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Distant Gardens: Ten Stories of Exploration, Biodiversity, and Found Family
Rules were made to be broken.
From terraformed outposts to magical realms, journey to worlds where deadly plants, rampant biodiversity, or failed colonies have created irresistible opportunities for those brave enough to seize them.
New worlds, found family, mystical secrets, and deadly science weave together in this lesbian-centric anthology focusing on a very different kind of first time—a first encounter with a world, or being, entirely unlike our own.
If you like diverse stories with lesbian heroines practicing science, magic, and seduction, buy Distant Gardens today!
Genres: Space Opera / Science Fiction / Fantasy / Romance / LGBT Lesbian Trans ACE Bi Nonbinary
Market: Adult and New Adult
From terraformed outposts to magical realms, journey to worlds where deadly plants, rampant biodiversity, or failed colonies have created irresistible opportunities for those brave enough to seize them.
New worlds, found family, mystical secrets, and deadly science weave together in this lesbian-centric anthology focusing on a very different kind of first time—a first encounter with a world, or being, entirely unlike our own.
If you like diverse stories with lesbian heroines practicing science, magic, and seduction, buy Distant Gardens today!
Genres: Space Opera / Science Fiction / Fantasy / Romance / LGBT Lesbian Trans ACE Bi Nonbinary
Market: Adult and New Adult
397 pages, Kindle Edition
First published August 1, 2021
46 people are currently reading
212 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 43 reviews
September 1, 2021
4.5⭐️ – I always hope, when I read a collection or an anthology, that I’ll like more than one story. I’m happy to say I found something to like in every story in Distant Gardens and will add all the authors I didn’t already know to my list of authors I want to read more by.
There are ten stories in this collection, written by five authors, each offering a standalone story and one linked to previous works. There are murderous AIs, sneaky spores, fairies, krakens, scientists of all species and genders, mutinies, and all sorts of uncooperative trees and fungi. All with kickass sapphic heroines, including superheroines. A word of warning though: there’s a lot more gore than romance (but there’s romance too).
A couple of stories felt slightly too long, and one was a bit hard to get into without already knowing the universe. Readers who haven’t read J.S. Fields’ Ardulum series might feel the same way when reading the author’s koala offering, which I already knew and like a lot. There’s an easy fix, however: read the Ardulum books, they’re awesome.
Fields’ Jellyfish Lovepotion was one of my favourite stories in this collection, along with Sara Codair’s Brie and the Marsh Kraken and How to Steal a Planet by N.L. Bates.
I received a copy from the publisher and I am voluntarily leaving a review.
There are ten stories in this collection, written by five authors, each offering a standalone story and one linked to previous works. There are murderous AIs, sneaky spores, fairies, krakens, scientists of all species and genders, mutinies, and all sorts of uncooperative trees and fungi. All with kickass sapphic heroines, including superheroines. A word of warning though: there’s a lot more gore than romance (but there’s romance too).
A couple of stories felt slightly too long, and one was a bit hard to get into without already knowing the universe. Readers who haven’t read J.S. Fields’ Ardulum series might feel the same way when reading the author’s koala offering, which I already knew and like a lot. There’s an easy fix, however: read the Ardulum books, they’re awesome.
Fields’ Jellyfish Lovepotion was one of my favourite stories in this collection, along with Sara Codair’s Brie and the Marsh Kraken and How to Steal a Planet by N.L. Bates.
I received a copy from the publisher and I am voluntarily leaving a review.
October 6, 2021
A really cool anthology of 10 thoroughly engaging sci-fi/fantasy stories with Sapphic characters! Kindle Unlimited.
Despite these being short stories (most of them went for about an hour) they never felt short in any way. They felt full and emotive, funny and intriguing. So much depth and detail here that surprised me in the best ways. I would highly recommend it to fans of sci-fi and fantasy who love strong female identifying, women loving, leads! It's trans and non-binary inclusive, also, which I love.
Here's some blurbs for some of my favourite stories:
Radiant: A woman with super-human abilities is teamed up with a similarly distracting side-kick, to navigate the depths of a sea kelp forest in the ocean, to help bring down a super-villain.
Jellyfish Lovepotion: A carpenter is employed to help maintain a space ship carrying many cryo-frozen passengers to a new world many lightyears away from an Earth planet that is dying. Only to discover strange spores taking over the ship, and an alluring Doctor of Botany flirting with her every step of the way.
Thorns and Fur: A trans woman scientist meets a bear-like female fighter from the 'enemy' side while researching plants on the much battled-for island, but both are attracted to one another's differences, and find more similarities - so want to stop the war destroying the useful and beneficial plants and each other.
Dew Diligence: Julia finds herself in fairyland, chasing after Goblins disrupting the kingdom with her Gran's Jam! The alluring Fairy Rowan gruffly assists.
