josb's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
2.5
This one was a bit of a miss for me. Many of these stories took me over an hour to read and felt like the pacing was a little off. There were a number of stories that were from a previously established world by that author, I found that it was hard to connect with these the most. Individual star counts are below beside the title names.
Radiant - N.L Bates ****
Superhero story with a "super" that works in waste management tasked to remove some hazardous waste in the ocean. Interesting take and kept my attention.
Jellyfish Lovepotion - J.S. Fields ****
Carpenter gets a spot on the next ship leaving for a hospitable planet but the morning of the flight strange occurrences take place that threaten to delay the departure. The story is a little cliche but had a range of emotions and a bittersweet classic sci fi feel.
Thorns and Fur - William C. Tracy **
Two factions, one resembling bears and one resembling humans, fight over control of an uninhabited island. A warrior and scientist, on opposite sides fight, a growing attraction with one another. Just a little too weird for me. The one character was described with bear features, such as paws, but then also referred to as having fingers. There was also a scene where the characters were drugged to the point of not fully remembering they had sex before. Not my cup of tea.
Dew Diligence - Robin C.M Duncan **
Woman who recently suffered a breakup is transported to a fae realm where her grandmothers jam is stolen. Fearful of the effects of the jam on the fairyland inhabitants she teams up with another fairy to collect the sweet concoction. It felt like the story could have been refined a bit more. There were so many scene transitions that basically ended with "go here to continue your journey". I would have liked to see those cut down a bit and instead focus on the chemistry brewing between the two main characters. As it was signals seemed mixed the attraction seemed rushed, and the physical affection moved way too fast for me.
Killer Trees and Second Chances - Sara Codair ***
A demon hunter must team up with her ex to find her cousin, the source of her power, while navigating a cannibalistic forest. The second chance romance was a bit weak but there was a bunch of action that made the story move fairly quickly. It was part of a previous series so getting used to the history of the established world was a bit slow.
How to Steal a Planet - N.L Bates **
Captain steers her crew to a planet that supports life. This one had an odd issue with pacing. The story started off way too far back before they find the planet. The tension is resolved very quickly at the end that it just did not feel satisfying.
Brie and the Marsh Kraken - Sara Codair ***
Woman teams up with a cryptid to stop an evil corporation from conducting experiments in the marshland in their hometown. This was the spiciest story in the whole collection and features tentacles in the steamy parts. The story overall was fine however there was an issue with some of the pacing. The car chase scene did not seem to add to the excitement at the end and could have been summarized for the same amount of effectiveness.
Down Among the Mushrooms - William C. Tracy **
Construction worker is behind on building an expansion for their colony and teams up with another scientist to solve the problem. The pacing felt off on this one, there was lots of description of this colony and how it worked and then the end just kind of happened. Felt like I was reading an allegory to boomers in society and how society no longer needs them.
The Bibliothek Betrayal - Robin C.M. Duncan *
A professor continues the mission started by her lover in hopes they might reunite. There was too much happening here. When were were not following the professor's perspective we were following a person named Quirk hired to help complete the mission. I had no interest in the Quirk perspective and the "twist" for the professor perspective was too convoluted. The story itself was not terrible after I got the whole picture, but it could have benefited from a little less is more.
Rings - J.S. Fields ***
A glimpse of what happens 3 years after the Tales from Ardulum's Final Chapter. This was more of a catchup story that I probably would have appreciated if I was aware of the series. As a standalone it was a bit heavy on the lore that I had no prior reference for. The story was simple and sweet.
Radiant - N.L Bates ****
Superhero story with a "super" that works in waste management tasked to remove some hazardous waste in the ocean. Interesting take and kept my attention.
Jellyfish Lovepotion - J.S. Fields ****
Carpenter gets a spot on the next ship leaving for a hospitable planet but the morning of the flight strange occurrences take place that threaten to delay the departure. The story is a little cliche but had a range of emotions and a bittersweet classic sci fi feel.
