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A review by bahnree
Kaleidoscope: Diverse YA Science Fiction and Fantasy Stories by Alisa Krasnostein, Julia Rios
5.0
Cookie Cutter Superhero by Tansy Rayner Roberts: 5/5
This felt like the opening chapter to a long excellent superhero book that I would like to read.
The Seventh Day of the Seventh Moon by Ken Liu: 5/5
I haven't heard the "fairy tale" at the heart of this story before so I'm not sure if it's "real" or made up for this story. But it feels like a reimagining/retelling/subversion of a fairy tale I haven't heard before, and it's very well done at making the ordinary feel magical.
The Legend Trap by Sean Williams: 5/5
I loved this. It's the urban legend to end all urban legends, and scary as hell.
End of Service by Gabriela Lee: 4/5
This had an urban legend feeling to it. The protagonist's arc was well done, but besides that the story was mostly operating on shock-value.
Chupacabra's Song by Jim C. Hines: 5/5
This one is definitely one of my favorites. It's a pretty great day at the vets when you get a chupacabra and magic animal hunters all in one day. I would like a whole book about this protagonist.
The Day The God Died by Alena McNamara: 5/5
I always love stories that show what looks like an ordinary day but has one extraordinary magical thing in it. I also liked the almost-Beauty-and-the-Beast-but-TOTALLY-NOT tone.
Signature by Faith Mudge: 5/5
Rumpelstiltskin retelling forged from the fires of heaven! I loved this. I want more of this wonderful bookselling team.
The Lovely Duckling by Tim Susman: 5/5
I was impressed at the full story told here using only documents and letters, with strong impressions of the characters. It left me wanting more.
Kiss and Kiss and Kiss and Tell by E.C Myers: 4/5
Take the Nemo pill and kiss somebody and see the ultimate WHAT-IF - unless you're Rene. Rene's visions were bleak and sometimes boring, but the overall story was really great. I liked the slow unveiling of what was going on and of Sam's story, and the hopefulness.
Vanilla by Dirk Flinthart: 5/5
Yet another story in this collection that I would read an entire book of. For most of it I was thinking "Awww I want alien cuddle-buddies!" which made the end 10-times better bahahaha. I love social commentary in a story if the story is really great, which this one is.
Careful Magic by Karen Healey: 5/5
ANOTHER FAVORITE. I love the magic system, I love the characters, I love this story, I want a five-book series. Please and thank you.
Walkdog by Sofia Samatar: 5/5
I almost put this one down in a huff, but I am so glad I didn't. The style is a little hard to read (it's told as if it's a school paper written by a student) and the protagonist is really off-putting (at first?) but there is so much going on here and a really powerful conclusion.
Celebration by Sean Eads: 5/5
Guy goes to therapy camp and everybody acts like they're possessed. No, really. This story was terrifying and I have a lot of questions about the human race tbqh but this is a very well done little thriller.
The Truth About Owls by Amal El-Mohtar: 3/5
Protagonist is sent to London to escape Middle-eastern conflicts and live with her mother, but she's not sure how to deal with her -mostly absent father and two different cultures. Also, owls. I was really confused about how much of the protagonist's powers were "real" and how much were just in her head - but I'm not sure that matters.
Krishna Blue by Shveta Thakrar: 3/5
Eating paint to get magical powers isn't something I've seen done before, but the protagonist was an angry baby and the story was a little repetitive. I'm probably too harsh- there was a lot here and it probably was not my cup of tea.
Every Little Thing by Holly Kench: 3/5
Teenage witch feels like her last resort is to use a love-spell on her crush. Just a little love-spell, just to get her crush to see the light. I liked the bits with the protagonist and her BFF.
Happy Go Lucky by Garth Nix:
Ordinary Things by Vylar Kaftan:
Double Time by John Chu:
Welcome by William Alexander:
This felt like the opening chapter to a long excellent superhero book that I would like to read.
The Seventh Day of the Seventh Moon by Ken Liu: 5/5
I haven't heard the "fairy tale" at the heart of this story before so I'm not sure if it's "real" or made up for this story. But it feels like a reimagining/retelling/subversion of a fairy tale I haven't heard before, and it's very well done at making the ordinary feel magical.
The Legend Trap by Sean Williams: 5/5
I loved this. It's the urban legend to end all urban legends, and scary as hell.
End of Service by Gabriela Lee: 4/5
This had an urban legend feeling to it. The protagonist's arc was well done, but besides that the story was mostly operating on shock-value.
Chupacabra's Song by Jim C. Hines: 5/5
This one is definitely one of my favorites. It's a pretty great day at the vets when you get a chupacabra and magic animal hunters all in one day. I would like a whole book about this protagonist.
The Day The God Died by Alena McNamara: 5/5
I always love stories that show what looks like an ordinary day but has one extraordinary magical thing in it. I also liked the almost-Beauty-and-the-Beast-but-TOTALLY-NOT tone.
Signature by Faith Mudge: 5/5
Rumpelstiltskin retelling forged from the fires of heaven! I loved this. I want more of this wonderful bookselling team.
The Lovely Duckling by Tim Susman: 5/5
I was impressed at the full story told here using only documents and letters, with strong impressions of the characters. It left me wanting more.
Kiss and Kiss and Kiss and Tell by E.C Myers: 4/5
Take the Nemo pill and kiss somebody and see the ultimate WHAT-IF - unless you're Rene. Rene's visions were bleak and sometimes boring, but the overall story was really great. I liked the slow unveiling of what was going on and of Sam's story, and the hopefulness.
Vanilla by Dirk Flinthart: 5/5
Yet another story in this collection that I would read an entire book of. For most of it I was thinking "Awww I want alien cuddle-buddies!" which made the end 10-times better bahahaha. I love social commentary in a story if the story is really great, which this one is.
Careful Magic by Karen Healey: 5/5
ANOTHER FAVORITE. I love the magic system, I love the characters, I love this story, I want a five-book series. Please and thank you.
Walkdog by Sofia Samatar: 5/5
I almost put this one down in a huff, but I am so glad I didn't. The style is a little hard to read (it's told as if it's a school paper written by a student) and the protagonist is really off-putting (at first?) but there is so much going on here and a really powerful conclusion.
Celebration by Sean Eads: 5/5
Guy goes to therapy camp and everybody acts like they're possessed. No, really. This story was terrifying and I have a lot of questions about the human race tbqh but this is a very well done little thriller.
The Truth About Owls by Amal El-Mohtar: 3/5
Protagonist is sent to London to escape Middle-eastern conflicts and live with her mother, but she's not sure how to deal with her -mostly absent father and two different cultures. Also, owls. I was really confused about how much of the protagonist's powers were "real" and how much were just in her head - but I'm not sure that matters.
Krishna Blue by Shveta Thakrar: 3/5
Eating paint to get magical powers isn't something I've seen done before, but the protagonist was an angry baby and the story was a little repetitive. I'm probably too harsh- there was a lot here and it probably was not my cup of tea.
Every Little Thing by Holly Kench: 3/5
Teenage witch feels like her last resort is to use a love-spell on her crush. Just a little love-spell, just to get her crush to see the light. I liked the bits with the protagonist and her BFF.
Happy Go Lucky by Garth Nix:
Ordinary Things by Vylar Kaftan:
Double Time by John Chu:
Welcome by William Alexander: