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maryposa's review against another edition
2.0
Not a bad collection, just didn't keep my interest. I did enjoy the Community Service story by Megan Lindholm, but after that my interest severely waned.
stelepami's review against another edition
Great stories, ending with a Scott Lynch story that had me literally laughing out loud.
jon63f07's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
skray's review against another edition
4.0
A bit hit and miss, likely due to my tastes, but some really solid stories in here.
teancom's review against another edition
3.0
Books of short stories are hard to rate. Some of the stories I didn’t finish, some I loved. But over all I’m glad to have spent the money so it gets three stars.
ronpayne's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
relaxing
tense
fast-paced
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
standback's review against another edition
3.0
All the stories are pleasant and entertaining; most of them are pretty generic and unmemorable. "Powerful magicians" is a pretty hoary trope, and while the authors portray it well, it feels like a good rendition of something I've seen a million times before.
My main takeaway would be not to read this all at once. One story at a time would probably be a welcome entertainment; a bunch of them in sequence felt very tedious to me. (Full disclosure: at some point I started skipping between the stories; I might come back later reporting a gem I'd previously missed.)
My favorites here are:
* "Community Service" by Megan Lindholm, is a pitch-perfect low-key urban fantasy piece
* "The Fall and Rise of the House of the Wizard Malkuril," by Scott Lynch, which combines great humor and sentiment imagining the goings-on in a mighty wizard's estate following his sudden demise
* "The Friends of Masquelayne The Incomparable," by Matthew Hughes, is very much Hughes' regular beat of over-the-top curmudgeonly wizards having wizardly catfights for power and prestige. This one is excellently constructed, and full of Hughes' typical excellent humor.
My main takeaway would be not to read this all at once. One story at a time would probably be a welcome entertainment; a bunch of them in sequence felt very tedious to me. (Full disclosure: at some point I started skipping between the stories; I might come back later reporting a gem I'd previously missed.)
My favorites here are:
* "Community Service" by Megan Lindholm, is a pitch-perfect low-key urban fantasy piece
* "The Fall and Rise of the House of the Wizard Malkuril," by Scott Lynch, which combines great humor and sentiment imagining the goings-on in a mighty wizard's estate following his sudden demise
* "The Friends of Masquelayne The Incomparable," by Matthew Hughes, is very much Hughes' regular beat of over-the-top curmudgeonly wizards having wizardly catfights for power and prestige. This one is excellently constructed, and full of Hughes' typical excellent humor.
scottish_kat's review against another edition
3.0
Audiobook review.
Like all anthologies this has something for everyone.
I like that I can read outside my usual fare without too much investment.
Decent collection of stories.
Some of the narrators were excellent and really added to the story, others I felt detracted for the story.
I think I would have preferred to read this.
Like all anthologies this has something for everyone.
I like that I can read outside my usual fare without too much investment.
Decent collection of stories.
Some of the narrators were excellent and really added to the story, others I felt detracted for the story.
I think I would have preferred to read this.
delphinbella's review against another edition
4.0
Turns out I like sword a little more than sorcery, but I still really enjoyed this anthology, especially the last story.
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