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125 reviews for:
Common Bonds: An Aromantic Speculative Anthology
C.T. Callahan, B.R. Sanders, Claudie Arseneault, RoAnna Sylver
125 reviews for:
Common Bonds: An Aromantic Speculative Anthology
C.T. Callahan, B.R. Sanders, Claudie Arseneault, RoAnna Sylver
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I think I had very high expectations as this was the first book focused on aromanticism that I had found. I really liked some of the stories, but others were not my thing. And there were a couple that I wasn't sure why they were in the anthology.
Moderate: Gore
Minor: Sexual content, Sexual violence
Only in some of the stories, not all of them.
this was a sweet anthology :) nice to see so much aro rep.
not a lot of the stories really stood out to me, but i did like all of them. this anthology is described as “speculative” but personally i think it should be called fantasy, as almost none of these short stories are sci-fi. so a bit of miscategorization (also descriptions for all the authors would have been lovely!), but overall this was on the upper end of fine.
not a lot of the stories really stood out to me, but i did like all of them. this anthology is described as “speculative” but personally i think it should be called fantasy, as almost none of these short stories are sci-fi. so a bit of miscategorization (also descriptions for all the authors would have been lovely!), but overall this was on the upper end of fine.
Most of the stories in the first half were boring and hard to follow, which is unfortunate considering how little aromantic representation there is already in literature. This was a cool idea to try to fill that niche, but it just fell so flat.
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I found this book on Hoopla while I was scrolling late one night through the lgptqia+ section as one does, and found this absolute beauty. I read it in one sitting which at the time I was just hungry for more of the stories and more of the poems, but looking back I wish I had savored them instead. Slown down, and enjoyed every moment of them like honey on your fingertips. My favorite of the whole collection was by far Half a Heart by Ren Oliveira. Of course I chose this one, the sticky sweet writing only similar to Hozier (you are probably sick of me talking about him but this is only the beginning), apparently this is the only writing Oliveira has ever done. They translated a short story to Portuguese and wrote Half a Heart but that is it. I cannot find any sense of life out there, no Instagram account, no books or media, no bibliography, nothing. They wrote that absolute stunning piece of work and dipped. I adored this collection and highly recommend it, we dont get enough aromantic rep as is. As a bisexual who is definitely on the aroace spectrum but has no idea where she lays, this was extremely comforting. The way each author talked about platonic love, friendships, and bonds. It was like being wrapped in a warm blanket, handed a mug of warm tea, and sat down before a roaring fireplace.
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I really liked this one overall, the conversations about relationships did not feel weird and forced, the stories and settings were intriguing and made me wish to read more by these authors. They were nice and short which was good as I have been in a bit of a reading slump and it was nice to be able to get through a volume quickly.
3.5 stars
Like all anthologies, this was a mixed bag for me. Some of the stories were really good, and some weren't my cup of tea. I DNF'd quite a few of them.
I'm also more of a contemporary kind of a person, and all these stories were either fantasy or scifi -- but it does say speculative fiction in the synopsis so that's on me. I was also hoping more of these stories would actually be about aromanticism explicitly, but only a handful of them are.
Anyway, my 1 or 2 sentence review of each story:
The Aromatic Lovers by Morgan Swim: I did not like the writing style one and was confused through most of it, though once I actually figured out what was going on I did appreciate the concept of the world it was set in.
Voices in the Air by Vida Cruz: This one was also confusing to me and probably needed to be a novella instead of a short story, as there was WAY too much background information packed into it.
Moon Sisters by Camilla Quinn: I liked this one! It's the first one that explicitly says the main character is aromantic, and I like werewolf and pack-dynamic stories so I liked this. I think werewolf packs are a great conduit for aromantic stories because they're all about found families and strong bonds between people.
Cinder by Jennifer Lee Rossman: DNF
Not Quite True Love by Syl Woo: DNF
Dracanmot Council of Human Study Report Compiled by Usander Greystart by A.Z. Louise: I liked this one too! I spent most of it trying to figure out if the main character and the council were aliens or time travellers and was delighted by the reveal.
Spacegirl and the Martian by Cora Ruskin: I think I'm ambivalent to this one? Some complicated feelings about siblings and some swishy world building around superheroes.
