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lesbrary's review
4.0
Fantastic book for readers looking for stories that just happen to include queer women, instead of coming out stories. Very well written selections.
Full review at The Lesbrary!
Full review at The Lesbrary!
akallabeth's review
4.0
(The rating is probably more like... 3.5 stars? The fact that we have no half star option is an endless source of woe for me, but alas.)
I love short stories. I love queer ladies. I love magical nonsense. I think you can see where this is going? The second I stumbled upon this book I decided that oh yes, it was definitely something I wanted to read, aaaaaand promptly didn't read it for like two years - a serious mistake, which I only got around to rectifying now. Which is a shame, because this is a fun little collection. I didn't super enjoy all the stories in this anthology, but I liked most of them and loved a few, which is a really solid accomplishment considering it's a bunch of stories from different authors. Also, the cover is really really pretty, which is what made me get it in paperback instead of just getting the ebook version. So if you're into stories about magical lesbians, I'd recommend it, basically. Although, if you're looking for like super explicit queerness, you may be a bit disappointed? A lot of the stories just have offhand mentions of past relationships with ladies/have the relationship mostly as background. I didn't bother me at all (I quite liked it, actually - it felt like stories about queer people instead of Stories About Being Queer), but it may not be what you were expecting. Breakdown of the stories and more of my thoughts in general below, if you want to know more - I'm not doing the spoiler thing (like, I'm not even summarising them - they're short stories, what's the point) so you should be safe, but if you'd rather not have any info at all before you read, maybe skip that bit.
1. Counterbalance: This was actually probably my least favourite story, and it gave me the impression that I'd like the book a lot less than I did in the end, so I really wish it wasn't the first one, eek. Short stories - especially genre stories - are tricky because you often you'll need to show an entire world with its magic and rules and technology and whatever, but obviously you don't have the space to really go into it. So you need to give us a glimpse that feels rich and interesting and like there is a lot there, we just don't have time for it all right now - and this is, I think, where this story fell flat for me. It felt... wide but shallow, and sort of generic. The only bit that somewhat caught my attention was the villainess (which, to be entirely fair, may or may not have been because my mental image of her was Natalie Dormer), but even with her I got the same sense that we weren't seeing more because there wasn't any more, rather than because there just wasn't the space for it.
2. Trouble Arrived: Thankfully, I liked this story much better than the first. The plot/magic system didn't particularly grab me, but the story had a lovely mood and style to it (which is often enough to carry a short story, if done right), and I quite liked the two main characters. I found it weirdly emotionally satisfying as well, which is not bad for something that's less than 20 pages long, so kudos there.
3. Personal Demons: Ahhh, I don't know about this one? The magical bits I found quite interesting and not a type of magic that usually pops up in fantasy stories, but the ending was really odd with this one. It felt very abrupt and really separate from the rest of the story mood-wise (which when you're talking about a short story gives you some serious mood whiplash) and I'm not really sure what it was saying? I mean, I got what actually happened (my narrative comprehension skills are fine!), but I just didn't quite get what the point of it was, I guess. An odd one.
4. The Windskimmer: After the first three stories I more or less liked most of them, so yay! This one is possibly one of my favourites, as it sort of had a lot of stuff I really like in short stories, and most everything I wanted to see in these. It felt like an episode from a larger story, but not in a way that leaves you unsatisfied about how this one ended. The magic system was really lovely and interesting (I'm a sucker for an interesting magic system, so sue me), and more than that I really liked the characters - they felt full and fleshed out even though we only got to spend a little time with them.
5. Sky Lit Bargains: Another reviewer on here said that they liked the story, but really wanted to read the story implied by its ending, and I really agree with that so I'm quoting it. Not that the story itself isn't fun - it's a quick read (I can hear the 'duh' you're sending my way) and flows well. Also, the heroine of of this one is a sort of warrior lady, while her girlfriend (future girlfriend?) is the witchy one, which I thought was a fun way to switch it up.
6. Gloam: Probably another favourite? Probably. I think this one had the most interesting/engaging plot out of all the stories, which is impressive as hell - hats off to the author. It actually felt tense for a bit there, even though realistically you know the plot is getting resolved within the next fifteen pages and everything is probably going to be super fine at the end. There was also a really great little episode which did the thing where its implied that the universe of the story is lovely and sprawling and a bit spooky, but only let you in on it a tiny bit, which I thought was really effective. Really enjoyed this one!
