Scan barcode
leesmyth's review against another edition
3.0
Overall, I liked it. For me, the standout was "Iseul’s Lexicon" by Yoon Ha Lee. The heroine is a spy in occupied territory, where the occupiers have forbidden use of the native language and are confiscating books in that language. She learns that the censors are not destroying the books, but are instead compiling a lexicon. And yes, they have a breath-takingly nefarious purpose in mind.
I also really liked "Shadows for Silence in the Forests of Hell" by Brandon Sanderson and "A Little of the Night (Ein Bisschen Nacht)" by Tanith Lee. The core idea of Tanith Lee's story inverts the usual monster trope in a particularly lovely way.
I also really liked "Shadows for Silence in the Forests of Hell" by Brandon Sanderson and "A Little of the Night (Ein Bisschen Nacht)" by Tanith Lee. The core idea of Tanith Lee's story inverts the usual monster trope in a particularly lovely way.
vdarcangelo's review against another edition
4.0
Faves:
David J. Schow: "Blue Amber"
Laird Barron: "Termination Dust"
Veronica Schanoes: "Phosphorus"
Neil Gaiman: "A Lunar Labyrinth"
Brian Hodge: "Let My Smile Be Your Umbrella"
Kaaron Warren: "Air, Water, and the Grove"
Steve Duffy: "The Marginals"
Carrie Vaughn: "Fishwife"
David J. Schow: "Blue Amber"
Laird Barron: "Termination Dust"
Veronica Schanoes: "Phosphorus"
Neil Gaiman: "A Lunar Labyrinth"
Brian Hodge: "Let My Smile Be Your Umbrella"
Kaaron Warren: "Air, Water, and the Grove"
Steve Duffy: "The Marginals"
Carrie Vaughn: "Fishwife"
tashaw's review
2.0
The best stories were really good-- Priya Sharma's "Rag and Bone" and Angela Slatter's "Cuckoo" --but overall, this collection wasn't as good as last year's.
alexanderpaez's review
4.0
Full review: http://dondeterminaelinfinito.blogspot.com.es/2014/09/the-years-best-dark-fantasy-horror-2014.html
Una de las razones por las que empecé a leer esta antología fue la de entender mejor, en contexto, el significado de Dark Fantasy. ¿Qué diferencia la fantasía oscura del terror? ¿Son el grimdark y la fantasía oscura, primos hermanos? En esta antología Paula Guran nos presenta treinta y dos relatos que en mayor o menor medida se podrían clasificar como fantasía oscura. Estos relatos en su mayoría (si no todos) han sido publicados previamente en revistas u otras antologías, y posteriormente recogidos en este volumen. Por lo que tenemos una antología bastante larga que intenta aglutinar lo mejor de 2014 en cuanto a relatos de fantasía oscura.
En la sinopsis de la antología ya nos dan una pequeña pista de la intención de la antología, cito: “[…]the dark is full of the unknown: grim futures, distorted pasts, invasions of the uncanny, paranormal fancies, weird dreams, unnerving nightmares, baffling enigmas, revelatory excursions, desperate adventures, spectral journeys, mundane terrors, and supernatural visions” ¿Es entonces la fantasía oscura una mezcla de weird, fantasía y terror? Todavía no lo tengo claro pero pinta interesante.
La editora, Paula Gulan (conocida por editar antologías como New Cthulhu: The Recent Weird o las ediciones desde 2010 de The Year's Best Dark Fantasy & Horror hasta la actual de 2014, una de vampiros Vampires: The Recent Undead y una de zombies: Zombies: The Recent Dead y quizá la que me parece más interesante y que adquiriré pronto, una de detectives weird: Weird Detectives: Recent Investigations con relatos de Elizabeth Bear o Caitlín R. Kiernan) escribe una interesante introducción donde dice que el concepto de fantasía oscura no está para nada definido y fluctúa. Según la editora, ante todo, es una etiqueta de márketing (algo en lo que estoy de acuerdo), además, dice: “Una historia de fantasía oscura debe ser un poco perturbadora o quizá de alguna forma extraña. Puede ser reveladora o incomprensible.”
Una de las razones por las que empecé a leer esta antología fue la de entender mejor, en contexto, el significado de Dark Fantasy. ¿Qué diferencia la fantasía oscura del terror? ¿Son el grimdark y la fantasía oscura, primos hermanos? En esta antología Paula Guran nos presenta treinta y dos relatos que en mayor o menor medida se podrían clasificar como fantasía oscura. Estos relatos en su mayoría (si no todos) han sido publicados previamente en revistas u otras antologías, y posteriormente recogidos en este volumen. Por lo que tenemos una antología bastante larga que intenta aglutinar lo mejor de 2014 en cuanto a relatos de fantasía oscura.
