Grimm, Grit and Gasoline: Dieselpunk & Decopunk Fairy Tales

Punked Up Fairy Tales #1

by Rhonda Parrish (editor), Zannier Alejandra, Alicia K. Anderson

Dieselpunk and decopunk are alternative history re-imaginings of (roughly) the WWI and WWII eras: tales with the grit of roaring bombers and rumbling tanks, of 'We Can Do It' and old time gangsters, or with the glamour of flappers and Hollywood starlets, smoky jazz and speakeasies. The stories in this volume add fairy tales to the mix, transporting classic tales to this rich historical setting.

Two young women defy the devil with the power of friendship. The pilot of a talking plane discovers a woman who transforms into a swan every night and is pulled into a much more personal conflict than the war he’s already fighting. A pair of twins with special powers find themselves in Eva Braun’s custody and wrapped up in a nefarious plan. A team of female special agents must destroy a secret weapon–the spindle–before it can be deployed. Retellings of The Little Mermaid, Hansel and Gretel, Rapunzel, Cinderella, The Monkey King, Swan Lake, Pinocchio and more are all showcased alongside some original fairy tale-like stories.

Featuring stories by Zannier Alejandra, Alicia K. Anderson, Jack Bates, Patrick Bollivar, Sara Cleto, Amanda C. Davis, Jennifer R. Donohue, Juliet Harper, Blake Jessop, A.A. Medina, Lizz Donnelly, Nellie Neves, Wendy Nikel, Brian Trent, Alena Van Arendonk, Laura VanArendonk Baugh, Sarah Van Goethem, and Robert E. Vardeman.

Genres: Fantasy, Steampunk, Anthologies, Short Stories, Fairy Tales, Magic, Science Fiction

300 pages, Paperback

First published September 3, 2019

About the author

Rhonda Parrish has the attention span of a magpie. Not only can she not focus on a single project at a time, but she also fails at sticking to one genre or even one type of writing (she does manage to stay true to one hockey team, though – Let’s go Oilers!). Perhaps best known for her work as an anthology editor – the Ottawa Review of Books called her “Canada’s best-known and most prolific speculative fiction anthologist” – Rhonda also works as a short story writer, novelist, game writer and a poet. She has been honoured to be included in a handful of ‘Best of’ anthologies, earn a coveted starred review from Publisher’s Weekly and be shortlisted for several awards including the Rhysling Award, the Aurora Award, the Dwarf Stars Award and Alberta Book Publishing Awards.

Most of her work falls under the speculative fiction umbrella but she has also penned paranormal non-fiction and non-speculative work.

In an effort to impose some order in her chaos, these days most of her short fiction and poetry is published directly through her Patreon https://www.patreon.com/c/RhondaParrish .

More information about her, updates and calls for submission are posted on her website http://www.rhondaparrish.com/home/.

Reviews

[Marquise · Rating 4 out of 5]

A nice collection of Dieselpunk retellings of Grimm fairy tales. My favourite stories were "The Loch" by Zannier Alejandra (a Swan Lake retelling), "Daughters of Earth and Sky" by Robert E. Vardeman (a take on Little Mermaid themes), and "A Princess, a Spy, and a Dwarf Walked into a Bar Full of Nazis" by Patrick Bollivar (a silly romp that retells Sleeping Beauty in WWII France).

[Don Gerstein · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have begun to look forward to each offering from editor Rhonda Parrish and World Weaver Press, as their compilations of short stories have yet to disappoint. “Grimm, Grit, and Gasoline,” a mixture of Dieselpunk, Decopunk, and fairy tales, is no exception.

There are nineteen stories from different authors, and none of them disappointed. Yes, there are some I enjoyed more than others, but I never experienced the feeling that a tale was lacking and that I would be better served to skip to the next one. There were more fairy tale adaptations than I expected, though I found them to be creative and not entirely dependent upon the original story.

Some of my favorites included “The Rescue of Tresses Malone,” a detective/gangster setting mixed with a fairy tale brought to life by Alena Van Arendonk. Nellie K. Neves combined wartime adventurers and dieselpunk with a fairy tale, “As the Spindle Burns.” I also enjoyed the twists and turns in Jack Bates’ mystery story, “Bonne Chance Confidential.” And how could anyone resist the enticing title from Patrick Bollivar, “A Princess, a Spy, and a Dwarf Walked into a Bar Full of Nazis.”

This book is chockful of strong, heroic women who are given interesting plots to wind their way through. Creative ideas will keep readers turning the pages all the way to the end. Five stars.

My thanks to Editor Rhonda Parrish and World Weaver Press for an advance complimentary ebook of this title.

