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rainandroses's review
Most of the stories are very dark, and while I'm fine with that, I wish there was more variety in the retellings. Also a few uncomfortable themes kept recurring in stories that I didn't want to keep putting myself through.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual violence, Incest, Pedophilia, and Physical abuse
Moderate: Rape and Sexual assault
moirwyn's review
5.0
This review originally appeared on my blog, Books Without Any Pictures: http://bookswithoutanypictures.com/2018/04/17/redder-than-blood-by-tanith-lee/
Redder Than Blood is an anthology of short stories by Tanith Lee. The stories in the collection are interpretations and variations of familiar fairy tales. They have a grimdark tone that’s reminiscent of the originals, but they take some of the subtext and make it the actual text. These stories have the dark and sensual atmosphere that Tanith Lee excels at, but are also grim and messed up. They are a delight to read, and make you think about old stories in new ways.
I’ve been savoring this collection slowly over the course of a year or so, reading a story here and a story there as suited my mood. I think that’s become my preferred way of reading short stories, because switching from story to story too quickly tends to break my immersion. The only drawback is that now, by the time that I finish the book and am writing out my thoughts and impressions, the stories that I read at the beginning of the book aren’t as fresh in my memory. So instead of a detailed review, I’m going to share some brief thoughts on a few of the stories that stood out to me the most:
The Reason for Not Going to the Ball is a retelling of Cinderella. In this version, the evil stepmother is the true hero of the story, and is trying to break the cycle of sexual abuse. Her treatment of Cinderella was an attempt to protect her, and to save her from her own fate. For the stepmother knows all too well that not all princes are kind and gentle.
In Wolfed, the story of Red Riding Hood and her Nana begins with a hookup at a bar. But in this version, it is the Wolf that is truly the prey, and Red Riding Hood and Nana are delighted by him.
My Life as a Swan was sad yet chillingly beautiful. It is the story of a woman who briefly escapes her life circumstances to live free as a swan, but then must return to her old life, while always missing that swan part of her that she can never feel again. And as much as it’s a story about a woman who becomes a swan, it is also a story about aging, and about time’s impact on us, and how our life experiences shape us so that we can never be the same people we were in our youth. This story was absolutely gorgeous.
Below the Sun Beneath is a feminist retelling of the twelve dancing princesses. The protagonist of the story is a soldier named Yannis who has lost a leg in the war. He meets an old witch in the woods, who tells him about the princesses and the king’s challenge to find where they go on the nights of the full moon. But unlike in the original version, it isn’t about Yannis in the end, and it’s the princesses who emerge as the victors.
Redder Than Blood is an anthology of short stories by Tanith Lee. The stories in the collection are interpretations and variations of familiar fairy tales. They have a grimdark tone that’s reminiscent of the originals, but they take some of the subtext and make it the actual text. These stories have the dark and sensual atmosphere that Tanith Lee excels at, but are also grim and messed up. They are a delight to read, and make you think about old stories in new ways.
I’ve been savoring this collection slowly over the course of a year or so, reading a story here and a story there as suited my mood. I think that’s become my preferred way of reading short stories, because switching from story to story too quickly tends to break my immersion. The only drawback is that now, by the time that I finish the book and am writing out my thoughts and impressions, the stories that I read at the beginning of the book aren’t as fresh in my memory. So instead of a detailed review, I’m going to share some brief thoughts on a few of the stories that stood out to me the most:
The Reason for Not Going to the Ball is a retelling of Cinderella. In this version, the evil stepmother is the true hero of the story, and is trying to break the cycle of sexual abuse. Her treatment of Cinderella was an attempt to protect her, and to save her from her own fate. For the stepmother knows all too well that not all princes are kind and gentle.
In Wolfed, the story of Red Riding Hood and her Nana begins with a hookup at a bar. But in this version, it is the Wolf that is truly the prey, and Red Riding Hood and Nana are delighted by him.
My Life as a Swan was sad yet chillingly beautiful. It is the story of a woman who briefly escapes her life circumstances to live free as a swan, but then must return to her old life, while always missing that swan part of her that she can never feel again. And as much as it’s a story about a woman who becomes a swan, it is also a story about aging, and about time’s impact on us, and how our life experiences shape us so that we can never be the same people we were in our youth. This story was absolutely gorgeous.
