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suzig's review against another edition
3.0
I’m pretty meh on this anthology. I read the 2012 collection first and really enjoyed it, but this one wasn’t so much for me. The stories tend towards the darker and sadder side of things and most of the relationships are dysfunctional. I plan to check out the other years’ collections though since I like the concept and enjoyed the one from 2012.
corrie's review against another edition
5.0
"Heiresses of Russ offers readers in one volume the best lesbian-themed tales of the fantastical and otherworldly published during the prior year. Editors JoSelle Vanderhooft and Steve Berman read countless books, periodicals, and webzines to collect a range of tales—from new voices as well as award-winning authors—that celebrate the spirit of Russ’s fiction: stories of sorceresses and spectral women, lost daughters and sisters of myth. The transformative power of the written word becomes magic and tests the boundaries of gender, identity, and a woman’s dreams."
As all anthologies it's a mixed bag, but overall it was high quality. The stories that stayed with me because they were brilliant were "Ghost of a Horse under a Chandelier" by Georgina Bruce, "Storyville 1910" by Jewelle Gomez, "Black Eyed Susan" by Esther Garber, "The Lady who Plucked Red Flowers beneath the Queen's Window" by Rachel Swirsky (that one made me cry) and "The Effluent Machine" by N. K. Jemisin (I read this one before in another anthology).
The beauty of anthologies is that you discover new favorite authors. To my joy I found a novel by Jewelle Gomez about the same characters I came to love in her story "Storyville 1910". Esther Garber turned out to be the one and only Tanith Lee and there was an anthology of all her Esther Garber stories I could get my hands on. So happy me :-)
I can really recommend this anthology series (there is one every year, starting with this one) if you like speculative fiction.
As all anthologies it's a mixed bag, but overall it was high quality. The stories that stayed with me because they were brilliant were "Ghost of a Horse under a Chandelier" by Georgina Bruce, "Storyville 1910" by Jewelle Gomez, "Black Eyed Susan" by Esther Garber, "The Lady who Plucked Red Flowers beneath the Queen's Window" by Rachel Swirsky (that one made me cry) and "The Effluent Machine" by N. K. Jemisin (I read this one before in another anthology).
The beauty of anthologies is that you discover new favorite authors. To my joy I found a novel by Jewelle Gomez about the same characters I came to love in her story "Storyville 1910". Esther Garber turned out to be the one and only Tanith Lee and there was an anthology of all her Esther Garber stories I could get my hands on. So happy me :-)
I can really recommend this anthology series (there is one every year, starting with this one) if you like speculative fiction.
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