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knittyreader's review
5.0
A wonderful book with wonderful stories. Godfall and Other Stories is varied, with a tendency to the strange and obscure. I also loved how the writer gave a brief explanation after each story, how she came up with the idea of writing it. With this she showed that curiosity, experiences and those quirky things kids say can be turned into great tales.
I received a free copy through Netgalley in return for an honest review.
I received a free copy through Netgalley in return for an honest review.
ddmgembala's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
relaxing
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
5.0
gnashchick's review
5.0
I've read several of Odell's stories in various speculative fiction magazines, so I thought I knew what I was getting into when I purchased this book. I was so wrong. The stories collected here are brilliant, bizarre, emotional, sometimes funny and often troubling. I had to read this slowly because some stories required a pause for reflection. Odell shows us things most people want to avoid talking about—things that people would rather leave locked away and forgotten—then follows up with stories of joyful transformation, unintended consequences, and friendship. It's an amazing collection and I'm glad I got the paperback because I'll be going back to this collection for years to come.
metaphorosis's review
2.0
2.5 stars, Metaphorosis Reviews
Summary:
A collection of speculative stories by Sandra M. Odell
Review:
This is my first exposure to Sandra Odell. I come away with mixed emotions. On one hand, she has a way with prose and a knack for capturing moods. On the other hand, she doesn’t do as much with it as I’d have hoped.
The stories are a mix of fantasy, science fiction, and horror. Since Odell continually points out that she rarely writes science fiction and rarely writes fantasy, I have to conclude that she sees the bulk of the stories as horror or something else, but they mostly struck me as fantasy.
Most of these pieces are more vignettes than stories – little slices without a well-defined arc. As mood pieces, they tend toward the gloomy and self-destructive. They’re often message-oriented, and unfortunately the messages tend to be heavy handed. The author’s notes after each piece make clear that they’re also aggressively autobiographical, which left me unsure what to make of them. While I admired Odell’s skill, by the halfway point, I felt more like I was leafing through a journal than reading a collection of stories.
By the midway point, I’d become reluctant to pick up the book again, and it was a struggle to finish. I have no trouble with dark stories, but a long chain of dark message-heavy mood pieces without much story was too much for me. While Odell clearly has a talent for prose, I was glad to reach the end of this book. I could see enjoying a story or two by Odell, but I won’t be reading another such collection any time soon.
Summary:
A collection of speculative stories by Sandra M. Odell
Review:
This is my first exposure to Sandra Odell. I come away with mixed emotions. On one hand, she has a way with prose and a knack for capturing moods. On the other hand, she doesn’t do as much with it as I’d have hoped.
The stories are a mix of fantasy, science fiction, and horror. Since Odell continually points out that she rarely writes science fiction and rarely writes fantasy, I have to conclude that she sees the bulk of the stories as horror or something else, but they mostly struck me as fantasy.
Most of these pieces are more vignettes than stories – little slices without a well-defined arc. As mood pieces, they tend toward the gloomy and self-destructive. They’re often message-oriented, and unfortunately the messages tend to be heavy handed. The author’s notes after each piece make clear that they’re also aggressively autobiographical, which left me unsure what to make of them. While I admired Odell’s skill, by the halfway point, I felt more like I was leafing through a journal than reading a collection of stories.
By the midway point, I’d become reluctant to pick up the book again, and it was a struggle to finish. I have no trouble with dark stories, but a long chain of dark message-heavy mood pieces without much story was too much for me. While Odell clearly has a talent for prose, I was glad to reach the end of this book. I could see enjoying a story or two by Odell, but I won’t be reading another such collection any time soon.
jvan's review
4.0
Some of these stories are just amazing, works of beauty and wonder that I adore. Some of them are pretty good, pieces that don't necessarily hit all their beats just right but what they do well they do extremely, exceptionally, incredibly well. And a few were just misses for me, which is fine: I don't expect to love every story in any collection. On the whole, this is a great collection though.
mariahaskins's review
5.0
This is a fantastic collection of speculative fiction, and it’s a thrill to read.
