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Reviews
Bourbon Penn Volume 31 by Alexia Antoniou, Naomi J. Williams, E. Catherine Tobler, Anthony Panegyres
pomeranian_poltergeist's review
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
3.75
I picked up this collection on the strength of its cover alone, so I'll start with a shout out to the illustrator, arnus: I love this piece and would tattoo it on my body if I could. Fantastic.
On the stories themselves: this was a solid collection overall, and I don't regret the impulse buy! Naomi J. Williams' Mesdames was the standout of the lot by far, but E. Catherine Tobler's Louder I Call, Faster It Runs and Alexia Antoniou's There Are Only Two Chairs are also darkly atmospheric and original. Two Chairs probably could have aged down its characters to make their actions & dialogue more appropriate, but otherwise it was a jaunty little microcosm of girlhood and desire that will probably stick with me for a while.
The other 4 stories were mostly forgettable; The Right Time felt like it wanted very badly to be a George Saunders joint but fell thematically short of the mark, and I had to check back to remember what Tone Deaf was even about. I noped out of 80s Tenement Love Story the first time I saw the word "goblin" - sorry, guys, but there's silly and then there's SILLY. I can only tolerate so much.
Regardless, I think this issue is worth trying just for the first three stories I mentioned - and to have a copy of THAT COVER! So good.
On the stories themselves: this was a solid collection overall, and I don't regret the impulse buy! Naomi J. Williams' Mesdames was the standout of the lot by far, but E. Catherine Tobler's Louder I Call, Faster It Runs and Alexia Antoniou's There Are Only Two Chairs are also darkly atmospheric and original. Two Chairs probably could have aged down its characters to make their actions & dialogue more appropriate, but otherwise it was a jaunty little microcosm of girlhood and desire that will probably stick with me for a while.
The other 4 stories were mostly forgettable; The Right Time felt like it wanted very badly to be a George Saunders joint but fell thematically short of the mark, and I had to check back to remember what Tone Deaf was even about. I noped out of 80s Tenement Love Story the first time I saw the word "goblin" - sorry, guys, but there's silly and then there's SILLY. I can only tolerate so much.
Regardless, I think this issue is worth trying just for the first three stories I mentioned - and to have a copy of THAT COVER! So good.
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