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Fell Beasts and Fair: A Noblebright Fantasy Anthology by W.R. Gingell, Lora Gray, Kelly a. Harmon
xiomi's review
4.0
The stories weren't at all what I expected and would sometimes catch me by surprise. Some drew my attention more than others but that's the beauty of it, there is such a great variety, that you go on a whirlwind of adventures just to find that some stories follow you long after you are done.
aweichenlaub's review
5.0
Fell Beasts and Fair is fantasy full of tension, fun, and positivity. There's everything from a mummy living in small-town Wisconsin to a djinn making promises in the desert. The book is full of great stories, and definitely worth the read.
Full Disclosure: I have a story in this book. It's When Gracie's Father Fought, and I'm quite proud of it.
Full Disclosure: I have a story in this book. It's When Gracie's Father Fought, and I'm quite proud of it.
zoeelizabethk's review
4.0
Charming anthology
I really enjoyed this anthology. I love the idea of noblebright and it was really interesting to see it taken in so many directions. As with any anthology, I loved some stories and didn’t like others. There were some real gems here, including the “Dove of Assisi” by Troy Tang. It was great to get acquainted with some new authors and read stories that pushed me outside of my regular genres. I hope to read more from some of these authors and hope that there will be another anthology in the future.
I really enjoyed this anthology. I love the idea of noblebright and it was really interesting to see it taken in so many directions. As with any anthology, I loved some stories and didn’t like others. There were some real gems here, including the “Dove of Assisi” by Troy Tang. It was great to get acquainted with some new authors and read stories that pushed me outside of my regular genres. I hope to read more from some of these authors and hope that there will be another anthology in the future.
marziesreads's review against another edition
3.0
3.5 Stars
This is an anthology of stories centering on creatures of magic and folklore who are animals, or shifters. Although I found the selection to be rather uneven some are rich with humor, like W. R. Gingell's "Cloudy with a Chance of Dropbears." "Blanche, Bear-Wife" by Alena Sullivan reminded me of the rich Estonian lore of talking bears wooing young women. Beth Powers' "Inheritance of Nightmares" was dipped into some light horror. There are several stories with dragons to enjoy. Tam, her friend Marge and a fateful encounter with a herd of rowdy unicorns was a surprising story. April Steenburgh's "Like Sand in Your Teeth," gives us a poignant selkie tale of a young woman named Coira. (Selkie tales are always poignant, it seems!). My favorite of the collection is Francesca Forrest's "The Gallows Maiden" a story evocative of the complexities of raven-maid folklore.
All in all, this is a pleasant collection of stories, at a great price on the Kindle edition.
I received a Digital Review Copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
This is an anthology of stories centering on creatures of magic and folklore who are animals, or shifters. Although I found the selection to be rather uneven some are rich with humor, like W. R. Gingell's "Cloudy with a Chance of Dropbears." "Blanche, Bear-Wife" by Alena Sullivan reminded me of the rich Estonian lore of talking bears wooing young women. Beth Powers' "Inheritance of Nightmares" was dipped into some light horror. There are several stories with dragons to enjoy. Tam, her friend Marge and a fateful encounter with a herd of rowdy unicorns was a surprising story. April Steenburgh's "Like Sand in Your Teeth," gives us a poignant selkie tale of a young woman named Coira. (Selkie tales are always poignant, it seems!). My favorite of the collection is Francesca Forrest's "The Gallows Maiden" a story evocative of the complexities of raven-maid folklore.
All in all, this is a pleasant collection of stories, at a great price on the Kindle edition.
I received a Digital Review Copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
adancewithbooks's review against another edition
3.0
Thank you to author Intisar Khanani for a review copy in exchange for an honest review.
ell Beasts and Fair is a Noblebright fantasy anthology. What is noblebright fantasy you might ask. As the editor of this anthology describes it on her own website: noblebright fantasy has at least one flawed character with noble motives who ends up doing the right thing. Looking back on this anthology that certainly fits the bill for all of the main characters in the stories that were featured.
