michaeldrakich's review
4.0
Thirteen tales of amazons as imagined by female writers. I've also decided to rate the introduction because of its length. My average rating was 3.3. Normally, I would round to the closest number which would be 3, but in this case, I'm going to round up to 4. Why? Because in the mix are five stories I rated 5 stars. That's better than one third at a top rating. There's one stinker at 1 star that hurts the average.
INTRODUCTION: OUR AMAZON HERITAGE by Jessica Amanda Salmonson. The editor of this book has decided to add, as an intro, a nine-page history on women who she would label as Amazons and a look into the history of the title. It is quite detailed, though I think she plays a little loose with what the average person perceives as what an amazon woman is. For me, a lengthy history lesson is more than I want to muddle through before getting to what I'm here to read-fantasy tales of amazon women. 3 stars
THE DREAMSTONE by C. J. Cherryh. Before I start, I need to state how I am an ardent fan of the author. I have read many of her works and she is one of my favorites so my opinion on her short may be a bit jaundiced. As expected, her gift of the written word shows well here. Some may find it a bit too strong in the way of purple prose, but in the '70s that was the style. Don't look for a lot of action in this one, but the protagonist shows well how she is a master of her domain. 5 stars
WOLVES OF NAKESHT by Janrae Frank. This is your standard sword and sorcery fare with lots of sword battles and fights against magical man-wolves, the Nakest. The main character has led a life where everyone thinks she is a man. It's subject to one of the flaws of the '70s where the characters all have difficult to pronounce names and dialogue in make-believe tongues where I have no idea what they are saying. 3 stars
WOMAN OF THE WHITE WASTE by T. J. Morgan. A short tale where a woman is brutally gang-raped runs off into the winter wildness and meets an old god who empowers her for revenge. Throw in a magic sword and you touch a lot of cliches in the genre. 3 stars
THE DEATH OF AUGUSTA by Emily Bronte. OKay. I get it. Famous author. World famous. Still, this is nothing more than a poem and finding the amazon in it is a stretch at best. As it is, the editor had to include all kinds of notes explaining what was going on in the poem. I think the editor would have been best served by leaving this one out. 1 star
MORRIEN'S BITCH by Janet Fox. I really liked this one. The protagonist is smart, savvy, and in control. The whole hidden cavern/tunnels thing is well done. If there's a weakness, it's that the protagonist is not an amazon, but a thief. Considering the wide parameters set by the editor in the introduction, I won't let that deter me from a good rating. 5 stars
AGBEWE'S SWORD by Charles A Saunders. The first in this collection by a male author. Lucky for me that I am not saddled with the limiting restriction of a cultural appropriation attitude that says a male cannot write a story with a female lead. In this tale, not just one female lead, but two. Juxtpositioned over a war where a magic sword is needed to turn the tide is a deep hatred between two women. The sword can only be wielded by one, but which one? 5 stars
JANE SAINTS TRAVAILS by Josephine Saxton. A woman is executed and while dead has a weird dream that has her in search of her three children and a Kodebook. For a brief bit, the POV changes to the children who are inconsequential to the story. This meandered too much for me. 2 stars
THE SORROWS OF WITCHES by Margaret St. Clair. A queen with powerful magics revives from death a man who spurned her in life to be her lover. She keeps him dead when he's not needed. Enter the jealous consort to muddy the waters. 2 stars
FALCON BLOOD by Andre Norton. Enter into this anthology a true master of the fantasy genre. In this short story, she shows her colors in a well-crafted tale. A strong female saddled with a recalcitrant male are shipwrecked and together must face an ancient menace. 5 stars
THE RAPE PATROL by Michele Beiling. This story is a simple, straight-forward avenge theme. Predictable and lacks imagination. 2 stars
BONES FOR DULATH by Megan Lindholm. Outside of the unimaginative title, this is an entertaining piece with a nice mix of drama, humor, and action. The interaction between the characters is quite good. 5 stars
NORTHERN CHESS by Tanith Lee. Warrior woman attacks a castle controlled by an evil spirit. Classic cliche sword and sorcery fantasy. 3 stars
THE WOMAN WHO LOVED THE MOON by Elizabeth A. Lynn. Three warrior sisters, one by one, fight the moon goddess, the last one falling in love with her rival. I didn't feel the intensity. 3 stars.