7. Witches Have Cats: I'm not going to lie to you, this was probably my favourite story overall. It's super cute and almost unexpectedly funny. The main character felt real in a way a lot of young people in books for some reason don't, and you really get a sense of her personality, even though the stories isn't among the longest in the collection. And there's a really great side character! I think a character that can really grab you with like approximately thirty lines total is a good character. The plot wasn't extremely tense and mysterious, but there was one, and one which felt like the introduction to a bigger plot. Which, don't get me wrong - this story didn't feel unsatisfying. It didn't feel cut off or like it needed more to be interesting. It felt like the first of many episodes in a story; I super enjoyed reading it on its own, but if there were more, you bet I'd read the hell out of those too. And that's something I really love with short stories! As usual, I'm pretty crap about talking about the things I like the best, so let's stop it here. In short: I really liked it.
8. D is for Delicious: Oh boy. This is likely the oddest story in the collection. I'm still not sure if I liked it. I think I did? Maybe? It's the only story where the protagonist turns out to be a witch of the evil kind, but it's very much a bizarre little story, both in content and in style. I wouldn't say horror, necessarily, but - pretty macabre, in a sort of overblow pop art rainbowish way. I don't know, guys. It's one of the shortest stories included, if I recall correctly, so if you don't like it you're not losing a lot of time.
9. And Out of the Strong Came Forth Sweetness: Another one I liked a lot! This was one of the only stories to incorporate sort of futuristic/sci-fi elements, and I thought it did it really well. The worldbuilding was right on point for a short story, I thought (just enough detail to feel full and interesting, not so much as to overwhelm you), and the way magic seems function in it was really quirky and lovely. The plot was mostly centered around these two ladies meeting and falling in love, which actually doesn't happen in most of these stories, so it was a fun read in that respect. Oh, and I really liked the style and ~mood~ of this one! I think this is one of the stories I'd love to see as a novel.
10. Bridges and Lullabies: This one just didn't grab me at all. I don't know why, as there's really nothing I can point to as being "wrong with it", and I didn't find it a pain to go through or anything, but it just... didn't work for me, I guess. I feel kind of shitty for not having more to say about it, because as I said, nothing I can super critique, just - meh. Not for me, I guess.
11. Thin Spun: The only other story to do the scifi thing - it has different planets and worlds and spaceships and all that good stuff. It sort of bombards you with a lot of weird new terms and names and stuff like that at one point, which feels a bit whoaaaa cowboy slow down there, but I did enjoy it quite a lot - mostly due to the characters, I think, who all felt separate and fun and substantial (I mean, all - there's three of them, but still). The world you're sort of bombarded with sounds pretty intriguing as well, and this is another story that sort of suggested quite a few other stories - all of which I'd be interested in reading.
12. A State of Panic: Not necessarily a favourite, but another story I enjoyed quite a lot. It mixes classically pagan magic with what you'd imagine magic would evolve into in the 21st century, which I thought was an interesting and refreshing take. The main character was really likeable and relatable (well, for me), but not in that dull Every(wo)man way, and she really made the story, in my opinion. Also, a note: there's a scene of attempted sexual assault in this one. It's not very detailed and brief, since it's stopped before it goes far, but if that kind of stuff upsets you, maybe look out?
That's all! Also eek I don't usually do reviews here, so sorry if this is something of a rambly mess, but there weren't all that many reviews for this one so I wanted to contribute. :) If you decide to check it out, hope you enjoy it! (Oh, also, my apologies if I fucked up the html anywhere. It's one in the morning. I should really be asleep.)
I love short stories. I love queer ladies. I love magical nonsense. I think you can see where this is going? The second I stumbled upon this book I decided that oh yes, it was definitely something I wanted to read, aaaaaand promptly didn't read it for like two years - a serious mistake, which I only got around to rectifying now. Which is a shame, because this is a fun little collection. I didn't super enjoy all the stories in this anthology, but I liked most of them and loved a few, which is a really solid accomplishment considering it's a bunch of stories from different authors. Also, the cover is really really pretty, which is what made me get it in paperback instead of just getting the ebook version. So if you're into stories about magical lesbians, I'd recommend it, basically. Although, if you're looking for like super explicit queerness, you may be a bit disappointed? A lot of the stories just have offhand mentions of past relationships with ladies/have the relationship mostly as background. I didn't bother me at all (I quite liked it, actually - it felt like stories about queer people instead of Stories About Being Queer), but it may not be what you were expecting. Breakdown of the stories and more of my thoughts in general below, if you want to know more - I'm not doing the spoiler thing (like, I'm not even summarising them - they're short stories, what's the point) so you should be safe, but if you'd rather not have any info at all before you read, maybe skip that bit.
