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Anna Strong Chronicles #5.5
A Girl's Guide to Guns and Monsters
Brilliant, original sci-fi and fantasy stories featuring brave and bold heroines Thirteen urban and paranormal tales of strong women, armed with weapons they are not afraid to use, as well as fists and feet of fury, who face monsters and bad guys-and are not above rescuing men in the process.
317 pages, Kindle Edition
First published December 22, 2009
8 people are currently reading
740 people want to read
About the author
Martin H. Greenberg
909 books165 followersMartin Harry Greenberg was an American academic and speculative fiction anthologist. In all, he compiled 1,298 anthologies and commissioned over 8,200 original short stories. He founded Tekno Books, a packager of more than 2000 published books. In addition, he was a co-founder of the Sci-Fi Channel.
For the 1950s anthologist and publisher of Gnome Press, see Martin Greenberg.
For the 1950s anthologist and publisher of Gnome Press, see Martin Greenberg.
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October 23, 2011
A Girl’s Guide to Guns and Monsters
The main idea behind this anthology is strong women with the ability to find the weapon most necessary at the time and the courage to use it. Not all of the stories have guns—in fact, most don’t—and the monsters come from a wide field, although at first there seemed to be a dominance of vampires. Overall, each story was good, although a few had endings I felt uncomfortable with for one reason or another. My favorites were Jim C. Hines’ and Kristine Kathryn Rusch’s. Check it out if you like urban fantasy or strong women characters. The stories range from the Old West all the way up to a future sci-fi with spaceships. A nice little anthology to whittle away a few hours.
The Drifter by Jane Lindskold: This story is set in the west, with the main character drifting into a small town chasing after a monster. Good western feel, with a surprise twist on the monster she’s in search of. She does carry a gun, but circumstances force her to use other weapons when the two finally meet. A good story.
Our Lady of the Vampires by Nancy Holder: We’ve moved to the Great Depression here, with a young girl put into an orphanage as the stock market crash takes its toll on one wealthy family. Of course, there’s something preying on the girls in the orphanage, and with some help, the main character decides to take action. A decent story, but I felt like it was really the introduction/prologue to something larger. No gun in this one.
Best Friends by Lilith Saintcrow: We get vampires again in this one, with one moving in on Becca’s girlfriend and her mother. When it becomes obvious that he’s feeding off of them, Becca sets out save them . . . but things don’t always go as planned. A fairly typical vampire story, with a minor twist in the end. There is a gun in this one, and it does play a crucial role.
Elizabeth and Anna’s Big Adventure by Jeanne C. Stein: The main character here is merely 8 years old, but she still keeps her wits about her when monsters break into her house while her parents are away at a party. With the help of her babysitter, she manages to overcome her own fear. The author caught and kept the character’s youthful voice well here.
Lupercalia by Anton Strout: Finally a story that doesn’t have a vampire as the big bad guy. In fact, the big bad guy here is Love. Literally. Jilted too many times by the same guy, Leis goes after him with a vengeance, crossbow and chains in hand. I think everyone can relate to both of the women characters in this story, although I will say I wasn’t thrilled with the ending.
Murder, She Workshopped by Kristine Kathryn Rusch: Another story where the bad guy isn’t a vampire. Here, we have an assassin who really wants to be a writer attending a writer’s workshop. She’s there to kill a . . . well, I’ll keep that hidden, but secretly is trying to learn everything she possibly can at the critique sessions so she can pursue her writing career. Of course, things don’t go as planned. I liked this story because the main character learns something about herself as the story unfolds—something she may not really want to admit, but is forced to once the plot begins to thicken, so to speak.
Heart of Ash by Jim C. Hines: I initially groaned because I thought this would be a vampire story—its starts out with a vampire—but thankfully it’s not. The main character is a nymph who becomes whatever her lover wants. In this story, she’s essentially a superhero, taking out supernatural bad guys. But as the story progresses, the relationship changes and suddenly Lena finds herself changing as well, even though she doesn’t want to. Another good story, with a nice subtle point.
Jiang Shi by Elizabeth A. Vaughan: This story is actually part of a sequence begun in previous anthologies. We get another vampire here, but a Chinese one, along with the ninja rats and possum mage from the previous stories. It’s obviously a “to be continued” story though, with a complication brought up in the last few lines. No gun here; lots of blades.
No Matter Where You Go by Tanya Huff: The main protagonist here is a vampire, so the monsters end up being . . . well, something else. A couple of surprising things happen in this one, which kept me on my toes, although none of the surprises really involved the plot. Completely different monsters, which was nice, and there’s an actual gun, too!
Signed in Blood by P.R. Frost: This one is set in P.R. Frost’s Tess Noncoire universe and features . . . well, Tess. She’s on her own this time though, her imp Scrap gone on a personal quest. She gets a call from a filker friend, because something seems to be draining her audiences of their energy and she wants Tess to figure out who or what it is. No gun. Something mightier instead.
Broch de Shlang by Mickey Zucker Reichert: A mother defends her two daughters, and herself, from escalating snake attacks . . . only to find out that perhaps these attacks are a little more personal than she thinks. I have to admit that I was a little . . . uncomfortable with the ending on this one.
The Wooly Mountains by Alexander B. Potter: Something in the woods of New Hampshire is killing off chickens and sheep and one herder intends to find out what. It can’t be werewolves or any of the known Uncanny in the area though, they’ve signed agreements to integrate into society. So what could it possibly be? A unique monster (or two) made this an enjoyable story, along with the main character, who’s not afraid to use those guns . . . or even her skills in the fiber arts.
Invasive Species by Nina Kiriki Hoffman: The final story in this anthology takes us into sci-fi territory, with a pest controller becoming a passenger on a luxury space liner in order to figure out what’s been munching on some metal in order to eradicate the problem. It turns out to be something other than metal mites.
The main idea behind this anthology is strong women with the ability to find the weapon most necessary at the time and the courage to use it. Not all of the stories have guns—in fact, most don’t—and the monsters come from a wide field, although at first there seemed to be a dominance of vampires. Overall, each story was good, although a few had endings I felt uncomfortable with for one reason or another. My favorites were Jim C. Hines’ and Kristine Kathryn Rusch’s. Check it out if you like urban fantasy or strong women characters. The stories range from the Old West all the way up to a future sci-fi with spaceships. A nice little anthology to whittle away a few hours.
The Drifter by Jane Lindskold: This story is set in the west, with the main character drifting into a small town chasing after a monster. Good western feel, with a surprise twist on the monster she’s in search of. She does carry a gun, but circumstances force her to use other weapons when the two finally meet. A good story.
Our Lady of the Vampires by Nancy Holder: We’ve moved to the Great Depression here, with a young girl put into an orphanage as the stock market crash takes its toll on one wealthy family. Of course, there’s something preying on the girls in the orphanage, and with some help, the main character decides to take action. A decent story, but I felt like it was really the introduction/prologue to something larger. No gun in this one.
Best Friends by Lilith Saintcrow: We get vampires again in this one, with one moving in on Becca’s girlfriend and her mother. When it becomes obvious that he’s feeding off of them, Becca sets out save them . . . but things don’t always go as planned. A fairly typical vampire story, with a minor twist in the end. There is a gun in this one, and it does play a crucial role.
Elizabeth and Anna’s Big Adventure by Jeanne C. Stein: The main character here is merely 8 years old, but she still keeps her wits about her when monsters break into her house while her parents are away at a party. With the help of her babysitter, she manages to overcome her own fear. The author caught and kept the character’s youthful voice well here.