Thorns and Fur - William C. Tracy **
Two factions, one resembling bears and one resembling humans, fight over control of an uninhabited island. A warrior and scientist, on opposite sides fight, a growing attraction with one another. Just a little too weird for me. The one character was described with bear features, such as paws, but then also referred to as having fingers. There was also a scene where the characters were drugged to the point of not fully remembering they had sex before. Not my cup of tea.
Dew Diligence - Robin C.M Duncan **
Woman who recently suffered a breakup is transported to a fae realm where her grandmothers jam is stolen. Fearful of the effects of the jam on the fairyland inhabitants she teams up with another fairy to collect the sweet concoction. It felt like the story could have been refined a bit more. There were so many scene transitions that basically ended with "go here to continue your journey". I would have liked to see those cut down a bit and instead focus on the chemistry brewing between the two main characters. As it was signals seemed mixed the attraction seemed rushed, and the physical affection moved way too fast for me.
Killer Trees and Second Chances - Sara Codair ***
A demon hunter must team up with her ex to find her cousin, the source of her power, while navigating a cannibalistic forest. The second chance romance was a bit weak but there was a bunch of action that made the story move fairly quickly. It was part of a previous series so getting used to the history of the established world was a bit slow.
How to Steal a Planet - N.L Bates **
Captain steers her crew to a planet that supports life. This one had an odd issue with pacing. The story started off way too far back before they find the planet. The tension is resolved very quickly at the end that it just did not feel satisfying.
Brie and the Marsh Kraken - Sara Codair ***
Woman teams up with a cryptid to stop an evil corporation from conducting experiments in the marshland in their hometown. This was the spiciest story in the whole collection and features tentacles in the steamy parts. The story overall was fine however there was an issue with some of the pacing. The car chase scene did not seem to add to the excitement at the end and could have been summarized for the same amount of effectiveness.
Down Among the Mushrooms - William C. Tracy **
Construction worker is behind on building an expansion for their colony and teams up with another scientist to solve the problem. The pacing felt off on this one, there was lots of description of this colony and how it worked and then the end just kind of happened. Felt like I was reading an allegory to boomers in society and how society no longer needs them.
The Bibliothek Betrayal - Robin C.M. Duncan *
A professor continues the mission started by her lover in hopes they might reunite. There was too much happening here. When were were not following the professor's perspective we were following a person named Quirk hired to help complete the mission. I had no interest in the Quirk perspective and the "twist" for the professor perspective was too convoluted. The story itself was not terrible after I got the whole picture, but it could have benefited from a little less is more.
Rings - J.S. Fields ***
A glimpse of what happens 3 years after the Tales from Ardulum's Final Chapter. This was more of a catchup story that I probably would have appreciated if I was aware of the series. As a standalone it was a bit heavy on the lore that I had no prior reference for. The story was simple and sweet.
mimosaeyes's review
3.0
Here's the thing about short story collections: I usually like the stories to differing degrees, and so my overall rating often averages out to a middling 3 stars. Which feels very mean to the stories I liked! And there are several of those in this particular anthology.
My absolute favourite is probably "Jellyfish Lovepotion". It has such a great atmosphere of suspense, balanced out by the flirty dynamic between the two characters - which is in turn shot through with emotional weight, given the context of what's happening on Earth and how it has affected them. Also I just love space fungi and 'faulty' AIs, I guess. (The latter is definitely a symptom of having listened to Wolf 359.)
On the other hand, most of the other stories are just middling to me, and I actively dislike a couple of them. The introduction promises that the stories have been edited to avoid "fall[ing] into any 'her breasts breasted boobily' traps", yet "Thorns and Fur" seems to have gotten through the cracks. Honestly, as a bisexual woman, that one doesn't even read queer to me.
I often found it more difficult to feel invested in the stories set in fictional universes that the author has already developed in a book or a whole series. The exception to this rule is the last story, "Rings" - I don't know these two characters and I don't already ship them, but it's just so cute! Ending off on this story was definitely a good call by the editors.
Honourable mentions to "Radiant" (superpowers put to mundane yet important work is such a concept) and "How to Steal a Planet" (be gay, do crimes - in space!) as well as the thread of eco-terrorism running through several other stories.