1. Counterbalance: This was actually probably my least favourite story, and it gave me the impression that I'd like the book a lot less than I did in the end, so I really wish it wasn't the first one, eek. Short stories - especially genre stories - are tricky because you often you'll need to show an entire world with its magic and rules and technology and whatever, but obviously you don't have the space to really go into it. So you need to give us a glimpse that feels rich and interesting and like there is a lot there, we just don't have time for it all right now - and this is, I think, where this story fell flat for me. It felt... wide but shallow, and sort of generic. The only bit that somewhat caught my attention was the villainess (which, to be entirely fair, may or may not have been because my mental image of her was Natalie Dormer), but even with her I got the same sense that we weren't seeing more because there wasn't any more, rather than because there just wasn't the space for it.
2. Trouble Arrived: Thankfully, I liked this story much better than the first. The plot/magic system didn't particularly grab me, but the story had a lovely mood and style to it (which is often enough to carry a short story, if done right), and I quite liked the two main characters. I found it weirdly emotionally satisfying as well, which is not bad for something that's less than 20 pages long, so kudos there.
3. Personal Demons: Ahhh, I don't know about this one? The magical bits I found quite interesting and not a type of magic that usually pops up in fantasy stories, but the ending was really odd with this one. It felt very abrupt and really separate from the rest of the story mood-wise (which when you're talking about a short story gives you some serious mood whiplash) and I'm not really sure what it was saying? I mean, I got what actually happened (my narrative comprehension skills are fine!), but I just didn't quite get what the point of it was, I guess. An odd one.
4. The Windskimmer: After the first three stories I more or less liked most of them, so yay! This one is possibly one of my favourites, as it sort of had a lot of stuff I really like in short stories, and most everything I wanted to see in these. It felt like an episode from a larger story, but not in a way that leaves you unsatisfied about how this one ended. The magic system was really lovely and interesting (I'm a sucker for an interesting magic system, so sue me), and more than that I really liked the characters - they felt full and fleshed out even though we only got to spend a little time with them.
5. Sky Lit Bargains: Another reviewer on here said that they liked the story, but really wanted to read the story implied by its ending, and I really agree with that so I'm quoting it. Not that the story itself isn't fun - it's a quick read (I can hear the 'duh' you're sending my way) and flows well. Also, the heroine of of this one is a sort of warrior lady, while her girlfriend (future girlfriend?) is the witchy one, which I thought was a fun way to switch it up.
6. Gloam: Probably another favourite? Probably. I think this one had the most interesting/engaging plot out of all the stories, which is impressive as hell - hats off to the author. It actually felt tense for a bit there, even though realistically you know the plot is getting resolved within the next fifteen pages and everything is probably going to be super fine at the end. There was also a really great little episode which did the thing where its implied that the universe of the story is lovely and sprawling and a bit spooky, but only let you in on it a tiny bit, which I thought was really effective. Really enjoyed this one!
7. Witches Have Cats: I'm not going to lie to you, this was probably my favourite story overall. It's super cute and almost unexpectedly funny. The main character felt real in a way a lot of young people in books for some reason don't, and you really get a sense of her personality, even though the stories isn't among the longest in the collection. And there's a really great side character! I think a character that can really grab you with like approximately thirty lines total is a good character. The plot wasn't extremely tense and mysterious, but there was one, and one which felt like the introduction to a bigger plot. Which, don't get me wrong - this story didn't feel unsatisfying. It didn't feel cut off or like it needed more to be interesting. It felt like the first of many episodes in a story; I super enjoyed reading it on its own, but if there were more, you bet I'd read the hell out of those too. And that's something I really love with short stories! As usual, I'm pretty crap about talking about the things I like the best, so let's stop it here. In short: I really liked it.
8. D is for Delicious: Oh boy. This is likely the oddest story in the collection. I'm still not sure if I liked it. I think I did? Maybe? It's the only story where the protagonist turns out to be a witch of the evil kind, but it's very much a bizarre little story, both in content and in style. I wouldn't say horror, necessarily, but - pretty macabre, in a sort of overblow pop art rainbowish way. I don't know, guys. It's one of the shortest stories included, if I recall correctly, so if you don't like it you're not losing a lot of time.