The collection includes stories of fantasy, horror, and a dollop of science fiction, and they feature a wide range of settings, moods, and characters. No matter what the setting or genre, Odell has a knack for getting under your skin, digging into the uncomfortable, sometimes painful, truths that hide beneath the surface. She deftly twists each story off-kilter, giving you an unexpected (and sometimes unsettling) point of view.
Her stories can be darkly funny, like the excellent “A Troll’s Trade”; they can squeeze your heart, like the devastating “The Home for Broken”, a story about parents, children, and hard, hard choices; and sometimes she explores ideas that strike you with sheer awe, like the fallen and decaying gods being mined for their natural resources in “Godfall”.
On every page, Odell’s writing feels rooted in real feelings, real lives, and real people. In her work, she often looks at the world from underneath – through the eyes of working people, or those who find themselves on the outside of “polite society”, or the supposedly weak and broken (who often turn out not to be as weak as you might think). She doesn’t glorify any of her characters, and no matter how fantastical the setting, her stories always feel vivid and alive. An excellent short story collection.
The collection includes stories of fantasy, horror, and a dollop of science fiction, and they feature a wide range of settings, moods, and characters. No matter what the setting or genre, Odell has a knack for getting under your skin, digging into the uncomfortable, sometimes painful, truths that hide beneath the surface. She deftly twists each story off-kilter, giving you an unexpected (and sometimes unsettling) point of view.
Her stories can be darkly funny, like the excellent “A Troll’s Trade”; they can squeeze your heart, like the devastating “The Home for Broken”, a story about parents, children, and hard, hard choices; and sometimes she explores ideas that strike you with sheer awe, like the fallen and decaying gods being mined for their natural resources in “Godfall”.
On every page, Odell’s writing feels rooted in real feelings, real lives, and real people. In her work, she often looks at the world from underneath – through the eyes of working people, or those who find themselves on the outside of “polite society”, or the supposedly weak and broken (who often turn out not to be as weak as you might think). She doesn’t glorify any of her characters, and no matter how fantastical the setting, her stories always feel vivid and alive. An excellent short story collection.
abetterjulie's review
5.0
I'm hard to please, especially with short story collections. They tend to one-note, shallow, and hit-or miss.
Not this one.
Not by a long, long way. I am a bit jaw-dropped and dazed, to be honest. Where has Sandra Odell been all this time? Oh, I know. I know, and I'm so incredibly impressed to hear what voice has emerged. So admiring of the wealth of tales shared with us all. What a vast collection!
Her work goes beyond the writing advice of Be Bold, Be Bold. It surpasses the limits so many authors allow themselves to believe. It grabs the idea of writing what you know by the throat and squeezes until you can't breathe. But, you like it.
Every story in this book made me forget I was reading. I know of no higher compliment to give.
There's joy and pain and horror and reality and fantasy and hard sci-fi and soft magical sighs. I am serious. This is a collection with the theme of showing ALL the ways Odell can write well, which is apparently, all the ways. I hope to read much much more of her in longer works to come, but right now I'm grateful for this book.
Not this one.
Not by a long, long way. I am a bit jaw-dropped and dazed, to be honest. Where has Sandra Odell been all this time? Oh, I know. I know, and I'm so incredibly impressed to hear what voice has emerged. So admiring of the wealth of tales shared with us all. What a vast collection!
Her work goes beyond the writing advice of Be Bold, Be Bold. It surpasses the limits so many authors allow themselves to believe. It grabs the idea of writing what you know by the throat and squeezes until you can't breathe. But, you like it.
Every story in this book made me forget I was reading. I know of no higher compliment to give.
There's joy and pain and horror and reality and fantasy and hard sci-fi and soft magical sighs. I am serious. This is a collection with the theme of showing ALL the ways Odell can write well, which is apparently, all the ways. I hope to read much much more of her in longer works to come, but right now I'm grateful for this book.
hamikka's review
4.0
An excellent collection overall. The stories don’t fit in one genre, and each is its own surprise. (Well, I did skip one that didn’t click with me.)
I didn’t like the author notes after each story. They were impossible to miss and often ruined the magic. It would be great if they were bundled at the end, therefore optional.
I didn’t like the author notes after each story. They were impossible to miss and often ruined the magic. It would be great if they were bundled at the end, therefore optional.
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