Lupercalia by Anton Strout: Finally a story that doesn’t have a vampire as the big bad guy. In fact, the big bad guy here is Love. Literally. Jilted too many times by the same guy, Leis goes after him with a vengeance, crossbow and chains in hand. I think everyone can relate to both of the women characters in this story, although I will say I wasn’t thrilled with the ending.
Murder, She Workshopped by Kristine Kathryn Rusch: Another story where the bad guy isn’t a vampire. Here, we have an assassin who really wants to be a writer attending a writer’s workshop. She’s there to kill a . . . well, I’ll keep that hidden, but secretly is trying to learn everything she possibly can at the critique sessions so she can pursue her writing career. Of course, things don’t go as planned. I liked this story because the main character learns something about herself as the story unfolds—something she may not really want to admit, but is forced to once the plot begins to thicken, so to speak.
Heart of Ash by Jim C. Hines: I initially groaned because I thought this would be a vampire story—its starts out with a vampire—but thankfully it’s not. The main character is a nymph who becomes whatever her lover wants. In this story, she’s essentially a superhero, taking out supernatural bad guys. But as the story progresses, the relationship changes and suddenly Lena finds herself changing as well, even though she doesn’t want to. Another good story, with a nice subtle point.
Jiang Shi by Elizabeth A. Vaughan: This story is actually part of a sequence begun in previous anthologies. We get another vampire here, but a Chinese one, along with the ninja rats and possum mage from the previous stories. It’s obviously a “to be continued” story though, with a complication brought up in the last few lines. No gun here; lots of blades.
No Matter Where You Go by Tanya Huff: The main protagonist here is a vampire, so the monsters end up being . . . well, something else. A couple of surprising things happen in this one, which kept me on my toes, although none of the surprises really involved the plot. Completely different monsters, which was nice, and there’s an actual gun, too!
Signed in Blood by P.R. Frost: This one is set in P.R. Frost’s Tess Noncoire universe and features . . . well, Tess. She’s on her own this time though, her imp Scrap gone on a personal quest. She gets a call from a filker friend, because something seems to be draining her audiences of their energy and she wants Tess to figure out who or what it is. No gun. Something mightier instead.
Broch de Shlang by Mickey Zucker Reichert: A mother defends her two daughters, and herself, from escalating snake attacks . . . only to find out that perhaps these attacks are a little more personal than she thinks. I have to admit that I was a little . . . uncomfortable with the ending on this one.
The Wooly Mountains by Alexander B. Potter: Something in the woods of New Hampshire is killing off chickens and sheep and one herder intends to find out what. It can’t be werewolves or any of the known Uncanny in the area though, they’ve signed agreements to integrate into society. So what could it possibly be? A unique monster (or two) made this an enjoyable story, along with the main character, who’s not afraid to use those guns . . . or even her skills in the fiber arts.
Invasive Species by Nina Kiriki Hoffman: The final story in this anthology takes us into sci-fi territory, with a pest controller becoming a passenger on a luxury space liner in order to figure out what’s been munching on some metal in order to eradicate the problem. It turns out to be something other than metal mites.
December 22, 2013
A Girl's Guide To Guns And Monsters is not just about girl power. Co-editor Kerrie Hughes reveals in the introductory that, as a survivor of rape and abuse, she wants to create an anthology that would assure readers - presumably female readers - that they too can rise about the atrocities and injustices. Okay, there is a bit of a disconnect here in that she never actually stated how this anthology could help, other than provide a vicarious passport for some emotional catharsis, and even then, I'm not sure how that would provide anything more than a few hours of temporary succor.
Okay, I'm getting way off tangent now. I do sympathize with Ms Hughes's introduction and I wish her well in her efforts to empower other women. It's just that, reading her introduction and looking at the rest of the anthology - well, I don't see how these two are related.
Jane Lindskold starts the show with The Drifter, which sees our heroine Prudence Bledsoe showing up in a cowboy town one fine day, just in time to find herself in the middle of a mystery involved some missing children. The locals believe that the nearby Navajo folks are responsible. but Prudence has her own suspicions. This is a pretty standard tale with a rather familiar tough-as-nails action heroine kicking some rear ends. It's a decent opening story, but nothing too memorable.
Nancy Holder's Our Lady Of The Vampires is a Depression-era story where our heroine's family had fallen on hard times and she is left at a home by her mother. She soon discovers that there are vampires around, ooh. The author wants this story to be a "the mouse learns to roar" type of story, but the heroine keeps crying and wailing all the time, she's obnoxious. I'm happy when the story ends because I don't have to read about her constant woe-is-me-I'm-crying-again antics.
Lilith Saintcrow's Best Friends is pretty good, fortunately, as I am starting to worry about the anthology at that point. Our hot heroine and her equally hot lesbian girlfriend have a dilemma: her hot girlfriend's mother has a new boyfriend who seems to be a vampire. We are talking about a menacing vampire who may be feeding on his girlfriend and the girlfriend's daughter. Can our hot lesbian duo put a stop to that fellow's misdeeds? This one is an interesting blend of teen angst layered over by horror elements, although the frequent mentions of the ladies' hotness sort of undermine the stated mission of this anthology to empower ladies everywhere. It's as if you can only be tough if you are hot or have superhuman powers.
Jeanne C Stein presents Elizabeth And Anna's Big Adventure, which is about an eight-year old having an unusual babysitter that helps teach her about girl power. This is a decent read, but short and forgettable. Again, I get this impression that one can only have girl power if one has superhuman powers. Since I can only dream of being able to clean the fridge just by waving my hand, I don't feel very empowered.
Anton Strout, who seems to have a spot permanently reserved for him in every DAW anthology in existence, presents Lupercalia, which empowers women by showing them to be bitter hags when they can't get a man, but once they think they can get a man, they will happily turn their backs to their fellow sisters. I guess it's only reasonable that Cupid himself is causing these strong women to act like cartoon shrews in this story.
In Murder, She Workshopped, Kristine Kathryn Rusch serves a story of what would happen if Jessica Fletcher is actually a monster that feeds on the emotional turmoil caused by a violent murder. Our heroine is an assassin specializing in getting rid of monsters just like the true crime author known as Margarite Lawson, and to set the stage, she joins the writing workshop which has Margarite as a guest speaker. Mayhem ensues. This story is delightful, as it offers a playful look into the more colorful aspects of a writing workshop and pokes fun at pretentious aspiring authors while at the same time being a fun read with lots of surprises. This is easily my favorite story in this anthology.
Jim C Hines's Heart Of Ash is an interesting story, about a nymph who takes down spooks for the greater good... until her crusade costs her her girlfriend. If you can't tell by now, lesbianism is considered one of the "must have" if you want to ooze girl power from head to toe. I like this story, it contains some emotional poignancy and the heroine is a memorable character. However, I'm not sure why this story is here in this anthology - the heroine needs the love of another person, or creature, in order to define herself. This is a part of her being what she is, a nymph, but no matter how I look at this, I don't find this "someone must love me in order for me to be me" part of the heroine a good fit with the stated empowerment mission of the anthology.
Elizabeth A Vaughan's Jiang Shi has a "pre-menopausal middle-aged" heroine - nice - but the entire story seems like it's part of a longer series. Unlike the usual Chinese vampire that the title references to, the spooks in this story are more like a standard monster that can scream and move like any other random monster. There is also a talking mouse. The whole thing is an amusing tale of a heroine who is dragged into a paranormal adventure with evil ninja rats (really) by being at the wrong place and the wrong time, but there are too many things here and too little substance. It's as if the author is just throwing everything in and passing off the party as a complete story.