I realise the two stories I like most are by the same author, J. S. Fields, while the two runners-up are by N. L. Bates. I'm not familiar with any of the writers featured in this collection, and I didn't pay attention to the names as I was reading. So I've inadvertently done a blind test and maybe discovered a new writer or two to check out, thanks to this collection!
I received an advance review copy via BookSirens for free, and I am leaving this honest review voluntarily.
My absolute favourite is probably "Jellyfish Lovepotion". It has such a great atmosphere of suspense, balanced out by the flirty dynamic between the two characters - which is in turn shot through with emotional weight, given the context of what's happening on Earth and how it has affected them. Also I just love space fungi and 'faulty' AIs, I guess. (The latter is definitely a symptom of having listened to Wolf 359.)
On the other hand, most of the other stories are just middling to me, and I actively dislike a couple of them. The introduction promises that the stories have been edited to avoid "fall[ing] into any 'her breasts breasted boobily' traps", yet "Thorns and Fur" seems to have gotten through the cracks. Honestly, as a bisexual woman, that one doesn't even read queer to me.
I often found it more difficult to feel invested in the stories set in fictional universes that the author has already developed in a book or a whole series. The exception to this rule is the last story, "Rings" - I don't know these two characters and I don't already ship them, but it's just so cute! Ending off on this story was definitely a good call by the editors.
Honourable mentions to "Radiant" (superpowers put to mundane yet important work is such a concept) and "How to Steal a Planet" (be gay, do crimes - in space!) as well as the thread of eco-terrorism running through several other stories.
I realise the two stories I like most are by the same author, J. S. Fields, while the two runners-up are by N. L. Bates. I'm not familiar with any of the writers featured in this collection, and I didn't pay attention to the names as I was reading. So I've inadvertently done a blind test and maybe discovered a new writer or two to check out, thanks to this collection!
I received an advance review copy via BookSirens for free, and I am leaving this honest review voluntarily.
siclarke's review
5.0
This came up in my ARC list recently. Part of the tagline says: 'If you like diverse stories with lesbian heroines practicing science'. Well, that had me sold.
My favourite is Jellyfish Lovepotion by JS Fields. Andrea is a snarky scientist about to leave Earth for the last time when things – as they so often do – go awry. Dew Diligence was a close second.
This brilliantly diverse anthology runs the gamut from silly and fun to eerily prescient.
Radiant by NL Bates
Anna and Chris work together to clear away discarded radioactive material off Vancouver Island.
A superhero story set in Canada. For me the focus was too much on romance and not enough in character or plot (but that’s just me)."
Jellyfish Lovepotion by JS Fields
Andrea don’t really want to leave Earth, but gets called up at short notice to join the generation ship, Lovepotion.
Romance takes a back seat to both plot and character development in this high-stakes yet snarky tale. I really enjoyed this one.
Thorns and Fur by William C Tracy
Kamuli and Bhon are on opposing sides of a war when they meet. But that can't stop the intense attraction between the pair.
Dew Diligence: The First Fairyl@nd Story by Robin C.M. Duncan
Reeling from a bad breakup, Julia goes to stay with her grandmother in Berks for a bit.
A really fun tale with a wonderful combination of old-fashioned whimsy and legal geekery.
Killer Trees and Second Chances: An Evanstar Chronicles Story by Sara Codair
This one didn’t vibe with me, so I skipped over most of it. That’s probably because it’s set after the end of a series I’ve not read.
How to Steal a Planet by N.L. Bates
As a newly minted captain, Mae is assigned to a small mining ship. When they discover an uncharted planet and her brand new crew mutinies on her, things get weird quickly.
Brie and the Marsh Kraken by Sara Codair
Brie returns to her childhood home to find her childhood crush, Gretchen. eager to reconnect. Oh, and Gretchen’s a kraken.
Overall well-written and engaging, but the fact Brie doesn’t even bat an eyelid when she discovers Gretchen’s a mythical monster took me out of the story for a moment.
Down Among the Mushrooms by William C. Tracy
Agetha’s leading the work crew to build the new zeta radian in the colony on Lida. Management want it done ASAP, but the planet’s plant life has other plans.
