4* "The Currant Dumas" by L.D. Lewis (11)
*4* "The Ashes of Vivian Firestrike" by Kristen Koopman (6)
*3.5* "Portrait of Three Women with an Owl" by Gwen C. Katz (3)
*4* "If You Take My Meaning" by Charlie Jane Anders (9)
*3.5* "A Voyage to Queensthroat" by Anya Johanna DeNiro (13)
*3* "Body, Remember" by Nicasio Andres Reed (7)
*3* "Rat and Finch Are Friends" by Innocent Chizaram Ilo (1)
*4* "The Last Good Time to Be Alive" by Waverly SM (4)
*2.5* "Everquest" by Naomi Kanaki (2)
*2* "8-Bit Free Will" by John Wiswell (8)
*5* "The Wedding After the Bomb" by Brendan Williams-Childs (15)
*5* "Thin Red Jellies" by Lina Rather (10)
*3.5* "Salt and Iron" by Gemma Isherwood (5)
*5* "Monsters Never Leave you" by Carlie St. George (14)
*2* "To Balance the Weight of Khalem" by R.B. Lemberg (12)
maeve_spry's review against another edition
3.0
A queer collection of stories rather than a collection of queer stories. Too many short collections of words without much story attached; or, where there is story, too many missing beginnings or conclusions or comprehensible characters.
nowthiskid's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5