9. And Out of the Strong Came Forth Sweetness: Another one I liked a lot! This was one of the only stories to incorporate sort of futuristic/sci-fi elements, and I thought it did it really well. The worldbuilding was right on point for a short story, I thought (just enough detail to feel full and interesting, not so much as to overwhelm you), and the way magic seems function in it was really quirky and lovely. The plot was mostly centered around these two ladies meeting and falling in love, which actually doesn't happen in most of these stories, so it was a fun read in that respect. Oh, and I really liked the style and ~mood~ of this one! I think this is one of the stories I'd love to see as a novel.
10. Bridges and Lullabies: This one just didn't grab me at all. I don't know why, as there's really nothing I can point to as being "wrong with it", and I didn't find it a pain to go through or anything, but it just... didn't work for me, I guess. I feel kind of shitty for not having more to say about it, because as I said, nothing I can super critique, just - meh. Not for me, I guess.
11. Thin Spun: The only other story to do the scifi thing - it has different planets and worlds and spaceships and all that good stuff. It sort of bombards you with a lot of weird new terms and names and stuff like that at one point, which feels a bit whoaaaa cowboy slow down there, but I did enjoy it quite a lot - mostly due to the characters, I think, who all felt separate and fun and substantial (I mean, all - there's three of them, but still). The world you're sort of bombarded with sounds pretty intriguing as well, and this is another story that sort of suggested quite a few other stories - all of which I'd be interested in reading.
12. A State of Panic: Not necessarily a favourite, but another story I enjoyed quite a lot. It mixes classically pagan magic with what you'd imagine magic would evolve into in the 21st century, which I thought was an interesting and refreshing take. The main character was really likeable and relatable (well, for me), but not in that dull Every(wo)man way, and she really made the story, in my opinion. Also, a note: there's a scene of attempted sexual assault in this one. It's not very detailed and brief, since it's stopped before it goes far, but if that kind of stuff upsets you, maybe look out?
That's all! Also eek I don't usually do reviews here, so sorry if this is something of a rambly mess, but there weren't all that many reviews for this one so I wanted to contribute. :) If you decide to check it out, hope you enjoy it! (Oh, also, my apologies if I fucked up the html anywhere. It's one in the morning. I should really be asleep.)
gay's review
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
3.0
adubrow's review
4.0
(Originally posted @ CSI:Librarian)
It took me awhile though to get through this book because I’m not really much of a short story reader. Happily, I found this anthology to be wonderful, different, and full of women dealing with magical forces without being solely defined by their sexual orientation. For the most part, the collection flowed from one tale to the next in a really great way too.
The stories that that really stood out to me were “Personal Demons” by Jean Marie Ward, “The Windskimmer” by Connie Wilkins, “Sky Lit Bargains” by Kelly A. Harmon, “D is for Delicious” by Steve Berman, “And Out of the Strong Came Forth Sweetness” by Lisa Nohealani Morton, “Bridges and Lullabies” by Rrain Prior, and “Thin Spun” by Sunny Moraine.
In some respects, I felt like the other stories needed a bit more pack to the punch. This isn’t to say that the characters weren’t strong or cool throughout the anthology though so much as it is a result of my personal reading preferences. However, the writing, uniqueness, and creativity were solid throughout. I was always engaged and pleasantly surprised by the way the tales developed. I never felt that any of the stories was a waste of time or not worth including either, which is always a sign of a strong collection.
In conclusion, very, very good. If you like well-crafted short fiction and want something refreshingly new in terms of Fantasy, pick up this anthology.
It took me awhile though to get through this book because I’m not really much of a short story reader. Happily, I found this anthology to be wonderful, different, and full of women dealing with magical forces without being solely defined by their sexual orientation. For the most part, the collection flowed from one tale to the next in a really great way too.
The stories that that really stood out to me were “Personal Demons” by Jean Marie Ward, “The Windskimmer” by Connie Wilkins, “Sky Lit Bargains” by Kelly A. Harmon, “D is for Delicious” by Steve Berman, “And Out of the Strong Came Forth Sweetness” by Lisa Nohealani Morton, “Bridges and Lullabies” by Rrain Prior, and “Thin Spun” by Sunny Moraine.
In some respects, I felt like the other stories needed a bit more pack to the punch. This isn’t to say that the characters weren’t strong or cool throughout the anthology though so much as it is a result of my personal reading preferences. However, the writing, uniqueness, and creativity were solid throughout. I was always engaged and pleasantly surprised by the way the tales developed. I never felt that any of the stories was a waste of time or not worth including either, which is always a sign of a strong collection.
In conclusion, very, very good. If you like well-crafted short fiction and want something refreshingly new in terms of Fantasy, pick up this anthology.
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