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annashiv's review against another edition
3.0
Read straight through. Naturally it was a mixed bag.
The Good:
The Real Thing - Allison Goodman - Had it's problems, but I she got one really awesome character in there, so that made up for the problems mostly.
In the House of the Seven Librarians - Ellen Klages - Really liked it up until maybe the end. It got a little weird, but didn't ruin it.
Perception - Alan Dean Foster - Probably my favorite altogether, though I'm not sure what it's doing in this anthology. None of the characters were really teenagers as far as I could tell. They were only ever described as young. Still, I really liked the idea and the execution.
The House on the Planet - Tanith Lee - I did struggle with this one at first. I thought it was kind of bland. That the character problems were typical and not at all interesting, but as the story progressed, it got better and better and I loved how it ended. It just brought everything together. I think I'd like it as a full book to be honest.
The Bad:
Huntress - Tamora Pierce - The most bland out of them all, which I found surprising as I like Tamora Pierce (what I've read of her before anyway). I think it was just the story rather than the writing that I just did not find interesting at all.
Unwrapping - Nina Kiriki Hoffman - This was fine, mainly because it was short, but just not substantive enough to be worth reading.
I'll give you my Word - Diana Wynne Jones - May just not be a ran of the author's writing as I didn't like Howl's moving castle all that much either. It's whimsical and fun, but I think the writing just isn't for me.
The Wizards of Perfil - Kelly Link - Didn't like the basis of the story, but written fairly well.
Quill - Carol Emshwiller - Weird dinosaurs
Blood Roses - Francesca Lia Block - this one literally didn't make sense
The Okay to Mediocre:
Little (Grrl) Lost - Charles de Lint - I enjoyed the first half and it was a captivating idea. Of course it's basically the first chapter of a book the author was working on or something.
Wintermoon Wish - Sharon Shinn - Actually really liked this one, but it was the most basic romance one would expect for teenagers. I think it was just the writing that brought this one down to be honest.
Jack O'Lantern - Patricia A. McKillip - Fine, but didn't really understand what the point of the story was if there was one.
Hives - Kara Dalkey - I actually kind of really enjoyed this one, but the character annoyed me. I liked that it was kind of Veronica Mars, but in a dark dystopian teenage world if that makes any sense.
Cousins - Pamela Dean - I liked this one a lot as well, it just got a little weird/too philosophical at one point for it to really be good. I liked the world - and of course I come to learn it's in the same world as several other published works.
What Used to be Good Still Is - Emma Bull - Bittersweet. I liked the relationship between the two characters and thought it was really sweet. I liked the town and the mountain and that we actually got a male point of view. (there were only two others in this whole anthology that had male POVs and this was the only romance. )
The Good:
The Real Thing - Allison Goodman - Had it's problems, but I she got one really awesome character in there, so that made up for the problems mostly.
In the House of the Seven Librarians - Ellen Klages - Really liked it up until maybe the end. It got a little weird, but didn't ruin it.
Perception - Alan Dean Foster - Probably my favorite altogether, though I'm not sure what it's doing in this anthology. None of the characters were really teenagers as far as I could tell. They were only ever described as young. Still, I really liked the idea and the execution.
The House on the Planet - Tanith Lee - I did struggle with this one at first. I thought it was kind of bland. That the character problems were typical and not at all interesting, but as the story progressed, it got better and better and I loved how it ended. It just brought everything together. I think I'd like it as a full book to be honest.
The Bad:
Huntress - Tamora Pierce - The most bland out of them all, which I found surprising as I like Tamora Pierce (what I've read of her before anyway). I think it was just the story rather than the writing that I just did not find interesting at all.
Unwrapping - Nina Kiriki Hoffman - This was fine, mainly because it was short, but just not substantive enough to be worth reading.
I'll give you my Word - Diana Wynne Jones - May just not be a ran of the author's writing as I didn't like Howl's moving castle all that much either. It's whimsical and fun, but I think the writing just isn't for me.
The Wizards of Perfil - Kelly Link - Didn't like the basis of the story, but written fairly well.
Quill - Carol Emshwiller - Weird dinosaurs
Blood Roses - Francesca Lia Block - this one literally didn't make sense
The Okay to Mediocre:
Little (Grrl) Lost - Charles de Lint - I enjoyed the first half and it was a captivating idea. Of course it's basically the first chapter of a book the author was working on or something.
Wintermoon Wish - Sharon Shinn - Actually really liked this one, but it was the most basic romance one would expect for teenagers. I think it was just the writing that brought this one down to be honest.
Jack O'Lantern - Patricia A. McKillip - Fine, but didn't really understand what the point of the story was if there was one.
Hives - Kara Dalkey - I actually kind of really enjoyed this one, but the character annoyed me. I liked that it was kind of Veronica Mars, but in a dark dystopian teenage world if that makes any sense.
Cousins - Pamela Dean - I liked this one a lot as well, it just got a little weird/too philosophical at one point for it to really be good. I liked the world - and of course I come to learn it's in the same world as several other published works.
What Used to be Good Still Is - Emma Bull - Bittersweet. I liked the relationship between the two characters and thought it was really sweet. I liked the town and the mountain and that we actually got a male point of view. (there were only two others in this whole anthology that had male POVs and this was the only romance. )
applegnreads's review against another edition
3.0
The authors who I like from other things, I also liked here. All around they were interesting but I just don't like short stories as much.
aggressive_nostalgia's review against another edition
I'm a voracious reader of fantasy, and have recently made forays into the realm of science fiction, so i had high hopes picking this up, especially since i recognized several of the contributing authors.
