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Chaos Cocktail: 13 Fantasy Bar Brawls
This isn’t your grandmother’s pub crawl…
It’s not even your crazy uncle’s kinda scene. Unless your uncle happens to be a glitter-spewing unicorn shifter, a ghost-spying vampire, a pole-dancing werewolf, or a Neolithic entrepreneur. No? Well then, you’re in for a treat! But be forewarned, even the supernatural folk can’t hold their liquor all the time. And when their kind don’t mind their Ps and Qs, things get… interesting.
Stop in for a drink at 13 fantasy watering holes brought to you by authors:
Angela Roquet
Kory M. Shrum
Liz Schulte
A.R. Wise
Monica La Porta
Christiana Miller
T.J. Brown
Shelly M. Burrows
Kathrine Pendleton
Mikel Andrews
Ashlynne Doyle
Justina Dodson
Jasie Gale
It’s not even your crazy uncle’s kinda scene. Unless your uncle happens to be a glitter-spewing unicorn shifter, a ghost-spying vampire, a pole-dancing werewolf, or a Neolithic entrepreneur. No? Well then, you’re in for a treat! But be forewarned, even the supernatural folk can’t hold their liquor all the time. And when their kind don’t mind their Ps and Qs, things get… interesting.
Stop in for a drink at 13 fantasy watering holes brought to you by authors:
Angela Roquet
Kory M. Shrum
Liz Schulte
A.R. Wise
Monica La Porta
Christiana Miller
T.J. Brown
Shelly M. Burrows
Kathrine Pendleton
Mikel Andrews
Ashlynne Doyle
Justina Dodson
Jasie Gale
- GenresAnthologies
467 pages, Kindle Edition
First published October 2, 2018
30 people are currently reading
47 people want to read
About the author
Angela Roquet
64 books720 followersUSA Today bestselling author Angela Roquet is a delightfully macabre weirdo. She lives in Missouri with her irresistible BFF husband, their sweet, clever son, and a majestic marshmallow of a Great Pyrenees in a house stuffed with books, toys, skulls, owls, and glitter-speckled craft supplies.
Angela is a member of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers Association, as well as the Four Horsemen of the Bookocalypse, her epic book critique group, where she’s known as Death. When not swearing at the keyboard, she enjoys playing with her family and reading books that raise eyebrows.
You can find Angela online at www.angelaroquet.com
GRAVEYARD SHIFT, the first novel in Angela's Lana Harvey, Reapers Inc. series, and BLOOD VICE, book one in the Blood Vice series, are now available for FREE on Kindle, Nook, Kobo, iBooks, & Google.
Angela is a member of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers Association, as well as the Four Horsemen of the Bookocalypse, her epic book critique group, where she’s known as Death. When not swearing at the keyboard, she enjoys playing with her family and reading books that raise eyebrows.
You can find Angela online at www.angelaroquet.com
GRAVEYARD SHIFT, the first novel in Angela's Lana Harvey, Reapers Inc. series, and BLOOD VICE, book one in the Blood Vice series, are now available for FREE on Kindle, Nook, Kobo, iBooks, & Google.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
October 31, 2018
3 Stars
Review:
This anthology started out so promising. I enjoyed the first few stories, they were punchy and fun, but then I got increasingly frustrated with how many of these seemed to be just the beginning of a bigger story, like a prequel or an excerpt from the first chapter of a book. Some definitely were, some I'm not actually sure, but they opened up a bunch of threads and closed none of them. And that's not what I bought this for. I was expecting short stories that would feel complete and be enjoyable on their own.
That issue aside... I loved the idea for this book---fantasy bar brawls is a fun theme. I appreciated that, for the most part, these stories were fun/interesting/entertaining on the surface rather than requiring the reader to find deeper, hidden themes and meanings. And of course I loved all the supernatural creatures.
"Limbus Lounge" by A.R. Wise really left an impression on me. I wasn't expecting a short story about a fantasy bar brawl to be such a mindfuck! The story was entertaining with a very unsettling undertone.