Below the Sun Beneath is a feminist retelling of the twelve dancing princesses. The protagonist of the story is a soldier named Yannis who has lost a leg in the war. He meets an old witch in the woods, who tells him about the princesses and the king’s challenge to find where they go on the nights of the full moon. But unlike in the original version, it isn’t about Yannis in the end, and it’s the princesses who emerge as the victors.
shutupcaptain's review
dark
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.75
this collection dares to answer the question nobody but abc’s once upon a time & teenage girls on tumblr have ever thought to ask: What If All The Fairy Tales Were Kinda Fucky, Though.
for what it is, it’s pretty fun. if you like a bit of 80s over the top dramatic literary flare in the vain of one anne rice this is the genre for you.
for what it is, it’s pretty fun. if you like a bit of 80s over the top dramatic literary flare in the vain of one anne rice this is the genre for you.
luxuryofsorrow's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
sonshinelibrarian's review
2.0
I was disappointed with this. Mainly just not my taste. There were a couple of stories I really liked, a couple I loathed, and most I was just indifferent too, but definitely more negative than positive overall. Also, SO. MANY. COMMAS. I was not a fan of the writing style. There are commas every.where. There are so many dependent clauses that the sentences become difficult to follow (I almost didn't keep reading because the first story was so difficult to read). And I know this isn't the author's fault, but the "hook" story summaries on the back cover don't actually exist in the book itself. Unless they're referring to the first book? I kept waiting for the "vampiric Snow White whose pious stepmother is her only salvation" or the "supernatural Cinderella who strikes at midnight, leaving behind a prince mad with desire" and I never got them. Very strange.
reader44ever's review
4.0
I finally checked this book out again from my library, probably sometime in August or even late in July of 2019, to reread the first few stories and then continue on and finish this book. I'll now (in October 2019) finally review the rest of the stories, something I'll probably wish I had done as I was reading this book, but ah well...
Redder Than Blood, Read 09/09/2017, Reread 09/26/2019.
This story, a Snow White retelling, didn't make a whole lot of sense to me, but I enjoyed it. The main character, Edmund Sanger, was called "Edmondo" in Italy. Edmondo is my best friend's name, so that might be why I enjoyed this story even though I found it confusing. :-)
Snow-Drop, Read 09/09/2017, Reread 09/26/2019.
This story was really good and super creepy. My only complaint is that the ending seemed abrupt.Cristena killed Snow-Drop, and buried her in the garden. But when her husband returned home with guests and a special lamp that would bring spring to their winter garden, Snow-Drop's body was revealed. The story ended when the men turned to look at Cristena with questions. . :-/
Also, I really need to read the original Snow White fairy tale, as I haven't understood how either of these first two stories were retellings of it.
But I did enjoy the sci-fi aspects to this story. Their house was itself a character! :-)
Magpied, Read 09/10/2017, Reread 09/26/2019.
This story was ostensibly a retelling of the Pied Piper tale, only I'm not familiar enough with the Pied Piper tale to tell if this story differed. But in this story, the Piper was asked to remove troublesome children from the town. :-/
She Sleeps in a Tower, Read 09/10/2017, Reread 09/27/2019.
This retelling of Sleeping Beauty was very disturbing. I don't think I've ever read a non-disturbing retelling of Sleeping Beauty, but pedophilia? This story took it in a truly icky direction. So I'd give it four stars for being very good, but I did NOT "really enjoy it." :-/
Awake, Read 09/10/2017, Reread 09/27/2019.
I enjoyed this Sleeping Beauty retelling. It was much easier on my heart. In this one, Roisa (Sleeping Beauty) was 16, and her parents' palace fell victim to a curse of sleep for 100 years, butRoisa awoke each night and spent every night of the 100 years with the Fae. I was glad that nothing objectionable happened in this story. It was just the follow-up to that last story that I needed. :-)
Love in Waiting, Read 09/10/2017, Reread 09/27/2019.
This Sleeping Beauty retelling was not even half a page long, but it managed to be a complete story despite its brevity, and even had a sad ending. The princessmet her prince, they fell in love, and were set to be married following her 16th birthday. But a curse ensured that starting on her 16th birthday, she would sleep for 100 years. Her prince was 18.
Her prince lived a long time, though, so he was there that day, 100 years later. But he was aged, and after kissing his still-16 princess awake, they had time for one short exchange, and then he died at her feet. So. . .sad.
But it was a good story!
The Reason for Not Going to the Ball, Read 09/10/2017, Reread 09/27/2019.
This was a retelling of the Cinderella tale, which is another that I've never read, in the form of "A Letter to Cinderella from her Step-Mother". But I have seen Disney's version of Cinderella, and this story/letter seemed to be a twisting of that version. Twisted becauseCinderella's father and the prince were both abusers. The stepmother did what she did in hopes of protecting Cinderella.
I just wish we had been able to see what happened next. Did Cinderellaread the whole letter? Did she successfully escape her abusive marriage? ? But this story was just a letter to Cinderella from her stepmother. So, sadly, when the stepmother closed her letter, the story ended. :-/
Midnight, Read 09/10/2017, Reread 09/27/2019.