INTRODUCTION: OUR AMAZON HERITAGE by Jessica Amanda Salmonson. The editor of this book has decided to add, as an intro, a nine-page history on women who she would label as Amazons and a look into the history of the title. It is quite detailed, though I think she plays a little loose with what the average person perceives as what an amazon woman is. For me, a lengthy history lesson is more than I want to muddle through before getting to what I'm here to read-fantasy tales of amazon women. 3 stars
THE DREAMSTONE by C. J. Cherryh. Before I start, I need to state how I am an ardent fan of the author. I have read many of her works and she is one of my favorites so my opinion on her short may be a bit jaundiced. As expected, her gift of the written word shows well here. Some may find it a bit too strong in the way of purple prose, but in the '70s that was the style. Don't look for a lot of action in this one, but the protagonist shows well how she is a master of her domain. 5 stars
WOLVES OF NAKESHT by Janrae Frank. This is your standard sword and sorcery fare with lots of sword battles and fights against magical man-wolves, the Nakest. The main character has led a life where everyone thinks she is a man. It's subject to one of the flaws of the '70s where the characters all have difficult to pronounce names and dialogue in make-believe tongues where I have no idea what they are saying. 3 stars
WOMAN OF THE WHITE WASTE by T. J. Morgan. A short tale where a woman is brutally gang-raped runs off into the winter wildness and meets an old god who empowers her for revenge. Throw in a magic sword and you touch a lot of cliches in the genre. 3 stars
THE DEATH OF AUGUSTA by Emily Bronte. OKay. I get it. Famous author. World famous. Still, this is nothing more than a poem and finding the amazon in it is a stretch at best. As it is, the editor had to include all kinds of notes explaining what was going on in the poem. I think the editor would have been best served by leaving this one out. 1 star
MORRIEN'S BITCH by Janet Fox. I really liked this one. The protagonist is smart, savvy, and in control. The whole hidden cavern/tunnels thing is well done. If there's a weakness, it's that the protagonist is not an amazon, but a thief. Considering the wide parameters set by the editor in the introduction, I won't let that deter me from a good rating. 5 stars
AGBEWE'S SWORD by Charles A Saunders. The first in this collection by a male author. Lucky for me that I am not saddled with the limiting restriction of a cultural appropriation attitude that says a male cannot write a story with a female lead. In this tale, not just one female lead, but two. Juxtpositioned over a war where a magic sword is needed to turn the tide is a deep hatred between two women. The sword can only be wielded by one, but which one? 5 stars
JANE SAINTS TRAVAILS by Josephine Saxton. A woman is executed and while dead has a weird dream that has her in search of her three children and a Kodebook. For a brief bit, the POV changes to the children who are inconsequential to the story. This meandered too much for me. 2 stars
THE SORROWS OF WITCHES by Margaret St. Clair. A queen with powerful magics revives from death a man who spurned her in life to be her lover. She keeps him dead when he's not needed. Enter the jealous consort to muddy the waters. 2 stars
FALCON BLOOD by Andre Norton. Enter into this anthology a true master of the fantasy genre. In this short story, she shows her colors in a well-crafted tale. A strong female saddled with a recalcitrant male are shipwrecked and together must face an ancient menace. 5 stars
THE RAPE PATROL by Michele Beiling. This story is a simple, straight-forward avenge theme. Predictable and lacks imagination. 2 stars
BONES FOR DULATH by Megan Lindholm. Outside of the unimaginative title, this is an entertaining piece with a nice mix of drama, humor, and action. The interaction between the characters is quite good. 5 stars
NORTHERN CHESS by Tanith Lee. Warrior woman attacks a castle controlled by an evil spirit. Classic cliche sword and sorcery fantasy. 3 stars
THE WOMAN WHO LOVED THE MOON by Elizabeth A. Lynn. Three warrior sisters, one by one, fight the moon goddess, the last one falling in love with her rival. I didn't feel the intensity. 3 stars.
brynhammond's review
4.0
This was a good one. Five stories have three or above ticks from me, which indicates great enthusiasm. Even outside of those five, there is [a:Charles R. Saunders|715521|Charles R. Saunders|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1378170820p2/715521.jpg], writer of African-themed fantasy, who here gives us the woman Dossouye; and a narrative poem by Emily Bronte, edited from her manuscripts by Joanna Russ.
[b:Amazons 2|2522874|Amazons 2|Jessica Amanda Salmonson|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1357814386s/2522874.jpg|2530378] didn't match up the quality of selections here.
[b:Amazons 2|2522874|Amazons 2|Jessica Amanda Salmonson|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1357814386s/2522874.jpg|2530378] didn't match up the quality of selections here.
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