Scan barcode
bananatricky's review against another edition
3.0
A short story set in the old Wild West about Lily, an actress and part-time thief as she, her boyfriend Nate and their team engineer a sting on a wealthy man.
jennybeastie's review against another edition
3.0
I enjoyed the stories by the authors I already liked -- Seanan McGuire, Beth Revis, Elizabeth bear, Tad Williams, Kelley Armstrong, Laura Anne Gilman. I sampled and skipped a bunch of the others that weren't my cup of tea. It's a perfectly fine anthology.
booksinbangkok's review
4.0
23 amazing stories set in a Wild West populated by gunslingers, Indians, card players, robots and other machines, monsters and magic. I enjoyed most of the stories but these were my favorites.
The Red-Headed Dead by Joe R. Lansdale
Reverend Mercer finds shelter from a storm in the worst place, a ruined cabin near a cemetery where an iron spike sticks out from a grave. The Reverend knows it is not by accident that he has come to this place. God has a plan, and His plans usually involve a monster. And the monster is coming.
This was such a delicious story, like a bite out of the perfect chocolate cake. The problem is, one bite is not enough, but it definitely put Landsdale on my tbr list.
The Hell-Bound Stagecoach by Mike Resnick
At first glance, this seems like an innocent story – two travelers stuck in a stagecoach for a long drive. But it’s not until the third joins them, that things really start to get interesting. I loved the clues sprinkled throughout the story. You can feel something’s wrong but you don’t know what until the end. And it’s such a satisfying end!
Wrecking Party by Alastair Reynolds
Why would a man wreck a horseless carriage in the middle of the night? What could make him hate a lifeless thing so bad he would lash out at anyone who tried to stop him?
I’ve always wondered about steampunk and there are several stories in this anthology that include robots and mechanical spiders, among other things, but not all of them worked for me. It’s a lot more fun to watch steampunk on the screen (think Wild Wild West with Will Smith) than it is to read about it. This is one of the stories I quite enjoyed because it doesn’t go into lengthy descriptions about how machines work.
Red Dreams by Jonathan Maberry
Jonah McCall and his horse are the only survivors of a massacre in which red men and white men fought each other and died. But not all of them. Walking Bear, the war chief of the Cheyenne, appears out of nowhere and McCall kills him, again. Can you kill a man twice?
I loved this story because it’s the truth wrapped in a cocoon of fiction, and it’s the kind of truth that hurts to read about. It’s my second favorite story in this book.
The Red-Headed Dead by Joe R. Lansdale
Reverend Mercer finds shelter from a storm in the worst place, a ruined cabin near a cemetery where an iron spike sticks out from a grave. The Reverend knows it is not by accident that he has come to this place. God has a plan, and His plans usually involve a monster. And the monster is coming.
This was such a delicious story, like a bite out of the perfect chocolate cake. The problem is, one bite is not enough, but it definitely put Landsdale on my tbr list.
The Hell-Bound Stagecoach by Mike Resnick
At first glance, this seems like an innocent story – two travelers stuck in a stagecoach for a long drive. But it’s not until the third joins them, that things really start to get interesting. I loved the clues sprinkled throughout the story. You can feel something’s wrong but you don’t know what until the end. And it’s such a satisfying end!
Wrecking Party by Alastair Reynolds
Why would a man wreck a horseless carriage in the middle of the night? What could make him hate a lifeless thing so bad he would lash out at anyone who tried to stop him?
I’ve always wondered about steampunk and there are several stories in this anthology that include robots and mechanical spiders, among other things, but not all of them worked for me. It’s a lot more fun to watch steampunk on the screen (think Wild Wild West with Will Smith) than it is to read about it. This is one of the stories I quite enjoyed because it doesn’t go into lengthy descriptions about how machines work.
Red Dreams by Jonathan Maberry
Jonah McCall and his horse are the only survivors of a massacre in which red men and white men fought each other and died. But not all of them. Walking Bear, the war chief of the Cheyenne, appears out of nowhere and McCall kills him, again. Can you kill a man twice?
I loved this story because it’s the truth wrapped in a cocoon of fiction, and it’s the kind of truth that hurts to read about. It’s my second favorite story in this book.
haramis's review
4.0
I have read many, but not all, of [a:John Joseph Adams|1161372|John Joseph Adams|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1291911306p2/1161372.jpg]' anthologies, and I usually rate them pretty well. He has a talent for getting together some of Sci-Fi and Fantasy's best and getting them to turn out fresh stories. I will admit to favoring the books that feature [a:Seanan McGuire|2860219|Seanan McGuire|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1245623198p2/2860219.jpg], and that was certainly the case here.