This story took a while to get off the ground, but once it did, it was excellent. The science felt a bit iffy, but the struggles were all too real.
The Bibliothek Betrayal: A Quirk and Moth Debacle by Robin C.M. Duncan
Separately, both Cassie and Quirk are running from their part mistakes and successes.
The lack of dialogue tags or easy-to follow indicators made this one tough for me … which is a shame as it’s seems like a great story.
Rings: An Ardulan Tale by JS Fields
Atalant and Emn have won their wars and settled into their new life on Ardulum. Atalant is toying with the idea of proposing to Emn – but first she has to deal with outbreaks of both koalas and fruit.
I definitely got the sense this would be a lovely little wrap-up to their story – for readers who knew the characters.
I received an advance review copy via BookSirens for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
My favourite is Jellyfish Lovepotion by JS Fields. Andrea is a snarky scientist about to leave Earth for the last time when things – as they so often do – go awry. Dew Diligence was a close second.
This brilliantly diverse anthology runs the gamut from silly and fun to eerily prescient.
Radiant by NL Bates
Anna and Chris work together to clear away discarded radioactive material off Vancouver Island.
A superhero story set in Canada. For me the focus was too much on romance and not enough in character or plot (but that’s just me)."
Jellyfish Lovepotion by JS Fields
Andrea don’t really want to leave Earth, but gets called up at short notice to join the generation ship, Lovepotion.
Romance takes a back seat to both plot and character development in this high-stakes yet snarky tale. I really enjoyed this one.
Thorns and Fur by William C Tracy
Kamuli and Bhon are on opposing sides of a war when they meet. But that can't stop the intense attraction between the pair.
Dew Diligence: The First Fairyl@nd Story by Robin C.M. Duncan
Reeling from a bad breakup, Julia goes to stay with her grandmother in Berks for a bit.
A really fun tale with a wonderful combination of old-fashioned whimsy and legal geekery.
Killer Trees and Second Chances: An Evanstar Chronicles Story by Sara Codair
This one didn’t vibe with me, so I skipped over most of it. That’s probably because it’s set after the end of a series I’ve not read.
How to Steal a Planet by N.L. Bates
As a newly minted captain, Mae is assigned to a small mining ship. When they discover an uncharted planet and her brand new crew mutinies on her, things get weird quickly.
Brie and the Marsh Kraken by Sara Codair
Brie returns to her childhood home to find her childhood crush, Gretchen. eager to reconnect. Oh, and Gretchen’s a kraken.
Overall well-written and engaging, but the fact Brie doesn’t even bat an eyelid when she discovers Gretchen’s a mythical monster took me out of the story for a moment.
Down Among the Mushrooms by William C. Tracy
Agetha’s leading the work crew to build the new zeta radian in the colony on Lida. Management want it done ASAP, but the planet’s plant life has other plans.
This story took a while to get off the ground, but once it did, it was excellent. The science felt a bit iffy, but the struggles were all too real.
The Bibliothek Betrayal: A Quirk and Moth Debacle by Robin C.M. Duncan
Separately, both Cassie and Quirk are running from their part mistakes and successes.
The lack of dialogue tags or easy-to follow indicators made this one tough for me … which is a shame as it’s seems like a great story.
Rings: An Ardulan Tale by JS Fields
Atalant and Emn have won their wars and settled into their new life on Ardulum. Atalant is toying with the idea of proposing to Emn – but first she has to deal with outbreaks of both koalas and fruit.
I definitely got the sense this would be a lovely little wrap-up to their story – for readers who knew the characters.
I received an advance review copy via BookSirens for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
judeinthestars's review
5.0
4.5⭐️ – I always hope, when I read a collection or an anthology, that I’ll like more than one story. I’m happy to say I found something to like in every story in Distant Gardens and will add all the authors I didn’t already know to my list of authors I want to read more by.
There are ten stories in this collection, written by five authors, each offering a standalone story and one linked to previous works. There are murderous AIs, sneaky spores, fairies, krakens, scientists of all species and genders, mutinies, and all sorts of uncooperative trees and fungi. All with kickass sapphic heroines, including superheroines. A word of warning though: there’s a lot more gore than romance (but there’s romance too).