[Beth Cato · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is awesome. I supplied a blurb:
"Magic mixes with grease and jazz in this fantastic new anthology that brims with strong heroines, diverse settings, and a heaping helping of Nazi-punching."

[Keith · Rating 4 out of 5]

Disclosure: I got a copy from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I enjoyed this collection of ”punked up” fairytales. Unlike many anthologies there were no weak stories in the book and several standouts, including those Laura VanArendonk Baugh, A. A. Medina and Nellie K. Neeves. The original fairy tales are mainly European, although there are a few from other geographies. The writing, editing, and overall presentation were very good and not apparent as I read the book. My only quibble would be they all basically had happy endings, not something I associate with all fairy tales.
I would recommend this book as an enjoyable retelling of some fairy tales, and I intend to follow the anthologist.

[Rhonda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Starred review from Publisher's Weekly, "These unfailingly clever tales are impressive and page-turning, helping to correct the dearth of speculative fiction set in the interwar era. There is also a frequent and welcome spotlight on heroic women. Any reader who enjoys early-20th-century history or retold fairy tales will find these familiar but new, with well-played wonder in every story."

Read the whole review here --> https://www.publishersweekly.com/978-...

[Tinafoo · Rating 5 out of 5]

DieselPunk retellings of some of your favorite fairytales, and many you've never heard of.

I wasn't expecting to like this book, as it's not my favorite genre. Instead I found myself glued to each story, trying to figure out before it told me, which fairy tale it was based on!

ARC received from editor, and I'm really glad!

[Cat Bowser · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received an ARC of this book and am leaving a review voluntarily.

I was immediately intrigued by the idea behind this book. I like some steampunk but the Victorian era isn’t necessarily my favorite. So, when this book presented the idea of the same sort of focus on machinery but a tone period of ww1-WW2, I was sold.

I’m happy to say the stories are amazing. I loved seeing fairy tales represented here that don’t get a lot of focus, like the Devil and the Salt Circle. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a retelling of that one before but I loved it.

There are wonderful characters in here and each of them has a fun, eccentric personality that lends itself to the story being told. Like how about a Swam Princess retelling during the Second World War that contains a sentient plane?

Yeah, all kinds of little treasures like that to be found in here.

Whatever you would call this new version of steampunk, I’m sold.

[Sheena Carroll · Rating 5 out of 5]

(Note: I received a free copy of this ebook for review through the LibraryThing Early Reviewers program.)

I was impressed with the creativity of these stories: Journey to the West in the Dust Bowl, Cinderella meets The Great Gatsby in a detective noir, and many other historical and cultural mashups that are at the bare minimum very creative and at their best so clever that they made me a little envious as a writer! Parrish did an excellent job curating and organizing this collection; the opening stories are particularly strong, but they all work well.

My full review can be found at: http://missmacross.com/2019/08/27/rev...

[deep]

PW Starred: As anthologist Parrish explains in the introduction to this wonderful anthology, dieselpunk and decopunk are cousins of steampunk, fantastical stories set between the start of WWI and the end of WWII. These dieselpunk and decopunk retellings of fairy tales go far afield for an entertaining variety of interpretations. Laura VanArendonk Baugh’s claustrophobic thriller “To Go West” brings literal grit by way of a savage magical Dust Bowl wind that pursues a group on a mission from Heaven. A Japanese invasion of China carried out from a mechanical sky-island gets modern mythological twists in Brian Trent’s “Steel Dragons on a Luminous Sky.” Grit, glitz, and a sly celebrity appearance enliven a white-knuckle all-female infiltration mission in “As the Spindle Burns” by Nellie K. Neves. These unfailingly clever tales are impressive and page-turning, helping to correct the dearth of speculative fiction set in the interwar era. There is also a frequent and welcome spotlight on heroic women. Any reader who enjoys early-20th-century history or retold fairy tales will find these familiar but new, with well-played wonder in every story. (Sept.)

[Jay C · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's hard to rate anthologies since they can be such a mixed bag. I eventually decided on 4 stars because there are several stories in this one that are very much worth reading and make the book worth buying. My favorites:

Evening Chorus by Lizz Donnelly (a retelling of Hans Christian Anderson's "The Nightingale")
Make This Water No Deeper by Blake Jessop (do you know what a "Rusalka" is? I didn't until now)
One Hundred Years by Jennifer Donohue (another legend I wasn't previously aware of)
Ramps and Rocket by Alicia Anderson (great framing of a good story)
Accidents are not Possible by Sara van Goethem (fraternal twins navigate the twilight time of Nazi Germany and "Master Race" experimentation.