Is Tanya Huff's No Matter Where You Go part of a series too? It feels like it. Our vampire heroine and her human cop boyfriend find themselves trying to rescue a bunch of teens when these teens go through a magical portal into a very unhappy place, let's just say. The heroine and her boyfriend have an established relationship, there are allusions to events that may or may not happen in previous related stories (i have no idea), and this whole story feels like just a piece of a jigsaw puzzle and I need to collect more pieces to see the big picture.
In PR Frost's Signed In Blood, our witch heroine stumbles upon a creature that is inciting violence at concerts. This one could have been an interesting story, but, compared to the previous two stories, it feels even more like a part of a series. Things happen, without much explanation. Maybe because I'm supposed to know of it by reading previous stories? At any rate, this is an unsatisfying short story.
Oh boy, Mickey Zucker Reichert's Broch De Shlang is easily the story with the most unfortunate implications in this anthology. Our heroine's marriage breaks apart because she insists on caring for a daughter with Patau syndrome. Now, she discovers that there is a family curse that will cause her to be killed by a snake (really). Who will take care of the special girl if she croaks? This story is truly unfortunate because the author resolves this story by (a) killing off the daughter in a special "heroic way", letting (b) the heroine all eager to ask her husband to come back so that they can be a family again. The take home message here is that the only good girl with genetic handicaps is one that is willing to die so that normal people can be happy.
Alexander B Potter's The Wooly Mountains has a lesbian heroine (only they have girl power, remember) showing up in the rustic wilderness to mediate between the were-creatures and the anti-spook human groups even as she investigates several incidents of sheep getting ripped apart in the neighborhood. This one isn't too bad, but the identity of the villain is obvious from the get go and it ends up being a bit too predictable for its own good.
Finally, there is Invasive Species by Nina Kiriki Hoffman. This is the only outright sci-fi story of the bunch. Our heroine Random Delaney is a vermin hunter, and, during her latest assignment, what seems like a routine job turns out to be something more sinister that involves... oh, nasty aliens at work, perhaps? This is a decent closing story, as the heroine kicks some rear end, the setting is well done, and the pacing is solid.
On the whole, however, this anthology is quite the mess. There are more mediocre stories than good ones here, and there are also unfortunate implications galore, starting with how the anthology with the highest density of lesbians so far in a while just has to that one about female empowerment. Or, how many of these so-called kick-ass females are also described to be conventionally beautiful, or that they are often strong only because they have inherent abilities that make them stronger than the people around them. I hate to say this, given that Kerrie Hughes poured her heart out in the introduction, but I don't feel that there is much about this anthology that feels empowering.
Okay, I'm getting way off tangent now. I do sympathize with Ms Hughes's introduction and I wish her well in her efforts to empower other women. It's just that, reading her introduction and looking at the rest of the anthology - well, I don't see how these two are related.
Jane Lindskold starts the show with The Drifter, which sees our heroine Prudence Bledsoe showing up in a cowboy town one fine day, just in time to find herself in the middle of a mystery involved some missing children. The locals believe that the nearby Navajo folks are responsible. but Prudence has her own suspicions. This is a pretty standard tale with a rather familiar tough-as-nails action heroine kicking some rear ends. It's a decent opening story, but nothing too memorable.
Nancy Holder's Our Lady Of The Vampires is a Depression-era story where our heroine's family had fallen on hard times and she is left at a home by her mother. She soon discovers that there are vampires around, ooh. The author wants this story to be a "the mouse learns to roar" type of story, but the heroine keeps crying and wailing all the time, she's obnoxious. I'm happy when the story ends because I don't have to read about her constant woe-is-me-I'm-crying-again antics.
Lilith Saintcrow's Best Friends is pretty good, fortunately, as I am starting to worry about the anthology at that point. Our hot heroine and her equally hot lesbian girlfriend have a dilemma: her hot girlfriend's mother has a new boyfriend who seems to be a vampire. We are talking about a menacing vampire who may be feeding on his girlfriend and the girlfriend's daughter. Can our hot lesbian duo put a stop to that fellow's misdeeds? This one is an interesting blend of teen angst layered over by horror elements, although the frequent mentions of the ladies' hotness sort of undermine the stated mission of this anthology to empower ladies everywhere. It's as if you can only be tough if you are hot or have superhuman powers.
Jeanne C Stein presents Elizabeth And Anna's Big Adventure, which is about an eight-year old having an unusual babysitter that helps teach her about girl power. This is a decent read, but short and forgettable. Again, I get this impression that one can only have girl power if one has superhuman powers. Since I can only dream of being able to clean the fridge just by waving my hand, I don't feel very empowered.
Anton Strout, who seems to have a spot permanently reserved for him in every DAW anthology in existence, presents Lupercalia, which empowers women by showing them to be bitter hags when they can't get a man, but once they think they can get a man, they will happily turn their backs to their fellow sisters. I guess it's only reasonable that Cupid himself is causing these strong women to act like cartoon shrews in this story.
In Murder, She Workshopped, Kristine Kathryn Rusch serves a story of what would happen if Jessica Fletcher is actually a monster that feeds on the emotional turmoil caused by a violent murder. Our heroine is an assassin specializing in getting rid of monsters just like the true crime author known as Margarite Lawson, and to set the stage, she joins the writing workshop which has Margarite as a guest speaker. Mayhem ensues. This story is delightful, as it offers a playful look into the more colorful aspects of a writing workshop and pokes fun at pretentious aspiring authors while at the same time being a fun read with lots of surprises. This is easily my favorite story in this anthology.
Jim C Hines's Heart Of Ash is an interesting story, about a nymph who takes down spooks for the greater good... until her crusade costs her her girlfriend. If you can't tell by now, lesbianism is considered one of the "must have" if you want to ooze girl power from head to toe. I like this story, it contains some emotional poignancy and the heroine is a memorable character. However, I'm not sure why this story is here in this anthology - the heroine needs the love of another person, or creature, in order to define herself. This is a part of her being what she is, a nymph, but no matter how I look at this, I don't find this "someone must love me in order for me to be me" part of the heroine a good fit with the stated empowerment mission of the anthology.
Elizabeth A Vaughan's Jiang Shi has a "pre-menopausal middle-aged" heroine - nice - but the entire story seems like it's part of a longer series. Unlike the usual Chinese vampire that the title references to, the spooks in this story are more like a standard monster that can scream and move like any other random monster. There is also a talking mouse. The whole thing is an amusing tale of a heroine who is dragged into a paranormal adventure with evil ninja rats (really) by being at the wrong place and the wrong time, but there are too many things here and too little substance. It's as if the author is just throwing everything in and passing off the party as a complete story.
Is Tanya Huff's No Matter Where You Go part of a series too? It feels like it. Our vampire heroine and her human cop boyfriend find themselves trying to rescue a bunch of teens when these teens go through a magical portal into a very unhappy place, let's just say. The heroine and her boyfriend have an established relationship, there are allusions to events that may or may not happen in previous related stories (i have no idea), and this whole story feels like just a piece of a jigsaw puzzle and I need to collect more pieces to see the big picture.
In PR Frost's Signed In Blood, our witch heroine stumbles upon a creature that is inciting violence at concerts. This one could have been an interesting story, but, compared to the previous two stories, it feels even more like a part of a series. Things happen, without much explanation. Maybe because I'm supposed to know of it by reading previous stories? At any rate, this is an unsatisfying short story.
