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3.93 AVERAGE
3.93 AVERAGE
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
fast-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
adventurous
dark
mysterious
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:
Complicated
Dark. Full of sexism, rape, incest, violence, satanic vibes. Some of the actual writing is skillful, some garbage, but most of the content is graphic garbage.
A collection of fascinating stories and verse; some I liked, and some I did not. I believe that I probably responded as the author intended. He has quite a way with words.
"Chivalry" was great and is worth reading. It otherwise felt heavy on cthulhu and vampire stories, some of which were interesting, but the settings didn't do much for me. Some were gratuitously graphic. His writing is really good throughout, but I found his tone didn't always hold up in short form... didn't have the time to really capture me in the settings perhaps.
Find Chivalry on its own, skip the rest.
Find Chivalry on its own, skip the rest.
Neil Gaiman has an absolutely amazing ability to create tension with only a few words, which is why I love his short stories. This book had several stories that were so captivating that when they ended I felt like I had been jarred back into the real world. I had the great honour to hear him speak in Calgary a year ago and his voice so hauntingly rings in my ears when I read his works now. Each word can hang in space making you truly feel his writings becoming a part of you. I plan on buying this book for my collection now that I've read it from the library. I highly recommend this book.
As I enter into the world of Gaiman fandom, I thought one of his anthologies would be a nice addition to my reading after the behemoth American Gods. Not all of the stories were hits with me, but the strong stories make up for the weak ones.
The entire anthology was worth reading just for Snow, Glass, Apple. Snow White will never be the same for me again. Gaiman was right, the story is a virus that you'll never shake.
The entire anthology was worth reading just for Snow, Glass, Apple. Snow White will never be the same for me again. Gaiman was right, the story is a virus that you'll never shake.
I'd read some of the stories in this collection before (some, like "Other People", several times, because damn that circular structure) but this is the first time I've gone through it from beginning to end.
There were some stories that I enjoyed, some that I found underwhelming in the way they ended, and some that I had to go back and read again after I was done the first time because I loved them so much.
"Other People" is still one of my favorites, but I think "Chivalry" has stolen first place, because it's a story that's funny and serious at the same time (the operative adage here being, as Terry Pratchett would have said, that "the opposite of 'funny' is 'not funny'"); then would be "Only the End of the World Again", because it hits all my noir/myth buttons; same for "Murder Mysteries", which I read feverishly because a whodunit story revolving around the hierarchies of Heaven was just incredibly cool; "We Can Get Them For You Wholesale" made me cackle because of its grim humor, and how the ending lined up so perfectly; and "Snow, Glass, Apples" was delightfully disturbing.
All in all, this was a lovely little collection, & I will probably be revisiting some of these in the future.
There were some stories that I enjoyed, some that I found underwhelming in the way they ended, and some that I had to go back and read again after I was done the first time because I loved them so much.
"Other People" is still one of my favorites, but I think "Chivalry" has stolen first place, because it's a story that's funny and serious at the same time (the operative adage here being, as Terry Pratchett would have said, that "the opposite of 'funny' is 'not funny'"); then would be "Only the End of the World Again", because it hits all my noir/myth buttons; same for "Murder Mysteries", which I read feverishly because a whodunit story revolving around the hierarchies of Heaven was just incredibly cool; "We Can Get Them For You Wholesale" made me cackle because of its grim humor, and how the ending lined up so perfectly; and "Snow, Glass, Apples" was delightfully disturbing.
All in all, this was a lovely little collection, & I will probably be revisiting some of these in the future.
Unsuprisingly, I liked "Snow, Glass, Apples" the best.
finally! finished! this! book!
i intended to use this book to jumpstart my reading journey again (after all in high school it was my second nature to grab a horror anthology, steal behind the stacks, and devour stories about cannibals and resourceful would-be victims of murder) and neil’s name was bandied abt my circles of an author i may enjoy.
at the end of almost three months of trying to make it through this book: alas i am so sorry to my recommenders, he is probably just not for me!
two and a half stars for the delightful wedding not-present in the foreword and The White Road, and honorable mention to Murder Mysteries forthe tasty little unreliable narrator full-circle twist at the end. I also liked flipping back and forth between the foreword and the stories for the context and publishing history.
every other story felt unremarkable and/or laced with a middle aged male horniness (and yet, not a single fuckable character to be had—the men, pathetic, except MAYBE for the werewolf claims adjuster that killed the sea creature and fucked its mom, that was fun; all the women are sirens, caged animals, mysterious eldritch horrors, and completely one dimensional) that i was just… tired of by the end. wonp wonp.
an aside i promise did not influence my review of the book but i think provides important context: in his personal life he fumbled a baddie and then subtweeted her on his goodreads account. weirdo behavior!
i intended to use this book to jumpstart my reading journey again (after all in high school it was my second nature to grab a horror anthology, steal behind the stacks, and devour stories about cannibals and resourceful would-be victims of murder) and neil’s name was bandied abt my circles of an author i may enjoy.
at the end of almost three months of trying to make it through this book: alas i am so sorry to my recommenders, he is probably just not for me!
two and a half stars for the delightful wedding not-present in the foreword and The White Road, and honorable mention to Murder Mysteries for
every other story felt unremarkable and/or laced with a middle aged male horniness (and yet, not a single fuckable character to be had—the men, pathetic, except MAYBE for
an aside i promise did not influence my review of the book but i think provides important context: in his personal life he fumbled a baddie and then subtweeted her on his goodreads account. weirdo behavior!