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francesca_o's review against another edition
4.0
Some of these stories have stuck with me, especially Alyssa Wong's. They were all interesting and creative, and I liked the different cultural backdrops of each story.
fairybookmother's review against another edition
4.0
Edited by Peter S. Beagle and Jacob Weisman, The New Voices of Fantasy is a solid collection of short stories introducing new and familiar readers of fantasy to relatively new writers to the genre. I say relatively, because a good portion of these appear to have been originally published in 2014 and 2015, and it's 2017 now, so that's a few years ago now. However, I feel like I read a lot of fantasy and science fiction and follow quite a few of these writers on social media (and follow writers who have introduced some of these writers to me), so those who are either not active on social media or casual readers of the genre will find these to be "new" writers!
My favorite stories in the collection are: Brooke Bolander's "Tornado's Siren" that's about a tornado who falls in love with a girl; Max Gladstone's "A Kiss With Teeth" that's about Vlad the Impaler living in the modern age and the struggles he faces in deciding whether or not to remain appearing like a human or to give into his vampiric tendencies; and Ursula Vernon's "Jackalope Wives" that's about shapeshifters that brought me to near-tears by the end with longing.
Several of the stories verge on the science/speculative fiction aspect, but genre is something so easily malleable and never a definite thing. It's a perfect fall read as so many of the stories are terrifying, dark, and beautiful.
Thank you to Netgalley for a review copy! All opinions are my own.
My favorite stories in the collection are: Brooke Bolander's "Tornado's Siren" that's about a tornado who falls in love with a girl; Max Gladstone's "A Kiss With Teeth" that's about Vlad the Impaler living in the modern age and the struggles he faces in deciding whether or not to remain appearing like a human or to give into his vampiric tendencies; and Ursula Vernon's "Jackalope Wives" that's about shapeshifters that brought me to near-tears by the end with longing.
Several of the stories verge on the science/speculative fiction aspect, but genre is something so easily malleable and never a definite thing. It's a perfect fall read as so many of the stories are terrifying, dark, and beautiful.
Thank you to Netgalley for a review copy! All opinions are my own.
kieralesley's review against another edition
4.0
I really enjoyed this collection. It had a nice balance of stories – most of them not too long - showing a good array of work from upcoming authors and somehow maintained a consistent tone despite the variety of authors and tales.
I was familiar with many of these stories from previous anthologies and publications. At first I was disappointed by that, until I thought about the target audience for this book and realised that not only was that perfectly fine - it was what I’d want to be seeing.
This book is aimed at readers who aren’t up to their eyeballs reading the latest issues of SFWA-recognised magazines, who aren’t voting in or following the big awards, and who may not typically follow SFF short fiction at all. It’s aimed at people who want to read a good collection of the key pieces from upcoming authors to watch out for in the future.
In that regard this collection delivers really well.
For an anthology like this you’d hope the stories and authors that would be included would be the big ones you’d think of straight off the bat like Alyssa Wong and Brooke Bolander, right? You’d hope that they’d have some of your favourite short stories from the last few years like Carmen Maria Machado’s “The Husband Stitch”, Ursula Vernon’s “Jackolope Wives” and Max Gladstone’s “A Kiss With Teeth”. You’d hope there were a few outsider surprises, too, like “The Duck” or “Here Be Dragons”.
The editorial team has done a great job and I found their selections are well-balanced.
If I had a friend who asked me for an introduction to what’s good in current fantasy short fiction, this would be up there in my recommendations. It’s a good overview, introduces a lot of the key names to keep an eye on, and gives the reader a place to start and work out from.
In short, this collection does everything it says it will on the tin and it does it very well.
An advance copy of this book was kindly provided by Tachyon Publications and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
I was familiar with many of these stories from previous anthologies and publications. At first I was disappointed by that, until I thought about the target audience for this book and realised that not only was that perfectly fine - it was what I’d want to be seeing.
