Scan barcode
A review by horrorbutch
A Chronicle of Monsters: A Fantasy Anthology by Amanda Ferreira, Mawce Hanlin, Nicole Tota, Halli Starling, Rita A. Rubin, Talli L. Morgan, Taylor Hubbard, Dewi Hargreaves, Aimee Donnellan, Beau Van Dalen
4.0
Disclaimer: I received an ARC of this book from the publisher.
This is a very nice collection of fantasy short stories with a focus on LGBT+ representation and while I didn't enjoy every story in here (some felt too short to be really enjoyable and not all were the type of fantasy I normally read), I liked that there was a nice flow from story to story and that it features a variety of fantasy subgenres (from classical knights and dragons to urban fantasy with shifters and magic tattooink there's something for everyone) and LGBT+ representation (I want to note here that two stories feature trans women as main characters! This shouldn't have to make me this happy but after managing to find a few anthologies with "LGBT+" representation that only feature one transfem side character at most or none at all for my last few anthologies, this was a breath of much needed fresh air!). My favorites of this anthology were "She sings the Graveyard Hymn" by Nicole Tota, "To Cage a Godkiller" by Amanda Ferreira and "We Fellow Monsters" by Mawce Hanlin. All in all I can say that if you enjoy fantasy and queer characters there will definitely be a few stories here that you'll enjoy. My seperate short reviews for each short story as well as notes on trigger warnings and representation can be found below (the trigger warnings are also included in the anthology itself in the beginning of the book, which I also liked).
The Beast of the Greyswood by Rita A. Rubin was a great way to start this anthology. It includes a bisexual slayer, whose also a concerned dad and if you enjoy the Witcher this is a great one to start with (forests with spooky mansions, what makes a monster, cool fighting scenes, it's all in here). I liked the characters and the story was spooky and fun. Plus who doesn't love a good spooky murder mystery? TW: murder, mention of past domestic abuse, hints at past sexual assault, Rep: bisexual man MC
She sings the Graveyard Hymn by Nicola Tota. As mentioned above it's one of my favorites in this anthology. It's gothic, it's haunted AND haunting, it has cool healing magic, sapphic ghosts and chronic pain with flare ups and it's very, very good and fun. I loved following Catriona's story and seeing how she changed over time. TW: plague, widespread illness, chronic pain, murder, death, harassment/pressure to marry, Rep: bisexual woman MC, sapphic LI
Lady of the Dark by Taylor Hubbard: a dnd-esque fantasy with orcs and elves and a quest to save a child. The romance is cute, the trans elf girl is badass, the hot orc is hot (and also badass), the child-abducting creatures are scary. I quite enjoyed this one and if you like Legends and Lattes but would like it to be a bit more spooky, this is definitely one to check out. TW: Child abduction, violence, Rep: sapphic trans woman MC, sapphic Li
Mightier Than the Sword by Talli L. Morgan: more epic fantasy, with knights and dragons and lots of battles, it is very tragic and I loved the twist ending. Unfortunately the battle scenes did not interest me enough and they did take up a big part of the story, so it is one of the stories I enjoyed a bit less. TW: child abuse (neglect), death, Rep: sapphic MC
Oilback Beetle Symbiosis by Dewi Hargreaves: The world building in this short story is incredible, it felt kinda LeGuin-esque with a very interesting thought out religion and tradition system and the few people that dare to question it, it is a story about survival in an inhospitable environment and focusses on making your own decisions. TW: water scarcity, mild harm to animals, Rep: mlm MC
To Cage A God-Killer by Amanda Ferreira: Another one of my favs. It is a dark story about betrayal, secrets, powerful ghosts, sacrifice and magic. But it is also a story about love and it hints at a possibly better future. Definitely a story where I would have loved to read more though. It also features a trans woman MC who makes a deal with a dark dangerous entity and it's not to transition, but for other things. I liked that. The world building was also really interesting. TW: murder and graphic violence, Rep: trans woman MC
We Fellow Monsters by Mawce Hanlin: A trans cat burglar and his brother break into a rich man's mansion and find something they weren't expecting. The story is very tense and filled with suspense which I adored. The magic is interesting and I would have loved to read some more about it. The little brother is a wonderful little brother. A really good, sweet and heartbreaking story about trans solidarity and trans revenge. TW: past child abuse, intentional and unintentional misgendering, transphobia, fantasy racism, Rep: trans man MC, trans woman SC
Why? by Aimee Donnellan: A newly created being struggles with understanding their powers and themself in this fairytale esque fantasy world with wizards in towers and a small town in a forest. It is a very sweet and adorable story and I particularly liked the wizard. TW: hints at ableist attitudes
Atlas by Beau Van Dalen: A young trans man gives up his body and joins the shades in a cave, knowing it's the only way to relieve his dysphoria in an unaccepting society. The worldbuilding is interesting and I liked the first two thirds of the story a lot. The last third is very sweet and adorable and moved a bit too fast for me to fully enjoy it. I also liked the trans happy end, even if don't really like magic transition most of the time. TW: dysphoria, violence, depression Rep: trans man MC
Neon Needle by Halli Starling: this is a sapphic urban magic/fantasy short story with interesting world building and a hint of spice. It was sweet and fun, one of the more humorous pieces and I liked the tattoo magic. TW: slight horror, Rep: sapphic MC and LI
This is a very nice collection of fantasy short stories with a focus on LGBT+ representation and while I didn't enjoy every story in here (some felt too short to be really enjoyable and not all were the type of fantasy I normally read), I liked that there was a nice flow from story to story and that it features a variety of fantasy subgenres (from classical knights and dragons to urban fantasy with shifters and magic tattooink there's something for everyone) and LGBT+ representation (I want to note here that two stories feature trans women as main characters! This shouldn't have to make me this happy but after managing to find a few anthologies with "LGBT+" representation that only feature one transfem side character at most or none at all for my last few anthologies, this was a breath of much needed fresh air!). My favorites of this anthology were "She sings the Graveyard Hymn" by Nicole Tota, "To Cage a Godkiller" by Amanda Ferreira and "We Fellow Monsters" by Mawce Hanlin. All in all I can say that if you enjoy fantasy and queer characters there will definitely be a few stories here that you'll enjoy. My seperate short reviews for each short story as well as notes on trigger warnings and representation can be found below (the trigger warnings are also included in the anthology itself in the beginning of the book, which I also liked).
