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mermahoney's review
5.0
Review for “Lady Antheia’s Guide to Horticultural Warfare,” by Seanan McGuire, which was awesome.
trish204's review
4.0
A short story about a slightly alternative Victorian England (therefore, I think the correct description is "steampunk"?) encountering an alien race.
This story was much lighter than the last one I read, mostly because of its healthy dose of biting humour as commentary on war, conquest, gender roles and a few other topics. My favourite passages:
"I am aware", I said primly [...] "But I was sorry afterward, whch is the very definition of diplomacy."
"Why did your British Empire see fit to colonize so much of the planet? [...] You did it for two reasons. [...] The places you took had things you wanted. Resources. Tea and cinnamon and precious metals and girls no one would ever debase themselves by marrying, but whom every British gentleman was happy to deflower. That’s the first reason you did what you did, and that’s the first reason we do what we do."
Arthur swallowed hard before whispering, "What’s the second reason?"
[...] "Because we can."
"The things we do tonight are crimes of war. They are not things for which
we can be punished in the court of law."
There were those who would insist that a lady’s chief graces were as follows: breeding,
beauty, and a blind adherence to the manners of the society in which she takes root, no
matter how senseless or silly those manners may be. It was considered better to bloom
beautifully and without offending anyone than to grow wanton and in healthy abundance.
“Clearly, this was a civilization cultivating itself for conquest.
Honestly, the alien protagonist was so likeable (to me at least; yes, I'm weird) that I couldn't bring myself to pity humanity. *lol*
This story was much lighter than the last one I read, mostly because of its healthy dose of biting humour as commentary on war, conquest, gender roles and a few other topics. My favourite passages:
Spoiler
"A ... diplomat?" Arthur blinked [...] "But the first thing you did was eat my sister's maid.""I am aware", I said primly [...] "But I was sorry afterward, whch is the very definition of diplomacy."
"Why did your British Empire see fit to colonize so much of the planet? [...] You did it for two reasons. [...] The places you took had things you wanted. Resources. Tea and cinnamon and precious metals and girls no one would ever debase themselves by marrying, but whom every British gentleman was happy to deflower. That’s the first reason you did what you did, and that’s the first reason we do what we do."
Arthur swallowed hard before whispering, "What’s the second reason?"
[...] "Because we can."
"The things we do tonight are crimes of war. They are not things for which
we can be punished in the court of law."
There were those who would insist that a lady’s chief graces were as follows: breeding,
beauty, and a blind adherence to the manners of the society in which she takes root, no
matter how senseless or silly those manners may be. It was considered better to bloom
beautifully and without offending anyone than to grow wanton and in healthy abundance.
“Clearly, this was a civilization cultivating itself for conquest.
Honestly, the alien protagonist was so likeable (to me at least; yes, I'm weird) that I couldn't bring myself to pity humanity. *lol*
formtruthregret's review
4.0
I can't say that steampunk is a genre that I've always found very interesting, but I enjoyed the tack taken by this story. Lady Antheia's POV on the Victorian society she's found herself in is both cutting and terrifyingly (and literally) alien, and it makes for a very fun read. It is both somewhat horrifying and yet rather delicious to watch a British Empire, the archetype of colonial expansion, be destroyed by an empire that's them but stronger.
Gleeful schadenfreude aside, this is a great piece of sci-fi, and McGuire does a really good job of sketching out her alien empire in the short space she has to work with, while also telling the story of her protagonist and the invasion. Excellent stuff.
Gleeful schadenfreude aside, this is a great piece of sci-fi, and McGuire does a really good job of sketching out her alien empire in the short space she has to work with, while also telling the story of her protagonist and the invasion. Excellent stuff.
mikewhiteman's review
3.0
Later, Let's Tear Up The Inner Sanctum - A Merc Rustad **
Superheroes save the day, but how come they never quite catch the main bad guy?
The Last Garden - Jack Skillingstead **
After most of Earth is wiped out by plague, a pilot and a smug robot try to find the cloned embryos that can bring people back
Starship Day - Ian R MacLeod ***
Suburban ennui while people wait for a starship carrying sleepers to arrive from Earth. Slow-burner but gets interesting.
Lady Antheia's Guide To Horticultural Warfare - Seanan MacGuire ***
Plant-like aliens invade Britain; the Queen is delighted; a mistake
Probably Still The Chosen One - Kelly Barnhill ***
A young girl grows up after a portal fantasy adventure, wondering if it was real. Simple, maybe aimed at a younger audience, but some nice touches.
The Memorial Page - KJ Bishop ****
A story about stories, and about the importance of what we keep, even as more and more is lost to time.
Six-Gun Vixen And The Dead Coon Trashgang - Ashok Banker **
An Indian (from India) centred western. Weird, cheesy tone (full of varmints and hollerin') and a bit heavy-handed.
The Elixir Of Youth - Brian Stableford ***
Another slow-burner, a mundane build to a short and quick horror ending.
Taklamakan - Bruce Sterling **
More slow building, this time with a couple of cyber-spies infiltrating an abandoned social experiment in the middle of a desert. Never really grabbed me.
Superheroes save the day, but how come they never quite catch the main bad guy?
The Last Garden - Jack Skillingstead **
After most of Earth is wiped out by plague, a pilot and a smug robot try to find the cloned embryos that can bring people back
Starship Day - Ian R MacLeod ***
Suburban ennui while people wait for a starship carrying sleepers to arrive from Earth. Slow-burner but gets interesting.
Lady Antheia's Guide To Horticultural Warfare - Seanan MacGuire ***
Plant-like aliens invade Britain; the Queen is delighted; a mistake
Probably Still The Chosen One - Kelly Barnhill ***
A young girl grows up after a portal fantasy adventure, wondering if it was real. Simple, maybe aimed at a younger audience, but some nice touches.
The Memorial Page - KJ Bishop ****
A story about stories, and about the importance of what we keep, even as more and more is lost to time.
Six-Gun Vixen And The Dead Coon Trashgang - Ashok Banker **
An Indian (from India) centred western. Weird, cheesy tone (full of varmints and hollerin') and a bit heavy-handed.
The Elixir Of Youth - Brian Stableford ***
Another slow-burner, a mundane build to a short and quick horror ending.
Taklamakan - Bruce Sterling **
More slow building, this time with a couple of cyber-spies infiltrating an abandoned social experiment in the middle of a desert. Never really grabbed me.
marziesreads's review
3.0
Humorous but I wished for more development of the plants invading, and their biology. Still, a fun read.
catevari's review
4.0
The etiquette of invasion, from our plant overlords. Most stories about the end of the human race make me sad, but McGuire has the twisted, gallows humor to make this fun and airy at the same time.
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