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almase2020's review against another edition
Not what i expected. Very interesting twists to stories but not my style.
astheplotthickens24's review against another edition
3.0
Half of this book is good but the other half almost killed me out of boredom. I decided to give this novel a three star rating despite the fact that some of the stories are actually pretty great. Here are my thoughts about this book:
The Blood of Imuriv
Jack
Gwen and Art and Lance
Shirley and Jim
The Blessing of Little Wants
Sea Witch
Beautiful Venom
Death Knell
Marigold
You, You, It’s All About You
Julian Breaks Every Rule
Indigo and Shade
Sera
The Blood of Imuriv
Spoiler
Lousy af, I know that Renee Adhieh is one of the best authors out there but seriously? This story is just lousy, I prefer something more gruesome that just a simple concussion.Jack
Spoiler
I like this one better than the first one, I love the fact that she toasted Jack inside that bull. Lol, I was first disturbed by it, coz Im not a huge fan of betrayal but this is after all a story of villains. So, kudos for that.Gwen and Art and Lance
Spoiler
This, my friend, is a complete trash. Goodness, I’m a huge fan of King Arthur and talking through text is just impractical considering that you can actually talk f2f. I know that the theme is modernized version of King Arthur and Persephone but come brooo, I can’t even tell how I despise this story.Shirley and Jim
Spoiler
okay, this one is the best so far. It’s not villany and all but I still love the whole Sherlock Holmes retelling. Im a sucker for sherlock and everything that includes him is my instant fave.The Blessing of Little Wants
Spoiler
this is complete bullshit, so many plot holes and the main character sucks, im too harsh aren’t I?Sea Witch
Spoiler
the best so far! Goodness, wow. Marissa Meyer did it again. For something that is too short, this complety took me into its world. Make this into a legit novel please?Beautiful Venom
Spoiler
These stories just gets better and better, this reminds me Flame in the Mist and I love it. I love the symbolism of the story, the scenario wherein society blames the rape victim for bring raped, like wtf?! so much love on this one.Death Knell
Spoiler
Victoria Schwab just did it all over again --obviously-- I love the how Grace tried to evade death, I love the fact that none of could escape the inevitable. Geez, Im being morbidMarigold
Spoiler
bullshit. I don’t even know why im reading this shitYou, You, It’s All About You
Spoiler
This one is actually good. I would very much love this story to turn into a legit novel. Amanda and Karl, harlequin and joker kind of relationship but instead of joker, harlequin was the one who turned her love interest into a madman.Julian Breaks Every Rule
Spoiler
another bullshit, seriously? A boy that could kill with his mind. Lol, I didn’t even know that that’s the case until someone explained it at the end, this one is confusing. I hate it.Indigo and Shade
Spoiler
I am a huge lover of beauty and the beast. This retelling is actually good but I find it lacking. Good but not great.Sera
Spoiler
Save the best for the last indeed. Wow! This is actually the coolest and most badass story that this book contains. It feels like I was transported into a new world with just few pages. Wow, I have no words.sccrethistory's review against another edition
3.0
"Villains take the risks our heroes can’t afford to take and make the choices our heroes are too afraid to make. They live in the Grey, and I, for one, love that sliver of space between light and dark, where things tend to be more interesting, people are more complex, and it’s harder to draw clean lines."
3'5/5
Bueno bueno, yo solo se que leí el nombre de Victoria Schwab en la solapa y sabía que quería leerlo. De los demás autores tambien quería leer a Marissa Meyer porque ella es maravillosa y sabía que seria de 10.
Primero quiero decir unas cosas, es un libro de historias cortas, cada una de su padre y de su madre pero todas con un nexo común: Los protagonistas son los villanos. Cada autor tenía un reto que completar y alguno lo han hecho mejor que otros.
No quiero contaros cada una de las historias ni ponerme a comentar todas, pero si quiero comentar 2 que han sido mis favoritas.
La historia de Marissa Meyer: Me ha parecido un OLE con letras grandes, me ha parecido maravillosa, y me ha enganchado muchisimo, tiene giros en la mini trama y personajes de todo tipo.
La de V.E Schwab: MARAVILLA mi diosa lo ha hecho de maravilla, no solo ha completado el reto, sino que lo ha hecho con un sobresaliente.
También quiero hacer incapie en otras que me han gustado como: Susan Dennard, Nicola Yoon y Shamanta Shannon.
Es un libro entretenido pero muchas de las historias no han estado a la altura, una pena.
3'5/5
Bueno bueno, yo solo se que leí el nombre de Victoria Schwab en la solapa y sabía que quería leerlo. De los demás autores tambien quería leer a Marissa Meyer porque ella es maravillosa y sabía que seria de 10.
Primero quiero decir unas cosas, es un libro de historias cortas, cada una de su padre y de su madre pero todas con un nexo común: Los protagonistas son los villanos. Cada autor tenía un reto que completar y alguno lo han hecho mejor que otros.
No quiero contaros cada una de las historias ni ponerme a comentar todas, pero si quiero comentar 2 que han sido mis favoritas.
La historia de Marissa Meyer: Me ha parecido un OLE con letras grandes, me ha parecido maravillosa, y me ha enganchado muchisimo, tiene giros en la mini trama y personajes de todo tipo.
La de V.E Schwab: MARAVILLA mi diosa lo ha hecho de maravilla, no solo ha completado el reto, sino que lo ha hecho con un sobresaliente.
También quiero hacer incapie en otras que me han gustado como: Susan Dennard, Nicola Yoon y Shamanta Shannon.
Es un libro entretenido pero muchas de las historias no han estado a la altura, una pena.
afrokyhn's review against another edition
3.0
Most of the stories were pretty ok, I will admit I skipped two stories, because they didn’t catch my eye enough to read 25 pages, but there was also a few stories that was pretty great.
mea9an's review against another edition
3.0
This is the first anthology I have ever read and the experience was decent. There were some stories I liked a lot more than others, and there were stories I didn't enjoy in the slightest. My rating comes from the average score of all of my short story ratings.
1.) Renee Ahdieh/Christine Riccio
4.75/5
I really enjoyed this story! I actually loved it so much that I wanted a longer story. The reason it didn't get a full five stars was because for being a short story, there was a lot of stuff crammed in that needed world-building.
2.) Ameriie/ Tina Burke
2/5
This story had an interesting concept, but I think the execution was lacking. I didn't like the writing style or the main character. The giantess was whining, not really all that intimidating, and the story was a little bit predictable. I just didn't really care about it that much.
3.) Soman Chainani/ Samantha Lane
1/5
The concept of this story deserved a 5/5. I knew Sam wasn't going to disappoint, and I was really excited to see a story with Hades and Persephone thrown in for once. However, the execution was a train wreck and I'm honestly upset. I didn't like the characters, nor did I like the writing format. Ugh, this story made me angry.
4.) Susan Dennard/ Sasha Alsberg:
3.5/5
I liked the writing style of this, however I'm not familiar with Sherlock and Moriarty, so reading it just kind of reminded me of a mysterious version of Sheldon while Amy Ferrari Fowler fawned over him.
5.) Sarah Enni/Sophia Lee
5/5
I don't know who this author is, but if she ever puts out a real book, I will Autobuy it! It was so good! It had a great story, a really engaging writing style, and a few other things I can't name that made me love it! I was obsessed!
6.) Marissa Meyer/Zoe Herdt
3.75/5
This story had an interesting concept and kind of cool writing, but the ending was extremely predictable, so I didn't really care that much about it. It was a nice twist to the Little Mermaid's villain story, but predictable still.
7.) Cindy Pon/Benjamin Alderson
3/5
I loved the original story of Medusa with an Asian spin on it, but I didn't think she was the villain. I thought the goddess of Purity was a better villain, so I didn't really care for this one.
8.) Victoria Schwab/Jesse George
10/5!
This story was so good! I expected nothing less than great writing from Victoria Schwab, but this topped the bar! It was amazing. Jesse's concept was beautiful and interesting, the writing style was just what I like, and Jesse's little extra piece was just as good as the story!
9.) Samantha Shannon/Regan Peruse
2/5
The writing style was nice, but I didn't really understand who the true villain was. There were too many to figure out just what was going on. Also, the way it was written reminded me TOO MUCH about radical feminists who hate men and it made me severely uncomfortable. I'm all about feminism, but please don't try to turn the world into a matriarchy. *sips tea*
10.) Adam Silvera/Catriona Feeney
10/5!
I'm a sucker for a well-written mob boss and this story was exactly what I was in the mood to read! I've been in a slump forever, but when this story came up, I flew through it. I want Adam Silvera to write a full length mob story! I just love the mafia!
11.) Andrew Smith/Raeleen Lamay
3/5
I wasn't a fan of the writing style in this one, but the story prompt was really well executed and kept me interested for the most part.
12.) April Genevieve Tucholke/Whitney Atkinson
??/5
If you've ever encountered a frat-boy-dude-bro, congrats, you've just encountered our main character! This Gaston look alike, is our main character and wow is he irritating! In case you haven't met me, Beauty and the Beast is my all time favorite story. I don't care how it's written. Chinese elements, modern day, on the moon, I don't give a shit, but the second you make the characters more obnoxious than they already are, is the second I leave. I skipped this story, but I might go back to it, to give it a decent review.
13.) Nicola Yoon/Steph Sinclair & Kat Kennedy
2/5
I liked the concept of the story, but I didn't really like the format of the book. It sort of reminded me of Looking For Alaska, but didn't do it right, I guess. I'm not sure, but the concept was really good.
1.) Renee Ahdieh/Christine Riccio
4.75/5
I really enjoyed this story! I actually loved it so much that I wanted a longer story. The reason it didn't get a full five stars was because for being a short story, there was a lot of stuff crammed in that needed world-building.
2.) Ameriie/ Tina Burke
2/5
This story had an interesting concept, but I think the execution was lacking. I didn't like the writing style or the main character. The giantess was whining, not really all that intimidating, and the story was a little bit predictable. I just didn't really care about it that much.
3.) Soman Chainani/ Samantha Lane
1/5
The concept of this story deserved a 5/5. I knew Sam wasn't going to disappoint, and I was really excited to see a story with Hades and Persephone thrown in for once. However, the execution was a train wreck and I'm honestly upset. I didn't like the characters, nor did I like the writing format. Ugh, this story made me angry.
4.) Susan Dennard/ Sasha Alsberg:
3.5/5
I liked the writing style of this, however I'm not familiar with Sherlock and Moriarty, so reading it just kind of reminded me of a mysterious version of Sheldon while Amy Ferrari Fowler fawned over him.
5.) Sarah Enni/Sophia Lee
5/5
I don't know who this author is, but if she ever puts out a real book, I will Autobuy it! It was so good! It had a great story, a really engaging writing style, and a few other things I can't name that made me love it! I was obsessed!
6.) Marissa Meyer/Zoe Herdt
3.75/5
This story had an interesting concept and kind of cool writing, but the ending was extremely predictable, so I didn't really care that much about it. It was a nice twist to the Little Mermaid's villain story, but predictable still.
7.) Cindy Pon/Benjamin Alderson
3/5
I loved the original story of Medusa with an Asian spin on it, but I didn't think she was the villain. I thought the goddess of Purity was a better villain, so I didn't really care for this one.
8.) Victoria Schwab/Jesse George
10/5!
This story was so good! I expected nothing less than great writing from Victoria Schwab, but this topped the bar! It was amazing. Jesse's concept was beautiful and interesting, the writing style was just what I like, and Jesse's little extra piece was just as good as the story!
9.) Samantha Shannon/Regan Peruse
2/5
The writing style was nice, but I didn't really understand who the true villain was. There were too many to figure out just what was going on. Also, the way it was written reminded me TOO MUCH about radical feminists who hate men and it made me severely uncomfortable. I'm all about feminism, but please don't try to turn the world into a matriarchy. *sips tea*
10.) Adam Silvera/Catriona Feeney
10/5!
I'm a sucker for a well-written mob boss and this story was exactly what I was in the mood to read! I've been in a slump forever, but when this story came up, I flew through it. I want Adam Silvera to write a full length mob story! I just love the mafia!