That said, it was okay. Some stories (such as Wintermoon Wish, and Hives) were really good (albeit maybe a little freaky). Some were no more than merely enjoyable, and some i didn't care for as much. Blood Roses was so confusing. I read it three times and still have no clue what's happening or what the point was. But the only story I sincerely hated was Huntress - the premise of which I found kind of disturbing, and the New Age goddess thing was weird - a major disappointment since i'm a Tamora Pierce fan.
I'll probably be a little more careful about picking up fantasy anthologies in future, but this wasn't bad overall. Firebirds Rising was a mix of the good, the excellent, and the ugly.
That said, it was okay. Some stories (such as Wintermoon Wish, and Hives) were really good (albeit maybe a little freaky). Some were no more than merely enjoyable, and some i didn't care for as much. Blood Roses was so confusing. I read it three times and still have no clue what's happening or what the point was. But the only story I sincerely hated was Huntress - the premise of which I found kind of disturbing, and the New Age goddess thing was weird - a major disappointment since i'm a Tamora Pierce fan.
I'll probably be a little more careful about picking up fantasy anthologies in future, but this wasn't bad overall. Firebirds Rising was a mix of the good, the excellent, and the ugly.
tinynavajo's review against another edition
4.0
A collection of sci-fi and fantasy stories that will give you a small taste of everything you would like to read.
themarnacle's review against another edition
3.0
Many good stories. Not really about Firebirds though just science fiction/fantasy books. Some of them aren't that great and some of them I wish were longer.
emiann2023's review against another edition
2.0
I read a little over half the stories and skimmed/skipped the rest.
Only a couple of stories really stood out to me: Wizards of Perfil and the one about the seven librarians. Can't remember the name.
The rest either made no sense or were made for like middle-schoolers/overly dramatic teenagers.
I really liked the Wizards of Perfil and would actually read a full story of this. Same with the seven librarians.
I stopped on a story about a girl and her sister getting painted for her sister's wedding or something. Idk. I got bored and have found so few good gems in this book I dropped it. I skimmed Hives, and Quill. Neither really stood out to me.
Usually books that rate this low I usually remove from my shelves (unless they are a part of a highly rated series). This one I'm keeping for the two short stories I mentioned.
Only a couple of stories really stood out to me: Wizards of Perfil and the one about the seven librarians. Can't remember the name.
The rest either made no sense or were made for like middle-schoolers/overly dramatic teenagers.
I really liked the Wizards of Perfil and would actually read a full story of this. Same with the seven librarians.
I stopped on a story about a girl and her sister getting painted for her sister's wedding or something. Idk. I got bored and have found so few good gems in this book I dropped it. I skimmed Hives, and Quill. Neither really stood out to me.
Usually books that rate this low I usually remove from my shelves (unless they are a part of a highly rated series). This one I'm keeping for the two short stories I mentioned.
scholastic_squid's review against another edition
4.0
Technically, I have only read the first story in this collection of works. So, my rating is inaccurate even though I did enjoy what I had read. I may read more, but this book is not my own because I borrowed it / also I do not have the time to read this specific book at the moment. So far it is a great fantasy / fiction book!
clairetrellahill's review against another edition
4.0
This short story collection enlarged my imagination and influenced my writing in tangible ways. It's full of wild ideas and magical landscapes on a variety of topics and genres, definitely worth a read.
Standout favorites from the anthology:
"Jack O'Lantern" by Patricia A. McKillip—I fell so in love with this story before I even knew who McKillip was. A story set in a bygone Victorian/Edwardian era featuring will 'o the wisps? Magical. Years later, I read some of her books and wondered why the prose and landscape of her worlds felt so much like coming home. Lo and behold, I was already familiar with her writing style! Absolutely astonishing.
"I"ll Give You My Word" by Diana Wynne Jones— Everything by DWJ is spectacular, and this story does not disappoint. Full of ideas about words and language, Jones's style translates wonderfully to short story form. It's wonderful.
"Hives" by Kara Dalkey—This story stuck with me for YEARS, probably because it's such a tangible concept. In the future, the next step up from texting is the ESP, a headset that projects sound waves right into your head. Girls create "hives" to communicate, and the system is so addictive it can even create withdrawls, a dangerous thing when bullying is still very much a threat. This story was written so well and so vividly that it's one of the first things I remember when I think of this anthology.
Standout favorites from the anthology:
"Jack O'Lantern" by Patricia A. McKillip—I fell so in love with this story before I even knew who McKillip was. A story set in a bygone Victorian/Edwardian era featuring will 'o the wisps? Magical. Years later, I read some of her books and wondered why the prose and landscape of her worlds felt so much like coming home. Lo and behold, I was already familiar with her writing style! Absolutely astonishing.
"I"ll Give You My Word" by Diana Wynne Jones— Everything by DWJ is spectacular, and this story does not disappoint. Full of ideas about words and language, Jones's style translates wonderfully to short story form. It's wonderful.
"Hives" by Kara Dalkey—This story stuck with me for YEARS, probably because it's such a tangible concept. In the future, the next step up from texting is the ESP, a headset that projects sound waves right into your head. Girls create "hives" to communicate, and the system is so addictive it can even create withdrawls, a dangerous thing when bullying is still very much a threat. This story was written so well and so vividly that it's one of the first things I remember when I think of this anthology.
vixtrolla's review against another edition
3.0
A decent collection of short stories. My favorites were:
-In the House of the 7 Librarians
-Wintermoon Wish
-The Wizards of Perfil
-Hives
-In the House of the 7 Librarians
-Wintermoon Wish
-The Wizards of Perfil
-Hives