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rowangrey's review against another edition
confession: i'm marking this as "read" but i actually only read the story Robin Hobb wrote because, despite everything, i am still so thirsty for new Fitz content (shrug emoji)
pearlinbloom's review
2.0
Not the best ASoIaF short story (The tales of Dunk & Egg claim that prize) or even the most compelling "history" set in GRRM's universe (Princess & the Queen for that).
But if you're looking for something Targaryen/Westeros to tide you over until season 8 or The Winds of Winter, it is better than nothing.
But if you're looking for something Targaryen/Westeros to tide you over until season 8 or The Winds of Winter, it is better than nothing.
stacyaj's review against another edition
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
nini23's review against another edition
3.0
This anthology was a little disappointing especially because there were so many big name fantasy authors I was looking forward to like Scott Lynch, Robin Hobb, GRRM and Daniel Abraham. As with an anthology especially one as big as this, it's normal to like some stories and not others. However, I really liked only a handful despite being a fan of many of the featured authors. Some of the stories were set in the fantasy worlds that the author is known for, like Riverside (Ellen Kushner), Six Duchies during the Red Ship Wars (Robin Hobb) and Westeros (GRRM).
The stories that stood out best for me were The Best Man Wins by KJ Parker and The Hidden Girl by Ken Liu. The story that rounded up the anthology and presumably 'save the best for last' - The Sons of The Dragon by GRRM was a let down for me, a dry fitting in of Targaryen history.
The stories that stood out best for me were The Best Man Wins by KJ Parker and The Hidden Girl by Ken Liu. The story that rounded up the anthology and presumably 'save the best for last' - The Sons of The Dragon by GRRM was a let down for me, a dry fitting in of Targaryen history.
divine529's review against another edition
That rating is based on only one story; Her Father's Sword by Robin Hobb. I may go back and read the others someday, but for now this is what I'm giving it.
phee's review
4.0
Overall a good anthology of stories about Sword and sorcery. There are some big names in here. Robin Hobb, Scott Lynch, K.J Parker, GRRM and plenty more.
Some stories are better than others as one would expect from this sort of book. I’m not going to rate each one individually or review each one. Ultimately an anthology is put together for a reason, everyone is going to have a different opinion on each story.
And some of them I didn’t feel strongly about either way.
Obviously I really enjoyed Robin Hobb’s story. It wasn’t the best and I think that the Wilful Princess and the Piebald Prince was 10x better. But I enjoyed seeing my Fitzy again, especially as when that story takes place, Fitz brushes over most of the detail.
The standout story for me was actually the first one in the book and that was ‘The Best Man Wins’ by K.J. Parker. I really enjoyed it and loved the writing style. It made me even more excited to start the book of his that I already own.
I’d recommend this book to you if you are a fan of fantasy or short fiction as you get some big names for your money here. But also if you are new to ‘sword and sorcery’ fantasy you may like this as a way to dip your toes into some of the genres greats without having to commit to massive series.
Some stories are better than others as one would expect from this sort of book. I’m not going to rate each one individually or review each one. Ultimately an anthology is put together for a reason, everyone is going to have a different opinion on each story.
And some of them I didn’t feel strongly about either way.
Obviously I really enjoyed Robin Hobb’s story. It wasn’t the best and I think that the Wilful Princess and the Piebald Prince was 10x better. But I enjoyed seeing my Fitzy again, especially as when that story takes place, Fitz brushes over most of the detail.
The standout story for me was actually the first one in the book and that was ‘The Best Man Wins’ by K.J. Parker. I really enjoyed it and loved the writing style. It made me even more excited to start the book of his that I already own.
I’d recommend this book to you if you are a fan of fantasy or short fiction as you get some big names for your money here. But also if you are new to ‘sword and sorcery’ fantasy you may like this as a way to dip your toes into some of the genres greats without having to commit to massive series.
and_abelard_reads's review against another edition
5.0
A mixed bag of swashbuckling, sorcerous and just plain stabby yarns
Does what it says on the tin
Does what it says on the tin
thefool's review against another edition
3.0
It was exactly how I thought it would be.
Entertaining, but not necessarily my particular cup of tea.
I'm not terribly fond of short story collections. I like to be completely immersed in the stories I read and there's just not enough room to do that in a short story.
To be completely frank, the only reason I purchased this was....
Fitz.
Fiiiiiitz.
It's still worth a good run through, though. I did find a few authors I'm interested in seeking out.
Entertaining, but not necessarily my particular cup of tea.
I'm not terribly fond of short story collections. I like to be completely immersed in the stories I read and there's just not enough room to do that in a short story.
To be completely frank, the only reason I purchased this was....
Fitz.
Fiiiiiitz.
It's still worth a good run through, though. I did find a few authors I'm interested in seeking out.
hollyway's review against another edition
3.0
I would recommend this book as there are some outstanding stories in the bunch and I have definitely found some new fantasy authors to read, however the majority of the stories in this book were just way too generic for my taste and absolutely nothing new if you're at all familiar with the genre.