Oh boy, Mickey Zucker Reichert's Broch De Shlang is easily the story with the most unfortunate implications in this anthology. Our heroine's marriage breaks apart because she insists on caring for a daughter with Patau syndrome. Now, she discovers that there is a family curse that will cause her to be killed by a snake (really). Who will take care of the special girl if she croaks? This story is truly unfortunate because the author resolves this story by (a) killing off the daughter in a special "heroic way", letting (b) the heroine all eager to ask her husband to come back so that they can be a family again. The take home message here is that the only good girl with genetic handicaps is one that is willing to die so that normal people can be happy.
Alexander B Potter's The Wooly Mountains has a lesbian heroine (only they have girl power, remember) showing up in the rustic wilderness to mediate between the were-creatures and the anti-spook human groups even as she investigates several incidents of sheep getting ripped apart in the neighborhood. This one isn't too bad, but the identity of the villain is obvious from the get go and it ends up being a bit too predictable for its own good.
Finally, there is Invasive Species by Nina Kiriki Hoffman. This is the only outright sci-fi story of the bunch. Our heroine Random Delaney is a vermin hunter, and, during her latest assignment, what seems like a routine job turns out to be something more sinister that involves... oh, nasty aliens at work, perhaps? This is a decent closing story, as the heroine kicks some rear end, the setting is well done, and the pacing is solid.
On the whole, however, this anthology is quite the mess. There are more mediocre stories than good ones here, and there are also unfortunate implications galore, starting with how the anthology with the highest density of lesbians so far in a while just has to that one about female empowerment. Or, how many of these so-called kick-ass females are also described to be conventionally beautiful, or that they are often strong only because they have inherent abilities that make them stronger than the people around them. I hate to say this, given that Kerrie Hughes poured her heart out in the introduction, but I don't feel that there is much about this anthology that feels empowering.
March 15, 2012
I'm going with a 3.5.
The Drifter by Jane Lindskold: set in 1800s American West with werewolves, skinwalkers, and family ties. Really liked it. Near the top of my list for this antho.
Our Lady of the Vampires: it's the Depression and something strange is happening in a home for girls. It was all right. I did enjoy the end.
Best Friends by lilith Saintcrow: a standalone, not part of any other series that I know of; young love, protecting those you love, and making the most of what you have. Note: I've read a good number of Saintcrow's shorts and I really like them. This one is no exception. One of my favorites in this antho.
Elizabeth & Anna's Big Adventure by Jeanne Stein: This one was all right. It's part of the Anna Strong series, not that you need to be caught up on it to get the story, but I think if I was more familiar with the characters I would like it more.
Lupercalia by Anton Stout: a woman who has had more than her share of heartbreak goes on a manhunt for the god of love. I really liked this one. Another one of my favs in this antho.
Murder She Workshopped by Kristine Kathryn Rusch: This story is a big reason why I love reading anthos. I've never read anything by this author, but I really liked the story & I'll be looking to see what else Rusch has written. Murder, monsters and mystery at a writing workshop. Good stuff.
Heart of Ash by Jim C. Hines: I really liked this one. Unexpected heroine - a Nymph who fights monsters. Bittersweet, but I liked it.
Jiang Shi by Elizabeth A. Vaughan: I kind of liked this one. Very odd, with a middle-aged woman who thinks the magic has gone from her life, who with the help of an amulet finds more than she bargained for. It has a talking mouse, ninja rats, an evil possum and more. It worked, but I feel like I was missing a bit too much to really enjoy it.
No MAtter Where You Go by Tanya Huff: Part of the Vicki Nelson series; some kids open a portal and VIcki jumps in to save them. It was a quick, action-fueled story.
Signed in Blood by P.R. Frost: A Tess Noncoire story. I've never read the series, but the short was meh. Not enough happened to make me want to find more. Anticlimatic.
Broch de Shlang by Mickey Zucker Reichert: It started interesting, with snakes and a family curse, but fell apart at the end. I get where the author was going, but something that traumatic cannot be glossed over.
The Wooley Mountains by Alexander B. Potter: Set in a world where there are magic species interacting with humans. There's Sasquatch and evidence of a dragon. I liked this one. I liked the old monster hunter and the new guard (although I would call them more monster conservationists, really). One of my favs.
Invasive Species by Nina Kiriki Hoffman: Set on a spaceship, where something has been chewing on the metal. There's lots of odd happenings, and a light touch, as our heroine dons her exterminator gear to get to the root of the problem. I liked it.
The Drifter by Jane Lindskold: set in 1800s American West with werewolves, skinwalkers, and family ties. Really liked it. Near the top of my list for this antho.
Our Lady of the Vampires: it's the Depression and something strange is happening in a home for girls. It was all right. I did enjoy the end.
Best Friends by lilith Saintcrow: a standalone, not part of any other series that I know of; young love, protecting those you love, and making the most of what you have. Note: I've read a good number of Saintcrow's shorts and I really like them. This one is no exception. One of my favorites in this antho.
Elizabeth & Anna's Big Adventure by Jeanne Stein: This one was all right. It's part of the Anna Strong series, not that you need to be caught up on it to get the story, but I think if I was more familiar with the characters I would like it more.
Lupercalia by Anton Stout: a woman who has had more than her share of heartbreak goes on a manhunt for the god of love. I really liked this one. Another one of my favs in this antho.
Murder She Workshopped by Kristine Kathryn Rusch: This story is a big reason why I love reading anthos. I've never read anything by this author, but I really liked the story & I'll be looking to see what else Rusch has written. Murder, monsters and mystery at a writing workshop. Good stuff.
Heart of Ash by Jim C. Hines: I really liked this one. Unexpected heroine - a Nymph who fights monsters. Bittersweet, but I liked it.
Jiang Shi by Elizabeth A. Vaughan: I kind of liked this one. Very odd, with a middle-aged woman who thinks the magic has gone from her life, who with the help of an amulet finds more than she bargained for. It has a talking mouse, ninja rats, an evil possum and more. It worked, but I feel like I was missing a bit too much to really enjoy it.
No MAtter Where You Go by Tanya Huff: Part of the Vicki Nelson series; some kids open a portal and VIcki jumps in to save them. It was a quick, action-fueled story.
Signed in Blood by P.R. Frost: A Tess Noncoire story. I've never read the series, but the short was meh. Not enough happened to make me want to find more. Anticlimatic.
Broch de Shlang by Mickey Zucker Reichert: It started interesting, with snakes and a family curse, but fell apart at the end. I get where the author was going, but something that traumatic cannot be glossed over.
The Wooley Mountains by Alexander B. Potter: Set in a world where there are magic species interacting with humans. There's Sasquatch and evidence of a dragon. I liked this one. I liked the old monster hunter and the new guard (although I would call them more monster conservationists, really). One of my favs.
Invasive Species by Nina Kiriki Hoffman: Set on a spaceship, where something has been chewing on the metal. There's lots of odd happenings, and a light touch, as our heroine dons her exterminator gear to get to the root of the problem. I liked it.
March 14, 2023
AGGTGAM is a spiritual (and, in one instance, literal) sequel to the craptacular Zombie Raccoons & Killer Bunnies. The cover's better than most paranormal romances, even without obligatory tattoos, straps, and cleavage. Tales span chronologically from The Past to The Future.
) Jane Linskold starts off strong with "The Drifter", a western with monster-huntin' gunslanger Prudence Bledsoe(!) and some skinwalkers. It's predictable, but inoffensively so, and offers a real sense of place with the descriptions.