Would You Like Charms With That? by E.H. Timms: DNF
In The Summer A Banana Tree by Thomas Shaw Leonard: A sweet poem about losing a beloved pet
Remembering the Farm by Thomas Shaw Leonard: I can't state implicitly what this poem is about but I like how it's written nonetheless
Fishing Over the Bones of the Dragon by Jeff Reynolds: This story did not really keep my attention and I ended up taking a two week break from this book in the middle of it, so. It's not bad though.
Steria III by Marjorie King: DNF
A Full Deck by Avi Silver: DNF
Half a Heart by Ren Oliveira: DNF
Shift by Mika Stanard: Not the best writing but it's a sweet story and it involves werewolves, and both characters are explicitly stated to be aromantic (or at least questioning). I enjoyed it.
Discography by Ian Mahler: Poem about the alienation of being aroace in a world obsessed with romantic love.
Seams of Iron by Adriana C. Grigore: I liked this one! It's quite sweet
Not to Die by Rosiee Thor: DNF
Busy Little Bees by Polenth Blake: I really liked the concept of this one, but it feels like it ends waaay too abruptly. Another one of those concepts that needed to be a novella instead of a short story.
Like all anthologies, this was a mixed bag for me. Some of the stories were really good, and some weren't my cup of tea. I DNF'd quite a few of them.
I'm also more of a contemporary kind of a person, and all these stories were either fantasy or scifi -- but it does say speculative fiction in the synopsis so that's on me. I was also hoping more of these stories would actually be about aromanticism explicitly, but only a handful of them are.
Anyway, my 1 or 2 sentence review of each story:
The Aromatic Lovers by Morgan Swim: I did not like the writing style one and was confused through most of it, though once I actually figured out what was going on I did appreciate the concept of the world it was set in.
Voices in the Air by Vida Cruz: This one was also confusing to me and probably needed to be a novella instead of a short story, as there was WAY too much background information packed into it.
Moon Sisters by Camilla Quinn: I liked this one! It's the first one that explicitly says the main character is aromantic, and I like werewolf and pack-dynamic stories so I liked this. I think werewolf packs are a great conduit for aromantic stories because they're all about found families and strong bonds between people.
Cinder by Jennifer Lee Rossman: DNF
Not Quite True Love by Syl Woo: DNF
Dracanmot Council of Human Study Report Compiled by Usander Greystart by A.Z. Louise: I liked this one too! I spent most of it trying to figure out if the main character and the council were aliens or time travellers and was delighted by the reveal.
Spacegirl and the Martian by Cora Ruskin: I think I'm ambivalent to this one? Some complicated feelings about siblings and some swishy world building around superheroes.
Would You Like Charms With That? by E.H. Timms: DNF
In The Summer A Banana Tree by Thomas Shaw Leonard: A sweet poem about losing a beloved pet
Remembering the Farm by Thomas Shaw Leonard: I can't state implicitly what this poem is about but I like how it's written nonetheless
Fishing Over the Bones of the Dragon by Jeff Reynolds: This story did not really keep my attention and I ended up taking a two week break from this book in the middle of it, so. It's not bad though.
Steria III by Marjorie King: DNF
A Full Deck by Avi Silver: DNF
Half a Heart by Ren Oliveira: DNF
Shift by Mika Stanard: Not the best writing but it's a sweet story and it involves werewolves, and both characters are explicitly stated to be aromantic (or at least questioning). I enjoyed it.
Discography by Ian Mahler: Poem about the alienation of being aroace in a world obsessed with romantic love.
Seams of Iron by Adriana C. Grigore: I liked this one! It's quite sweet
Not to Die by Rosiee Thor: DNF
Busy Little Bees by Polenth Blake: I really liked the concept of this one, but it feels like it ends waaay too abruptly. Another one of those concepts that needed to be a novella instead of a short story.
Just could not get into the stories, unfortunately. Might try again in a few months.
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
relaxing
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
A wonderful set of stories. I loved seeing the diversity of stories and characters. Having a whole anthology of aro stories was very affirming.
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
this book is so warm and uplifting. it's a collection of short stories about different aroace characters. all of the stories are very queer and wholesome. i'm generally not a big fan of short stories, with the quick change of setup and new characters every few pages, but i really liked this collection. i have a few favourite stories, but overall liked all of them.