En la sinopsis de la antología ya nos dan una pequeña pista de la intención de la antología, cito: “[…]the dark is full of the unknown: grim futures, distorted pasts, invasions of the uncanny, paranormal fancies, weird dreams, unnerving nightmares, baffling enigmas, revelatory excursions, desperate adventures, spectral journeys, mundane terrors, and supernatural visions” ¿Es entonces la fantasía oscura una mezcla de weird, fantasía y terror? Todavía no lo tengo claro pero pinta interesante.
La editora, Paula Gulan (conocida por editar antologías como New Cthulhu: The Recent Weird o las ediciones desde 2010 de The Year's Best Dark Fantasy & Horror hasta la actual de 2014, una de vampiros Vampires: The Recent Undead y una de zombies: Zombies: The Recent Dead y quizá la que me parece más interesante y que adquiriré pronto, una de detectives weird: Weird Detectives: Recent Investigations con relatos de Elizabeth Bear o Caitlín R. Kiernan) escribe una interesante introducción donde dice que el concepto de fantasía oscura no está para nada definido y fluctúa. Según la editora, ante todo, es una etiqueta de márketing (algo en lo que estoy de acuerdo), además, dice: “Una historia de fantasía oscura debe ser un poco perturbadora o quizá de alguna forma extraña. Puede ser reveladora o incomprensible.”
alexvb's review
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
4.0
Recieved this from NetGalley to review.
This was so long. But I had a bunch that I really enjoyed! So I will write them here!
This colleciton is great if you wanna try out some very well known authors (and even new authors) and getting a taste of their style and thinking before attempting one of their books or series. I really liked and was surprised by how mich bipoc and lgbt there was in this collection even though it's so old.
The Good Husband by Nathan Ballingrud: gripped me and was great.
The Soul in the Bell Jar by KJ Kabza: The climax was a little confusing and never really answered the uncle's intentions with the baby but I loved the writing a lot and will be checking our their other stuff.
The Prayer of Ninety Cats by Caitlin R. Kiernan: The writing was really good. I just couldn't understand why she was writing a fake review of a movie with half the script in it. It was queer though and is based off a real person (who was horrifying btw). I'll be looking into her other works.
Shadows of Silence in the Forests of Hell by Brandon Sanderson: OF COURSE I LOVED THIS ONE AND WAS LEFT WANTING MORE!
The Plague by Ken Liu: Too short! The use of present tense was interesting and the point of the story was quick and well done. Very impactful but I need more!
The Gruesome Affair of the Electric Blue Lightning by Joe R. Lansdale: It was very much Sherlock meets Frankenstein meets Dracula kind of. I'd be interested to try their novels.
Let My Smile Be Your Umbrella by Brian Hodge: I felt so fucking called out in this one at the beginning. It was so good and so hooking. The ending was confusing but I still enjoyed it non-the-less! Trigger warnings though for anorexia, suicide, suicide idolisation, eating disorders.
Air, Water, and The Grove by Kaaron Warren: At first this seemed like The Purge but it went sci-fi and it's so interesting. I will look for more of her books. The ending was so chilling and so wild.
A Little Of the Night by Tanith Lee: Beautiful prose.
Our Lady of Ruins By Sarah Singleton: This was so good and so interesting!! I want to know more!
Dark Gardens by Greg Kuruzawa: This was really good. The ending and the build up. Even the tension was really good!
Rag and Bone by Pirya Sharma: *spoilers*
Me at the beginning: the mc is a woman
Part way through: everyone says HE to them. I am super confused because they speak and think more like a woman than a guy and I thought this was a female character the entire time.
Towards the end: reveals they cross dress and pass a man -- OMG I FUCKING CALLED IT and she had sex with sally!!! It's gay!!!! YESSSS! One of my favs from the entire story!! I am defo gunna be looking into her stuff more! OMG And I loved the kinda distorted old Liverpool/England. Like Oliver Twist with a twist. OMG THE ENDING!! I hope she's alive. But omg the twist with her momma too!! I loved it!!
To Die for Moonlight by Sarah Monette: This was so good and so weird.
The Dream Detective by Lisa Tuttle: Was a GENIUS IDEA! I kick myself for not coming up with it! I need to know what happened. Is there more! Does he have to dig her up in the dream world to revive her?! OMG this was great!