11.) Andrew Smith/Raeleen Lamay
3/5
I wasn't a fan of the writing style in this one, but the story prompt was really well executed and kept me interested for the most part.
12.) April Genevieve Tucholke/Whitney Atkinson
??/5
If you've ever encountered a frat-boy-dude-bro, congrats, you've just encountered our main character! This Gaston look alike, is our main character and wow is he irritating! In case you haven't met me, Beauty and the Beast is my all time favorite story. I don't care how it's written. Chinese elements, modern day, on the moon, I don't give a shit, but the second you make the characters more obnoxious than they already are, is the second I leave. I skipped this story, but I might go back to it, to give it a decent review.
13.) Nicola Yoon/Steph Sinclair & Kat Kennedy
2/5
I liked the concept of the story, but I didn't really like the format of the book. It sort of reminded me of Looking For Alaska, but didn't do it right, I guess. I'm not sure, but the concept was really good.
baloo_is_best_27's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
starrysea98's review against another edition
4.0
I really only picked up this book because of Marissa Meyer and well, this is a pretty good anthology - most of the stories are fun and wonderfully fresh. I'm going to give them individual reviews just so you can get a general idea of what to expect should you read this book.
1. The Blood of Imuriv - Renee Ahdieh ★★★★☆
Renee is a master story teller and I am so upset that her story ended so abruptly. Give me a 400 page novel about Rhone NOW.
Christine's contribution, in my opinion, is irrelevant and tries too hard to be funny.
2. Jack - Ameriie ★★★★★
This story is very cleverly written and all the threads come together to create a masterpiece. Tina's analysis is spot-on, despite the fact that I prefer to do my own interpreting.
3. Gwen and Art and Lance - Soman Chainani ★★★☆☆
I sincerely think the author did his best despite such a rubbish prompt. Sorry, Sam, your contribution is a snoozefest.
4. Shirley & Jim - Susan Dennard ★★★☆☆
Ugh, Susan's writing is so beautiful and evocative but why on earth did she choose to have genderbent Sherlock and John but have them swooning over Moriarty? I think this would have been done better if it was Sherlock and John in love with each other. Also, I'm sick to death of the trope where an "edgy" boy comes into our delicate heroine's life and changes her entire world view. Fuck that.
Sasha's bit is fairly interesting but doesn't add anything of value to the story.
5. The Blessing of Little Wants - Sarah Enni ★★★★★
This is SO GOOD. It's something like a dark Harry Potter universe and Sigrid is one of the most interesting characters in the book. Sophia has one of the better contributions as well and together, these two make a formidable team.
6. The Sea Witch - Marissa Meyer ★★★★★
All hail the queen of fairytale retellings. Marissa takes on the origin story of the sea witch from The Little Mermaid and from the start, it's obvious why she's so good at remixing tales we all know from our childhood. Kudos to Zoe as well for playing to Marissa's strengths with her prompt and her funny commentary.
7. Beautiful Venom - Cindy Pon ★★★★★
Holy. Shit. This is utterly brilliant. Hai Xian is the worst villain here and ugh, thinking about him just makes me so angry! I like that the author highlighted victim-blaming as an issue, both in the story and real life. Instead of saying a girl brought this on herself when she is violated, we as a society should be teaching boys to take no as no. Ben tackles this as well in his dissertation and believe me, it's very well written.
8. Death Knell - Victoria Schwab ★★★★★
Victoria's writing is exquisite and the whole Death as a persona thing is all kinds of fascinating. Also THAT ENDING OMG. Jesse's contribution is so weird because it absolutely does not fit in with the mood you're in after finishing Victoria's story. Extremely jarring order.
9. Marigold - Samantha Shannon ★★★★★
I've never read anything of Samantha's but after this, it makes me want to pick up every single book she's ever written. So that should give you a sense of how amazing this story is. The setting is the Victorian era BUT WITH ELVES. How awesome is that? Regan's contribution isn't very interesting to me but the last paragraph? Loved it.
10. You, You, It's All About You - Adam Silvera ★★★★★
I am blown away by how complex this story is for such a simple prompt. (A Female Teen Crime Lord Concealed By A Mask). A bad ass girl using the skin of her abusive father's hand as her mask? Brilliant. Catriona's bit about the masks is boring and certainly doesn't fit with the tension created by Adam's story.