"The Tipsy Toadstool" by Jasie Gale was about pixies, and it was so cute! Everything was pixie-fied, like how their bar was a tree and their drinks were sap and honey. It also had an otherwordly faerie circle and a sweet ending.
Those were the two that stood out to me the most. The rest of the stories I had varying opinions of. Some I enjoyed or thought had some interesting elements (like the demons in "Meet Me at the Crossroads" by Kory M. Shrum and the fire/water fae powers in "Rennard's Tavern of Turmoil" by Kathrine Pendleton). Others weren't for me, or the feeling that the story was just an excerpt left me frustrated and dissatisfied.
Also, just a note, according to Amazon at the time of this review, this book is 467 pages long, but I think that's incorrect. It didn't feel long.
Some readers may enjoy getting a little taste of different books/series in addition to different authors, in which case I think this would be a great read. And some readers may simply have different taste and love all these stories. But, although there are a few standout stories here, overall this anthology did not live up to its potential for me.
Recommended For:
Anyone who likes supernatural creatures and alcohol-infused urban fantasy and who wants to sample different books/series in addition to different authors.
Original Review @ Metaphors and Moonlight
Review:
This anthology started out so promising. I enjoyed the first few stories, they were punchy and fun, but then I got increasingly frustrated with how many of these seemed to be just the beginning of a bigger story, like a prequel or an excerpt from the first chapter of a book. Some definitely were, some I'm not actually sure, but they opened up a bunch of threads and closed none of them. And that's not what I bought this for. I was expecting short stories that would feel complete and be enjoyable on their own.
That issue aside... I loved the idea for this book---fantasy bar brawls is a fun theme. I appreciated that, for the most part, these stories were fun/interesting/entertaining on the surface rather than requiring the reader to find deeper, hidden themes and meanings. And of course I loved all the supernatural creatures.
"Limbus Lounge" by A.R. Wise really left an impression on me. I wasn't expecting a short story about a fantasy bar brawl to be such a mindfuck! The story was entertaining with a very unsettling undertone.
"The Tipsy Toadstool" by Jasie Gale was about pixies, and it was so cute! Everything was pixie-fied, like how their bar was a tree and their drinks were sap and honey. It also had an otherwordly faerie circle and a sweet ending.
Those were the two that stood out to me the most. The rest of the stories I had varying opinions of. Some I enjoyed or thought had some interesting elements (like the demons in "Meet Me at the Crossroads" by Kory M. Shrum and the fire/water fae powers in "Rennard's Tavern of Turmoil" by Kathrine Pendleton). Others weren't for me, or the feeling that the story was just an excerpt left me frustrated and dissatisfied.
Also, just a note, according to Amazon at the time of this review, this book is 467 pages long, but I think that's incorrect. It didn't feel long.
Some readers may enjoy getting a little taste of different books/series in addition to different authors, in which case I think this would be a great read. And some readers may simply have different taste and love all these stories. But, although there are a few standout stories here, overall this anthology did not live up to its potential for me.
Recommended For:
Anyone who likes supernatural creatures and alcohol-infused urban fantasy and who wants to sample different books/series in addition to different authors.
Original Review @ Metaphors and Moonlight
September 16, 2018
What a great book!
Going in I was sceptical. I'm not one for short stories, but with one of my favorite authors being one of the 13 I had to give it a go. I'm so glad I did, not only is each story really good, but so very different. There's only one problem.......well not so much a problem, but I now have 12 more authors on my have to read list. I've already downloaded books from them! Genius idea, great book, sit back, grab yourself a cocktail and enjoy!
Going in I was sceptical. I'm not one for short stories, but with one of my favorite authors being one of the 13 I had to give it a go. I'm so glad I did, not only is each story really good, but so very different. There's only one problem.......well not so much a problem, but I now have 12 more authors on my have to read list. I've already downloaded books from them! Genius idea, great book, sit back, grab yourself a cocktail and enjoy!
Want to read
October 22, 2018I will update my review as I go along and finish the stories.
