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filipmagnus's review against another edition
5.0
A lovely slice of Neil Gaiman's earlier short fiction, with some lovely illustrations inside.
nwhyte's review against another edition
4.0
http://nwhyte.livejournal.com/2762347.html
Published in 1993 and re-released last year as part of the Gaiman ebook bundle which I got cheap. At that point Gaiman had published half of Sandman, also Black Orchid, the Books of Magic and (with Terry Pratchett) Good Omens, and was obviously a rising star but not quite as stellar as he has since become. So a lot of these pieces are journeyman work, but none the less interesting as we see him work out a few ideas whihc he returned to later and better. The story that lingers most with me is "Looking for the Girl", about an eternally young nude model, originally published in Penthouse. There is also some poetry and a couple of essays (one on Mary Gentle, one on Father Brown). There are some lovely illustrations as well. I am not a Gaiman completist so won't look out for this in hard copy, but am glad to have it in pixel form.
Published in 1993 and re-released last year as part of the Gaiman ebook bundle which I got cheap. At that point Gaiman had published half of Sandman, also Black Orchid, the Books of Magic and (with Terry Pratchett) Good Omens, and was obviously a rising star but not quite as stellar as he has since become. So a lot of these pieces are journeyman work, but none the less interesting as we see him work out a few ideas whihc he returned to later and better. The story that lingers most with me is "Looking for the Girl", about an eternally young nude model, originally published in Penthouse. There is also some poetry and a couple of essays (one on Mary Gentle, one on Father Brown). There are some lovely illustrations as well. I am not a Gaiman completist so won't look out for this in hard copy, but am glad to have it in pixel form.
charissas_'s review against another edition
4.0
This short story is pretty great: it's funny and creepy at the same time. It's about a guy who suspects his fiancé of cheating on him, so he hires an assassin to kill the man responsible for supposedly stealing his future wife. However, the assassin keeps offering him better deals each time they meet in a bar, and who can resist a good bargain?
heypretty52's review
3.0
Gaiman writes exceptionally, but I dare say it perplexes me that there persists so much fascination around this particular story.
sashaknits's review
3.0
This book is long since out of print, but I got a copy through a recent Humble Bundle of Neil Gaiman ebooks. It is the earliest collection published of Neil's short fiction and unfortunately it shows. Quite a few pieces just aren't that good, you can tell that he hasn't found his voice yet.
There is however a smattering of great pieces in here including off the top of my head Chivalry, Looking For The Girl, and Murder Mysteries. The better news is that half the pieces in this collection (all the good ones IMO) are also published in Smoke & Mirrors which is still in print, so I'd read that followed by Fragile Things if I were you.
There is however a smattering of great pieces in here including off the top of my head Chivalry, Looking For The Girl, and Murder Mysteries. The better news is that half the pieces in this collection (all the good ones IMO) are also published in Smoke & Mirrors which is still in print, so I'd read that followed by Fragile Things if I were you.
dolangueando's review
5.0
Algumas citações, marcadas como spoiler.
I wrote it in a weekend, a gift from the gods, easy and sweet as anything. Suddenly I was a writer transformed: I laughed in the face of danger and spat on the shoes of writer’s block. Then I sat and stared glumly at a blank screen for another week, because the gods have a sense of humour.
“Have you got any identification?” Mrs Whitaker asked. She knew that it was unwise to let unidentified strangers into your home, when you were elderly and living on your own. Handbags get emptied, and worse than that.
It is not that I was credulous, simply that I believed in all things dark and dangerous.
Regan was scared of driving in America: it was like driving on the other side of a mirror.
There are words that do things to people; words that make people’s faces flush with joy, excitement, or passion. Environmental can be one, occult is another. Wholesale was Peter’s.
I wrote it in a weekend, a gift from the gods, easy and sweet as anything. Suddenly I was a writer transformed: I laughed in the face of danger and spat on the shoes of writer’s block. Then I sat and stared glumly at a blank screen for another week, because the gods have a sense of humour.
“Have you got any identification?” Mrs Whitaker asked. She knew that it was unwise to let unidentified strangers into your home, when you were elderly and living on your own. Handbags get emptied, and worse than that.
It is not that I was credulous, simply that I believed in all things dark and dangerous.
Regan was scared of driving in America: it was like driving on the other side of a mirror.
There are words that do things to people; words that make people’s faces flush with joy, excitement, or passion. Environmental can be one, occult is another. Wholesale was Peter’s.
dickh's review
3.0
The book is subtitled, A Miscellany, which is a good description. Some of the pieces, such as Chivalry and Murder Mysteries, are excellent but the overall quality varies and the lack of a unifying theme probably detracts from the total. Still, for the fan of Mr. Gaiman, an excellent book to read.
thebookishbabbler's review
3.0
Actual rating 3.5
This was a really solid collection of short stories. My favorite was easily the Troll. Neil Gaiman is so good at creating dark fairytale atmosphere, even If the plots don't always capture me.
This was a really solid collection of short stories. My favorite was easily the Troll. Neil Gaiman is so good at creating dark fairytale atmosphere, even If the plots don't always capture me.
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