Event Horizon by Sunny Moraine: We have a trans/non-binary character and queer characters in this?! Ohhhhhh this was so good and the gender fluidity and the house was so freaky. I really enjoyed it!!
Moonstruck by Karin Tidbeck: You think it's gunna go one way with the girl and then it twists. It was really really good. Captivating, tense, mysterious, I enjoyed it!
The Ghost Makers by Elizabeth Bear: This was so good too! I loved the world and the charcacters immedaitely. I loved the banter already between the two characters. For a second I thought there was a gay relationship going on... Glad I enjoyed Bear's writing here! Now I can try out their other stuff! Also their author's bio was GREAT.
"Elizabeth Bear was born on the same day as Frodo and Bilbo Baggins, but in a different year." I love it!
Iseul's Lexicon by Yoon Ha Lee: You could tell and feel the Korean influence right away. I think I was too dumb for this. It was interesting but the magic system and the ideas were too vast for a short story. And it was the longest, and put right at the end. I think it'd would've been better at the beginning or middle. I liked the writing though so it's good to know I can check out her other stuff too in the future!
This was so long. But I had a bunch that I really enjoyed! So I will write them here!
This colleciton is great if you wanna try out some very well known authors (and even new authors) and getting a taste of their style and thinking before attempting one of their books or series. I really liked and was surprised by how mich bipoc and lgbt there was in this collection even though it's so old.
The Good Husband by Nathan Ballingrud: gripped me and was great.
The Soul in the Bell Jar by KJ Kabza: The climax was a little confusing and never really answered the uncle's intentions with the baby but I loved the writing a lot and will be checking our their other stuff.
The Prayer of Ninety Cats by Caitlin R. Kiernan: The writing was really good. I just couldn't understand why she was writing a fake review of a movie with half the script in it. It was queer though and is based off a real person (who was horrifying btw). I'll be looking into her other works.
Shadows of Silence in the Forests of Hell by Brandon Sanderson: OF COURSE I LOVED THIS ONE AND WAS LEFT WANTING MORE!
The Plague by Ken Liu: Too short! The use of present tense was interesting and the point of the story was quick and well done. Very impactful but I need more!
The Gruesome Affair of the Electric Blue Lightning by Joe R. Lansdale: It was very much Sherlock meets Frankenstein meets Dracula kind of. I'd be interested to try their novels.
Let My Smile Be Your Umbrella by Brian Hodge: I felt so fucking called out in this one at the beginning. It was so good and so hooking. The ending was confusing but I still enjoyed it non-the-less! Trigger warnings though for anorexia, suicide, suicide idolisation, eating disorders.
Air, Water, and The Grove by Kaaron Warren: At first this seemed like The Purge but it went sci-fi and it's so interesting. I will look for more of her books. The ending was so chilling and so wild.
A Little Of the Night by Tanith Lee: Beautiful prose.
Our Lady of Ruins By Sarah Singleton: This was so good and so interesting!! I want to know more!
Dark Gardens by Greg Kuruzawa: This was really good. The ending and the build up. Even the tension was really good!
Rag and Bone by Pirya Sharma: *spoilers*
Me at the beginning: the mc is a woman
Part way through: everyone says HE to them. I am super confused because they speak and think more like a woman than a guy and I thought this was a female character the entire time.
Towards the end: reveals they cross dress and pass a man -- OMG I FUCKING CALLED IT and she had sex with sally!!! It's gay!!!! YESSSS! One of my favs from the entire story!! I am defo gunna be looking into her stuff more! OMG And I loved the kinda distorted old Liverpool/England. Like Oliver Twist with a twist. OMG THE ENDING!! I hope she's alive. But omg the twist with her momma too!! I loved it!!
To Die for Moonlight by Sarah Monette: This was so good and so weird.
The Dream Detective by Lisa Tuttle: Was a GENIUS IDEA! I kick myself for not coming up with it! I need to know what happened. Is there more! Does he have to dig her up in the dream world to revive her?! OMG this was great!
Event Horizon by Sunny Moraine: We have a trans/non-binary character and queer characters in this?! Ohhhhhh this was so good and the gender fluidity and the house was so freaky. I really enjoyed it!!
Moonstruck by Karin Tidbeck: You think it's gunna go one way with the girl and then it twists. It was really really good. Captivating, tense, mysterious, I enjoyed it!
