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vondav's review against another edition
5.0
This book has a good selection of stories for fantasy and Sci-Fi lovers, each story set in different land or time, but one thing in common, each story had a woman that was not afraid to kick some ass. Every woman had a story to tell whether they were a sword for hire, a mother, a soldier or just fighting to survive, they had to act on their wits and they were there to prove that there is nothing wrong in fighting like a girl.
So not to go on for ever I am going to review the stories that really grabbed my attention.
The Coyote by KR Green: Set in dystopian Brighton, Kai is a young girl with a very good sense of hearing. This talent had helped through many a scrape. A member of the Circlet, Kai, is a highly trained fighter and is on a mission to try and bring peace to the Buddhist community. Throughout, this short story was full of action, with Kai relying on her hearing to get the mission done, this made it an intense read.
Vocho’s Night out by Julia Knight: Vocho and Kacha are brother and sister, working for the guild, they are hired to protect a mysterious cargo. After a failed attempt to steal the cargo, they work together to find the real reason why they were hired. Like most siblings they are in competition with each other to be the best and as both are experienced sword fighters this does get interesting. I found this story to be a fun read, and the ending was comical. This has been a good introduction to the Duellists trilogy which I now want to read.
Fire and Ash by Gaie Sebold: Riven is a soldier who is suffering with PTSD. The last of the Dancers, a renowned troop she lost all her colleagues in one epic battle. Not wanting to go on any more with her life, she prepares to die until a ring changes her mind. Whilst reading this story, I felt really sorry for Riven with everything she went through, but whilst on this journey her character changes to determination, she gets stronger and you are willing her to survive and to learn to live.
A quick mention about the cover, when I saw this I had to smile to myself as when I was little girl I used to have a book of paper dolls to dress up and I wish that my dolls had outfits like these on the cover.
I must be honest: I had not read anything before by these authors and I have kept asking myself why not. Each story was well written and celebrates women. Now every time I hear you fight like a girl, I will know that it is a compliment as if I or any other girl fights like the girls in these stories then they will be strong, resourceful and not take any nonsense.
A great collection of stories that will keep your interest from the first word
So not to go on for ever I am going to review the stories that really grabbed my attention.
The Coyote by KR Green: Set in dystopian Brighton, Kai is a young girl with a very good sense of hearing. This talent had helped through many a scrape. A member of the Circlet, Kai, is a highly trained fighter and is on a mission to try and bring peace to the Buddhist community. Throughout, this short story was full of action, with Kai relying on her hearing to get the mission done, this made it an intense read.
Vocho’s Night out by Julia Knight: Vocho and Kacha are brother and sister, working for the guild, they are hired to protect a mysterious cargo. After a failed attempt to steal the cargo, they work together to find the real reason why they were hired. Like most siblings they are in competition with each other to be the best and as both are experienced sword fighters this does get interesting. I found this story to be a fun read, and the ending was comical. This has been a good introduction to the Duellists trilogy which I now want to read.
Fire and Ash by Gaie Sebold: Riven is a soldier who is suffering with PTSD. The last of the Dancers, a renowned troop she lost all her colleagues in one epic battle. Not wanting to go on any more with her life, she prepares to die until a ring changes her mind. Whilst reading this story, I felt really sorry for Riven with everything she went through, but whilst on this journey her character changes to determination, she gets stronger and you are willing her to survive and to learn to live.
A quick mention about the cover, when I saw this I had to smile to myself as when I was little girl I used to have a book of paper dolls to dress up and I wish that my dolls had outfits like these on the cover.
I must be honest: I had not read anything before by these authors and I have kept asking myself why not. Each story was well written and celebrates women. Now every time I hear you fight like a girl, I will know that it is a compliment as if I or any other girl fights like the girls in these stories then they will be strong, resourceful and not take any nonsense.
A great collection of stories that will keep your interest from the first word
grmatthews's review against another edition
3.0
I liked this book, hence the three stars (I liked it).
There were some really excellent stories in here that will make me look out of the books of the writers, and a few (a very few... 2, I think) I started but didn't finish. They just didn't gel with me.
BUT lets focus on the ones that did and there were a lot of them! There were some really good stories that ranged from SciFi to Fantasy... some focusing on battles, and some on more personal experiences.
I don't think anyone picking it up would be disappointed.
