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mistressviolet's review against another edition
adventurous
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
4.0
Good, competent writing. As with most anthologies, I preferred some stories over others—some were a bit dry, but others were thought-provoking and engaging.
The general pacing of the book was a bit slow, but the writing was solid and laced with Christmassy sci-fi aspects that made each story unique.
Overall, a very good Christmas book.
capercaillie's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
I love Connie Willis, and she gets Christmas spirit
iphi_kc13's review against another edition
Tried the first story and just couldn’t get into it.
alliepeduto's review
4.0
Who doesn’t love festive Christmas sci-fi? Actually, if we are being honest (and I’m always honest on Goodreads), I didn’t even know there were Christmas sci-fi stories that existed, but apparently there are more than I even realized!
I went with this collection since it seems fun, and I enjoyed the stories I sampled! I may return for future Christmases to come, but I included what I read below, mostly for my own references.
Inn
All Seated on the Ground
Newsletter
I went with this collection since it seems fun, and I enjoyed the stories I sampled! I may return for future Christmases to come, but I included what I read below, mostly for my own references.
Inn
All Seated on the Ground
Newsletter
dmturner's review against another edition
5.0
Connie Willis's Christmas stories are little symphonies of dialogue, disorganization, and conflict with the modern world in which optimism triumphs and romance succeeds. Her sadder writing is often incredibly powerful because she knows how to grab your heart and squeeze, but I prefer her comic work for the same reason. This is a delightful anthology with many original ideas, and the one that sticks with me best is the one about the visiting aliens who disapprove.
kristikiwi's review against another edition
4.0
Interesting short stories in the sci fi genre with a touch of Christmas Cheer.
kitvaria_sarene's review against another edition
5.0
4,5* and a real joy to read!
This book full of Christmas story stories and novellas is a big enough tome to fill quite some winter evenings!
I loved how very varied they were in their tone and topics, and just how imaginative.
As always with anthologies, some stories worked better for me then others. There's however not one storyvib didn't at least like in here!
I love how well they aged, and having looked up the publishing years of some of these, I'm a bit in awe about how well Willis did predict some technologies! If there wasn't some "expert needle dropping" on LPs, and kids gathering around Atari consoles I wouldn't even have noticed quite some of these have been published in the nineties!
No tear jerkers here, instead it's adventurous or funny or weird stories that made for perfect entertainment while soloing a cup of the of mulled wine!
This book full of Christmas story stories and novellas is a big enough tome to fill quite some winter evenings!
I loved how very varied they were in their tone and topics, and just how imaginative.
As always with anthologies, some stories worked better for me then others. There's however not one storyvib didn't at least like in here!
I love how well they aged, and having looked up the publishing years of some of these, I'm a bit in awe about how well Willis did predict some technologies! If there wasn't some "expert needle dropping" on LPs, and kids gathering around Atari consoles I wouldn't even have noticed quite some of these have been published in the nineties!
No tear jerkers here, instead it's adventurous or funny or weird stories that made for perfect entertainment while soloing a cup of the of mulled wine!
jofish's review against another edition
emotional
funny
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
kjboldon's review against another edition
4.0
I first read this as Miracle and Other Stories and when I went to re-read it was glad to see it was expanded and updated. I really enjoy Willis' sense of humor in these speculative stories. There are 12 stories, so I read one for each day of Christmas, finishing on Twelfth Night. Well worth it for the end lists of Christmas movies, TV, and readings. The stories are good, but many are long, so this is more of a time investment than Jeanette Winterson's Christmas Days, and it's a bit sweeter and less melancholy, which can be a plus or minus depending on what you're in the mood for.