Brie and the Marsh Kraken: Brie returns to her childhood home in the salty swamps, meeting her previous bestie and teen crush in the alluring Gretchen, now all grown up - and who is more than she appears! (There are tentacles involved!) She wants Brie to help her take down a large corporation set on destroying their precious home.
Despite these being short stories (most of them went for about an hour) they never felt short in any way. They felt full and emotive, funny and intriguing. So much depth and detail here that surprised me in the best ways. I would highly recommend it to fans of sci-fi and fantasy who love strong female identifying, women loving, leads! It's trans and non-binary inclusive, also, which I love.
Here's some blurbs for some of my favourite stories:
Radiant: A woman with super-human abilities is teamed up with a similarly distracting side-kick, to navigate the depths of a sea kelp forest in the ocean, to help bring down a super-villain.
Jellyfish Lovepotion: A carpenter is employed to help maintain a space ship carrying many cryo-frozen passengers to a new world many lightyears away from an Earth planet that is dying. Only to discover strange spores taking over the ship, and an alluring Doctor of Botany flirting with her every step of the way.
Thorns and Fur: A trans woman scientist meets a bear-like female fighter from the 'enemy' side while researching plants on the much battled-for island, but both are attracted to one another's differences, and find more similarities - so want to stop the war destroying the useful and beneficial plants and each other.
Dew Diligence: Julia finds herself in fairyland, chasing after Goblins disrupting the kingdom with her Gran's Jam! The alluring Fairy Rowan gruffly assists.
Brie and the Marsh Kraken: Brie returns to her childhood home in the salty swamps, meeting her previous bestie and teen crush in the alluring Gretchen, now all grown up - and who is more than she appears! (There are tentacles involved!) She wants Brie to help her take down a large corporation set on destroying their precious home.
August 18, 2021
This came up in my ARC list recently. Part of the tagline says: 'If you like diverse stories with lesbian heroines practicing science'. Well, that had me sold.
My favourite is Jellyfish Lovepotion by JS Fields. Andrea is a snarky scientist about to leave Earth for the last time when things – as they so often do – go awry. Dew Diligence was a close second.
This brilliantly diverse anthology runs the gamut from silly and fun to eerily prescient.
Radiant by NL Bates
Anna and Chris work together to clear away discarded radioactive material off Vancouver Island.
A superhero story set in Canada. For me the focus was too much on romance and not enough in character or plot (but that’s just me)."
Jellyfish Lovepotion by JS Fields
Andrea don’t really want to leave Earth, but gets called up at short notice to join the generation ship, Lovepotion.
Romance takes a back seat to both plot and character development in this high-stakes yet snarky tale. I really enjoyed this one.
Thorns and Fur by William C Tracy
Kamuli and Bhon are on opposing sides of a war when they meet. But that can't stop the intense attraction between the pair.
Dew Diligence: The First Fairyl@nd Story by Robin C.M. Duncan
Reeling from a bad breakup, Julia goes to stay with her grandmother in Berks for a bit.
A really fun tale with a wonderful combination of old-fashioned whimsy and legal geekery.
Killer Trees and Second Chances: An Evanstar Chronicles Story by Sara Codair
This one didn’t vibe with me, so I skipped over most of it. That’s probably because it’s set after the end of a series I’ve not read.
How to Steal a Planet by N.L. Bates
As a newly minted captain, Mae is assigned to a small mining ship. When they discover an uncharted planet and her brand new crew mutinies on her, things get weird quickly.
Brie and the Marsh Kraken by Sara Codair
Brie returns to her childhood home to find her childhood crush, Gretchen. eager to reconnect. Oh, and Gretchen’s a kraken.
Overall well-written and engaging, but the fact Brie doesn’t even bat an eyelid when she discovers Gretchen’s a mythical monster took me out of the story for a moment.
Down Among the Mushrooms by William C. Tracy
Agetha’s leading the work crew to build the new zeta radian in the colony on Lida. Management want it done ASAP, but the planet’s plant life has other plans.
This story took a while to get off the ground, but once it did, it was excellent. The science felt a bit iffy, but the struggles were all too real.
The Bibliothek Betrayal: A Quirk and Moth Debacle by Robin C.M. Duncan
Separately, both Cassie and Quirk are running from their part mistakes and successes.
The lack of dialogue tags or easy-to follow indicators made this one tough for me … which is a shame as it’s seems like a great story.
Rings: An Ardulan Tale by JS Fields
Atalant and Emn have won their wars and settled into their new life on Ardulum. Atalant is toying with the idea of proposing to Emn – but first she has to deal with outbreaks of both koalas and fruit.
I definitely got the sense this would be a lovely little wrap-up to their story – for readers who knew the characters.
I received an advance review copy via BookSirens for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
My favourite is Jellyfish Lovepotion by JS Fields. Andrea is a snarky scientist about to leave Earth for the last time when things – as they so often do – go awry. Dew Diligence was a close second.
