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literyture's review
3.0
One of the things I appreciated the most about "All Out", the first in this 'series' of anthologies, was the variety in the stories. The same was true here - while all of the stories stuck to the basic theme of the collection, there was a wide variety of relationships and identities, a notable range of future time periods, and varying degrees of believable 'reality' vs. fantasy-leaning sci-fi. This kept the collection from getting repetitive or bland, and there were enough standout writing styles from the authors to keep that part of the experience interesting, too.
That being said, I would put a gentle warning for those planning on diving into this collection. I'll admit that I made some assumptions going into this - with it being an entirely queer-themed *future* collection, I expected more...optimism, for lack of a better word.
While not every story fell into this category, I was shocked by the amount of tales with central themes of homophobia, transphobia, etc., as either the main driving conflict or a character-defining experience for the teen protagonists. It was kind of a downer, honestly, to read about how in 100 years or so, in a fictional world, there are still teens risking their lives for transitional medical care, or being disowned by their parents in an apocalyptic scenario over their identity. I was hoping for more of an escapist collection, and while there's nothing wrong with themes of resilience or unfortunate realism, it got to be a lot to read about back-to-back, so I'd advise being aware of this going into the book.
That being said, I would put a gentle warning for those planning on diving into this collection. I'll admit that I made some assumptions going into this - with it being an entirely queer-themed *future* collection, I expected more...optimism, for lack of a better word.
While not every story fell into this category, I was shocked by the amount of tales with central themes of homophobia, transphobia, etc., as either the main driving conflict or a character-defining experience for the teen protagonists. It was kind of a downer, honestly, to read about how in 100 years or so, in a fictional world, there are still teens risking their lives for transitional medical care, or being disowned by their parents in an apocalyptic scenario over their identity. I was hoping for more of an escapist collection, and while there's nothing wrong with themes of resilience or unfortunate realism, it got to be a lot to read about back-to-back, so I'd advise being aware of this going into the book.
kishma_'s review
3.0
This is the first anthology that I have completed in a while. And now I totally understand why they are so hard to review. There were a lot of hits and just as many misses in Out There, and it seems that is quite common among anthologies. That is super ok, though, because not everyone is gonna like every story, but there are bound to be 1 or 2 you love!
That's how this was for me. Among my favorites in this collection were The Rift by Claire Kann, Reshadow by Adam Sass, H O M E K. Ancrum (which is no surprise there as I love most of what Ancrum writes) that hit high 4-5 stars. Most though were average with a few that fell below 3 stars due to not vibing with the characters or concept or writing style.
Regardless, I did have fun making my way through this anthology and reading from favorite authors as well as finding new authors I'd want to check out in the future! Since I have the first anthology in this collection, as well, I may pick it up sooner rather later!
That's how this was for me. Among my favorites in this collection were The Rift by Claire Kann, Reshadow by Adam Sass, H O M E K. Ancrum (which is no surprise there as I love most of what Ancrum writes) that hit high 4-5 stars. Most though were average with a few that fell below 3 stars due to not vibing with the characters or concept or writing style.
Regardless, I did have fun making my way through this anthology and reading from favorite authors as well as finding new authors I'd want to check out in the future! Since I have the first anthology in this collection, as well, I may pick it up sooner rather later!
jordannchloee's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
I think this book was good. Really good. It was an interesting and moving collection of short stories, all set in a queer future and all variant in perspective and approach. They were diverse in identity and in development and in background and in perspective and all around lovely. Som stories were slower than others, and some i liked more than others. Overall, though, i really loved this book and its manifestations around queerness and a queer future. I think that it was really well curated and the short stories flowed together quite well. It was slow at timess which made it difficult to keep at it when reading it but when it was good it was REALLLYYYY good. I think also that this book provides a great exploration of the diversity of folks identities and how beautiful that is. Just a great read to read if you’re a queer person. I enjoyed this very much.
narzibenoucdel's review
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.0
ohclaire's review
3.0
3.5, I liked a lot of the stories but some of them were just too telly-YA for me
agent_kay's review
3.0
There were a handful of good stories in this collection but overall I have to say it was pretty lackluster. Also, it is riddled with spelling errors. The representation was just as good as the first 2 anthologies, featuring many different identities and ethnicities.
The stories I enjoyed most were Doublers, Reshadow, & Concerto.
The stories I enjoyed most were Doublers, Reshadow, & Concerto.