Reviews

Smoke and Mirrors: Short Fiction and Illusions, by Neil Gaiman

ella_mcnally's review against another edition

dark funny lighthearted mysterious medium-paced

4.75

greenfantasy's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• 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

3.75

planetarypan's review against another edition

5.0

This collection is one that I never got around to reading when it was first published years ago. I am sorry I took so long to do so, and it reminded me anew that short stories are really in Neil Gaiman's wheelhouse. It amazes me how such short pieces can leave you breathless with fear, sorrow, laughter, shock. But they did. I don't want to pick a favourite because I made sure to read them all one at a time, taking breaks in between, so that they were each savoured for what they were. I can no more claim a favourite story than I can a song -- each had its own meaning and flavour. Each tasted wonderful.

More please.

lalalexy25's review against another edition

2.0

There were a couple of these short stories that I enjoyed, however most of them didn’t interest me or made me feel uncomfortable. 

Not as whimsical as I expected them to be.

lizzieormian's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious fast-paced

4.0

fortunesdear's review against another edition

2.0

- Reading the Entrails -3/5
• The Wedding Present - 3/5
• Chivalry - 3/5
• Nicholas Was... - 5/5
• The Price - 3/5
• Troll Bridge - 3/5
• Don't Ask Jack - 4/5
• The Goldfish Pool and Other Stories - 3/5
• Eaten (Scenes from a Moving picture) - 2/5
• The White Road - 5/5
• Queen of Knives (for Eric Stern's opera of the same name see Queen of Knives) - 2/5
• The Facts in the Case of the Departure of Miss Finch - 2/5
• Changes - 3/5
• The Daughter of Owls - 5/5
• Shoggoth's Old Peculiar - 2/5
• Virus - 3/5
• Looking for the Girl - 3/5
• Only the End of the World Again - 5/5
• Bay Wolf - 3/5
• Fifteen Painted Cards from a Vampire Tarot - 5/5
• We Can Get Them For You Wholesale - 2/5
• One Life, Furnished in Early Moorcock - 2/5
• Cold Colors - 2/5
• The Sweeper of Dreams - 3/5
• Foreign Parts - 2/5
• Vampire Sestina - 4/5
• Mouse - 2/5
• How Do You Think It Feels? - 3/5
• When We Went to See the End of the World by Dawnie Morningside, age 11¼ - 2/5
• Desert Wind - 3/5
• Tastings - 2/5
• In the End - 2/5
• Babycakes - 2/5
• Murder Mysteries - 3/5
- Snow, Glass, Apples - 5/5

emsbookishnature's review against another edition

adventurous dark funny lighthearted mysterious slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? N/A
• Strong character development? N/A
• Loveable characters? N/A
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

3.0

memareads's review against another edition

medium-paced

3.5

duncan_mcguire's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• 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

5.0

shawnofsulfur's review against another edition

3.0

There are some really tremendous stories in here such as Cold Colors and We Can Get Them for You Wholesale, the latter of which might be my new favorite short story of all time, but a large portion of the collection, particularly the first half, is quite weak and a bit of a chore to get through. I was very close to DNFing this up to about 60% mark, but I'm glad I didn't as the back is really great. It's worth noting though that a lot of these stories and passages are very clearly from adult magazines and readers who don't enjoy sexual content should steer clear or check the descriptions of each section reading only those relevant to their preferences.