This Cinderella retelling yet again seemed like the Disney version, only this one gave us what might have happened if Cinderella had NOT fled when the clock struck midnight. I wasvery afraid that the prince would not react well to seeing Cinderella - she was named Elvira in this retelling - to seeing Elvira transformed back into her ashy, raggedy state. But instead, we were gifted a happy ending! The prince showed that he knew Elvira and that her outward appearance didn't matter. :-)
I was so happy that this story ended well that apparently I forgot to come online to share that I finished it, and then I went to sleep. :-) So I reviewed this one on September 11th.
Empire of Glass, Read 10/09/2017, Reread 09/28/2019.
This story was told from the POV of the Prince. I didn't much like "Cindy," but the Prince seemed okay, if a bit arrogant and very greedy.
Rapunzel, Read 10/09/2017, Reread 09/28/2019.
This story seemed to be a retelling of both the original story of "Rapunzel" (which I've actually read!), and the Disney version. And Rapunzel's tower in this story was just an invention in a story her prince told to his father. :-)
Open Your Window, Golden Hair, Read 10/09/2017, Reread 09/28/2019.
This story is frankly one I wish I could forget reading. It was another Rapunzel story and the thing in the tower... Well... I haven't forgotten it, but if you want to know what it was, read it for yourself.
Kiss, Kiss, Read 10/09/2017, Reread 09/29/2019.
This story is a retelling of The Frog Prince. I think it told the story pretty much as it happened, and continued on a bit? But the prince just wasn't a nice man. :-/
Into Gold, Read 09/29/2019.
This Rumpelstiltskin story was rather long and disturbing. In it, a corn king has a daughter who can spin anything into gold. Our narrator's leader marries her and they have a son. But the daughter eventually does a rite that involves the son and our narrator saves him. The story didn't exactly end satisfyingly, but it was okay.
Blood-Mantle, Read 09/29/2010.
This was a rather disturbing version of Little Red Riding Hood. It features a girl, a "wolf," and a grandmother, and that's really all I want to say about it.
Wolfed, Read 09/29/2019.
And this was a rather erotic version of Little Red Riding Hood. It too features a girl, a boy named Wolf who looks nice dressed as a woman, and a Granny. :-)
My Life as a Swan, Read 09/29-30/2019.
This retelling of Swan Lake was rather long and I found it to be kinda boring. Oh, things happened in it. A woman received the ability to turn into a swan, she found and raised some baby swans, she was captured and rescued and lived, not exactly happy ever after. :-/
The Beast, Read 09/30/2019.
This retelling of Beauty and the Beast was ... I don't know how to describe it, but Isobel was a Beauty and Vessavion did turn out to be a Beast.
The Beast and Beauty, Read 09/30/2019.
In this retelling of Beauty and the Beast, I think the man was the Beauty, and he fell in love with and married a Beast, whokilled him after five years of marriage, for whatever reason. I don't think I understood the ending, the reasons, but I suppose that doesn't matter very much.
Below the Sun Beneath, Read 09/30/2019.
This story retold The Twelve Dancing Princesses. It featured a man named Yannis who found out the secret thanks to a few secrets he learned from an old woman in the woods. Eleven of the 12 girls were not very nice, but the youngest, Evira, she was smart and kind andalso the old woman in the woods! ! I liked this story, as it had a happy ending. :-)
In sum, I liked this book but it wasn't the best set of retellings I've ever read. And apart from saying I'll give it four stars, I can't think of anything else to say about this anthology. :-/
Redder Than Blood, Read 09/09/2017, Reread 09/26/2019.
This story, a Snow White retelling, didn't make a whole lot of sense to me, but I enjoyed it. The main character, Edmund Sanger, was called "Edmondo" in Italy. Edmondo is my best friend's name, so that might be why I enjoyed this story even though I found it confusing. :-)
Snow-Drop, Read 09/09/2017, Reread 09/26/2019.
This story was really good and super creepy. My only complaint is that the ending seemed abrupt.
Also, I really need to read the original Snow White fairy tale, as I haven't understood how either of these first two stories were retellings of it.
But I did enjoy the sci-fi aspects to this story. Their house was itself a character! :-)
Magpied, Read 09/10/2017, Reread 09/26/2019.
This story was ostensibly a retelling of the Pied Piper tale, only I'm not familiar enough with the Pied Piper tale to tell if this story differed. But in this story, the Piper was asked to remove troublesome children from the town. :-/
She Sleeps in a Tower, Read 09/10/2017, Reread 09/27/2019.