This book is aimed at readers who aren’t up to their eyeballs reading the latest issues of SFWA-recognised magazines, who aren’t voting in or following the big awards, and who may not typically follow SFF short fiction at all. It’s aimed at people who want to read a good collection of the key pieces from upcoming authors to watch out for in the future.
In that regard this collection delivers really well.
For an anthology like this you’d hope the stories and authors that would be included would be the big ones you’d think of straight off the bat like Alyssa Wong and Brooke Bolander, right? You’d hope that they’d have some of your favourite short stories from the last few years like Carmen Maria Machado’s “The Husband Stitch”, Ursula Vernon’s “Jackolope Wives” and Max Gladstone’s “A Kiss With Teeth”. You’d hope there were a few outsider surprises, too, like “The Duck” or “Here Be Dragons”.
The editorial team has done a great job and I found their selections are well-balanced.
If I had a friend who asked me for an introduction to what’s good in current fantasy short fiction, this would be up there in my recommendations. It’s a good overview, introduces a lot of the key names to keep an eye on, and gives the reader a place to start and work out from.
In short, this collection does everything it says it will on the tin and it does it very well.
An advance copy of this book was kindly provided by Tachyon Publications and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
jhstack's review against another edition
4.0
Cracking good collection of newer voices in the fantasy scene. I especially enjoyed Alyssa Wong, Max Gladstone, A.C. Wise, Sofia Samatar, Maria Dahvana Headley, Amal El-Mohtar, Carmen Maria Machado (a re-read), and JY Yang's contributions.
krakentamer's review against another edition
3.0
This collection started off strong, but really petered out about halfway through.
Hungry Daughters of Starving Mothers (Alyssa Wong) - 5 Stars
Selkie Stories Are for Losers (Sofia Samatar) - 4
Tornado’s Siren (Brooke Bolander) - 4
Left the Century to Sit Unmoved (Sarah Pinsker) - 5
A Kiss with Teeth (Max Gladstone) - 4
Jackalope Wives (Ursula Vernon) - 4
The Cartographer Wasps and the Anarchist Bees (E. Lily Yu) - 4
The Practical Witch’s Guide to Acquiring Real Estate (A.C. Wise) - 2
The Tallest Doll in New York City (Maria Dahvana Headley) - 4
The Haunting of Apollo A7LB (Hannu Rajaniemi) - 4
Here Be Dragons (Chris Tarry) - 4
The One They Took Before (Kelly Sandoval) - 3
Tiger Baby (JY Yang) - 3
The Duck (Ben Loory) - 3
Wing (Amal El-Mohtar) - 2
The Philosophers (Adam Ehrlich Sachs) - 2
My Time Among the Bridge Blowers (Eugene Fischer) - 3
The Husband Stitch (Carmen Maria Machado) - 1
The Pauper Prince and the Eucalyptus Jinn (Usman T. Malik) - 1 (technically DNF at 25%)
Average: 3.26 Weighted: 2.8 Rounded up to 3 stars
Hungry Daughters of Starving Mothers (Alyssa Wong) - 5 Stars
Selkie Stories Are for Losers (Sofia Samatar) - 4
Tornado’s Siren (Brooke Bolander) - 4
Left the Century to Sit Unmoved (Sarah Pinsker) - 5
A Kiss with Teeth (Max Gladstone) - 4
Jackalope Wives (Ursula Vernon) - 4
The Cartographer Wasps and the Anarchist Bees (E. Lily Yu) - 4
The Practical Witch’s Guide to Acquiring Real Estate (A.C. Wise) - 2
The Tallest Doll in New York City (Maria Dahvana Headley) - 4
The Haunting of Apollo A7LB (Hannu Rajaniemi) - 4
Here Be Dragons (Chris Tarry) - 4
The One They Took Before (Kelly Sandoval) - 3
Tiger Baby (JY Yang) - 3
The Duck (Ben Loory) - 3
Wing (Amal El-Mohtar) - 2
The Philosophers (Adam Ehrlich Sachs) - 2
My Time Among the Bridge Blowers (Eugene Fischer) - 3
The Husband Stitch (Carmen Maria Machado) - 1
The Pauper Prince and the Eucalyptus Jinn (Usman T. Malik) - 1 (technically DNF at 25%)
Average: 3.26 Weighted: 2.8 Rounded up to 3 stars
metaphorosis's review against another edition
3.0
A collection of fantasy stories from relatively new authors.
