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Bone Street Rumba
Anyway: Angie
Free online fiction from tor.com.
Reza’s job has put her in the face of every kind of death. Thanks to her guns, her car, and her dapper style, she came through The Bad Years alive, but since losing Angie things haven’t been right. Tonight’s job threatens to bring the worst terrors of that time skittering back to life. “Anyway: Angie” is a new urban fantasy story with more than a touch of horror from rising star Daniel José Older, set in the world of his upcoming Bone Street Rumba series.
This short story was acquired and edited by acquiring editor Carl Engle-Laird.
Cover art by Goni Montes
Reza’s job has put her in the face of every kind of death. Thanks to her guns, her car, and her dapper style, she came through The Bad Years alive, but since losing Angie things haven’t been right. Tonight’s job threatens to bring the worst terrors of that time skittering back to life. “Anyway: Angie” is a new urban fantasy story with more than a touch of horror from rising star Daniel José Older, set in the world of his upcoming Bone Street Rumba series.
This short story was acquired and edited by acquiring editor Carl Engle-Laird.
Cover art by Goni Montes
32 pages, ebook
First published March 26, 2014
2 people are currently reading
186 people want to read
About the author
Daniel José Older
184 books1,968 followersDaniel José Older is the New York Times bestselling author of the Young Adult series the Shadowshaper Cypher (Scholastic), the Bone Street Rumba urban fantasy series (Penguin), and the upcoming Middle Grade sci-fi adventure Flood City (Scholastic). He won the International Latino Book Award and has been nominated for the Kirkus Prize, the Mythopoeic Award, the Locus Award, the Andre Norton Award, and yes, the World Fantasy Award. Shadowshaper was named one of Esquire’s 80 Books Every Person Should Read. You can find his thoughts on writing, read dispatches from his decade-long career as an NYC paramedic and hear his music at http://danieljoseolder.net/, on youtube and @djolder on twitter.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 32 reviews
April 28, 2018
This is the part where I panic. A little. I don’t know how many shots I squeeze off, only that I’m firing and firing and the air is exploding around me, the cruel bursts of gunfire echoing up the dark walls of the cavern, and I don’t stop shooting until the clicks that mean I’m out of bullets.
review to come
read it for yourself here:
http://www.tor.com/2014/03/26/anyway-...
May 12, 2015
Eek! Also, ick!
This was excellent. I may pick up Older's Half-Resurrection Blues, although I'm not sure I want to read a full-length novel with so many swarming insects and rotting corpses.
This was excellent. I may pick up Older's Half-Resurrection Blues, although I'm not sure I want to read a full-length novel with so many swarming insects and rotting corpses.
December 3, 2022
They say Death walks just a few feet to the left of every man. Fuck that. Me and Death are kissing cousins. But right here right now? I don’t know what the hell is wrong with me. Besides the obvious things. I guess I’m still not right. Maybe I’ll never be.
This was great - as well as an introduction to his new (*at the time) series, Daniel José Older made this into a short story that packs an emotional punch just as heavily as it does the horror - and it always impresses me when authors can pull that off in the space of a short story.
Definitely planning on checking out the Half-Resurrection Blues.
Find Anyway: Angie here: https://www.tor.com/2014/03/26/anyway...
This was great - as well as an introduction to his new (*at the time) series, Daniel José Older made this into a short story that packs an emotional punch just as heavily as it does the horror - and it always impresses me when authors can pull that off in the space of a short story.
Definitely planning on checking out the Half-Resurrection Blues.
Find Anyway: Angie here: https://www.tor.com/2014/03/26/anyway...
June 5, 2014
More Tor..... lunchtime reading I'll call it, but fair warning: you'll have to have a strong ass stomach to eat while reading this!
This is an icky horror/thriller style short story. The gruesome is handled extremely well but I will note that Reza's (the MC) voice, or rather thought patterns, are a bit splotchy at points.
Probably closer to a 3.5, actually. Anyway: Angie would make a great chapter in a full fledged horror story.
Also, if anyone who reads this review reads this story please tell me if Reza's It looked like a thing I hate more than death itself, a thing I would prefer not to even mention, thank you very much. made you obnoxiously snort-chuckle (or your approximation of such) as much as I did - A LOT - or if I am just a demented monster. Also, this little quirk made me fall a bit in love with her!