In general, I enjoy exploring these offbeat (for my normal reading patterns anyway) anthologies and invariably encounter some gems among them.

[Tim · Rating 3 out of 5]

A mixed bag, like any anthology -- a few little gems, a few clunkers, and some in between. My particular favorites were the resetting of Monkey's journey to the West into the dustbowl exodus, and the rusalka who resents the Dneiper dam, as the Russians face the Nazi advance on the region.

[Laurie · Rating 5 out of 5]

The time of “Dieselpunk’ and “Decopunk” runs from the start of WW 1 to the end of WW 2. Like Steampunk, they refer to an alternate world history, one in which the mechanics of the world are futuristic- ray guns, robots (sometimes sentient ones), rockets, and, sometimes, magic. Some of the tales I think I’d call noir punk. This collection takes fairy tales and sets them in this D-punk world, mostly with good effect. Sleeping Beauty, Pinocchio. Rapunzel, the Little Mermaid, and more. I was happy to see many female heroes, and pretty good queer representation. All the authors were new to me, but there were NO duds in this anthology- which I find unusual; most times, I don’t like half the stories in an anthology. Five stars!

[Barbara Harrison · Rating 5 out of 5]

This lovely PG13 anthology of deiselpunk and decopunk fairy tales took me almost a week because my computer kept crashing but I am sure it could be read in far less time than that.
Circles and Salt by Sara Cleto: a remarkable short tale about dealing with the devil.
Salvage by A.A. Medina: A quickie set near WWI Verdun.
The Loch by Zannier Alehandra: This one is England, WWII.
Evening Chorus by Lizz Donnelly: A lovely rendition of The Nattergalen.
To Go West by Laura VanArendonk Baugh: This is the dust bowl one.
Bonne Chance Confidential by Jack Bates: A lovely gem set on Long Island in 1925.
The Neugdae by Juliet Harper: Spooky story set in South Korea.
The Rescue of Tresses Malone by Alena Van Arendonk: The clue is in the title.
Daughters of Earth and Air by Robert E. Vardeman: This one is set at the end of WWI.
Easy as Eating Pie by Amanda C. Davis: This is set in the Oklahoma Dust Bowl.
Accidents are Not Possible by Sarah Van Goethem: A strange tale set at the end of WWII.
A Princess, a Spy, and a Dwarf Walked into a Bar Full of Nazis by Patrick Bollivar: Another WWII one in Germany.
Steel Dragons of a Luminous Sky by Brian Trent: Again WWII, this time set in China.
Ramps and Rocket by Alicia K Anderson: This one is set in a city of highrises.
As The Spindle Burns by Nellie k. Neves: Another WWII in Germany.
Make This Water No Deeper by Blake Jessop: The tale of a dam on the Dnieper in 1941.
One Hundred Years by Jennifer R. Donohue: This one takes place during WWII in Poland.
Things Forgotten on the Cliffs of Avevig by Wendy Nikel: This is a bittersweet tale about puffin hunting.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Annette Jordan · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fun collection of fairy and folk tales with a DIeselpunk spin, I really enjoyed this collection of stories collected together by Rhonda Parrish. I had never heard of this genre before, but I was immediately drawn to the cover, and once I read the explanatory introduction I knew that I would enjoy this book.. To explain, Dieselpunk is a little like Steampunk, but set at a later date, instead of the Victorian era associated with steampunk, these stories are largely set in the era of the first and second world wars, and the period in between. A talented group of writers have embraced the challenge and written their own versions of stories such as Rapunzel, Pinocchio and Sleeping Beauty, where mechanics and oil lend a helping hand to the magic and mythology. It is rare that I enjoy all the stories in an anthology collection, but I have to say that I could not find any weakness in this collection, all of the stories were enjoyable. Of course I did have favourites, most notably As The Spindle Burns by Nellie K Neves, Salvage by A.A. Medina and The Rescue of Tresses Malone by Alena Van Arendonk. I loved that several of the stories featured Queer characters and /or were written by Queer authors, Overall a book filled with as much grit as glamour and one I enjoyed immensely
I read and reviewed an ARC courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher, all opinions are my own

[Lizz Donnelly]

**no star review because I have a story in this anthology!**

I had a couple of standout favorites in this anthology. 

Brian Trent's Steel Dragons of a Luminous Sky is fantastic. I loved the eastern influence of this one, and the mechanical qilin, which I had to google, and is a mythic Chinese unicorn dragon. The twist at the end, which I won't give away, was very well done. 

I also really enjoyed Alena Van Arendonk's The Rescue of Tresses Malone, which, you may have guessed, is a Rapunzel re-telling set in the gangster era. I'm a sucker for a good hard boiled detective story, and this one had an excellent voice. 