The Ghost Makers by Elizabeth Bear: This was so good too! I loved the world and the charcacters immedaitely. I loved the banter already between the two characters. For a second I thought there was a gay relationship going on... Glad I enjoyed Bear's writing here! Now I can try out their other stuff! Also their author's bio was GREAT.
"Elizabeth Bear was born on the same day as Frodo and Bilbo Baggins, but in a different year." I love it!
Iseul's Lexicon by Yoon Ha Lee: You could tell and feel the Korean influence right away. I think I was too dumb for this. It was interesting but the magic system and the ideas were too vast for a short story. And it was the longest, and put right at the end. I think it'd would've been better at the beginning or middle. I liked the writing though so it's good to know I can check out her other stuff too in the future!
buildhergender's review
5.0
Great set of stories, there was one I could not finish but I think it was more I was tired than anything wrong with it.
The one set in London with the matchstick women was chilling. Not the zombies, that was mild, but the life the people were living before the zombie.
The one set in London with the matchstick women was chilling. Not the zombies, that was mild, but the life the people were living before the zombie.
audreysbookcorner's review
3.0
This rating represent the average of the rating of each story (see my status updates for more information). Overall, I must say that I was tired of the theme at the end, even if the last stories weren't that much close to it. If the book have been a little less long (and stories more carefully chosen), I would probably have enjoyed it more.
***Now I can say that my challenge for 2015 is truly finished :)
***Now I can say that my challenge for 2015 is truly finished :)
tiredtank's review
3.0
As always with short story collections, it's a bit of a mixed bag in terms of what clicked and what didn't. The stories that really grabbed me, and left me wanting more were:
-The Soul in the Bell Jar ~ KJ Kabza
-Postcards From Abroad ~ Peter Atkins
-Phosphorous ~ Veronica Schanoes
-Shadows for Silence in the Forests of Hell ~ Brandon Sanderson
-The Ghost Makers ~ Elizabeth Bear
-The Soul in the Bell Jar ~ KJ Kabza
-Postcards From Abroad ~ Peter Atkins
-Phosphorous ~ Veronica Schanoes
-Shadows for Silence in the Forests of Hell ~ Brandon Sanderson
-The Ghost Makers ~ Elizabeth Bear
sharonleavy's review
4.0
RATING: 3.5
This is a collection of 32 short stories, edited by Paula Guran. I'm not usually drawn to short story collections, but with a desire to read more paranormal and horror, I chose this.
There are some standouts - Blue Amber by David J Schow, The Good Husband by Nathan Ballingrud, The Soul in the Bell Jar by KJ Kabza, Postcards from Abroad by Peter Atkins, Phosphorous by Veronica Schanoes, A Lunar Labyrinth by Neil Gaiman, A Collapse of Horses by Brian Evenson, Dark Gardens by Greg Kurzawa, Rag and Bone by Priya Sharma were all stand-out tales. Dark Gardens in particular was something unique, refreshing and genuinely creepy.
There were some I thought were just okay, they needed more background, more meat. I enjoyed them but thought they'd work better as longer stories. In particular - Wheatfield With Crows by Steve Rasnic Tem, The Gruesome Affair of the Electric Blue Lightning by Joe R. Lonsdale (very Sherlock-esque), Let My Smile Be Your Umbrella by Brian Hodge, Air, Water and The Grove by Kaaron Warren, A Little of The Night by Tanith Lee, Pride: A Collectors Tale by Glen Hirshberg, Our Lady of Ruins by Sarah Singleton, The Marginals by Steve Duffy, Fishwife by Carrie Vaughn, The Dream Detective by Lisa Tuttle, Event Horizon by Sunny Moraine, and Moonstruck by Karin Tidbeck.
Some, I felt, were too long to be included. Kindle estimated the reading time of both Shadows For Silence in The Forests of Hell by Brandon Sanderson and Iseul's Lexicon by Yoon Ha Lee as over 35 minutes, so in all honesty I skimmed them. I couldn't get into the stories, and they didn't grab me from the offset.
Other stories just plain confused me - Termination Dust by Laird Barron had murders, visions of murders, and an appearance from Michael Jackson. The Prayer of Ninety Cats by Caitlín R. Kiernan had a load of waffle about the history of cinema before revealing that the main story was a film in a cinema, but I felt the tale could have stood up on its own without the history parts. The Plague by Ken Liu was extrememly short and very confusing. The Creature Recants by Dale Bailey was about The Creature from the Lagoon realising he was being used by a production crew, and falling in love with his leading lady. I found it ridiculous. Cuckoo by Angela Slatter was about some kind of body snatcher - but it was rushed and I couldn't get a handle on the character.
