mdpenguin's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
This was a decent collection of stories. Nothing stood out as great but nothing was bad, either. There were one or two that I could have done without (e.g. a story from the perspective of a planter-class soldier for the CSA that never in any way acknowledged slavery and didn't actually benefit form its setting in any meaningful way to justify it). Some felt a bit too YA for me. But there were a few that I thought pretty clever and made me laugh and one or two that filled me with emotion, which is pretty much what I want out of a fairy story.
drsdon's review
4.0
The second consecutive book I've read that is a collection of short stories, but this is an anthology of short stories from different authors "sharing" a basic theme, of, as the title suggests, about Fae. Reading this book reminded me of reading a book that contained folk and fairy tales of Ireland in an Irish Lit class in college, in that, despite the varied settings, they seem to all invoke a time where the world seemed more mysterious. I use the quotation marks above when stating that the stories all share the same theme, because while the stories are all similar in that respect, they go off of that theme in different ways - some in the traditional, fair folk sense, others bringing in modern culture and technology into it.
Each of the stories were unique and enjoyable in their own way, but the following stories I enjoyed for one particular reason or another...(1) Johnson's "Queen of the Lakes" for its darkness; (2) Kitson's "F.C.U." for its cleverness; (3) Eikamp's "Possession" for the American Civil War setting; and (4) Wojtaszek's "Solomon's Friend" for the mother/son relationship depicted. Again though, these stories, while may favorite, are part of a very strong collection of short stories, all of which were thoroughly enjoyable. If anyone has never read any stories dealing with these genre of literature (fairies, etc.), I would recommend this collection, as it gets at the strong points of moral themes, surprises, and mystery which makes the genre a good source of compelling reads.
Each of the stories were unique and enjoyable in their own way, but the following stories I enjoyed for one particular reason or another...(1) Johnson's "Queen of the Lakes" for its darkness; (2) Kitson's "F.C.U." for its cleverness; (3) Eikamp's "Possession" for the American Civil War setting; and (4) Wojtaszek's "Solomon's Friend" for the mother/son relationship depicted. Again though, these stories, while may favorite, are part of a very strong collection of short stories, all of which were thoroughly enjoyable. If anyone has never read any stories dealing with these genre of literature (fairies, etc.), I would recommend this collection, as it gets at the strong points of moral themes, surprises, and mystery which makes the genre a good source of compelling reads.
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