I liked the theme of this book and anthologies are always a great way to discover new to me authors. All of the authors in this one were new to me. I was surprises to see that this book is only about 250 pages and contains 13 stories, which makes each story pretty short and seeing if the authors can tell a satisfying story within so few pages is always one of the things I am most curious about.
Blood and Honey by Angela Roquet
I liked how the author managed to give you a complete story, while at the same time teasing that there is more to this world and characters. But it never feels like you're missing big pieces, it more made me curious to know more. The story easily works as a standalone, it details a mission of the main character and her boss while they're trying to catch someone in a strip club. I liked how the bit of paranormal was mixed in and how we got a bit of a feel for this world. The ending is a bit open, but still wrapped up this story pretty well. Overall this was a fun read, that felt complete and not rushed and had an interesting story and gave readers a feel for the characters and world.
Limbus Lounge by A.R. Wise
I liked how this story didn't feel rushed and had a clear begin and ending and it didn't feel like you missed too much. I liked the bar tending competition scenes, with the description of the drinks and such and it felt like the author knew enough about bartending to make it sounds realistic. I am not quite sure what to think of the twist. It is hard to have a good twist in such a story, so that was well done. I just wans't quite sure how to feel about the twist itself. It was a bit weird. but at the same time it's the kind of story and twist that was well suited for this story format.
I liked the theme of this book and anthologies are always a great way to discover new to me authors. All of the authors in this one were new to me. I was surprises to see that this book is only about 250 pages and contains 13 stories, which makes each story pretty short and seeing if the authors can tell a satisfying story within so few pages is always one of the things I am most curious about.
Blood and Honey by Angela Roquet
I liked how the author managed to give you a complete story, while at the same time teasing that there is more to this world and characters. But it never feels like you're missing big pieces, it more made me curious to know more. The story easily works as a standalone, it details a mission of the main character and her boss while they're trying to catch someone in a strip club. I liked how the bit of paranormal was mixed in and how we got a bit of a feel for this world. The ending is a bit open, but still wrapped up this story pretty well. Overall this was a fun read, that felt complete and not rushed and had an interesting story and gave readers a feel for the characters and world.
Limbus Lounge by A.R. Wise
I liked how this story didn't feel rushed and had a clear begin and ending and it didn't feel like you missed too much. I liked the bar tending competition scenes, with the description of the drinks and such and it felt like the author knew enough about bartending to make it sounds realistic. I am not quite sure what to think of the twist. It is hard to have a good twist in such a story, so that was well done. I just wans't quite sure how to feel about the twist itself. It was a bit weird. but at the same time it's the kind of story and twist that was well suited for this story format.
October 6, 2018
I was originally drawn to this anthology because in contained a story by one of my favorite authors - Meet Me at the Crossroads, by Kory Shrum. Not only was that wonderful but it introduced me to 12 other amazing authors that not only did I thoroughly enjoy but even got a some other books from other contributors! Other stories which I think you will find are AWESOME as well are the ones by A.R. Wise and Angela Roquet...I can't wait to read more of their stories. If you like dark, adventurous stories with substance, some heat and snark, this is the compilation for you. This is a wonderful taste of different styles of writing in the paranormal genre, with certainly something to please every reader. Get this today, great price, great authors, great stories, doesn't get much better than this!
October 10, 2018
Fantastic stories
Fantastic collection of bar fights. Was introduced to it as an ARC but bought my own book to show my support of these talented authors.
Each story is short and different. However you will find those you love some more than others as our preferences are different.
One of my favorite author's Melissa Shark is in this anthology and she was as fabulous as usual. Great collection of bar fights. Totally recommend this book for an enjoyable read.
Fantastic collection of bar fights. Was introduced to it as an ARC but bought my own book to show my support of these talented authors.
Each story is short and different. However you will find those you love some more than others as our preferences are different.
One of my favorite author's Melissa Shark is in this anthology and she was as fabulous as usual. Great collection of bar fights. Totally recommend this book for an enjoyable read.
December 28, 2019
We've all been there...either we were part of the problem or an innocent bystander...but each of these incredibly talented authors took it a step (or more) further! Add this to your tbr pile...but make sure you read it!!
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews