stoicloofah's review against another edition
5.0
I found this collection at exactly the right time a year ago shortly after finishing several epic fantasy novels, and it was refreshing to read stories with interesting and varied premises that didn't feel the need to fill hundreds of pages with description and drama. Like any collection, it has its ups and downs, but after reading half of it, I was instantly sucked back into sci-fi short stories. I thought I had found my genre.
And then I read a copy of Analog and one of Dozois's anthologies and realized that it wasn't all great. There were short stories that I didn't like, and I wondered if the first half of this book was a fluke. I ended up getting my hands on this collection from the library again, finished the second half, and realized that Horton just happens to find stories that I love. "A Non-Hero’s Guide to The Road of Monsters" was a standout, but I really enjoyed all of it.
I don't give out many 5 star ratings, but this collection really did just catch me at the right time, and I'll keep an eye out for more edited by Horton.
And then I read a copy of Analog and one of Dozois's anthologies and realized that it wasn't all great. There were short stories that I didn't like, and I wondered if the first half of this book was a fluke. I ended up getting my hands on this collection from the library again, finished the second half, and realized that Horton just happens to find stories that I love. "A Non-Hero’s Guide to The Road of Monsters" was a standout, but I really enjoyed all of it.
I don't give out many 5 star ratings, but this collection really did just catch me at the right time, and I'll keep an eye out for more edited by Horton.
wild_eyed_apricot's review against another edition
4.0
Anthologies can be difficult, but this one is an excellent mix.
nwhyte's review against another edition
4.0
https://nwhyte.livejournal.com/3150125.html
Thirty stories here; I had read three of them before, two of which I ranked bottom of their category in the 2010 Hugos but the third, Lucius Shepard's "Sylgarmo's Proclamation", I rather enjoyed. Most of them I enjoyed a lot more, with a particular shout to Robert Charles Wilson's "This Peaceable Land, Or, The Unbearable Vision of Harriet Beecher Stowe", in which the American Civil War never happened and slavery is abolished by more unpleasant means; Anne Leckie's "The Endangered Camp", with spacefaring dinosaurs; R. Garcia y Robertson's "Wife-Stealing Time", set among barbarians on Barsoom; and best and creepiest of the bunch, Kelly Link's "Secret Identity" where a teenager's attempt to rendezvous with her much older lover turns into an unexpected encounter with superheroes.
Thirty stories here; I had read three of them before, two of which I ranked bottom of their category in the 2010 Hugos but the third, Lucius Shepard's "Sylgarmo's Proclamation", I rather enjoyed. Most of them I enjoyed a lot more, with a particular shout to Robert Charles Wilson's "This Peaceable Land, Or, The Unbearable Vision of Harriet Beecher Stowe", in which the American Civil War never happened and slavery is abolished by more unpleasant means; Anne Leckie's "The Endangered Camp", with spacefaring dinosaurs; R. Garcia y Robertson's "Wife-Stealing Time", set among barbarians on Barsoom; and best and creepiest of the bunch, Kelly Link's "Secret Identity" where a teenager's attempt to rendezvous with her much older lover turns into an unexpected encounter with superheroes.
lmwanak's review against another edition
3.0
It's neat that I've met (and talked face to face) with 7 authors in this collection. I've also already heard half the stories on Escapepod or Podcastle. It was nice to read these stories and linger over the prose (such as Eros, Phillipe, Agape--read it on Tor, heard it on EscapePod, but reading it in print helped me catch nuances i missed. Same thing with Catherynne M. Valente's The Radiant Car Thy Sparrows Drew).
Stories that stuck with me:
The Persistence of Memory by Paul Park: normally I hate meta fiction, but this finally elevated it to an art form. Read it several times and something else revealed itself to me each time.
Technicolor by John Langan: very spooky retelling of Poe's The Masque of the Red Death. Never realized colors could be so deadly. Or lectures for that matter.
Wife-stealing Time by R. Garcia y Robertson: wry tale that combines friskyn females and hunting beasts
The Death of Sugar Daddy by Toiya Kristen Finley: invoked memories of my childhood
Mongoose by Elizabeth Bear and Sarah Monette: Heard this one on Drabblecast. A delight to read in print.
Secret Identity: if I was to ever get audio equipment, I would beg Podcastle to let me read this. Also, Kelly Link, Kelly Link.
Stories that stuck with me:
The Persistence of Memory by Paul Park: normally I hate meta fiction, but this finally elevated it to an art form. Read it several times and something else revealed itself to me each time.
Technicolor by John Langan: very spooky retelling of Poe's The Masque of the Red Death. Never realized colors could be so deadly. Or lectures for that matter.
Wife-stealing Time by R. Garcia y Robertson: wry tale that combines friskyn females and hunting beasts
The Death of Sugar Daddy by Toiya Kristen Finley: invoked memories of my childhood
Mongoose by Elizabeth Bear and Sarah Monette: Heard this one on Drabblecast. A delight to read in print.
Secret Identity: if I was to ever get audio equipment, I would beg Podcastle to let me read this. Also, Kelly Link, Kelly Link.
librarianmage's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
relaxing
sad
tense
medium-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
4.5
bucketheadmary's review against another edition
3.0
The stories in here were quite a varied assortment. I'm sure that some of the ones I thought were "meh" were other folks' favorites, but I reserve the right to not like them.
una_10bananas's review
adventurous
reflective
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
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