) Prolific Buffy-verse contributor Nancy Holder provides "Our Lady Of The Vampires", a Depression-era tale about bloodsuckers both figurative and literal sprinkled with Holy Terror and orphanages. Evocative and disturbing.
) Still chuggin' along comes Lilith Saintcrow's grimy ode to teenage sleuths, bad stepdads (and the shitty moms that love 'em), blossoming lesbianism, and more lowercase draculas. Major Carmilla / Ginger Snaps vibes.
) "Elizabeth And Anna's Big Adventure", by Jeanne C. Stein, falls firmly in cute territory, but suffers from more bloodsuckin'; too many undeadlies in a row, like a mixtape with multiple songs by the same band, Editor. At least they switch to human villains (WHICH WE KNOW ARE THE SCARIEST OF ALL!!!111!11!!!!1!). The anthology starts to falter.
) Anton Strout's "Lupercalia" is goofy. There's a Be-Bulleted Boss Babe of the most cliched, her hapless sidekick, and a metamorphic Olympian were-cherub out to restore divine mojo via Valentine's shenanigans who reveals to be ALL of B-BBB's dozen-plus exes.
I think? That sounds right, maybe. Wholly unclear whats and whys on first pass, and I couldn't muster enough interest for a re-read. Embarrassed for the author, yo.
) "Murder, She Workshopped" is Kristine Kathryn Rusch's tale of a Papal assassin on a writer's retreat as cover to whack a dragon. Again, firmly cute, even with the "writer as secret hero" trope. Have no clue what the lead's name is, though, as I think it was only mentioned second-hand.
) Jim C. Hines' "Heart Of Ash" is, as The Kids say today, "wiggedy-wack". An ancient Greek nymph (who uncontrollably shapeshifts into her partner's physical ideal, and harnesses lust into Monster-Slaughterin' Might) hunts incestuous-by-implication werejaguars in Arizona culverts. But dryad's mojo fades because her relationship's Fiery Passion is transitioning to Solid-N-Secure-N-Stable Lesbian Domesticity, and she almost dies...
...until levelling-up by seducing her celibate priest handler and alters into a Lethal Latina that wastes weres and ghosts girlfriends in equal measure.
In other words... "THE ARISTOCRATS!!!"
The implications are gross and wrong and awful. Pains me I kinda dug it.
) Elizabeth A. Vaughan's "Jiang Shi" is the even more infuriatingly in medias res-y sequel to her marsupialicious story from ZR&KB. It's a confounding whirlwind of Ancient Chinese Secrets and Master Splinter-itis and hopping vampires and confused bikers and teleporting virgins and The Chosen Nameless Frump in the middle of the mayhem. I would've been lost--even more, I mean--without those vague six-year memories of the prior work. (Why do authors put random chapters of random novels in random collections? It's a lousy sales tactic.)
) OG Urban-Fantasy-Before-It-Was-Even-A-Thang writer Tanya Huff offers a day in the life of her vampire PI from The Blood Books in "No Matter Where You Go". Some goober goths trifle with Forces Beyond Mortal Ken, requiring a dracula to save 'em and ending with Rod Serling-grade pith. Workmanlike from start to finish.
) "Signed In Blood" is P.R. Frost's eyerolling slice-o'-life story about a writer protagonist (named Tess, I think?--lots of entries gloss over intros) clearly from novels The Reader is supposed to know but I clearly don't. There's imps and blood-ink pens and psychic, vampiric pookahs [spelled like that] with cartoon accents and grandiose titles [I'm a Warrior of the Celestial Blade..." is supposed to be taken SERIOUSLY, y'all] and worldbuilding gobbledygook that sounds like D&D dorks flexing in a LARP-off.
Insufferable.
) "Broch De Shlang" is, quite simply, fucked up.
I thought it was gonna be another Gaelic nightmare like from ZR&KB--hah, I wish! Thanks to multiple Google searches that weren't all that helpful, I gathered "BDS" is Yiddish for "serpent / penis curse"... which is verified when the *protagonist* ultimately Googles the same way I did, down to the search description.
And what a curse. The women in Protagonist's lineage apparently die via snaky trauma. Which is definitely bad enough, but Protagonist is a single mom with a severely disabled Eldest (Trisomy 13 / Patau's Syndrome... leaving the vegetative child so toneless and limp she... slithers... out of wheelchairs unless restrained) and a perfect Youngest, and she's alone because the saintly dad (ugh) bailed but still shows up above and beyond standard custody to smother Youngest with attention while wholly ignoring even basic humanitarian care for Eldest.
Oh! The only way to break The Curse is for The Curse's Host and The Snake to die at the same instant…
...which leads to a beautiful resolution where Youngest breaks The Curse and saves Protagonist from The Snake by annihilating both The Snake and Eldest--who is drooling in blissful slumber in a giant crib, natch--with a Mossberg.
Sniff. So. Touching.
Dad is gonna come back, too, to a now-perfect family. Cue inspirational sunrise.
"Broch De Shlang" is gonna haunt me, y'all.
) Part of me hates Alexander B. Potter's "The Wooly Mountains" on principle, because it takes The Mos Eisley Approach to monsterizin'.
There's our spunky, backwoods lesbian with more-trouble-than-worth, oh-so-hilarious cowardly sidekick (BUT GAY!!!) in a whirl of werewolves, dragons, satyrs, shamans, *and* 'squatches. The world is plagued by Troubles With Supernaturals That Came Out In A Big Event But The Beleaguered Humans Are The REAL Terrors that we've all seen before. The plot is simple and obvious.
But part of me begrudgingly--BEGRUDGINGLY, yo!--liked it. The yetis had Big Boggy Creek Energy, which always delights. And all of Vermont becoming a cryptid wildlife preserve that is also full of gung-ho human secessionists makes me laugh.
) The collection ends with Nina Kiriki Hoffman's sci-fi "Invasive Species". Imagine if Ellen Ripley and Newt were space-exterminators on a space-liner dealing with space-snatchers... -body, that is.
TV episode plotting aside, it's an innocuous palate-cleanser.
--
AGGTGAM offers some neat stories, some adequate ones, and a smattering of duds, with too many vampires and--worse--too many "Trying Too Hard" beasties.
But, as with all collections, there's discarded extra-crispy nuggets in the greasetrap. A reluctant three Ellens Ripley outta five, but going to the used bookstore with a vengeance.
) Jane Linskold starts off strong with "The Drifter", a western with monster-huntin' gunslanger Prudence Bledsoe(!) and some skinwalkers. It's predictable, but inoffensively so, and offers a real sense of place with the descriptions.
) Prolific Buffy-verse contributor Nancy Holder provides "Our Lady Of The Vampires", a Depression-era tale about bloodsuckers both figurative and literal sprinkled with Holy Terror and orphanages. Evocative and disturbing.
) Still chuggin' along comes Lilith Saintcrow's grimy ode to teenage sleuths, bad stepdads (and the shitty moms that love 'em), blossoming lesbianism, and more lowercase draculas. Major Carmilla / Ginger Snaps vibes.
) "Elizabeth And Anna's Big Adventure", by Jeanne C. Stein, falls firmly in cute territory, but suffers from more bloodsuckin'; too many undeadlies in a row, like a mixtape with multiple songs by the same band, Editor. At least they switch to human villains (WHICH WE KNOW ARE THE SCARIEST OF ALL!!!111!11!!!!1!). The anthology starts to falter.
) Anton Strout's "Lupercalia" is goofy. There's a Be-Bulleted Boss Babe of the most cliched, her hapless sidekick, and a metamorphic Olympian were-cherub out to restore divine mojo via Valentine's shenanigans who reveals to be ALL of B-BBB's dozen-plus exes.