Most of the stories in this anthology are fairly strong, and none are terrible. There are several that could have used a stronger editorial hand, and some deal with very familiar themes without adding anything new to them. The strongest stories are:
All in all, an interesting but not exceptional collection.
I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Most of the stories in this anthology are fairly strong, and none are terrible. There are several that could have used a stronger editorial hand, and some deal with very familiar themes without adding anything new to them. The strongest stories are:
Jackalope Wives by Ursula Vernon - the dangers of desire. Strongly reminiscent of Ursula Le Guin, but very nicely written.- The Cartographer Wasps and the Anarchist Bees by E. Lily Yu - the political systems of hymenopterae. I liked this less than when I first read it, but it's still innovative, well written, and interesting.
- Here be Dragons by Chris Tarry - the life of a fake dragon hunter. A familiar concept, but largely well executed.
- Tiger Baby by JY Yang - a girl who dreams of her real self. A nice concept. As with several of the stories in this anthology, it weakens at the end, but it's largely well done.
- Wing by Amal El-Mohtar - a mysterious girl with a secret. Again, the ending could have been stronger, but a largely successful mood piece.
All in all, an interesting but not exceptional collection.
I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
tyler_j's review
3.25
1. Hungry Daughters of Starving Mothers by Alyssa Wong- 5 stars
2. Selkie Stories are for Losers by Sofia Samatar- 2 stars
3. Tornado's Siren by Brooke Bolander- 4 stars
4. Left the century to sit unmoved by Sarah Pinsker- 5 stars
5. A Kiss with Teeth by Max Gladstone- 4.5 stars
6. Jackalope Wives by Ursula Vernon- 5 stars
7. The Cartographer Wasps and the Anarchist Bees E. Lily Yu- 2 stars
8. The practical witch's guide to acquiring real estate by A.C. Wise- 4 stars
9. The Tallest Doll in New York City by Maria Dahvana Headley- 2 stars
10. The Haunting of Apollo A7LB by Hannu Rajaniemi- 3.5 stars
11. Here Be Dragons by Chris Tarry- 1 star
12. The one they took before by Kelly Sandoval - 2 stars
13. Tiger baby by Jy Yang- 3.5 stars
14. The Duck by Ben Loory- 2 stars
15. Wing by Amal El-Mohtar- 3 stars
16. The Philosophers by Adam Ehrlich Sachs- 3.5 stars
17. My Time Among the Bridge Blowers by Eugene Fischer- 3 stars
18. The Husband Stitch by Carmen Maria Machado- 3 stars
19. The Pauper Prince and the Eucalyptus Jinn by Usman T. Malik- 4 stars.
Took a bit to hook me, slightly confusing at parts (a me thing not the story), but mostly beautiful, magical, and very thought-provoking.
I mention this because after I finished each of the previous stories I updated with my thoughts. But with the last one didn't get the chance to because kindle attached to Goodreads.
Anyway some of the stories I didn't care for it was definitely a "It's me, not you" type of thing.
I am really glad I read this, there are some wonderful stories in here and over-all I did enjoy it and it did make me think. I have some more authors I should check out now. :)