There were some really excellent stories in here that will make me look out of the books of the writers, and a few (a very few... 2, I think) I started but didn't finish. They just didn't gel with me.
BUT lets focus on the ones that did and there were a lot of them! There were some really good stories that ranged from SciFi to Fantasy... some focusing on battles, and some on more personal experiences.
I don't think anyone picking it up would be disappointed.
riverwise's review against another edition
Women and conflict is the theme of this anthology. Edited by Bristolians Joanne Hall and Roz Clarke, it features fifteen stories, all by female authors, spanning fantasy and SF. The overriding flavour is one of gritty combat - there's no cheesecake fluff here. Think Ellen Ripley
The nature of anthologies is that you're going to like some stories more than others, but there are no real duffers here. I'll highlight a few that stood out for me.
My favourite was probably Lou Morgan's "Archer 57", a tale of loss, revenge and desperation in a dystopian future. Joanne Hall's "Arrested Development" has a nasty sting in the tail that makes you reassess the protagonist and ponder the ethics of what she's doing. KT Davies' "The Quality Of Light" is more a vignette than a full story, but it's an evocative piece that conjures the sensations of medieval battle very effectively (like I would know). Danie Ware's "Unnatural History" is a bughunt, not a stand up fight, a gothic monster movie with hints of Lovecraft and Mieville. "Fire And Ash" by Gaie Sebold is rightly placed at the end of the book. It's about aftermath, surviving the wars and what comes next.
It's a good collection. My only caveat would be that reading all the stories in one splurge means the theme becomes a bit repetitive and restricting, but that's an issue with all themed anthologies, and one easily avoided by pacing yourself (if you can) and parcelling the stories out.
The nature of anthologies is that you're going to like some stories more than others, but there are no real duffers here. I'll highlight a few that stood out for me.
My favourite was probably Lou Morgan's "Archer 57", a tale of loss, revenge and desperation in a dystopian future. Joanne Hall's "Arrested Development" has a nasty sting in the tail that makes you reassess the protagonist and ponder the ethics of what she's doing. KT Davies' "The Quality Of Light" is more a vignette than a full story, but it's an evocative piece that conjures the sensations of medieval battle very effectively (like I would know). Danie Ware's "Unnatural History" is a bughunt, not a stand up fight, a gothic monster movie with hints of Lovecraft and Mieville. "Fire And Ash" by Gaie Sebold is rightly placed at the end of the book. It's about aftermath, surviving the wars and what comes next.
It's a good collection. My only caveat would be that reading all the stories in one splurge means the theme becomes a bit repetitive and restricting, but that's an issue with all themed anthologies, and one easily avoided by pacing yourself (if you can) and parcelling the stories out.
travelling_bookworm's review
adventurous
dark
fast-paced
4.0
“Erlin never underestimated women, with or without swords in their hands.”
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Whoever thought “fighting like a girl” is an insult, clearly did not fight a girl in their lives. Especially these girls!
Fight Like A Girl is a fast-paced, explosive collection of fiction and SFF short stories that delivers on its promise, where fighting like a girl means fighting fierce, smart, calculating, and always with sweat, blood, and the whole heart. Each story radiates bad-assery and fun, with fierce women fighting hard, whether its for their survival or glory, for riches or for love, each a force to be reckoned with. The quality of the stories in the whole collection is really quite high, which is a rare feat to achieve in anthologies.
(Also, in addition to some really cool stories and a wide range of styles, there is also a story set in Brighton, which always gets a bonus point from me.)
Overall a very good, and (going off of its Goodreads status) surprisingly underrated collection.
--------------------
Whoever thought “fighting like a girl” is an insult, clearly did not fight a girl in their lives. Especially these girls!
Fight Like A Girl is a fast-paced, explosive collection of fiction and SFF short stories that delivers on its promise, where fighting like a girl means fighting fierce, smart, calculating, and always with sweat, blood, and the whole heart. Each story radiates bad-assery and fun, with fierce women fighting hard, whether its for their survival or glory, for riches or for love, each a force to be reckoned with. The quality of the stories in the whole collection is really quite high, which is a rare feat to achieve in anthologies.
(Also, in addition to some really cool stories and a wide range of styles, there is also a story set in Brighton, which always gets a bonus point from me.)