I think? That sounds right, maybe. Wholly unclear whats and whys on first pass, and I couldn't muster enough interest for a re-read. Embarrassed for the author, yo.
) "Murder, She Workshopped" is Kristine Kathryn Rusch's tale of a Papal assassin on a writer's retreat as cover to whack a dragon. Again, firmly cute, even with the "writer as secret hero" trope. Have no clue what the lead's name is, though, as I think it was only mentioned second-hand.
) Jim C. Hines' "Heart Of Ash" is, as The Kids say today, "wiggedy-wack". An ancient Greek nymph (who uncontrollably shapeshifts into her partner's physical ideal, and harnesses lust into Monster-Slaughterin' Might) hunts incestuous-by-implication werejaguars in Arizona culverts. But dryad's mojo fades because her relationship's Fiery Passion is transitioning to Solid-N-Secure-N-Stable Lesbian Domesticity, and she almost dies...
...until levelling-up by seducing her celibate priest handler and alters into a Lethal Latina that wastes weres and ghosts girlfriends in equal measure.
In other words... "THE ARISTOCRATS!!!"
The implications are gross and wrong and awful. Pains me I kinda dug it.
) Elizabeth A. Vaughan's "Jiang Shi" is the even more infuriatingly in medias res-y sequel to her marsupialicious story from ZR&KB. It's a confounding whirlwind of Ancient Chinese Secrets and Master Splinter-itis and hopping vampires and confused bikers and teleporting virgins and The Chosen Nameless Frump in the middle of the mayhem. I would've been lost--even more, I mean--without those vague six-year memories of the prior work. (Why do authors put random chapters of random novels in random collections? It's a lousy sales tactic.)
) OG Urban-Fantasy-Before-It-Was-Even-A-Thang writer Tanya Huff offers a day in the life of her vampire PI from The Blood Books in "No Matter Where You Go". Some goober goths trifle with Forces Beyond Mortal Ken, requiring a dracula to save 'em and ending with Rod Serling-grade pith. Workmanlike from start to finish.
) "Signed In Blood" is P.R. Frost's eyerolling slice-o'-life story about a writer protagonist (named Tess, I think?--lots of entries gloss over intros) clearly from novels The Reader is supposed to know but I clearly don't. There's imps and blood-ink pens and psychic, vampiric pookahs [spelled like that] with cartoon accents and grandiose titles [I'm a Warrior of the Celestial Blade..." is supposed to be taken SERIOUSLY, y'all] and worldbuilding gobbledygook that sounds like D&D dorks flexing in a LARP-off.
Insufferable.
) "Broch De Shlang" is, quite simply, fucked up.
I thought it was gonna be another Gaelic nightmare like from ZR&KB--hah, I wish! Thanks to multiple Google searches that weren't all that helpful, I gathered "BDS" is Yiddish for "serpent / penis curse"... which is verified when the *protagonist* ultimately Googles the same way I did, down to the search description.
And what a curse. The women in Protagonist's lineage apparently die via snaky trauma. Which is definitely bad enough, but Protagonist is a single mom with a severely disabled Eldest (Trisomy 13 / Patau's Syndrome... leaving the vegetative child so toneless and limp she... slithers... out of wheelchairs unless restrained) and a perfect Youngest, and she's alone because the saintly dad (ugh) bailed but still shows up above and beyond standard custody to smother Youngest with attention while wholly ignoring even basic humanitarian care for Eldest.
Oh! The only way to break The Curse is for The Curse's Host and The Snake to die at the same instant…
...which leads to a beautiful resolution where Youngest breaks The Curse and saves Protagonist from The Snake by annihilating both The Snake and Eldest--who is drooling in blissful slumber in a giant crib, natch--with a Mossberg.
Sniff. So. Touching.
Dad is gonna come back, too, to a now-perfect family. Cue inspirational sunrise.
"Broch De Shlang" is gonna haunt me, y'all.
) Part of me hates Alexander B. Potter's "The Wooly Mountains" on principle, because it takes The Mos Eisley Approach to monsterizin'.
There's our spunky, backwoods lesbian with more-trouble-than-worth, oh-so-hilarious cowardly sidekick (BUT GAY!!!) in a whirl of werewolves, dragons, satyrs, shamans, *and* 'squatches. The world is plagued by Troubles With Supernaturals That Came Out In A Big Event But The Beleaguered Humans Are The REAL Terrors that we've all seen before. The plot is simple and obvious.
But part of me begrudgingly--BEGRUDGINGLY, yo!--liked it. The yetis had Big Boggy Creek Energy, which always delights. And all of Vermont becoming a cryptid wildlife preserve that is also full of gung-ho human secessionists makes me laugh.
) The collection ends with Nina Kiriki Hoffman's sci-fi "Invasive Species". Imagine if Ellen Ripley and Newt were space-exterminators on a space-liner dealing with space-snatchers... -body, that is.
TV episode plotting aside, it's an innocuous palate-cleanser.
--
AGGTGAM offers some neat stories, some adequate ones, and a smattering of duds, with too many vampires and--worse--too many "Trying Too Hard" beasties.
But, as with all collections, there's discarded extra-crispy nuggets in the greasetrap. A reluctant three Ellens Ripley outta five, but going to the used bookstore with a vengeance.
December 28, 2012
I like anthologies for three reasons. First, you can finish a story in a short time. Second, you discover new authors. Third, you find short stories by some favorite authors. One of my favorite authors is Jane Lindskold who wrote "The Drifter" with Prudence Bledsloe, her brother, Jake, and an old west theme. This interesting tale has a unique ending. "Broch de Shlang" by Mickey Zucker Reichert features a couple who has a strange child and a snake. The plot is unusual. "Elizabeth and Anna's Big Adventure" by Jeanne C. Stein is short, concise, and great reading. There are others but I'll stop here as readers of anthologies should discover the stories for themselves. Suffice it to say that I liked several of the stories.
March 16, 2013
I picked this book up for two reasons: as a fluff anthology, and because an author I especially like has a story in it.
I was expecting some middling-quality stories, but I was pleasantly surprised over the first one, by Jane Linskold; not all of the stories afterward held up to my raised expectations. I was also surprised (though I probably shouldn't have been) that each story has a fantasy-genre monster in it (lots of vampires); I thought maybe there'd be more action/sci-fi stories of women with guns (and some monsters), when it is the opposite: women fighting monsters (and sometimes using guns to do it).
I was expecting some middling-quality stories, but I was pleasantly surprised over the first one, by Jane Linskold; not all of the stories afterward held up to my raised expectations. I was also surprised (though I probably shouldn't have been) that each story has a fantasy-genre monster in it (lots of vampires); I thought maybe there'd be more action/sci-fi stories of women with guns (and some monsters), when it is the opposite: women fighting monsters (and sometimes using guns to do it).
February 28, 2010
Great, Strong Female Characters of all ages. I actually found several of these stories to be quite inspirational.
I would recommend this book to anyone who likes Sci-Fi and Fantasy stories revolving around strong females.
I would recommend this book to anyone who likes Sci-Fi and Fantasy stories revolving around strong females.
May 25, 2010
Couldn't help feeling that a lot of these stories were previews of series to come. I did get the lead on The Becoming from this book and we'll see where that series takes me. Tanya Huff's story was well worth reading, I may go digging to see where her new stuff is at now.
March 26, 2010
A decent collection of short stories featuring girls/women with guns and monsters. As with any collection, your mileage will vary.