11. Julian Breaks Every Rule - Andrew Smith ★★★★★
This is the funniest of the stories and also the most readable. Andrew's writing reminds me a bit of John Green's, minus the pretentiousness. Raeleen's review is hilarious and something I actually enjoyed.
12. Indigo and Shade - April Tucholke ★★★☆☆
The prompt was Beauty and the Beast: Suitor's Revenge which I thought was really interesting but unfortunately, the story is a hot mess. Brahm is an arrogant little shit who thinks way too highly of himself. Indigo does practically anything so I don't know what her name is doing in the title. The writing isn't bad per se, (except for one terrifying instant where Indigo's lips are described as chubby) but I did feel as though something was lacking.
Whitney's bit is quite good, except at this point of the book, I'm sick to death of "unique" reviews and as a result, I only skimmed hers. Sorry, Whitney.
13. Sera - Nicola Yoon ★★★★☆
I love Nicola's writing; she has this knack of drawing you in to the characters' minds and Sera growing up through her mother's eyes is fascinating. The ending is magnificent and a strong way to end this book. Also, after reading the prompt (Gender-flipped God of War), I realised that Sera is an anagram for Ares. Clever.
Steph and Kat's contribution is also witty and very feminist. Now, that's what I like.
The rating on this book is calculated out from a total of 65 possible stars (five for each story). Since the total is 57 (87%), four stars were awarded.
1. The Blood of Imuriv - Renee Ahdieh ★★★★☆
Renee is a master story teller and I am so upset that her story ended so abruptly. Give me a 400 page novel about Rhone NOW.
Christine's contribution, in my opinion, is irrelevant and tries too hard to be funny.
2. Jack - Ameriie ★★★★★
This story is very cleverly written and all the threads come together to create a masterpiece. Tina's analysis is spot-on, despite the fact that I prefer to do my own interpreting.
3. Gwen and Art and Lance - Soman Chainani ★★★☆☆
I sincerely think the author did his best despite such a rubbish prompt. Sorry, Sam, your contribution is a snoozefest.
4. Shirley & Jim - Susan Dennard ★★★☆☆
Ugh, Susan's writing is so beautiful and evocative but why on earth did she choose to have genderbent Sherlock and John but have them swooning over Moriarty? I think this would have been done better if it was Sherlock and John in love with each other. Also, I'm sick to death of the trope where an "edgy" boy comes into our delicate heroine's life and changes her entire world view. Fuck that.
Sasha's bit is fairly interesting but doesn't add anything of value to the story.
5. The Blessing of Little Wants - Sarah Enni ★★★★★
This is SO GOOD. It's something like a dark Harry Potter universe and Sigrid is one of the most interesting characters in the book. Sophia has one of the better contributions as well and together, these two make a formidable team.
6. The Sea Witch - Marissa Meyer ★★★★★
All hail the queen of fairytale retellings. Marissa takes on the origin story of the sea witch from The Little Mermaid and from the start, it's obvious why she's so good at remixing tales we all know from our childhood. Kudos to Zoe as well for playing to Marissa's strengths with her prompt and her funny commentary.
7. Beautiful Venom - Cindy Pon ★★★★★
Holy. Shit. This is utterly brilliant. Hai Xian is the worst villain here and ugh, thinking about him just makes me so angry! I like that the author highlighted victim-blaming as an issue, both in the story and real life. Instead of saying a girl brought this on herself when she is violated, we as a society should be teaching boys to take no as no. Ben tackles this as well in his dissertation and believe me, it's very well written.
8. Death Knell - Victoria Schwab ★★★★★
Victoria's writing is exquisite and the whole Death as a persona thing is all kinds of fascinating. Also THAT ENDING OMG. Jesse's contribution is so weird because it absolutely does not fit in with the mood you're in after finishing Victoria's story. Extremely jarring order.
9. Marigold - Samantha Shannon ★★★★★
I've never read anything of Samantha's but after this, it makes me want to pick up every single book she's ever written. So that should give you a sense of how amazing this story is. The setting is the Victorian era BUT WITH ELVES. How awesome is that? Regan's contribution isn't very interesting to me but the last paragraph? Loved it.
