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alexg01's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
alreadyemily's review against another edition
5.0
Long-time fan-girl of Robin Hobb, first-time Megan Lindholm reader. I *might* like Megan more!!?! Most excellent collection of stories.
mixter86's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
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? No
5.0
rachael2114's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
4.0
shannenlc's review against another edition
3.0
This short story collection comprises of a mixture of stories from Meghan Lindholm and Robin Hobb. It begins with an introduction from Hobb introducing her two author aliases and explaining how she and why she considers Lindholm and Hobb to be two different types of authors telling two different types of stories. Like most people that find this collection, I was brought here by my love for the Realm of the Elderlings series and had never read any of Hobb's works as Lindholm. Each story opens with a short introduction from Hobb/Lindholm explaining the inspiration or context around how/why she came to write the story. I really liked these little insights into Hobb/Lindholm's creative process.
Sadly, I very quickly realised that Lindholm's style and storytelling weren't to my tastes after struggling through the first couple of stories. I then ended up skipping to the three stories written by Hobb that are set in the RotE universe because this is why I sought out the collection. These three stories are Homecoming, The Inheritance and Cat Meat.
- Homecoming
This epistolary story is a series of diary entries telling the story of a woman banished from Jamilia due to her husband's actions and ended up stranded in the Rain Wilds where she and the ragtag group she's with fight to survive and slowly begin to build a settlement in the Rain Wilds.
From a world building perspective, I found this story fascinating. Generally, I find the history of the Rain Wilds and its climate and environment interesting and seeing the experience of these early individuals attempting to build a life for themselves in such a hostile environment was really interesting. The main character is complex and well fleshed out considering how little time we spend with her.
- The Inheritance
Set in Bingtown this tells the story of a young woman who attempts to claim her inheritance with the help of a wizardwood charm.
I found this story to be underwhelming and whilst I liked Hobb's explanation for what inspired the story, taking the story at face value I didn't connect with it that much.
- Cat Meat
Set in Buck, this story follows a peasant woman living in a decaying cottage attempting to keep her and her young son afloat. Her life is turned upside down when her absentee husband returns and starts to disrupt her life and everything she's attempted to build for herself and her son.
Thematically, I love this story as one of a woman and a mother fighting for her child, her independence and her livelihood. The abusive and oppressive nature of the husband is so well done and feels so authentic. But there were some bizarre plot elements here involving the cat that I just couldn't quite get on board with.
Overall, I'm glad I read these three stories as it was fun to be able to return to the RotE universe even if for such a short time. I adore Hobb's writing and storytelling. Homecoming in particular stood out to me as it added another layer to the Rain Wilds history which I'm always interested in learning more about.
Sadly, I very quickly realised that Lindholm's style and storytelling weren't to my tastes after struggling through the first couple of stories. I then ended up skipping to the three stories written by Hobb that are set in the RotE universe because this is why I sought out the collection. These three stories are Homecoming, The Inheritance and Cat Meat.
- Homecoming
This epistolary story is a series of diary entries telling the story of a woman banished from Jamilia due to her husband's actions and ended up stranded in the Rain Wilds where she and the ragtag group she's with fight to survive and slowly begin to build a settlement in the Rain Wilds.
From a world building perspective, I found this story fascinating. Generally, I find the history of the Rain Wilds and its climate and environment interesting and seeing the experience of these early individuals attempting to build a life for themselves in such a hostile environment was really interesting. The main character is complex and well fleshed out considering how little time we spend with her.
- The Inheritance
Set in Bingtown this tells the story of a young woman who attempts to claim her inheritance with the help of a wizardwood charm.
I found this story to be underwhelming and whilst I liked Hobb's explanation for what inspired the story, taking the story at face value I didn't connect with it that much.
- Cat Meat
Set in Buck, this story follows a peasant woman living in a decaying cottage attempting to keep her and her young son afloat. Her life is turned upside down when her absentee husband returns and starts to disrupt her life and everything she's attempted to build for herself and her son.
Thematically, I love this story as one of a woman and a mother fighting for her child, her independence and her livelihood. The abusive and oppressive nature of the husband is so well done and feels so authentic. But there were some bizarre plot elements here involving the cat that I just couldn't quite get on board with.
Overall, I'm glad I read these three stories as it was fun to be able to return to the RotE universe even if for such a short time. I adore Hobb's writing and storytelling. Homecoming in particular stood out to me as it added another layer to the Rain Wilds history which I'm always interested in learning more about.
sohva's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
A good story collection from Robin Hobb! Only about half of the book relates to the realm of elderlings which surprised me a bit, but turned out not to be a problem. It was interesting to see her writing more sci-fi things too. The story about settling in Rain Wilds was my favourite.
books_n_bananas's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
medium-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
5.0
briely's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
4.0
Generally preferred the Hobb stories over the Lindholm ones, but that’s to be expected as I’m already a fan of the RotE world. Was really interesting witnessing the origin of the Rain Wilds people.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Death, and Infidelity
annamcc_reads's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
lighthearted
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-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
5.0