Overall I enjoyed this anthology. I thought it was off to a very good start with the first few stories that tickled my imagination in creativity and diving into worlds. There were quite a few that I would loved to have read more of like the arrangement in Cloudy with a Chance of Dropbears with a very funny leprechaun. Or the librarian that is also taking care of a mummy that can heal the people living in the town in Bordeleau, WI. But I was very taken in by Blanche, Bear Wife. While this romance type of story is not usually something that I am drawn to I was very drawn to the main character who felt like she could be me. She resonated with me in such a way that I could settle easily into her thoughts and motivations.
Unfortunately this raised my expectations for the rest of the stories. Expectations that could not be met. I thought especially in the middle some of the stories lost some strength in capturing my attention with the characters. I even lost interest in dragon story when that became too close to a Christian type of story for my liking.
Having said that though, all the stories were well written. And what didn’t tickle my fancy could easily be a great read to somebody else. I think there is something to find for every fantasy fan in this anthology for sure.
Stories Rating
5 stars
Blanche, Bear-Wife
4 stars
Cloudy with a Chance of Dropbears / Don’t Wake the Dragon / Love and Room for Monsters / Bordeleau, WI / The Pooka’s Day / Roadtrip / The Unanswered Riddle
3,5 stars
Siphoning the Flames of Life
3 stars
Inheritance of Monsters / Everything Mimsy / The Gallows Maiden / The Boy Who Didn’t Believe in Halloween / Nessecary Threads / Pinecones / The Dove Assisi / Like Sand in Your Teeth / When Gracie’s Father Fought
2 stars
A Midsummer Night’s Bedtime Story / Angus McCarn and the Tale of Two Tales / Winter Horses and Other Unknownables / Last Knight and the Burning Sands / The Lady and the Unicorn
ell Beasts and Fair is a Noblebright fantasy anthology. What is noblebright fantasy you might ask. As the editor of this anthology describes it on her own website: noblebright fantasy has at least one flawed character with noble motives who ends up doing the right thing. Looking back on this anthology that certainly fits the bill for all of the main characters in the stories that were featured.
Overall I enjoyed this anthology. I thought it was off to a very good start with the first few stories that tickled my imagination in creativity and diving into worlds. There were quite a few that I would loved to have read more of like the arrangement in Cloudy with a Chance of Dropbears with a very funny leprechaun. Or the librarian that is also taking care of a mummy that can heal the people living in the town in Bordeleau, WI. But I was very taken in by Blanche, Bear Wife. While this romance type of story is not usually something that I am drawn to I was very drawn to the main character who felt like she could be me. She resonated with me in such a way that I could settle easily into her thoughts and motivations.
Unfortunately this raised my expectations for the rest of the stories. Expectations that could not be met. I thought especially in the middle some of the stories lost some strength in capturing my attention with the characters. I even lost interest in dragon story when that became too close to a Christian type of story for my liking.
Having said that though, all the stories were well written. And what didn’t tickle my fancy could easily be a great read to somebody else. I think there is something to find for every fantasy fan in this anthology for sure.
Stories Rating
5 stars
Blanche, Bear-Wife
4 stars
Cloudy with a Chance of Dropbears / Don’t Wake the Dragon / Love and Room for Monsters / Bordeleau, WI / The Pooka’s Day / Roadtrip / The Unanswered Riddle
3,5 stars
Siphoning the Flames of Life
3 stars
Inheritance of Monsters / Everything Mimsy / The Gallows Maiden / The Boy Who Didn’t Believe in Halloween / Nessecary Threads / Pinecones / The Dove Assisi / Like Sand in Your Teeth / When Gracie’s Father Fought
2 stars
A Midsummer Night’s Bedtime Story / Angus McCarn and the Tale of Two Tales / Winter Horses and Other Unknownables / Last Knight and the Burning Sands / The Lady and the Unicorn
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