April 2, 2017
Whoa. Okay. Um. Whew.
Yeah, this Tor short is a little wildy weirdy. I'm not familiar with the universe of Daniel José Older, so being dumped right into a situation where there were some insect-type monsters was yucky. Especially since I was reading after midnight. The action is intermingled with the central character thinking about her lost girlfriend, so there are spurts and stops.
Will I come back to this wildy weirdy universe? I'm not certain, but for the short time I inhaled this, it was quite a ride.
Book Season = Autumn (definitely not Spring)
Yeah, this Tor short is a little wildy weirdy. I'm not familiar with the universe of Daniel José Older, so being dumped right into a situation where there were some insect-type monsters was yucky. Especially since I was reading after midnight. The action is intermingled with the central character thinking about her lost girlfriend, so there are spurts and stops.
Will I come back to this wildy weirdy universe? I'm not certain, but for the short time I inhaled this, it was quite a ride.
Book Season = Autumn (definitely not Spring)
November 5, 2018
Superbly horrifying. Conceptually similar to Sin City.
July 30, 2020
Rep: Afro-Latina lesbian mc
June 9, 2021
Uhh, creepy...
Interesting main character, but the story was too short to convey enough of the world.
The writing way ok, didn't flow well in my opinion.
Interesting main character, but the story was too short to convey enough of the world.
The writing way ok, didn't flow well in my opinion.
June 7, 2015
I first read (and adored) Half-Resurrection Blues, so I was thrilled to start reading this short set in the same world. The short is wonderful and wonderfully creepy, but the end while somewhat satisfying drove me nuts in what was left unfinished. I'm hoping that Reza and Charo will make more appearances in DJ Older's series.
As many others have mentioned in their own reviews - you may want to read this during the light of day, long before you plan on going to sleep. Daniel Jose Older has a great sense of imagery and this short is chock full of creepy, ikcy description that could possibly encourage gaggin and/or vomiting. Poetic and agressive, Anyway: Angie is deliciously dark love story gone awry.
As many others have mentioned in their own reviews - you may want to read this during the light of day, long before you plan on going to sleep. Daniel Jose Older has a great sense of imagery and this short is chock full of creepy, ikcy description that could possibly encourage gaggin and/or vomiting. Poetic and agressive, Anyway: Angie is deliciously dark love story gone awry.
January 20, 2018
I do not like horror movies, reading horror is a different experience altogether. When I read, I imagine the story in my mind. I imagine it similar to a movie, however the story has to be well narrated for one to have a detailed view. It is like the words provide my brain with the images and in this case it was a terrifying experience. You will definitely be creeped out by it, nevertheless, you’d want to finish it.
Will definitely recommend it, very descriptive and gripping.
Will definitely recommend it, very descriptive and gripping.
Read
August 14, 20143.5 stars. Almost 4 stars, until the ending, or what fell about as an ending. Creepy-crawly icky-sticky oozy thrilling almost-horror.
January 21, 2015
This was an interesting peek into Older's Bone Street Rumba universe and I absolutely love the author's writing style. This makes me even more excited for Half Resurrection Blues.
March 13, 2023
Anyway: Angie by author Daniel José Older - a new urban fantasy story with more than a touch of horror - you can read for free on the Tor.com site https://www.tor.com/2014/03/26/anyway...
Reza’s job has put her in the face of every kind of death. Thanks to her guns, her car, and her dapper style, she came through The Bad Years alive, but since losing Angie things haven’t been right. Tonight’s job threatens to bring the worst terrors of that time skittering back to life.
My ongoing quest to get current with the Tor short stories. Woah! This was off the scale gorey and all kinds of amazing. I need to read the Bone Street Rumba series now, no question about it.
4 Stars
Reza’s job has put her in the face of every kind of death. Thanks to her guns, her car, and her dapper style, she came through The Bad Years alive, but since losing Angie things haven’t been right. Tonight’s job threatens to bring the worst terrors of that time skittering back to life.
My ongoing quest to get current with the Tor short stories. Woah! This was off the scale gorey and all kinds of amazing. I need to read the Bone Street Rumba series now, no question about it.
4 Stars
February 9, 2025
This is probably a case of it's not you, it's me.