Overall a very good, and (going off of its Goodreads status) surprisingly underrated collection.
riverwise's review
Women and conflict is the theme of this anthology. Edited by Bristolians Joanne Hall and Roz Clarke, it features fifteen stories, all by female authors, spanning fantasy and SF. The overriding flavour is one of gritty combat - there's no cheesecake fluff here. Think Ellen Ripley
The nature of anthologies is that you're going to like some stories more than others, but there are no real duffers here. I'll highlight a few that stood out for me.
My favourite was probably Lou Morgan's "Archer 57", a tale of loss, revenge and desperation in a dystopian future. Joanne Hall's "Arrested Development" has a nasty sting in the tail that makes you reassess the protagonist and ponder the ethics of what she's doing. KT Davies' "The Quality Of Light" is more a vignette than a full story, but it's an evocative piece that conjures the sensations of medieval battle very effectively (like I would know). Danie Ware's "Unnatural History" is a bughunt, not a stand up fight, a gothic monster movie with hints of Lovecraft and Mieville. "Fire And Ash" by Gaie Sebold is rightly placed at the end of the book. It's about aftermath, surviving the wars and what comes next.
It's a good collection. My only caveat would be that reading all the stories in one splurge means the theme becomes a bit repetitive and restricting, but that's an issue with all themed anthologies, and one easily avoided by pacing yourself (if you can) and parcelling the stories out.
The nature of anthologies is that you're going to like some stories more than others, but there are no real duffers here. I'll highlight a few that stood out for me.
My favourite was probably Lou Morgan's "Archer 57", a tale of loss, revenge and desperation in a dystopian future. Joanne Hall's "Arrested Development" has a nasty sting in the tail that makes you reassess the protagonist and ponder the ethics of what she's doing. KT Davies' "The Quality Of Light" is more a vignette than a full story, but it's an evocative piece that conjures the sensations of medieval battle very effectively (like I would know). Danie Ware's "Unnatural History" is a bughunt, not a stand up fight, a gothic monster movie with hints of Lovecraft and Mieville. "Fire And Ash" by Gaie Sebold is rightly placed at the end of the book. It's about aftermath, surviving the wars and what comes next.
It's a good collection. My only caveat would be that reading all the stories in one splurge means the theme becomes a bit repetitive and restricting, but that's an issue with all themed anthologies, and one easily avoided by pacing yourself (if you can) and parcelling the stories out.
writingcoe's review
5.0
There isn't a single story in this anthology that isn't worth reading. The wide variety of genres and voices is brilliant; it makes every story a new read, and it's a stunning and wonderful collection. The theme isn't hammered in; every story just happens to contain fighting women, but the other characters - men, aliens, gods, humans - are just as compelling.
My favourite is Lou Morgan's Archer 57 for the incredibly simple concept and brilliant writing, but Vocho's Night Out by Julia Knight (which made me laugh), The Women's Song by Nadine Andie and Two Sides by Juliet E McKenna were very close seconds; all brilliant, all interesting, and all excellent writing.
Joanne Hall's Arrested Development was unsettling; Unnatural History by Danie Ware had a tint of China Mieville's weird new in it; and Sophie E Tallis' sci-fi story was poignant and rage-filled. The Cold Wind Oozes was a brilliant take on the world, both here and not, with the Mother Commander as one who makes the hardest choices...I've only mentioned half the stories but believe me, they're all worth reading.
Plus, the cover glows under UV light! It's not quite "oooh shiny" but I think "oooh glowy!" is a pretty good call. So overall...I love it. This is a collection from some of the best writers in the genre, and it really shows!
My favourite is Lou Morgan's Archer 57 for the incredibly simple concept and brilliant writing, but Vocho's Night Out by Julia Knight (which made me laugh), The Women's Song by Nadine Andie and Two Sides by Juliet E McKenna were very close seconds; all brilliant, all interesting, and all excellent writing.
Joanne Hall's Arrested Development was unsettling; Unnatural History by Danie Ware had a tint of China Mieville's weird new in it; and Sophie E Tallis' sci-fi story was poignant and rage-filled. The Cold Wind Oozes was a brilliant take on the world, both here and not, with the Mother Commander as one who makes the hardest choices...I've only mentioned half the stories but believe me, they're all worth reading.
Plus, the cover glows under UV light! It's not quite "oooh shiny" but I think "oooh glowy!" is a pretty good call. So overall...I love it. This is a collection from some of the best writers in the genre, and it really shows!
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