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jnamadan's review
4.0
For me the sword stories were better and more memorable than the laser ones. Just seemed to connect more with the sword side
scottishben's review
3.0
This Anthology came about because the book group I am in (and many, many others on Good Reads) had a lot of budding authors in it and the hosts thought it would be a good idea to create an anthology with the mainly unpublished writers who are part of the group.
Any collection which gives new authors opportunities is to be lauded and the writers together with the editors have done a sterling job of creating readable and fairly well written stories. At times the dialogue or characterisation lets some of these stories down a little but these are some of the most challenging areas for new writers to get right.
The book is split in two with the first 10 stories being fantasy and the last ten being science fiction. Overall I thought a good job was done to pick stories that, whilst might having some flaws were entertaining and enjoyable to read. It would take the most curmudgeonly critic to not find some positive things to say about the joyful execution of some of the more adventurous tales or to fail to find some charm in the less adrenaline filled tales.
However I do not think that there were any stories here that would have been published in say Beneath Ceaseless Skies or Electric Velocipide. The stories do not feel fresh, original or quite well executed enough to make it in established venues.
I think anyone in the S&L club will be glad to have picked up this volume as will people who enjoy a good fantasy or SF yarn but I do not think this anthology will succeed beyond those requirements, but then to be fair it does not really try to do that.
Any collection which gives new authors opportunities is to be lauded and the writers together with the editors have done a sterling job of creating readable and fairly well written stories. At times the dialogue or characterisation lets some of these stories down a little but these are some of the most challenging areas for new writers to get right.
The book is split in two with the first 10 stories being fantasy and the last ten being science fiction. Overall I thought a good job was done to pick stories that, whilst might having some flaws were entertaining and enjoyable to read. It would take the most curmudgeonly critic to not find some positive things to say about the joyful execution of some of the more adventurous tales or to fail to find some charm in the less adrenaline filled tales.
However I do not think that there were any stories here that would have been published in say Beneath Ceaseless Skies or Electric Velocipide. The stories do not feel fresh, original or quite well executed enough to make it in established venues.
I think anyone in the S&L club will be glad to have picked up this volume as will people who enjoy a good fantasy or SF yarn but I do not think this anthology will succeed beyond those requirements, but then to be fair it does not really try to do that.
elsiemookow's review
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
I had a great time reading one short story a day for 20 days, and I was overall quite impressed with the collection. My personal favorites were White Flame and Partly Petrified- The anthology is a fun collection of works from authors I had not read from before.
calormston's review against another edition
5.0
Simply wonderful. An eclectic collection of fantasy and sci-fi from a pool of very talented new writers; where else can you find a chilling monster tale nestled between a Pratchett-esque caper and a delightful D&D romp? The incredibly diverse selection means there really is something for everyone in this anthology, and though I thought it also meant that many of these stories would simply not be for me, I was surprised to find that I LOVED almost all of them, and that they were all well crafted and teeming with ingenuity.
Congratulations to Veronica, Tom, and all the authors for this major achievement.
Congratulations to Veronica, Tom, and all the authors for this major achievement.
lancaerie's review against another edition
4.0
A collection of amazing stories!
Of course I liked some better than others, but as a whole they are original, imaginative and very well written.
Already waiting for the next Sword and Laser Anthology!
Of course I liked some better than others, but as a whole they are original, imaginative and very well written.
Already waiting for the next Sword and Laser Anthology!
sleeping_while_awake's review
2.0
There were a few standout stories; I think the fantasy section was stronger than the scifi.
Maybe I am a little harsh rating the anthology, but most of the stories didn't grip me. I think that is probably due to the fact that there is such a wide range of stories here.
My favorites were: Saltwater Skin - I really enjoy magical realism so that was right up my alley. The Lesser Evil - Wonderful writing and interesting characters; The Osiris Paradox - Intriguing world-building and great blend of fantasy and scifi together.
Maybe I am a little harsh rating the anthology, but most of the stories didn't grip me. I think that is probably due to the fact that there is such a wide range of stories here.
My favorites were: Saltwater Skin - I really enjoy magical realism so that was right up my alley. The Lesser Evil - Wonderful writing and interesting characters; The Osiris Paradox - Intriguing world-building and great blend of fantasy and scifi together.
nancyotoole's review
3.0
With this book, Sword and Laser expands from its history as a long running podcast and video show to being an anthology as well. Filled with works by new authors, Sword & Laser Anthology can feel a little rough around the edges, but my experience with the collection was mostly positive. I liked the majority of the stories found here, and only disliked a handful of them. One thing this anthology does quite well is deliver a wide variety of content. The stories cover many different subgernes and tones, which draws attention to the wide scope of content that can be found within the genre itself. One formatting aspect I had an issue with is how they chose to list the author information. By listing it all in the back, without necessarily referencing the story that the author contributed to this collection, I often found myself forgetting who wrote what, and having to skip back and forth between the table of contents and the author info. This can be kind of tricky with the ebook. Regardless, I really hope that Veronica and Tom decide to do another one of these, as it was a lot of fun to read.
Here's a list of my favorites in the collection. Saltater Skin by Kristy Sutherland is a wonderfully written story told from the perspective of a selkie. How Fox Fixed the Sky is a folklore-tinged tale by Stephen Case. Knowing Better by Sean Tadsen focuses on a fantasy chef. The Osiris Paradox by Sarina Dorie, which mixes elements from Egyptian mythology with science fiction, is by far my favorite story in the collection. The Same International Orange by Luke R. Pebler is a great science fiction tale about robots and their impact on society. Honorable mentions go to The Lesser Evil by Day Al-Mohamed, White Flame by Jeffrey N. Baker, and Leviathan! Leviathan! by Jacob A. Boyd.
Here's a list of my favorites in the collection. Saltater Skin by Kristy Sutherland is a wonderfully written story told from the perspective of a selkie. How Fox Fixed the Sky is a folklore-tinged tale by Stephen Case. Knowing Better by Sean Tadsen focuses on a fantasy chef. The Osiris Paradox by Sarina Dorie, which mixes elements from Egyptian mythology with science fiction, is by far my favorite story in the collection. The Same International Orange by Luke R. Pebler is a great science fiction tale about robots and their impact on society. Honorable mentions go to The Lesser Evil by Day Al-Mohamed, White Flame by Jeffrey N. Baker, and Leviathan! Leviathan! by Jacob A. Boyd.
ruzgofdi's review against another edition
3.0
I would say this is one of the better collections of short stories I've read. I think I would say that because there's not one story in here that I had a strong negative reaction to. But at the same time, there weren't all that many stories that had a strong positive reaction to either. Most of the collection was good enough. I would say that I enjoyed the fantasy (Sword) selections more than the sci-fi (Laser) offerings. Part of that would definitely be personal preference, as more of the fantasy stories had an element of humor to them. Then again, probably the best story of the whole collection (The Lesser Evil by Day Al-Mohamed) doesn't have anything really to laugh about.
elzbethmrgn's review
2.0
I only read the fantasy half of this, the sci-fi not interesting me enough to give up precious reading time I need for uni right now. Although the stories were disappointing at first, they quickly picked up, and a few (Partly Petrified by Auston Habershaw and The Lesser Evil by Day Al-Mohamed) were brilliant. Hopefully sci-fi fans think the same, or better, of the Laser half of the anthology.
bluebec's review
3.0
Some, but not many, solid gold stories in here, and some not so good. For a collection of unpublished writers, many who'd written their first story for this anthology, this is great. There are many authors who will go onto bigger and better things.
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