May 22, 2010
A good collection of stories by a variety of authors (my favorite among them being Lilith Saintcrow). Not highbrow by any means, but a fine book to occupy an afternoon.
January 6, 2014
Read the review by Mrs Giggles - it says everything I thought.
I suspect this whole genre is getting a bit mined out. And I'm not sure the authors were aware of Hughes' intro.
I suspect this whole genre is getting a bit mined out. And I'm not sure the authors were aware of Hughes' intro.
January 23, 2019
I only read the Elizabeth and Anna’s adventure one but it was surprising adorable. I liked that the book was set from the little girls perspective. It would have been nice to get some clarification on who the characters are but for a novella it worked fine.
January 4, 2023
Rating for Elizabeth And Anna's Big Adventure by Jeanne C. Stein.
Another cute but unnecessary 'addition' to the Anna Strong Chronicles. Would have been better without Anna, but with a kick-ass 'normal' babysitter character beating the bad guy.
Another cute but unnecessary 'addition' to the Anna Strong Chronicles. Would have been better without Anna, but with a kick-ass 'normal' babysitter character beating the bad guy.
December 21, 2017
some neat short stories
November 5, 2019
Really liked the Elizabeth A. Vaughan story the best. Will have to see if went any further with it.
November 20, 2021
Just read the stories by authors I know. Really like the Tanya Huff one.
June 9, 2025
Some varied but good stories.
August 22, 2025
really liked all the stories
January 30, 2017
3.5 stars. some fun stories. one i couldn't finish, it was so boring.
September 1, 2013
8/30/2013 2:20 am
Read "Best Friends" by Lilith Saintcrow, five stars, really, really cool!!!
"Elizabeth and Anna's Big Adventure" bye Jeanne Stein, meh 3 stars.
"Jian Shi" by Elizabeth Vaughan.... FIVE STARS ROCKSTAR... sooooo funny, soooo good must read more books!!! (went to find more books XD) The Elizabeth Vaughan linked to this book should be this one: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/... not the one currently linked... I dunno how to fix this though... anyway!!! yay more books but now it's 3:06 am and I am soooo tired
"Murder, She Workshopped" by Kristine Katherine Rusch five stars. so. tired. 3:34 am, now 3 hours before I wake up and go to work, yesh, this will be fun... so very fun... stupid compulsive urges...
8/31/2013 9:50 PM
"The Drifter" by Jane Lindskold 4 stars
"Our Lady of the Vampires" by Nancy Holder 4 stars
"Lupercalia" by Anton Strout 5 stars!!! Funny!!
"Heart of Ash" by Jim Hines one of the characters from Libriomancer. 4 stars
"No matter where you go" by Tanya Huff a Vickie Nelson short story - awesome! 4 stars
"Invasive Species" by Nina Kiriki Hoffman... LOVED IT TO DEATH!!!! 5 stars
"Broch de Shlang" by Mickey Zucker Reichart, I didn't like the ending 2 stars
"The Wooly Mountains" by Alexander B Potter COOLCOOLCOOL LOVE 5 STARS!!!!
"Signed in Blood" by Phyllis Irene Radford, want more!!! 5 stars
5 stars! because the ones that missed didn't take away anything from the ones that hit!!!
To sum up:
There were stories that made me want to read more of the author's stuff; here are the links to those authors:
http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/...
http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/...
http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/...
http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/...
http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/...
http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/...
http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/...
Read "Best Friends" by Lilith Saintcrow, five stars, really, really cool!!!
"Elizabeth and Anna's Big Adventure" bye Jeanne Stein, meh 3 stars.
"Jian Shi" by Elizabeth Vaughan.... FIVE STARS ROCKSTAR... sooooo funny, soooo good must read more books!!! (went to find more books XD) The Elizabeth Vaughan linked to this book should be this one: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/... not the one currently linked... I dunno how to fix this though... anyway!!! yay more books but now it's 3:06 am and I am soooo tired
"Murder, She Workshopped" by Kristine Katherine Rusch five stars. so. tired. 3:34 am, now 3 hours before I wake up and go to work, yesh, this will be fun... so very fun... stupid compulsive urges...
8/31/2013 9:50 PM
"The Drifter" by Jane Lindskold 4 stars
"Our Lady of the Vampires" by Nancy Holder 4 stars
"Lupercalia" by Anton Strout 5 stars!!! Funny!!
"Heart of Ash" by Jim Hines one of the characters from Libriomancer. 4 stars
"No matter where you go" by Tanya Huff a Vickie Nelson short story - awesome! 4 stars
"Invasive Species" by Nina Kiriki Hoffman... LOVED IT TO DEATH!!!! 5 stars
"Broch de Shlang" by Mickey Zucker Reichart, I didn't like the ending 2 stars
"The Wooly Mountains" by Alexander B Potter COOLCOOLCOOL LOVE 5 STARS!!!!
"Signed in Blood" by Phyllis Irene Radford, want more!!! 5 stars
5 stars! because the ones that missed didn't take away anything from the ones that hit!!!
To sum up:
There were stories that made me want to read more of the author's stuff; here are the links to those authors:
http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/...
http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/...
http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/...
http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/...
http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/...
http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/...
http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/...
July 9, 2015
I think there are a few good stories in here. Unfortunately, the abelist one really squicked me out. It drags down this work a lot!
The Drifter: Was great. Good story and I got engaged in the characters.
Our Lady of the Vampires: Not as much of a fan too much crying.
Best Friends: I can work with this story. Has some interesting imagery. Solid addition.
Elizabeth and Anna’s Big Adventure: I found this one very sweet. Worth a read.
Lupercalia: Didn't like. Bad ending. Bad message.
Murder, She Workshopped: Strong addition. Very interesting premise: demons and assassins.
Heart of Ash: Awesome premise and well execute. Strong addition.
Jiang Shi: Everything and the kitchen sink. Weak addition.
No Matter Where You Go: A solid addition, but felt more fluffy than something you could really dig into. This is part of a series I think?
Signed in Blood: Odd addition. I could see some folks disliking it. Overall, I liked it though.
Broch de Shlang: Abelist TRIGGER WARNING. *Vomits*
The Wooly Mountains: Not a fan, but that doesn't mean it isn't a good story I just wasn't into it.
Invasive Species: The scifi addition and was intriguing.
Anyway, not enough amazing. Not the "girl power" the anthology promised to be. Just cause there is a lady lead doesn't mean it is empowering. But whatever. Passable, but not gonna remain in my collection.
The Drifter: Was great. Good story and I got engaged in the characters.
Our Lady of the Vampires: Not as much of a fan too much crying.
Best Friends: I can work with this story. Has some interesting imagery. Solid addition.
Elizabeth and Anna’s Big Adventure: I found this one very sweet. Worth a read.
Lupercalia: Didn't like. Bad ending. Bad message.
Murder, She Workshopped: Strong addition. Very interesting premise: demons and assassins.
Heart of Ash: Awesome premise and well execute. Strong addition.
Jiang Shi: Everything and the kitchen sink. Weak addition.
No Matter Where You Go: A solid addition, but felt more fluffy than something you could really dig into. This is part of a series I think?
Signed in Blood: Odd addition. I could see some folks disliking it. Overall, I liked it though.
Broch de Shlang: Abelist TRIGGER WARNING. *Vomits*
The Wooly Mountains: Not a fan, but that doesn't mean it isn't a good story I just wasn't into it.
Invasive Species: The scifi addition and was intriguing.
Anyway, not enough amazing. Not the "girl power" the anthology promised to be. Just cause there is a lady lead doesn't mean it is empowering. But whatever. Passable, but not gonna remain in my collection.
September 15, 2014
Most of the stories in this collection are forgettably meh, with a couple of memorably offensive exceptions (SPOILER ALERT):
"Jiang Shi" by Elizabeth A. Vaughan: I'm about 42% sure this is more tired orientalist dreck a la "hey random non-Asian ignorant American, you've been chosen by the Chinese Gods for a Grande Destined Destiny because REASONS!" But I was so bored by the initial exposition-infodumps that I couldn't finish reading. If I've maligned the story as orientalist, let me know. It's still boring.
"Broch de Shlang" by Mickey Zucker Reichert: an insipid, ableist family drama in which a mentally and physically disabled daughter exists for the sole purpose of serving as a convenient, literal blood sacrifice to break a curse, so her parents and "normal" sister can reunite as a happier family due to her absence/death. That is the ENTIRE POINT of the story. It's as subtle as a brick to the face and about as enjoyable.
"Jiang Shi" by Elizabeth A. Vaughan: I'm about 42% sure this is more tired orientalist dreck a la "hey random non-Asian ignorant American, you've been chosen by the Chinese Gods for a Grande Destined Destiny because REASONS!" But I was so bored by the initial exposition-infodumps that I couldn't finish reading. If I've maligned the story as orientalist, let me know. It's still boring.
"Broch de Shlang" by Mickey Zucker Reichert: an insipid, ableist family drama in which a mentally and physically disabled daughter exists for the sole purpose of serving as a convenient, literal blood sacrifice to break a curse, so her parents and "normal" sister can reunite as a happier family due to her absence/death. That is the ENTIRE POINT of the story. It's as subtle as a brick to the face and about as enjoyable.
December 13, 2016
13 stories of women and girls who take on monsters and win, mostly. Several vampires, a werewolf, a family curse and even a spaceage alien as well as other beings. Some interesting characters and ideas. Worth reading.
Stories are: The drifter, by Jane Lindskold -- Our lady of the vampires, by Nancy Holder -- Best friends, by Lilith Saintcrow -- Elizabeth & Anna's big adventure, by Jeanne Stein -- Lupercalia / Anton Strout -- Murder she workshopped, by Kristine Kathryn Rusch -- Heart of ash by Jim C. Hines -- Jiang Shi, by Elizabeth A. Vaughan -- No matter where you go, by Tanya Huff -- Signed in blood, by P. R. Frost -- Broch de Shlang, by Mickey Zucker Reichert -- The wooly mountains, by Alexander B. Potter -- Invasive species, by Nina Kiriki Hoffman.
I know the stories by Frost, Stein, and Huff are stories from their series, but I don't know about any of the others.
Stories are: The drifter, by Jane Lindskold -- Our lady of the vampires, by Nancy Holder -- Best friends, by Lilith Saintcrow -- Elizabeth & Anna's big adventure, by Jeanne Stein -- Lupercalia / Anton Strout -- Murder she workshopped, by Kristine Kathryn Rusch -- Heart of ash by Jim C. Hines -- Jiang Shi, by Elizabeth A. Vaughan -- No matter where you go, by Tanya Huff -- Signed in blood, by P. R. Frost -- Broch de Shlang, by Mickey Zucker Reichert -- The wooly mountains, by Alexander B. Potter -- Invasive species, by Nina Kiriki Hoffman.
I know the stories by Frost, Stein, and Huff are stories from their series, but I don't know about any of the others.
July 31, 2022
Drifter • shortstory by Jane Lindskold
Our Lady of the Vampires • shortstory by Nancy Holder
Best Friends • shortstory by Lilith Saintcrow
Elizabeth and Anna's Big Adventure • shortstory by Jeanne C. Stein
Lupercalia • shortstory by Anton Strout
Murder, She Workshopped • shortstory by Kristine Kathryn Rusch
Heart of Ash • shortstory by Jim C. Hines
Jiang Shi • shortstory by Elizabeth Vaughan [as by Elizabeth A. Vaughan ]
No Matter Where You Go • [Victory Nelson, Investigator] • shortstory by Tanya Huff
Signed in Blood • shortstory by Irene Radford [as by P. R. Frost ]
Broch de Shlang • shortstory by Mickey Zucker Reichert
The Wooly Mountains • shortstory by Alexander Potter [as by Alexander B. Potter ]
♥Invasive Species • shortstory by Nina Kiriki Hoffman RE-read 8/1/2015
Our Lady of the Vampires • shortstory by Nancy Holder
Best Friends • shortstory by Lilith Saintcrow
Elizabeth and Anna's Big Adventure • shortstory by Jeanne C. Stein
Lupercalia • shortstory by Anton Strout
Murder, She Workshopped • shortstory by Kristine Kathryn Rusch
Heart of Ash • shortstory by Jim C. Hines
Jiang Shi • shortstory by Elizabeth Vaughan [as by Elizabeth A. Vaughan ]
No Matter Where You Go • [Victory Nelson, Investigator] • shortstory by Tanya Huff
Signed in Blood • shortstory by Irene Radford [as by P. R. Frost ]
Broch de Shlang • shortstory by Mickey Zucker Reichert
The Wooly Mountains • shortstory by Alexander Potter [as by Alexander B. Potter ]
♥Invasive Species • shortstory by Nina Kiriki Hoffman RE-read 8/1/2015
November 25, 2012
A collection of short stories involving Girls, Guns and Monsters - I read it because Tanya Huff is included, though her story was not one of my favorites. I enjoyed The Drifter (great immigration/migration/western with werewolves sort of thing), Elizabeth and Anna's Big Adventure (young girl participates in beating the bad guys), Signed in Blood (not even sure how to describe this one...but I liked it), and The Wooly Mountains (Vermont's alternative-ness is more alternative than we knew). The other stories were so-so to no-thanks, but overall an enjoyable collection, though I felt little urge to find more stories by any of the authors.
October 14, 2010
Overall this was a very well put together anthology about strong female characters and in each tale they come face to face with a monster. Interestingly the tales are put together chronemically with the first tale taking place in the old west, and the final tale ending in a future setting. All in all as with any anthology I have ever read there were some truly stand out pieces, some average pieces, and a few throw away pieces.
If you are a fan of short stories, especially those with a strong female lead then you would do well to pick this collection up.
If you are a fan of short stories, especially those with a strong female lead then you would do well to pick this collection up.
May 9, 2013
Slightly disappointed. I like short stories, I like stories about girl power, I like fantasy/sci-fi premises. But the quality of this collection is sub-par for the most part. Quite a few of the stories seem truncated; a part of larger worlds that I am not familiar with. As such, I felt a little lost at times. Perhaps if I were more familiar with some of these authors and their previous works, I would have enjoyed this more. Then again, part of successful short story writing (in my opinion) is the ability for an author to suck a reader in immediately. So yeah; I'll stick with sub-par.
July 26, 2010
I usually love to read short stories - I find some great new authors that way - and this book was no exception. Set out in "chronological order" this was a wonderful book of vamps, weres and monsters and the the gals feisty enough to deal with them.
I'll be looking up several of the authors to find other books by them!
I'll be looking up several of the authors to find other books by them!
July 14, 2011
I picked this up last year at GenCon and had high hopes for it. I love the concept and love Nina Kiriki Hoffman. Well, it didn't suck, and was even mildly entertaining in spots but none of the stories were particularly memorable and I found many of the heroines cliched. This is definitely going into the "donate" pile rather than going back on the bookshelf.
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