A review by andimontgomery
Carniepunk by Jackie Kessler, Hillary Jacques, Nicole D. Peeler, Jennifer Estep, Allison Pang, Kelly Gay, Kevin Hearne, Rob Thurman, Rachel Caine, Delilah S. Dawson, Seanan McGuire, Kelly Meding, Jaye Wells, Mark Henry
3.0
Overall, this collection gets 3 stars. There were some standouts, like "The Cold Girl," "Parlor Tricks," "Feral House," "The Inside Man," and "Daughter of the Midway, the Mermaid, and the Open Lonely Sea." But some of the stories fell flat for me. Below is a brief synopsis of each and my rating:
"Painted Love" by Rob Thurman - I had a bit of confusion about the main character, Doodle, and it took some time for me to get into this story (really, until Doodle's origins were explained). This was a creepy story about predators who hide in carnivals. 3/5
I've never read anything before by Delilah Dawson, but I wasn't very fond of "The Three Lives of Lydia." This story features Lydia, who enters the magical world of Sang when she falls asleep in our world. She meets and falls almost instantly for Charlie, a "Bludman" (another term for vampire), who is part of a carnival full of magical beings (like a two-headed boy and a wolfman). 2.5/5
I lost interest in Kevin Hearne's series after the second book, so I skipped "The Demon Barker on Wheat Street." Not rated
"The Sweeter the Juice" by Mark Henry has both zombies and transsexuals. Sounds interesting, but I didn't enjoy it. 1/5
"Werewife" by Jaye Wells was a quick read about a couple, Brad and Annie, who are dealing with the consequences of her being bitten by a werewolf at last year's carnival. They return to the carnival a year later looking for a cure, and find something else altogether. 3/5
"The Cold Girl" by Rachel Caine is a story of a naive girl who finds out the kind of person her boyfriend really is when they visit the carnival, and how she gets her revenge. 4/5
I didn't read "A Duet with Darkness" by Allison Pang since I'm not really a fan of her Abby Sinclair series. Not rated
"Recession of the Divine" by Hillary Jacques was disjointed and one of my least favorites. It features Olivia, a seer, god-descendant, and insurance investigator who tries to find the cause of an accident at a carnival. 1/5
"Parlor Tricks" by Jennifer Estep was one of my favorites in this collection, and is also available free on Amazon. Gin and Bria visit a local carnival in search of a missing teenager. While this story is short, Gin and Bria get to show off their investigative and butt-whomping skills. 4.5/5
"Feral House" by Kelly Meding was, in my opinion, the best in this collection. It features a character not seen in her prior books, half-djinn Shiloh, who teams up with a werewolf and human to save her djinn father (and a few others) from a supernatural freak show. Ms. Meding has a way of immediately engaging you in her plots, and this was no different. The story ended with an opening for a new series...one I would absolutely read! 5/5
"The Inside Man" by Nicole Peeler is about a supernatural trio investigating what caused an entire town to become catatonic. They encounter an evil clown and end up fighting for their lives. I know I am oversimplifying the story with this brief summary, but I enjoyed this one. 4/5
"A Chance In Hell" by Jackie Kessler didn't grab my interest in the first few pages, so I gave up. Not rated
"Hell's Menagerie" by Kelly Gay takes place when Charlie is off saving Hank. Emma, Brim, and Rex visit a carnival to rescue Brim's mate and newborn pups. Emma couldn't carry an entire book on her own, but it was nice seeing her shine in this short story. 3.5/5
"Daughter of the Midway, the Mermaid, and the Open Lonely Sea" by Seanan McGuire is about a carnival that returns to the place where their star attraction--a mermaid--was found as an infant. She joined the carnival as a pregnant adult, and her daughter is now faced with learning about her past and future. This book really captured the otherworldly nature of mermaids, and I enjoyed it. 4/5
"Painted Love" by Rob Thurman - I had a bit of confusion about the main character, Doodle, and it took some time for me to get into this story (really, until Doodle's origins were explained). This was a creepy story about predators who hide in carnivals. 3/5
I've never read anything before by Delilah Dawson, but I wasn't very fond of "The Three Lives of Lydia." This story features Lydia, who enters the magical world of Sang when she falls asleep in our world. She meets and falls almost instantly for Charlie, a "Bludman" (another term for vampire), who is part of a carnival full of magical beings (like a two-headed boy and a wolfman). 2.5/5
I lost interest in Kevin Hearne's series after the second book, so I skipped "The Demon Barker on Wheat Street." Not rated
"The Sweeter the Juice" by Mark Henry has both zombies and transsexuals. Sounds interesting, but I didn't enjoy it. 1/5
"Werewife" by Jaye Wells was a quick read about a couple, Brad and Annie, who are dealing with the consequences of her being bitten by a werewolf at last year's carnival. They return to the carnival a year later looking for a cure, and find something else altogether. 3/5
"The Cold Girl" by Rachel Caine is a story of a naive girl who finds out the kind of person her boyfriend really is when they visit the carnival, and how she gets her revenge. 4/5
I didn't read "A Duet with Darkness" by Allison Pang since I'm not really a fan of her Abby Sinclair series. Not rated
"Recession of the Divine" by Hillary Jacques was disjointed and one of my least favorites. It features Olivia, a seer, god-descendant, and insurance investigator who tries to find the cause of an accident at a carnival. 1/5
"Parlor Tricks" by Jennifer Estep was one of my favorites in this collection, and is also available free on Amazon. Gin and Bria visit a local carnival in search of a missing teenager. While this story is short, Gin and Bria get to show off their investigative and butt-whomping skills. 4.5/5
"Feral House" by Kelly Meding was, in my opinion, the best in this collection. It features a character not seen in her prior books, half-djinn Shiloh, who teams up with a werewolf and human to save her djinn father (and a few others) from a supernatural freak show. Ms. Meding has a way of immediately engaging you in her plots, and this was no different. The story ended with an opening for a new series...one I would absolutely read! 5/5
"The Inside Man" by Nicole Peeler is about a supernatural trio investigating what caused an entire town to become catatonic. They encounter an evil clown and end up fighting for their lives. I know I am oversimplifying the story with this brief summary, but I enjoyed this one. 4/5
"A Chance In Hell" by Jackie Kessler didn't grab my interest in the first few pages, so I gave up. Not rated
"Hell's Menagerie" by Kelly Gay takes place when Charlie is off saving Hank. Emma, Brim, and Rex visit a carnival to rescue Brim's mate and newborn pups. Emma couldn't carry an entire book on her own, but it was nice seeing her shine in this short story. 3.5/5
"Daughter of the Midway, the Mermaid, and the Open Lonely Sea" by Seanan McGuire is about a carnival that returns to the place where their star attraction--a mermaid--was found as an infant. She joined the carnival as a pregnant adult, and her daughter is now faced with learning about her past and future. This book really captured the otherworldly nature of mermaids, and I enjoyed it. 4/5