Overall, I found this book very enjoyable and I have discovered some horror authors I want to follow up on. My favourite story from the whole (almost 600 page) book was Dark Gardens by Greg Kurzawa - it was beautifully written and genuinely creepy.
There were two other stories that stood out, mainly for the fact that the horror lay in the human elements of the stories. The Good Husband by Nathan Ballingrud was a heartbreaking tale of how a husband dealt with his repeatedly suicidal wife. A Collapse of Horses by Brian Evenson was about a man who had suffered a horrific brain injury and therefore had a very inaccurate and skewed version of the world.
One story I would avoid altogether is The Legend of Troop 13 by Kit Reed. A crowd of girl scouts go missing in the mountains, and for years later, busloads of curious people (mainly horny men) go on trips up the mountains to try and find the girls (who must be grown up and horny by now) so they can seduce them. I didn't enjoy that story at ALL.
Sincere thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing a copy in exchange for honest review.
I will be keeping an eye out for next years' anthology, and tracking down the previous ones!
This is a collection of 32 short stories, edited by Paula Guran. I'm not usually drawn to short story collections, but with a desire to read more paranormal and horror, I chose this.
There are some standouts - Blue Amber by David J Schow, The Good Husband by Nathan Ballingrud, The Soul in the Bell Jar by KJ Kabza, Postcards from Abroad by Peter Atkins, Phosphorous by Veronica Schanoes, A Lunar Labyrinth by Neil Gaiman, A Collapse of Horses by Brian Evenson, Dark Gardens by Greg Kurzawa, Rag and Bone by Priya Sharma were all stand-out tales. Dark Gardens in particular was something unique, refreshing and genuinely creepy.
There were some I thought were just okay, they needed more background, more meat. I enjoyed them but thought they'd work better as longer stories. In particular - Wheatfield With Crows by Steve Rasnic Tem, The Gruesome Affair of the Electric Blue Lightning by Joe R. Lonsdale (very Sherlock-esque), Let My Smile Be Your Umbrella by Brian Hodge, Air, Water and The Grove by Kaaron Warren, A Little of The Night by Tanith Lee, Pride: A Collectors Tale by Glen Hirshberg, Our Lady of Ruins by Sarah Singleton, The Marginals by Steve Duffy, Fishwife by Carrie Vaughn, The Dream Detective by Lisa Tuttle, Event Horizon by Sunny Moraine, and Moonstruck by Karin Tidbeck.
Some, I felt, were too long to be included. Kindle estimated the reading time of both Shadows For Silence in The Forests of Hell by Brandon Sanderson and Iseul's Lexicon by Yoon Ha Lee as over 35 minutes, so in all honesty I skimmed them. I couldn't get into the stories, and they didn't grab me from the offset.
Other stories just plain confused me - Termination Dust by Laird Barron had murders, visions of murders, and an appearance from Michael Jackson. The Prayer of Ninety Cats by Caitlín R. Kiernan had a load of waffle about the history of cinema before revealing that the main story was a film in a cinema, but I felt the tale could have stood up on its own without the history parts. The Plague by Ken Liu was extrememly short and very confusing. The Creature Recants by Dale Bailey was about The Creature from the Lagoon realising he was being used by a production crew, and falling in love with his leading lady. I found it ridiculous. Cuckoo by Angela Slatter was about some kind of body snatcher - but it was rushed and I couldn't get a handle on the character.
Overall, I found this book very enjoyable and I have discovered some horror authors I want to follow up on. My favourite story from the whole (almost 600 page) book was Dark Gardens by Greg Kurzawa - it was beautifully written and genuinely creepy.
There were two other stories that stood out, mainly for the fact that the horror lay in the human elements of the stories. The Good Husband by Nathan Ballingrud was a heartbreaking tale of how a husband dealt with his repeatedly suicidal wife. A Collapse of Horses by Brian Evenson was about a man who had suffered a horrific brain injury and therefore had a very inaccurate and skewed version of the world.
One story I would avoid altogether is The Legend of Troop 13 by Kit Reed. A crowd of girl scouts go missing in the mountains, and for years later, busloads of curious people (mainly horny men) go on trips up the mountains to try and find the girls (who must be grown up and horny by now) so they can seduce them. I didn't enjoy that story at ALL.
Sincere thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing a copy in exchange for honest review.
I will be keeping an eye out for next years' anthology, and tracking down the previous ones!
More...