Insect based monsters are NOT my kind of horror. I am glad I read this in broad daylight but even then I have the urge to take a hot shower.
But the writing was good and easy to visualize(it's only unfortunate for me that there were monster insects).
Insect based monsters are NOT my kind of horror. I am glad I read this in broad daylight but even then I have the urge to take a hot shower.
But the writing was good and easy to visualize(it's only unfortunate for me that there were monster insects).
July 15, 2024
4,3 🌟
Bolje napisano nego što je sadržano
Bolje napisano nego što je sadržano
July 22, 2016
Reza is the driver and the protection for the ladies who do house calls.
She loved one, Angie. But Angie is gone. This night feels bad and Reza doesn’t know why. The boss, Charo, tells her perhaps its because this location is close to Angie’s last job.
Perhaps. But this place is giving her the creeps. And when she hears a scream she goes in with guns loaded and a can of bug spray for a reason she hasn’t quite processed.
But it’s her job to look after the girls, so she goes after Shelly.
And what she finds changes everything.
Read it here: http://www.tor.com/2014/03/26/anyway-...
***
Oooh. I have Half-Resurrection Blues (Bone Street Rumba #1) in my TBR pile. This is set in that world.
Reza dresses stylishly well. The illustrator nailed it.
She has nightmares and memory gaps from The Big Years. It’s capitalised. Big years, eh?
Okay… Now she’s past forty and her hair is peppered with grey.
She’s Puerto Rican. She’s also smart and super observant. The house is too perfect.and there are no obvious steps to the basement these age houses usually have.
She finds a door behind the fridge and heads down the stairs.
Wow. Badass lesbian lady of colour?
Awesome.
It’s a short story that finishes with a promise of hope. And maybe some justice.
4 stars
She loved one, Angie. But Angie is gone. This night feels bad and Reza doesn’t know why. The boss, Charo, tells her perhaps its because this location is close to Angie’s last job.
Perhaps. But this place is giving her the creeps. And when she hears a scream she goes in with guns loaded and a can of bug spray for a reason she hasn’t quite processed.
But it’s her job to look after the girls, so she goes after Shelly.
And what she finds changes everything.
Read it here: http://www.tor.com/2014/03/26/anyway-...
***
Oooh. I have Half-Resurrection Blues (Bone Street Rumba #1) in my TBR pile. This is set in that world.
Reza dresses stylishly well. The illustrator nailed it.
Something else I’ve learned: I take power from my dapper. Perhaps I have some well-dressed angels watching over me, whoever they are, but when I have my slick on full charge I am unstoppable in combat. It’s just how things work for me.
She has nightmares and memory gaps from The Big Years. It’s capitalised. Big years, eh?
The last time I cried was in the fourth grade and it was the first time I’d been shot. And the first time I ever shot anybody.
Okay… Now she’s past forty and her hair is peppered with grey.
She’s Puerto Rican. She’s also smart and super observant. The house is too perfect.and there are no obvious steps to the basement these age houses usually have.
She finds a door behind the fridge and heads down the stairs.
Wow. Badass lesbian lady of colour?
Awesome.
It’s a short story that finishes with a promise of hope. And maybe some justice.
4 stars
December 30, 2014
I pre-ordered the first book in the Bone Street Rumba series the other day. So I was curious about this one because it's set in the same world.
Reza is tough. She has a dangerous job and has lived an even more dangerous life, but there was one ray of sunshine that kept her going: Angie. But Angie is gone, and Reza can't let go. No matter how much she tries.
Her latest job leads her into a nightmarish situation beneath a house. One that will test her strength, courage, and will push her heart to the limits.
Wow. This story is SO well written that I was sucked right into Reza's life. It's intriguing, spooky, and creepy as hell because it deals with horrible bugs. It was also quite sad because I felt Reza's heartbreak.
Loved this! Can't wait to start the series...
BTW, you can read it here: http://www.tor.com/stories/2014/03/an...#
Reza is tough. She has a dangerous job and has lived an even more dangerous life, but there was one ray of sunshine that kept her going: Angie. But Angie is gone, and Reza can't let go. No matter how much she tries.
Her latest job leads her into a nightmarish situation beneath a house. One that will test her strength, courage, and will push her heart to the limits.
