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ashleyylayy's review against another edition
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
swampsounds's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
zshadow126's review
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
3.5
katross3's review
challenging
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
4.25
thegayestghost's review
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Medical trauma, Violence, Physical abuse, Gore, Medical content, Body horror, Injury/Injury detail, Blood, Grief, Stalking, Child death, Sexual violence, Misogyny, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Sexual assault, Forced institutionalization, Murder, Torture, and Toxic relationship
ridgewaygirl's review
4.0
This is the second anthology I've read that was edited by Joyce Carol Oates, and let me just say that she knows how to pick a good story. Or maybe, when JCO calls and asks an author to write a short story for a collection she's putting together, the author brings their A game instead of hammering out something the night before it's due. The second scenario is the more likely one, don't you agree?
This anthology collects works from a wide variety of women writers, from Margaret Atwood (a truly imaginative story called Metempsychosis, or The Journey of the Soul about a snail whose soul is transmogrified into the body of a young woman), to Tananarive Due (Dancing, in which a woman can no longer control her feet), to Elizabeth Hand (with a riff on the story of Bluebeard's wife called The Seventh Bride, or Female Curiosity]). The quality of the stories is high, and the variety is impressive. I've discovered a few new authors to look for and I got to enjoy new work by favorites.
This anthology collects works from a wide variety of women writers, from Margaret Atwood (a truly imaginative story called Metempsychosis, or The Journey of the Soul about a snail whose soul is transmogrified into the body of a young woman), to Tananarive Due (Dancing, in which a woman can no longer control her feet), to Elizabeth Hand (with a riff on the story of Bluebeard's wife called The Seventh Bride, or Female Curiosity]). The quality of the stories is high, and the variety is impressive. I've discovered a few new authors to look for and I got to enjoy new work by favorites.
bookwomble's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0