A review by mattiedancer
To Hold The Bridge: Tales from the Old Kingdom and Beyond by Garth Nix

adventurous dark mysterious medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • 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

4.5

Please Note: This collection of short stories contains what would be considered in Canada a derogatory term for Native/Indigenous peoples. I understand this term may be used in America more commonly, which is the perspective Garth Nix is writing from in the aforementioned story. It is not my place to say whether this is an appropriate use or not; however, it is worth mentioning, as readers may not be expecting it.

Writing: 4.5⭐️/5 
Garth Nix is a good, sometimes even great, writer. And, he is very adept at crafting short stories in strange, fantasy/sci-fi worlds that still make sense. His technical control of the English language is awesome, and I always look forward to reading his stories – even if they aren’t what I was initially expecting.

Characters: 4⭐️/5
While not all the characters felt fully real and developed, many of the stories contained great characters who were interesting, complex, and real in a vibrant way. 

Plot: 4.5⭐️/5 
Apart from one story that stood out as particularly drab regarding plot, most of the short stories had interesting plots that held my attention for their whole run. In fact, my reading experience of each story generally went from a bit of confusion involving the new world I was thrust into, to instant intrigue on what was going to happen next, and, finally, a compelling ending that felt good and finished, without it wrapping everything up too tightly.

World(s) 5⭐️/5 
Listen, this is where Garth Nix gets my strongest praise. It’s one thing to invite a reader into a world when you have 200-500 pages to invest in worldbuilding. It’s a whole other endeavour to create vast, interesting, and believable fantasy/sci-fi worlds within 40 pages or fewer. The fact that Nix managed to do this in every short story blows my mind. While some worlds were more complex than others, each felt real and I have to give it to Nix for making that possible. 

Who Should Read This Book? 
  • Fans of The Old Kingdom
  • Fans of Garth Nix
  • Fans of truly interesting fantasy/sci-fi worlds and short stories.

Content Warnings? 
Gaslighting, Emotional Abuse, Murder, Death, Death of Parent, Animal Death, Animal Cruelty, 

Post-Reading Rating:  4⭐️/5
I was slightly disappointed that only one of the many short stories featured in this collection took place in the Old Kingdom universe. While the other stories were still greatly enjoyable, this definitely affected my overall opinion.

Final Rating: 4.5⭐️/5
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