Wow. This story is SO well written that I was sucked right into Reza's life. It's intriguing, spooky, and creepy as hell because it deals with horrible bugs. It was also quite sad because I felt Reza's heartbreak.
Loved this! Can't wait to start the series...
BTW, you can read it here: http://www.tor.com/stories/2014/03/an...#
October 25, 2014
I heard so much about this story before I read it. The author even recommended that it be read in the daytime so enough time to get the "creepies" off of you passes before it gets dark.
I read it and I loved it. I wasn't creeped out too much but I think this is because I mentally prepared myself for some gross stuff. There is a surprising element of...romance? Yea, let's go with that. I thought it was beautiful.
The mystery unraveled at a great pace. The scenes were, dare I say, flawlessly described. I was left wanting more.
The fact that the main character(s) in this will be in future books of Daniel J. Older's has been really excited.
P.S. It creeped out many so do read it in the daytime if you're prone to this feeling. Day or night though DO READIT !
I read it and I loved it. I wasn't creeped out too much but I think this is because I mentally prepared myself for some gross stuff. There is a surprising element of...romance? Yea, let's go with that. I thought it was beautiful.
The mystery unraveled at a great pace. The scenes were, dare I say, flawlessly described. I was left wanting more.
The fact that the main character(s) in this will be in future books of Daniel J. Older's has been really excited.
P.S. It creeped out many so do read it in the daytime if you're prone to this feeling. Day or night though DO READIT !
March 30, 2021
Another thrilling story from the Tor.com fiction collection that's posted free on their website. Anyway: Angie has been compared conceptually to Frank Miller's Sin City: The Hard Goodbye by another reviewer, and the more I think about the comparison, the more I agree with it. It's gritty urban crime noir with sympathetic antiheroes and nasty villains. Very nicely done!
April 4, 2014
Angie's essence permeates every aspect of this story. Instead of going for cheap creeps, the author invests the reader in the love of Angie, thereby letting us cosign things we certainly would never do ourselves. The result is a story that is as heartbreaking as it is skin crawling. The author's attention to detail lends itself not only to the exquisitely gruesome, but to the morosely mundane in a way that makes me feel like I have not read the story, but visited the places it describes. Older is a master of creating scenes and weaving them into unforgettable stories.
coletâneas-coletados
January 10, 2025Li aqui, marquei lido aqui: Some of the Best from Tor.com, 2014 edition.
Ah! Tão horrível ter uma presença nas beiradas da mente que nos controla de maneira que não conseguimos nos desvencilhar. Pelo menos acho que aqui a conclusão foi uma boa coisa.
Ah! Tão horrível ter uma presença nas beiradas da mente que nos controla de maneira que não conseguimos nos desvencilhar. Pelo menos acho que aqui a conclusão foi uma boa coisa.
December 25, 2015
I'm always up for dark stories and secret cults, but I ended up more confused by this story than anything else. Reading it in the Some of the Best from Tor.com: 2014: A Tor.Com Original anthology, I didn't know that this was part of a larger fictional universe. That probably had a lot to do with my confusion.
February 2, 2015
Hah; kind of cheesy but entertaining. Probably somewhere between "OK" and "liked" for me, but I think if this is your genre, you'll especially enjoy it! I liked the atypical protagonist. Available for free via Tor.com.
March 29, 2016
Some dark shit goes down in this story so it feels odd to say that I "liked" it, but it was incredibly compelling and very unnerving. I want to know more about Angie and Reva but I also kind of don't because I don't have time or space for cockroach men in my life. Either way, a fantastic read.
April 7, 2014
My Amazon Review -
http://www.amazon.com/review/R1YEC3YQ...
http://www.amazon.com/review/R1YEC3YQ...
June 6, 2014
Creepy, atmospheric, extremely interesting and unique. Has a great rough-around-the-edges quality. Great characters. Excited to read more by this author / in this world.
July 2, 2014
Free to read and creepy as hell. Horror's not my thing, but this I make an exception for.
June 18, 2015
3 1/2 stars. Reza is a really interesting character, loved her voice during her reflections on Angie.
December 5, 2015
This is a well-written and gross little horror novella, set in the 'world' of Half-Resurrection Blues (the novella refers to a doctor who appears in the novel). Lotsa creepy-crawlies.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 32 reviews