I think what was weird to me is that this is easily the tightest concept I've read to date. That is to say that the stories had more in common with each other than any of the other JJA anthologies I've read. In some ways it made this feel more consistent, but in other ways a tad drab. That's not to say that there weren't stories that stood out or authors that I plan to follow up on, but just that this couldn't be as easily consumed over a few days because some of the stories melted into each other. My favorites were Wrecking Party by Alastair Reynolds, Second Hand by Rajan Khanna (which I'd read a novel of), Strong Medicine by Tad Williams, The Devil’s Jack by Laura Anne Gilman, and The Golden Age by Walter Jon Williams, which I felt ran a little too long, but which was pretty damn entertaining. The Seanan McGuire story was fine, but I had to wonder how it would play to someone unfamiliar with InCryptid; I recognized both of the main Cryptids in the story on introduction. I generally like Elizabeth Bear's stories, but this one felt more like a piece than the whole story.
I'm going to call this one 3.5/5, rounded up.
I think what was weird to me is that this is easily the tightest concept I've read to date. That is to say that the stories had more in common with each other than any of the other JJA anthologies I've read. In some ways it made this feel more consistent, but in other ways a tad drab. That's not to say that there weren't stories that stood out or authors that I plan to follow up on, but just that this couldn't be as easily consumed over a few days because some of the stories melted into each other. My favorites were Wrecking Party by Alastair Reynolds, Second Hand by Rajan Khanna (which I'd read a novel of), Strong Medicine by Tad Williams, The Devil’s Jack by Laura Anne Gilman, and The Golden Age by Walter Jon Williams, which I felt ran a little too long, but which was pretty damn entertaining. The Seanan McGuire story was fine, but I had to wonder how it would play to someone unfamiliar with InCryptid; I recognized both of the main Cryptids in the story on introduction. I generally like Elizabeth Bear's stories, but this one felt more like a piece than the whole story.
I'm going to call this one 3.5/5, rounded up.
tagryn101's review
4.0
We read this for a local scifi book club. It has a nice variety of alternate variations on the "Wild West" theme from either the fantasy or science fiction genre. According to my notes from our club meeting, the general consensus was:
Liked: Winters, Resnick, McGuire, Yu, Howey, Khanna, T. Williams, Liu
Disliked: Lansdale, Foster, Revis, Card, Maberry, Buckell, Van Lente
Either-loved-it-or-hated-it: W.J. Williams' "Golden Age"
Liked: Winters, Resnick, McGuire, Yu, Howey, Khanna, T. Williams, Liu
Disliked: Lansdale, Foster, Revis, Card, Maberry, Buckell, Van Lente
Either-loved-it-or-hated-it: W.J. Williams' "Golden Age"
monique3's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
4.0
Discount purchase from The Forbidden Planet! I'm not sure what it is about anthologies, I just don't enjoy them as much as single novels/short stories. Perhaps it's because I'm used to immerse myself in the story and I can't do that when they end quickly! Though, that's not stopping my buying them though 😂
wingedpotato's review
4.0
Maybe 3.5 stars. I love anthologies, but you always have to take the good with the blah. My favorites were the ones that just tweaked the west without adding tons of steampunk/magic/etc.
cathepsut's review
4.0
Part of [b:Led Astray: The Best of Kelley Armstrong|24402500|Led Astray The Best of Kelley Armstrong|Kelley Armstrong|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1440778239s/24402500.jpg|44123648]. An Otherworld Universe Story: Werewolves in the Wild West. Good story, plot and characters.
honeymonster's review
adventurous
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Some of these stories are really good. However, I tired of the theme before the book tired of throwing stories at me.
myntop's review
5.0
*as of now this review is only for the Seanan McGuire portion of the anthology*
While I wish it had gotten a little more into exactly what the music teacher was (I'm so curious,) I really enjoyed this short story in the InCryptid world. More of the fantastic Aeslin mice, more of Jonathan and Fran, and more monsters to hunt and learn about. I'm very excited about the ending and ready to move on to the next novella/short story.
While I wish it had gotten a little more into exactly what the music teacher was (I'm so curious,) I really enjoyed this short story in the InCryptid world. More of the fantastic Aeslin mice, more of Jonathan and Fran, and more monsters to hunt and learn about. I'm very excited about the ending and ready to move on to the next novella/short story.