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A review by orange_flower
Robots vs. Fairies by Navah Wolfe, Dominik Parisien
lighthearted
reflective
3.0
Build Me a Wonderland by Seanan Mcguire
5/10 - Interesting concept but the ending felt abrupt and unfinished.
Quality Time by Ken Liu
5/10 - Again, an interesting concept but the execution was lackluster.
Murmured Under the Moon by Tim Pratt
6.5/10 - Pratt is a master with words, but the actual story was lacking. The plot was rudimentary and cliche, perhaps better suited for middle grade fiction than for a sci-fi anthology.
The Blue Fairy's Manifesto by Annalee Newitz
3/10 This was so unbelievably dull. Hopefully her other works are better since I do have her in my TBR.
Bread and Milk and Salt by Sarah Gailey
9/10 - What's crazy is I just read The Echo Wife by her and I didn't like it, but this was so delicious. Gailey really captured the spirit of fae and humans in this.
Ironheart by Jonathan Maberry
4/10 - Nice exploration of war veterans but not enough robots or action for my liking.
Just Another Love Song by Kat Howard
3/10 - BORING. I feel like some of these authors were on a deadline and just submitted some random story that they wrote in like 30 minutes.
Sound and Fury by Mary Robinette Kowal
7.5/10 - I would love to read more about the adventures of Chief Engineer Jela! Reminded me a little of Sisters of the Vast Black by Lina Rather.
The Bookcase Expedition by Jeffrey Ford
5/10 - What was the point of all that though
Work Shadow/Shadow Work by Madeline Ashby
5.5/10 - Old ahh woman opposes technological advancement 🤦 I'll give the author credit for creating such a realistically annoying character.
Second to the Left, and Straight On by Jim C. Hines
3/10 - Eh the peter pan and Tinkerbell trope is already overdone and this wasn't good enough to make it stand out
The Buried Giant by Lavi Tidhar
7.5/10 - Very folklorey, leaves you wanting more
Three Robots Experience Objects by John Scalzi
6/10 - This is literally that one Love Death and Robots Episode. I think it works better for TV than for a short story. Sarcasm is hard to convey through just words, and it's harder when you're only writing the conversation with no description.
Ostentation of Peacocks by Delilah S. Dawson
8.5/10 - This was really good, and would make a wonderful American Gods-esque full length novel.
All the Time we've Left to Spend by Alyssa Wong
Adriftica by Maria Dahvana Headley
1/10 - Trying to get into this felt like trying to pull myself out of a vat of honey. DNF
To a Cloven Pine by Max Gladstone
A Fall counts Anywhere by Catherynne M. Valente
Overall
Definitely a hit or miss. I was harsher with my ratings than I normally am but the average still comes out to a rounded 3/5.
5/10 - Interesting concept but the ending felt abrupt and unfinished.
Quality Time by Ken Liu
5/10 - Again, an interesting concept but the execution was lackluster.
Murmured Under the Moon by Tim Pratt
6.5/10 - Pratt is a master with words, but the actual story was lacking. The plot was rudimentary and cliche, perhaps better suited for middle grade fiction than for a sci-fi anthology.
The Blue Fairy's Manifesto by Annalee Newitz
3/10 This was so unbelievably dull. Hopefully her other works are better since I do have her in my TBR.
Bread and Milk and Salt by Sarah Gailey
9/10 - What's crazy is I just read The Echo Wife by her and I didn't like it, but this was so delicious. Gailey really captured the spirit of fae and humans in this.
Ironheart by Jonathan Maberry
4/10 - Nice exploration of war veterans but not enough robots or action for my liking.
Just Another Love Song by Kat Howard
3/10 - BORING. I feel like some of these authors were on a deadline and just submitted some random story that they wrote in like 30 minutes.
Sound and Fury by Mary Robinette Kowal
7.5/10 - I would love to read more about the adventures of Chief Engineer Jela! Reminded me a little of Sisters of the Vast Black by Lina Rather.
The Bookcase Expedition by Jeffrey Ford
5/10 - What was the point of all that though
Work Shadow/Shadow Work by Madeline Ashby
5.5/10 - Old ahh woman opposes technological advancement 🤦 I'll give the author credit for creating such a realistically annoying character.
Second to the Left, and Straight On by Jim C. Hines
3/10 - Eh the peter pan and Tinkerbell trope is already overdone and this wasn't good enough to make it stand out
The Buried Giant by Lavi Tidhar
7.5/10 - Very folklorey, leaves you wanting more
Three Robots Experience Objects by John Scalzi
6/10 - This is literally that one Love Death and Robots Episode. I think it works better for TV than for a short story. Sarcasm is hard to convey through just words, and it's harder when you're only writing the conversation with no description.
Ostentation of Peacocks by Delilah S. Dawson
8.5/10 - This was really good, and would make a wonderful American Gods-esque full length novel.
All the Time we've Left to Spend by Alyssa Wong
Adriftica by Maria Dahvana Headley
1/10 - Trying to get into this felt like trying to pull myself out of a vat of honey. DNF
To a Cloven Pine by Max Gladstone
A Fall counts Anywhere by Catherynne M. Valente
Overall
Definitely a hit or miss. I was harsher with my ratings than I normally am but the average still comes out to a rounded 3/5.