A review by msoul13
Clockwork, Curses and Coal by Melissa Bobe, Adam Breckenridge, Diana Hurlburt, Lex T. Lindsay, Christina Ruth Johnson, Wendy Nikel, Rhonda Parrish, Beth Cato, Brian Trent, Alethea Kontis, M.L.D. Curelas, Reese Hogan, Laura VanArendonk Baugh, Sarah Van Goethem, Joseph Halden
4.0
NOTE: I won a free eBook copy of this book in MOBI format from LibraryThing's Early Reviewers (February 2021).
Prior to reading this anthology, I knew the Steampunk genre only by name. This collection of short stories not only gave me a thorough introduction to the genre, but also showed me the wide range of possibilities for adapting well-known fairy tales and folklore. I found all of the stories engaging and a pleasure to read and delighted in the original works.
My reactions to each individual story:
(1) "The Iron Revolution:" I just loved the South Asian protagonist.
(2) "Clockwork Tea:" "Pinocchio" meets that episode of "The Twilight Zone" with the ventriloquist dummy.
(3) "A Future of Towers Made:" "Rapunzel" breaks out of her tower. Such a great feminist story!
(4) "A Bird Girl In the Dark Of Night:" Not sure what fairy tale this is derived from. I detected a theme of breaking patriarchal structures.
(5) "Checkmate:" I have long thought that the world needs something better for war than armies of thousands. This story presents a possible solution; however, it is the Chess Scene from "Harry Potter & the Sorcerer's Stone" on steroids.
(6) "Necromancy:" "The Pied Piper" meets "The Walking Dead."
(7) "Blood and Clockwork:" Original and tragic, with shades of the French Revolution.
(8) "Sappho and Erinna:" "The Twelve Dancing Princesses" with a lesbian twist? Delightful.
(9) "Divine Spark:" Kind of a neat take on how humans are viewed and valued.
(10) "The Balance of Memory:" "Hansel & Gretel" with a twist. Still processing this one.
(11) "The Giant and the Unicorn:" This Aesop adaptation absolutely warmed my heart. Probably my favorite story in the book.
(12) "Ningyō:" The Japanese setting was intriguing, but my unfamiliarity with that culture meant that some of the details were lost on me. The ending was a cliffhanger and the story feels like it is really part of a novel. Still, I appreciated the references to Pure Land Buddhism.
(13) "Father Worm:" The least steampunk of the stories in this collection, I found this apocalyptic tale full of horror and liked the subtle commentary on religion and ritual.
(14) "The Coach Girl:" Though I am a stranger to "The Goose Girl," the source material for this story, I thoroughly enjoyed this adaptation. Great feminist ending to the anthology.
Prior to reading this anthology, I knew the Steampunk genre only by name. This collection of short stories not only gave me a thorough introduction to the genre, but also showed me the wide range of possibilities for adapting well-known fairy tales and folklore. I found all of the stories engaging and a pleasure to read and delighted in the original works.
My reactions to each individual story:
(1) "The Iron Revolution:" I just loved the South Asian protagonist.
(2) "Clockwork Tea:" "Pinocchio" meets that episode of "The Twilight Zone" with the ventriloquist dummy.
(3) "A Future of Towers Made:" "Rapunzel" breaks out of her tower. Such a great feminist story!
(4) "A Bird Girl In the Dark Of Night:" Not sure what fairy tale this is derived from. I detected a theme of breaking patriarchal structures.
(5) "Checkmate:" I have long thought that the world needs something better for war than armies of thousands. This story presents a possible solution; however, it is the Chess Scene from "Harry Potter & the Sorcerer's Stone" on steroids.
(6) "Necromancy:" "The Pied Piper" meets "The Walking Dead."
(7) "Blood and Clockwork:" Original and tragic, with shades of the French Revolution.
(8) "Sappho and Erinna:" "The Twelve Dancing Princesses" with a lesbian twist? Delightful.
(9) "Divine Spark:" Kind of a neat take on how humans are viewed and valued.
(10) "The Balance of Memory:" "Hansel & Gretel" with a twist. Still processing this one.
(11) "The Giant and the Unicorn:" This Aesop adaptation absolutely warmed my heart. Probably my favorite story in the book.
(12) "Ningyō:" The Japanese setting was intriguing, but my unfamiliarity with that culture meant that some of the details were lost on me. The ending was a cliffhanger and the story feels like it is really part of a novel. Still, I appreciated the references to Pure Land Buddhism.
(13) "Father Worm:" The least steampunk of the stories in this collection, I found this apocalyptic tale full of horror and liked the subtle commentary on religion and ritual.
(14) "The Coach Girl:" Though I am a stranger to "The Goose Girl," the source material for this story, I thoroughly enjoyed this adaptation. Great feminist ending to the anthology.