The Beast of the Greyswood by Rita A. Rubin was a great way to start this anthology. It includes a bisexual slayer, whose also a concerned dad and if you enjoy the Witcher this is a great one to start with (forests with spooky mansions, what makes a monster, cool fighting scenes, it's all in here). I liked the characters and the story was spooky and fun. Plus who doesn't love a good spooky murder mystery? TW: murder, mention of past domestic abuse, hints at past sexual assault, Rep: bisexual man MC
She sings the Graveyard Hymn by Nicola Tota. As mentioned above it's one of my favorites in this anthology. It's gothic, it's haunted AND haunting, it has cool healing magic, sapphic ghosts and chronic pain with flare ups and it's very, very good and fun. I loved following Catriona's story and seeing how she changed over time. TW: plague, widespread illness, chronic pain, murder, death, harassment/pressure to marry, Rep: bisexual woman MC, sapphic LI
Lady of the Dark by Taylor Hubbard: a dnd-esque fantasy with orcs and elves and a quest to save a child. The romance is cute, the trans elf girl is badass, the hot orc is hot (and also badass), the child-abducting creatures are scary. I quite enjoyed this one and if you like Legends and Lattes but would like it to be a bit more spooky, this is definitely one to check out. TW: Child abduction, violence, Rep: sapphic trans woman MC, sapphic Li
Mightier Than the Sword by Talli L. Morgan: more epic fantasy, with knights and dragons and lots of battles, it is very tragic and I loved the twist ending. Unfortunately the battle scenes did not interest me enough and they did take up a big part of the story, so it is one of the stories I enjoyed a bit less. TW: child abuse (neglect), death, Rep: sapphic MC
Oilback Beetle Symbiosis by Dewi Hargreaves: The world building in this short story is incredible, it felt kinda LeGuin-esque with a very interesting thought out religion and tradition system and the few people that dare to question it, it is a story about survival in an inhospitable environment and focusses on making your own decisions. TW: water scarcity, mild harm to animals, Rep: mlm MC
To Cage A God-Killer by Amanda Ferreira: Another one of my favs. It is a dark story about betrayal, secrets, powerful ghosts, sacrifice and magic. But it is also a story about love and it hints at a possibly better future. Definitely a story where I would have loved to read more though. It also features a trans woman MC who makes a deal with a dark dangerous entity and it's not to transition, but for other things. I liked that. The world building was also really interesting. TW: murder and graphic violence, Rep: trans woman MC
We Fellow Monsters by Mawce Hanlin: A trans cat burglar and his brother break into a rich man's mansion and find something they weren't expecting. The story is very tense and filled with suspense which I adored. The magic is interesting and I would have loved to read some more about it. The little brother is a wonderful little brother. A really good, sweet and heartbreaking story about trans solidarity and trans revenge. TW: past child abuse, intentional and unintentional misgendering, transphobia, fantasy racism, Rep: trans man MC, trans woman SC
Why? by Aimee Donnellan: A newly created being struggles with understanding their powers and themself in this fairytale esque fantasy world with wizards in towers and a small town in a forest. It is a very sweet and adorable story and I particularly liked the wizard. TW: hints at ableist attitudes
Atlas by Beau Van Dalen: A young trans man gives up his body and joins the shades in a cave, knowing it's the only way to relieve his dysphoria in an unaccepting society. The worldbuilding is interesting and I liked the first two thirds of the story a lot. The last third is very sweet and adorable and moved a bit too fast for me to fully enjoy it. I also liked the trans happy end, even if don't really like magic transition most of the time. TW: dysphoria, violence, depression Rep: trans man MC
Neon Needle by Halli Starling: this is a sapphic urban magic/fantasy short story with interesting world building and a hint of spice. It was sweet and fun, one of the more humorous pieces and I liked the tattoo magic. TW: slight horror, Rep: sapphic MC and LI