Lastly, my absolute favorite story was Make This Water No Deeper by Blake Jessop. I don't actually have a reason why I liked this one so much. It's a lovely Little Mermaid-esque story inspired by the myth of Russian rusalka--water sprites that are generally a little vindictive and murder-y, in the true spirit of mermaids--set during World War II

On the whole, this is a really solid anthology and I'm completely chuffed to be included on the table of contents. If you like fairy tale re-tellings, I recommend. If your young adults like fairy tales, I'd call this anthology PG-13, so maybe not for the real littles, but teenagers are fine. 

[Topsues]

My first thought was I’ve never heard of the Dieselpunk genre. However Rhonda Parrish is a favourite author of mine, so I took the plunge. I’m so glad I did as this genre is now something I will definitely be reading again. I’ve read a lot of re-tellings of Fairytales & I love Mythology. I’ve always been able to recognise the Fairytales & Fables early on but Dieselpunk has so many twists and turns, some with hard edges &. approaches you would never consider, it will keep you on your toes until the light bulb message comes through. Does every fairytale deserve a happy ending? How Rhonda Parrish picked 19 stories each individual & original to publish in her anthology, by authors I had never come across before was genius. She has thrust these stories & authors into their own spotlight. Trusting Rhonda Parrish as an author was my compelling force, not being let down was a given. Congratulations to trusting your gut, and for introducing me to a new genre, cementing my decision that Once again you haven disappointed.

[Reese Hogan · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was great fun to get lost in the industrial and gritty world of these dieselpunk fairy tale retellings. Filled with rivets, steel, planes, and tanks, it featured a diverse cast of protagonists with a fascinating array of strengths and motivations. While I found the “decopunk” ones fun, my true love was with the military-slanted stories, and there were plenty of great ones to choose from. Ranging from tales with real-life historical figures to fables from different parts of the world, from the more familiar to the most obscure, everyone will find something to love within the pages of Grimm, Grit, and Gasoline.

*I was given an ARC of this book for the purposes of giving an unbiased review and blurbing it if I liked it. I’m happy to say that I loved it enough to provide this blurb: “Get lost in the industrial and gritty world of this dieselpunk fairyland, filled with planes and tanks, intense emotion, and plenty of high-stakes action.”

[Ashilee · Rating 5 out of 5]

I got this as an ARC copy in exchange for a fair and honest review. I am a huge fan of fairy tale retellings and re-imaginings and this collection did not disappoint. It was like mixing The Rocketeer, The Great Gatsby and a book of fairy tales. As mentioned by other reviewers there were some stories I liked more than others, but all in all this was a fun collection that took a different approach to some well known and some little less known fairy tales and folk tales. Anthology books are a great way to sample some new authors and to get to know some authors you already knew. I was impressed and very enthralled by this collection.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Douglas Williamson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an anthology of stories with the unusual mix of themes including fairy tales, dieselpunk and decopunk. I am still not sure I understand what decopunk is.

I love anthologies for the opportunity to explore new authors and this was a perfect example. Consisting of nineteen stories by different authors, I got a wide variety of styles, plots and characters which thrilled me with each new tale. While I did have my favorites, none of them were duds and I was sad to come to the end of the last one and know I was done. But now I have some new authors to seek out. Overall, an excellent read and well worth your time.

Highly recommended.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout for review purposes.

[Anastasiia Nesterenko · Rating 5 out of 5]

I often buy anthologies curated by Rhonda Parrish. They are always unusual and it is a great way to discover new authors. This particular anthology has scared me at first. Both World Wars were extremely scary. But as this collection shows, those time periods could also be a setting for stories full of hope and magic. I really liked them. I found their Swan Lake retelling especially endearing. I highly recommend this anthology. Moreover, I have not only gotten an ARC - I have also bought the book. It is really worth it.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Ron · Rating 4 out of 5]

Take the Brothers Grimm, drop in diesel-punk, add in fairy tales from around the world and a few noir settings, turn on the blender, and puree. A nice collection of short stories that blend a wide variety of fairy tales with World War - World War II settings . My favorite tales from this collection are "A Princess, A Spy, and a Dwarf Walk into A Bar Full of Nazis," " Steel Dragons of a Luminous Sky," and "As the Spindle Burns" with "Accidents are Not Possible" a close contender. if you like fairy tales retold in imaginative ways, pick up this collection and enjoy!

Thank you Netgalley for the opportunity to read this!