A couple of stories felt slightly too long, and one was a bit hard to get into without already knowing the universe. Readers who haven’t read J.S. Fields’ Ardulum series might feel the same way when reading the author’s koala offering, which I already knew and like a lot. There’s an easy fix, however: read the Ardulum books, they’re awesome.
Fields’ Jellyfish Lovepotion was one of my favourite stories in this collection, along with Sara Codair’s Brie and the Marsh Kraken and How to Steal a Planet by N.L. Bates.
I received a copy from the publisher and I am voluntarily leaving a review.
There are ten stories in this collection, written by five authors, each offering a standalone story and one linked to previous works. There are murderous AIs, sneaky spores, fairies, krakens, scientists of all species and genders, mutinies, and all sorts of uncooperative trees and fungi. All with kickass sapphic heroines, including superheroines. A word of warning though: there’s a lot more gore than romance (but there’s romance too).
A couple of stories felt slightly too long, and one was a bit hard to get into without already knowing the universe. Readers who haven’t read J.S. Fields’ Ardulum series might feel the same way when reading the author’s koala offering, which I already knew and like a lot. There’s an easy fix, however: read the Ardulum books, they’re awesome.
Fields’ Jellyfish Lovepotion was one of my favourite stories in this collection, along with Sara Codair’s Brie and the Marsh Kraken and How to Steal a Planet by N.L. Bates.
I received a copy from the publisher and I am voluntarily leaving a review.
elpisgalaxy's review
4.0
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
Distant Gardens is a lesbian-centric anthology featuring female characters in science fiction and fantasy settings.
As soon as I read the blurb for this book, I was intrigued right away as this sounded right up my alley. It was overall an excellent read. I liked that the type of relationship was listed before each story so that I had some idea going into the story what I was getting myself into. I also liked that the stories were all a decent length and weren't as short as stories in most anthologies. I liked the representation especially ace representation which I don't see in books often enough. Unfortunately I did have a hard time getting into some stories and it just felt like they were dragging on longer than necessary. My favorite stories from this anthology ended up being Radiant, Jellyfish Lovepotion, Killer Trees and Second Chances, How to Steal a Planet, and Brie and the Marsh Kraken. Overall it was a good way to find more authors to follow.
4/5 stars
Distant Gardens is a lesbian-centric anthology featuring female characters in science fiction and fantasy settings.
As soon as I read the blurb for this book, I was intrigued right away as this sounded right up my alley. It was overall an excellent read. I liked that the type of relationship was listed before each story so that I had some idea going into the story what I was getting myself into. I also liked that the stories were all a decent length and weren't as short as stories in most anthologies. I liked the representation especially ace representation which I don't see in books often enough. Unfortunately I did have a hard time getting into some stories and it just felt like they were dragging on longer than necessary. My favorite stories from this anthology ended up being Radiant, Jellyfish Lovepotion, Killer Trees and Second Chances, How to Steal a Planet, and Brie and the Marsh Kraken. Overall it was a good way to find more authors to follow.
4/5 stars
booksthatburn's review
I liked the first couple of stories and then got to one that just didn't click with me and I spent two months trying to get through it before giving up. It's super queer in a lot of great ways. I don't have anything to warn about, it just wasn't a great time for me to try and read an anthology. Hopefully I'll try again later I just don't know when that would be.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexual content, Confinement, Drug use, Fire/Fire injury, Vomit, Gore, Violence, Car accident, and Death
beehan__'s review
3.0
This book is difficult for me to review because it is very different to what I usually read. I love the cover, and I find the idea of this anthology interesting. I didn't enjoy it as much as I hoped to though. I found the writing in a lot of stories to be clumsy, sometimes I thought a plot twist had been prepared and then it never came. I like the sci-fi setting though, and I did appreciate the intro notes on all of the stories including a note on sapphic representation and "heat level". My favourite stories were “Dew Diligence” and "Jellyfish Lovepotion".
I would recommend this book for people with more of an interest in both sci-fi and romance.
(I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.)
I would recommend this book for people with more of an interest in both sci-fi and romance.
(I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.)
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