A review by girlreading
A Tyranny of Petticoats: 15 Stories of Belles, Bank Robbers & Other Badass Girls by Jessica Spotswood
4.0
4.75/5*
This was fantastic and without a doubt one of my favourite anthologies I have now read. I loved the diversity within it. There was not only a diverse collection of stories and settings but also races, cultures and sexualities, it was so refreshing to read! I enjoyed each and every story and the little pieces of insight into the characters and lives whose stories were told. I hadn't previously read anything from many of the authors included in this collection but after reading it, I am very excited to check out more of their work!
There wasn't really a single story I didn't enjoy but I think my top favourites were: 'Pearls' by Beth Revis, 'The Legendary Garrett Sisters' by Y.S. Lee, 'The Colour of the Sky' by Elizabeth Wein and 'Bonnie and Clyde' by Saundra Mitchell.
My only 'criticism' of this, which I honestly mean mostly as a compliment, is that a lot of these stories felt like tasters for a novel. I finished a large majority of them simply wanting more because they were fantastic, the characters were great and the stories captivated me. I would absolutely love to be able to see a lot of these stories made into full length novels, they were all so different from the books I've seen being released recently! If any of these stories ever did get made into novels, I have no doubt I would run to my nearest bookshop to buy it asap!!
Here are my mini reviews for each individual story...
3.5/5* - 'Mother Carey's Table' by J. Anderson Coats ~ A great start to the anthology. A story about a women of colour, pirates and magical realism elements, what more could you want?!
This was fast paced and interesting, although a little *too* short. I felt the ending was slightly rushed and confusing but other than that, this was a fun read and made me so excited to continue reading more of the stories in this anthology!
4/5* 'The Journey' by Marie Lu.
This was fantastic. I've not read anything featuring Inuit culture or folklore before and I now really want to find some. It was interesting, captivating, magical and intriguing all at the same time.
I loved the cold, icy Alaskan setting. It was painted beautifully and so clearly in such a short amount of time! I really enjoyed how different it was to the usual settings for books I've read! I would have loved this to have been a full length novel! This is the first I've read from Marie Lu but I'm now even more excited to read more from her, as I've wanted to for a long time!
3.75/5* 'Madeline's Choice' by Jessica Spotswood.
I really loved the setting and time period for this story and I learnt something as well which is always a wonderful bonus after reading! Although I liked the ending, it was a little rushed (although I've found that's often common in the short stories I've read!) I would have loved to have found out what happened before and after and delved deeper into the setting and story but overall this was definitely a really enjoyable read!
3.5/5* 'El Destinos' by Leslye Walton. A really interesting concept, with beautifully descriptive writing.
3/5* 'High Stakes' by Andrea Cremer ~ I feel as though there was possibly a little too much going on in this for such a short story as it was quite confusing at times but nonetheless a fun read! I think this could have been such an awesome full length novel, as I think I needed a little more explanation!
3.75/5* 'The Red Raven Ball' by Caroline Tung Richmond ~ I really enjoyed the setting of this, it definitely had a Downton Abby feel to it and I love anything to do with spies, so it's definitely made me realise I need to read more books featuring spies. :') The ending felt a little dramatic and rushed but it was definitely a fun read!
4.75/5* 'Pearls' by Beth Revis ~ I loved this so much. The pacing was brilliant, with a fully rounded story in such a short amount of time. I loved the plot and setting and the fact that it was largely inspired by Annie Oakley. Once again, I would love to have read this as a full length novel, it was fantastic. Definitely the kind of story I was hoping to read when I picked this anthology up.
4/5* 'Gold in the Roots of the Grass' by Marissa Meyer ~ I really enjoyed the 'Wild West' setting for this and the concept for the plot was so interesting. I've not read many books or stories featuring medium's, so this was very intriguing. Marissa Meyer creates fantastic characters and this was no exception to that. I just want to know what happens next. :')
4.75/5* 'The Legendary Garrett Sisters' by Y.S. Lee ~ I loved this a lot, it was so much fun! The story was perfectly paced and the ending wasn't rushed (which I've found quite common in short stories?) I found the setting really interesting and loved the characters. I'm definitely going to have to check out more of Y.S. Lee's writing! Once again, I'd love a full length novel of this!
5/5* 'The Colour of the Sky' by Elizabeth Wein ~ I absolutely adored this. The story was gorgeous, I warmed to the characters instantly and essentially loved everything about it. I want to know what happened next, what happens in Tony's future?! I loved that it was based on real people from history, and people I haven't heard of (but feel like I definitely should have?!) I've heard so many amazing things about Elizabeth Wein's books and have wanted to read them for so long and am now even more excited to do so. This was utterly fantastic.
4.5/5* 'Bonnie and Clyde' by Saundra Mitchell ~ This was SO much fun!! It had an awesome 'Mulan' mixed with 'Robin Hood' kind of vibe to it which I LOVED! It was fast paced with an awesome main character, I loved it! I'm struggling so much with these stories and simply wanting more from them, I'd LOVE a full length novel of this, it was brilliant!!
3.75/5* 'Hard Times' by Katherine Longshore ~ This was a quick, interesting read! I enjoyed the characters, Rosie and Billy slightly more so than Lloyd. I liked the plot, although the characters and storyline could have done with a little more depth as it felt a tad rushed but it's definitely made me want to learn more about the time period. I'm going to have to check out the movies and documentaries the author recommended!
3.5/5* 'City of Angels' by Lindsay Smith. ~ I love reading about Hollywood in historical settings, it fascinates me and this story was no exception! City of Angels was an interesting story exploring women's rights, sexuality and women's roles during WW2 in Hollywood!
3.75/5* 'Pulse of the Panthers' by Kekla Magoon ~ this was really interesting! I would have loved it to have gone into a little more depth and I wasn't too satisfied with the ending but I think that's simply because I was so intrigued and pulled into the story, that I just wanted more!!
3.75/5* 'The World Is Watching' by Robin Talley ~ This was both heartbreaking and heartwarming. I really want to read more about this time, it always interests me so much. This was such an interesting read, terrifying in many ways due to the violence and how truthful it was to the time, but so interesting. It's definitely reminded me that I need to read more into this time in history!
This was fantastic and without a doubt one of my favourite anthologies I have now read. I loved the diversity within it. There was not only a diverse collection of stories and settings but also races, cultures and sexualities, it was so refreshing to read! I enjoyed each and every story and the little pieces of insight into the characters and lives whose stories were told. I hadn't previously read anything from many of the authors included in this collection but after reading it, I am very excited to check out more of their work!
There wasn't really a single story I didn't enjoy but I think my top favourites were: 'Pearls' by Beth Revis, 'The Legendary Garrett Sisters' by Y.S. Lee, 'The Colour of the Sky' by Elizabeth Wein and 'Bonnie and Clyde' by Saundra Mitchell.
My only 'criticism' of this, which I honestly mean mostly as a compliment, is that a lot of these stories felt like tasters for a novel. I finished a large majority of them simply wanting more because they were fantastic, the characters were great and the stories captivated me. I would absolutely love to be able to see a lot of these stories made into full length novels, they were all so different from the books I've seen being released recently! If any of these stories ever did get made into novels, I have no doubt I would run to my nearest bookshop to buy it asap!!
Here are my mini reviews for each individual story...
3.5/5* - 'Mother Carey's Table' by J. Anderson Coats ~ A great start to the anthology. A story about a women of colour, pirates and magical realism elements, what more could you want?!
This was fast paced and interesting, although a little *too* short. I felt the ending was slightly rushed and confusing but other than that, this was a fun read and made me so excited to continue reading more of the stories in this anthology!
4/5* 'The Journey' by Marie Lu.
This was fantastic. I've not read anything featuring Inuit culture or folklore before and I now really want to find some. It was interesting, captivating, magical and intriguing all at the same time.
I loved the cold, icy Alaskan setting. It was painted beautifully and so clearly in such a short amount of time! I really enjoyed how different it was to the usual settings for books I've read! I would have loved this to have been a full length novel! This is the first I've read from Marie Lu but I'm now even more excited to read more from her, as I've wanted to for a long time!
3.75/5* 'Madeline's Choice' by Jessica Spotswood.
I really loved the setting and time period for this story and I learnt something as well which is always a wonderful bonus after reading! Although I liked the ending, it was a little rushed (although I've found that's often common in the short stories I've read!) I would have loved to have found out what happened before and after and delved deeper into the setting and story but overall this was definitely a really enjoyable read!
3.5/5* 'El Destinos' by Leslye Walton. A really interesting concept, with beautifully descriptive writing.
3/5* 'High Stakes' by Andrea Cremer ~ I feel as though there was possibly a little too much going on in this for such a short story as it was quite confusing at times but nonetheless a fun read! I think this could have been such an awesome full length novel, as I think I needed a little more explanation!
3.75/5* 'The Red Raven Ball' by Caroline Tung Richmond ~ I really enjoyed the setting of this, it definitely had a Downton Abby feel to it and I love anything to do with spies, so it's definitely made me realise I need to read more books featuring spies. :') The ending felt a little dramatic and rushed but it was definitely a fun read!
4.75/5* 'Pearls' by Beth Revis ~ I loved this so much. The pacing was brilliant, with a fully rounded story in such a short amount of time. I loved the plot and setting and the fact that it was largely inspired by Annie Oakley. Once again, I would love to have read this as a full length novel, it was fantastic. Definitely the kind of story I was hoping to read when I picked this anthology up.
4/5* 'Gold in the Roots of the Grass' by Marissa Meyer ~ I really enjoyed the 'Wild West' setting for this and the concept for the plot was so interesting. I've not read many books or stories featuring medium's, so this was very intriguing. Marissa Meyer creates fantastic characters and this was no exception to that. I just want to know what happens next. :')
4.75/5* 'The Legendary Garrett Sisters' by Y.S. Lee ~ I loved this a lot, it was so much fun! The story was perfectly paced and the ending wasn't rushed (which I've found quite common in short stories?) I found the setting really interesting and loved the characters. I'm definitely going to have to check out more of Y.S. Lee's writing! Once again, I'd love a full length novel of this!
5/5* 'The Colour of the Sky' by Elizabeth Wein ~ I absolutely adored this. The story was gorgeous, I warmed to the characters instantly and essentially loved everything about it. I want to know what happened next, what happens in Tony's future?! I loved that it was based on real people from history, and people I haven't heard of (but feel like I definitely should have?!) I've heard so many amazing things about Elizabeth Wein's books and have wanted to read them for so long and am now even more excited to do so. This was utterly fantastic.
4.5/5* 'Bonnie and Clyde' by Saundra Mitchell ~ This was SO much fun!! It had an awesome 'Mulan' mixed with 'Robin Hood' kind of vibe to it which I LOVED! It was fast paced with an awesome main character, I loved it! I'm struggling so much with these stories and simply wanting more from them, I'd LOVE a full length novel of this, it was brilliant!!
3.75/5* 'Hard Times' by Katherine Longshore ~ This was a quick, interesting read! I enjoyed the characters, Rosie and Billy slightly more so than Lloyd. I liked the plot, although the characters and storyline could have done with a little more depth as it felt a tad rushed but it's definitely made me want to learn more about the time period. I'm going to have to check out the movies and documentaries the author recommended!
3.5/5* 'City of Angels' by Lindsay Smith. ~ I love reading about Hollywood in historical settings, it fascinates me and this story was no exception! City of Angels was an interesting story exploring women's rights, sexuality and women's roles during WW2 in Hollywood!
3.75/5* 'Pulse of the Panthers' by Kekla Magoon ~ this was really interesting! I would have loved it to have gone into a little more depth and I wasn't too satisfied with the ending but I think that's simply because I was so intrigued and pulled into the story, that I just wanted more!!
3.75/5* 'The World Is Watching' by Robin Talley ~ This was both heartbreaking and heartwarming. I really want to read more about this time, it always interests me so much. This was such an interesting read, terrifying in many ways due to the violence and how truthful it was to the time, but so interesting. It's definitely reminded me that I need to read more into this time in history!