[Teri Ruscak · Rating 5 out of 5]

Grimm, Grit and Gasoline by
Rhonda Parrish is an awesome anthology, with retellings of The Little Mermaid, Hansel and Gretel, Rapunzel, Cinderella, The Monkey King, Swan Lake, Pinocchio and more are all showcased alongside some original fairy tale-like stories.
Featuring stories by Zannier Alejandra, Alicia K. Anderson, Jack Bates, Patrick Bollivar, Sara Cleto, Amanda C. Davis, Jennifer R. Donohue, Juliet Harper, Blake Jessop, A.A. Medina, Lizz Donnelly, Nellie Neves, Wendy Nikel, Brian Trent, Alena Van Arendonk, Laura VanArendonk Baugh, Sarah Van Goethem, and Robert E. Vardeman.
Enjoy!

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Elesha · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book of punked up fairy tales was a very interesting read! I loved the creativity the authors used to alter well known and little known fairy tales. I'm not usually one for war stories, but there were many in here that I enjoyed. The anthology features lots of strong women, Nazi fighting, and hope. I also liked that not all the stories were based on Western-world tales. As usual, Parrish has put together an anthology with stories that are varied and diverse, so there will be at least one or two that any reader will enjoy.

[Iseult Murphy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Do you like stories set during the Second World War, featuring giant (often sentient) machines? Yes! How about stories of the roaring twenties that feature reworked fairy tales? Yes! This anthology has wonderful, magical, entertaining and moving stories that feature magic and war. Apparently this genre is called diesel punk and deco punk, and I can’t wait to read more like it. Highly imaginative from first to last, a must read for fantasy fans.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Jemima Pett · Rating 4 out of 5]

My Review

This book is a real treat!  I didn't realise from the call for submissions it was just 'retell a fairy tale in a wildly different setting' although that's pretty much what the call said.  How far does one have to go to avoid plagiarism?

As it turns out, reimagining fairy tales is not plagiarism, and you can use exactly the same names if you like.  Just put them in a completely different setting, with some imaginative twists, so that the reader almost knows what's coming, but it's enjoyably different. And since I'm a bit hazy on some of the fairy tales included, I didn't actually know what was likely to happen anyway.

I can honestly say that I loved nearly all the stories.  It just got a tiny bit tedious towards the end.  Maybe three fewer stories in the anthology would have worked better for me. 

The editor confesses she included two that weren't exactly on theme, but I'm glad she included them, because they were brilliant. They may have been my favourites.  But I was ready to say that after each of the first five.  They were all excellent.

Grimm, Grit and Gasoline is an absolute gem, and a great book for picking up and putting down again a short while later. Or just continuing to the next one if you're not short of time. Look out for more!

[Lila]

This is an overall solid collection of fairytale and fairytale-like stories set in a timeframe spanning from the 1920’s to WW II. The settings are diverse and there are a variety of interesting tales used as the backbones of the stories.

One important caveat is that a significant number of the stories take place in WWII. The introduction makes it clear that the editor expanded the definition of dieselpunk to go beyond the interwar years. Another is that they are closer to fairytale retelling a than anything adjacent to steampunk. I would say that it’s really closer to gaslight fantasy.

[Kimberly Tierney · Rating 3 out of 5]

When I say that diversifying your reading genre is important to getting out of your box, Grimm, Grit & Gasoline is a prime example of that for me. I don't enjoy reading short stories. Nor would anything labeled as diesel or deco punk typically be enticing to me. But I am a sucker for fairy tale retellings, and I think I was hoping for that when I picked up this book. I enjoyed it, too. Something in it fed a part of my reader's soul that has been neglected lately and would have stayed neglected had I not stepped out of my reading box and tried something new.

[Heather W · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is my first foray into the world of Dieselpunk and Decopunk and I found these fairy tales, both retellings and originals, to be very interesting. I had never heard of these genres but found them to be stories told in the era in and between WWI and WWII. These are imaginative and creative and I really enjoyed reading this anthology. Some stories I liked better than others, but none of them disappointed me.

I voluntarily read and reviewed a copy of this book with no obligation.

[James · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's not the first collection of short stories with fairy tales as a theme. This is an OK collection with a few decent stories, some of the stories are pretty rough while some longer ones are quite good. I probably would have written a kinder review if I hadn't just finished a much better collection of shorts by Seanan McGuire. A borderline decent book.

[Margaret · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was a lot of fun to read. All the different sorts of Punk were interesting, as I hadn't been aware of so many options !!

I like that a lot of the stories are retellings of fairy tales, but quirky. ( i love quirky!) There are some LGBTQIA, as well.

I found this very enjoyable, and well arranged. I would definitely read more with Rhonda Parrish as the editor, and now I have some new authors to look for !