This retelling of Sleeping Beauty was very disturbing. I don't think I've ever read a non-disturbing retelling of Sleeping Beauty, but pedophilia? This story took it in a truly icky direction. So I'd give it four stars for being very good, but I did NOT "really enjoy it." :-/
Awake, Read 09/10/2017, Reread 09/27/2019.
I enjoyed this Sleeping Beauty retelling. It was much easier on my heart. In this one, Roisa (Sleeping Beauty) was 16, and her parents' palace fell victim to a curse of sleep for 100 years, but
Love in Waiting, Read 09/10/2017, Reread 09/27/2019.
This Sleeping Beauty retelling was not even half a page long, but it managed to be a complete story despite its brevity, and even had a sad ending. The princess
Her prince lived a long time, though, so he was there that day, 100 years later. But he was aged, and after kissing his still-16 princess awake, they had time for one short exchange, and then he died at her feet.
But it was a good story!
The Reason for Not Going to the Ball, Read 09/10/2017, Reread 09/27/2019.
This was a retelling of the Cinderella tale, which is another that I've never read, in the form of "A Letter to Cinderella from her Step-Mother". But I have seen Disney's version of Cinderella, and this story/letter seemed to be a twisting of that version. Twisted because
I just wish we had been able to see what happened next. Did Cinderella
Midnight, Read 09/10/2017, Reread 09/27/2019.
This Cinderella retelling yet again seemed like the Disney version, only this one gave us what might have happened if Cinderella had NOT fled when the clock struck midnight. I was
I was so happy that this story ended well that apparently I forgot to come online to share that I finished it, and then I went to sleep. :-) So I reviewed this one on September 11th.
Empire of Glass, Read 10/09/2017, Reread 09/28/2019.
This story was told from the POV of the Prince. I didn't much like "Cindy," but the Prince seemed okay, if a bit arrogant and very greedy.
Rapunzel, Read 10/09/2017, Reread 09/28/2019.
This story seemed to be a retelling of both the original story of "Rapunzel" (which I've actually read!), and the Disney version. And Rapunzel's tower in this story was just an invention in a story her prince told to his father. :-)
Open Your Window, Golden Hair, Read 10/09/2017, Reread 09/28/2019.
This story is frankly one I wish I could forget reading. It was another Rapunzel story and the thing in the tower... Well... I haven't forgotten it, but if you want to know what it was, read it for yourself.
Kiss, Kiss, Read 10/09/2017, Reread 09/29/2019.
This story is a retelling of The Frog Prince. I think it told the story pretty much as it happened, and continued on a bit? But the prince just wasn't a nice man. :-/
Into Gold, Read 09/29/2019.
This Rumpelstiltskin story was rather long and disturbing. In it, a corn king has a daughter who can spin anything into gold. Our narrator's leader marries her and they have a son. But the daughter eventually does a rite that involves the son and our narrator saves him. The story didn't exactly end satisfyingly, but it was okay.
Blood-Mantle, Read 09/29/2010.
This was a rather disturbing version of Little Red Riding Hood. It features a girl, a "wolf," and a grandmother, and that's really all I want to say about it.
Wolfed, Read 09/29/2019.
And this was a rather erotic version of Little Red Riding Hood. It too features a girl, a boy named Wolf who looks nice dressed as a woman, and a Granny. :-)
My Life as a Swan, Read 09/29-30/2019.
This retelling of Swan Lake was rather long and I found it to be kinda boring. Oh, things happened in it. A woman received the ability to turn into a swan, she found and raised some baby swans, she was captured and rescued and lived, not exactly happy ever after. :-/
The Beast, Read 09/30/2019.
This retelling of Beauty and the Beast was ... I don't know how to describe it, but Isobel was a Beauty and Vessavion did turn out to be a Beast.
The Beast and Beauty, Read 09/30/2019.
In this retelling of Beauty and the Beast, I think the man was the Beauty, and he fell in love with and married a Beast, who
Below the Sun Beneath, Read 09/30/2019.
This story retold The Twelve Dancing Princesses. It featured a man named Yannis who found out the secret thanks to a few secrets he learned from an old woman in the woods. Eleven of the 12 girls were not very nice, but the youngest, Evira, she was smart and kind and
In sum, I liked this book but it wasn't the best set of retellings I've ever read. And apart from saying I'll give it four stars, I can't think of anything else to say about this anthology. :-/
divo's review against another edition
challenging
dark
sad
slow-paced
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
The stories in this collection are in the vein of the original Grim Fairy Tales and so they are very violent and dwell on the dark aspects of human nature and the appetites of men. Since they are so similar in tone, reading one after the other got to be too much - it just felt very depressing and I only liked 2 of them which were lighter in tone than the others. I can admire Tanith Lee's writing and her ability to spin new perspectives on stories that are so familiar, but the actual experience of reading them was a bit of a slog.
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