10. You, You, It's All About You - Adam Silvera ★★★★★
I am blown away by how complex this story is for such a simple prompt. (A Female Teen Crime Lord Concealed By A Mask). A bad ass girl using the skin of her abusive father's hand as her mask? Brilliant. Catriona's bit about the masks is boring and certainly doesn't fit with the tension created by Adam's story.
11. Julian Breaks Every Rule - Andrew Smith ★★★★★
This is the funniest of the stories and also the most readable. Andrew's writing reminds me a bit of John Green's, minus the pretentiousness.
Spoiler
Never confirming whether Julian really does kill people with his wishes or whether Steven Kemple, that utter ARSEHOLE ever dies is the cruelest thing ever though.12. Indigo and Shade - April Tucholke ★★★☆☆
The prompt was Beauty and the Beast: Suitor's Revenge which I thought was really interesting but unfortunately, the story is a hot mess. Brahm is an arrogant little shit who thinks way too highly of himself. Indigo does practically anything so I don't know what her name is doing in the title. The writing isn't bad per se, (except for one terrifying instant where Indigo's lips are described as chubby) but I did feel as though something was lacking.
Whitney's bit is quite good, except at this point of the book, I'm sick to death of "unique" reviews and as a result, I only skimmed hers. Sorry, Whitney.
13. Sera - Nicola Yoon ★★★★☆
I love Nicola's writing; she has this knack of drawing you in to the characters' minds and Sera growing up through her mother's eyes is fascinating. The ending is magnificent and a strong way to end this book. Also, after reading the prompt (Gender-flipped God of War), I realised that Sera is an anagram for Ares. Clever.
Steph and Kat's contribution is also witty and very feminist. Now, that's what I like.
The rating on this book is calculated out from a total of 65 possible stars (five for each story). Since the total is 57 (87%), four stars were awarded.
chaosandbooks's review against another edition
3.0
As with most collections, there's some hits and misses among the stories. I think having booktubers create prompts was a good idea, but it was a bit choppy in the way their commentary was held after the story. I think I would have preferred it before each story as a bit of a preface because then I would have known the inspiration going into these. In some cases, I also felt that they were awkward but enjoyed that there were a lot of well-known ones in the mix.
Some of my favorite authors were in the mix and their works didn't disappoint. Marissa Meyer crafted a lovely version of the sea witch from the Little Mermaid (a.k.a. Ursula's origins) and it was delight. I loved how dark and descriptive it was, holding true to the talent seen in all her works.
Another standout for me, that I expected as much, was the story created by Victoria Schwab. She's a recent discovery of mine and I loved her take on Death. It was eerie and poignant, something that left me mulling over my thoughts.
Despite all this, the standout short was Cindy Pon's take on Medusa. How I wish this was a full novel because it was descriptive, beautiful and dangerous. I loved the Asian spin on Medusa and thought it was perfect given that a large part of Asian mythology rests with serpent creatures. The way she portrayed the gods was divine and the handling of what actually happened to Medusa was ridden with guilt, betrayal and anger. It was delicate and thoughtful and I finished it, immediately looking for other works by her.
Some of my favorite authors were in the mix and their works didn't disappoint. Marissa Meyer crafted a lovely version of the sea witch from the Little Mermaid (a.k.a. Ursula's origins) and it was delight. I loved how dark and descriptive it was, holding true to the talent seen in all her works.
Another standout for me, that I expected as much, was the story created by Victoria Schwab. She's a recent discovery of mine and I loved her take on Death. It was eerie and poignant, something that left me mulling over my thoughts.
Despite all this, the standout short was Cindy Pon's take on Medusa. How I wish this was a full novel because it was descriptive, beautiful and dangerous. I loved the Asian spin on Medusa and thought it was perfect given that a large part of Asian mythology rests with serpent creatures. The way she portrayed the gods was divine and the handling of what actually happened to Medusa was ridden with guilt, betrayal and anger. It was delicate and thoughtful and I finished it, immediately looking for other works by her.