Avg rating: 3.26
2. Selkie Stories are for Losers by Sofia Samatar- 2 stars
3. Tornado's Siren by Brooke Bolander- 4 stars
4. Left the century to sit unmoved by Sarah Pinsker- 5 stars
5. A Kiss with Teeth by Max Gladstone- 4.5 stars
6. Jackalope Wives by Ursula Vernon- 5 stars
7. The Cartographer Wasps and the Anarchist Bees E. Lily Yu- 2 stars
8. The practical witch's guide to acquiring real estate by A.C. Wise- 4 stars
9. The Tallest Doll in New York City by Maria Dahvana Headley- 2 stars
10. The Haunting of Apollo A7LB by Hannu Rajaniemi- 3.5 stars
11. Here Be Dragons by Chris Tarry- 1 star
12. The one they took before by Kelly Sandoval - 2 stars
13. Tiger baby by Jy Yang- 3.5 stars
14. The Duck by Ben Loory- 2 stars
15. Wing by Amal El-Mohtar- 3 stars
16. The Philosophers by Adam Ehrlich Sachs- 3.5 stars
17. My Time Among the Bridge Blowers by Eugene Fischer- 3 stars
18. The Husband Stitch by Carmen Maria Machado- 3 stars
19. The Pauper Prince and the Eucalyptus Jinn by Usman T. Malik- 4 stars.
Took a bit to hook me, slightly confusing at parts (a me thing not the story), but mostly beautiful, magical, and very thought-provoking.
I mention this because after I finished each of the previous stories I updated with my thoughts. But with the last one didn't get the chance to because kindle attached to Goodreads.
Anyway some of the stories I didn't care for it was definitely a "It's me, not you" type of thing.
I am really glad I read this, there are some wonderful stories in here and over-all I did enjoy it and it did make me think. I have some more authors I should check out now. :)
Avg rating: 3.26
spiraldots's review against another edition
5.0
Review originally written for my blog
So my bf bought this book a while ago and was raving about how incredible it was after reading just a few stories and kept recommending it to me (partially because he knows how much I love Selkies and any story containing them but also just because I love Fantasy in general) and I was super lucky to get an ARC from the publisher a few days ago and I just devoured this collection.
It’s always hard to review short story collections, and it’s even harder to review this one because I absolutely adored every single story in it and just wouldn’t know where to start. They are all so creative and fantastic and well written and I’m definitely going to hunt down more work by all these authors! I’d heard of quite a few of the authors already, and indeed had actually already read the short story by Ursula Vernon (which is probably one of my favourites of the collection).
Really, my review for this is simply just “read them” because each story is so different and so magical that you can only experience it by reading. For those that don’t read much Fantasy, it’s also an excellent introduction to some of the authors to keep an eye on that might not be as well known as they deserve. For those that are keen Fantasy readers, you’ve likely also heard of a lot of these authors and these pieces are all fantastic introductions to their work and will definitely leave you wanting more from all of them. The editors did a fantastic job selecting all these stories with the result being an incredible book that is just overflowing with such fascinating and varied stories.
In short, I highly, highly recommend this book and indeed I enjoyed it so much I can see myself re-reading and reviewing some of the individual stories later just so I can keep telling people about how fantastic this collection is.
So my bf bought this book a while ago and was raving about how incredible it was after reading just a few stories and kept recommending it to me (partially because he knows how much I love Selkies and any story containing them but also just because I love Fantasy in general) and I was super lucky to get an ARC from the publisher a few days ago and I just devoured this collection.
It’s always hard to review short story collections, and it’s even harder to review this one because I absolutely adored every single story in it and just wouldn’t know where to start. They are all so creative and fantastic and well written and I’m definitely going to hunt down more work by all these authors! I’d heard of quite a few of the authors already, and indeed had actually already read the short story by Ursula Vernon (which is probably one of my favourites of the collection).
Really, my review for this is simply just “read them” because each story is so different and so magical that you can only experience it by reading. For those that don’t read much Fantasy, it’s also an excellent introduction to some of the authors to keep an eye on that might not be as well known as they deserve. For those that are keen Fantasy readers, you’ve likely also heard of a lot of these authors and these pieces are all fantastic introductions to their work and will definitely leave you wanting more from all of them. The editors did a fantastic job selecting all these stories with the result being an incredible book that is just overflowing with such fascinating and varied stories.
In short, I highly, highly recommend this book and indeed I enjoyed it so much I can see myself re-reading and reviewing some of the individual stories later just so I can keep telling people about how fantastic this collection is.
caterina_1212's review against another edition
2.0
really cool book, I hope I find it again when I have the time and the energy to enjoy it