This brilliantly diverse anthology runs the gamut from silly and fun to eerily prescient.
Radiant by NL Bates
Anna and Chris work together to clear away discarded radioactive material off Vancouver Island.
A superhero story set in Canada. For me the focus was too much on romance and not enough in character or plot (but that’s just me)."
Jellyfish Lovepotion by JS Fields
Andrea don’t really want to leave Earth, but gets called up at short notice to join the generation ship, Lovepotion.
Romance takes a back seat to both plot and character development in this high-stakes yet snarky tale. I really enjoyed this one.
Thorns and Fur by William C Tracy
Kamuli and Bhon are on opposing sides of a war when they meet. But that can't stop the intense attraction between the pair.
Dew Diligence: The First Fairyl@nd Story by Robin C.M. Duncan
Reeling from a bad breakup, Julia goes to stay with her grandmother in Berks for a bit.
A really fun tale with a wonderful combination of old-fashioned whimsy and legal geekery.
Killer Trees and Second Chances: An Evanstar Chronicles Story by Sara Codair
This one didn’t vibe with me, so I skipped over most of it. That’s probably because it’s set after the end of a series I’ve not read.
How to Steal a Planet by N.L. Bates
As a newly minted captain, Mae is assigned to a small mining ship. When they discover an uncharted planet and her brand new crew mutinies on her, things get weird quickly.
Brie and the Marsh Kraken by Sara Codair
Brie returns to her childhood home to find her childhood crush, Gretchen. eager to reconnect. Oh, and Gretchen’s a kraken.
Overall well-written and engaging, but the fact Brie doesn’t even bat an eyelid when she discovers Gretchen’s a mythical monster took me out of the story for a moment.
Down Among the Mushrooms by William C. Tracy
Agetha’s leading the work crew to build the new zeta radian in the colony on Lida. Management want it done ASAP, but the planet’s plant life has other plans.
This story took a while to get off the ground, but once it did, it was excellent. The science felt a bit iffy, but the struggles were all too real.
The Bibliothek Betrayal: A Quirk and Moth Debacle by Robin C.M. Duncan
Separately, both Cassie and Quirk are running from their part mistakes and successes.
The lack of dialogue tags or easy-to follow indicators made this one tough for me … which is a shame as it’s seems like a great story.
Rings: An Ardulan Tale by JS Fields
Atalant and Emn have won their wars and settled into their new life on Ardulum. Atalant is toying with the idea of proposing to Emn – but first she has to deal with outbreaks of both koalas and fruit.
I definitely got the sense this would be a lovely little wrap-up to their story – for readers who knew the characters.
I received an advance review copy via BookSirens for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
August 17, 2021
Great collection of SFF short stories with sapphic themes and exploration of biodiversity. There is a wide range of stories in this book.
I was really excited to read Killer Trees and Second Chances by Sara Codair because I’m a big fan of their Evanstar Chronicles series. I also really enjoyed Codair’s other story Brie and the Marsh Kraken for the ace/demi rep, the steaminess, and monsters.
I loved the range of LGBTQ rep for all of the stories, which included lesbian, bi, pan, ace/demi, and gender rep such as non-binary, too.
I recommend DISTANT GARDENS to readers who enjoy their SFF short stories with sapphic LGBTQ rep.
I received an eARC and this is my honest review.
I was really excited to read Killer Trees and Second Chances by Sara Codair because I’m a big fan of their Evanstar Chronicles series. I also really enjoyed Codair’s other story Brie and the Marsh Kraken for the ace/demi rep, the steaminess, and monsters.
I loved the range of LGBTQ rep for all of the stories, which included lesbian, bi, pan, ace/demi, and gender rep such as non-binary, too.
I recommend DISTANT GARDENS to readers who enjoy their SFF short stories with sapphic LGBTQ rep.
I received an eARC and this is my honest review.
November 30, 2021
A fun anthology of stories from various sci fi and fantasy worlds, all with different creative uses of botanical elements! My favorites in the collection were Jellyfish Lovepotion by JS Fields, Thorns and Fur by William Tracy, and Dew Diligence by Robin Duncan.
August 9, 2021
A Hidden Gem
This collection fills an often overlooked niche. Lesfic can go many ways, but this collection acknowledges up front common pitfalls found with works written to appeal to as lesfic or wlw (women loving women) readers. I particularly found the organization to be as equally strong as the variety of stories within the collection. As a fan of sci-fi and lesfic, I was pleased to note how the editors used the broadest terms for queer representation to include any who find themselves under any portion of the f/f umbrella. This makes the collection inclusive. The designations for Sapphic representation, heat level, and content warning before each story are a much valued addition. Depending on my mood, the heat level and content warning markings were helpful in choosing which pieces to read first and at what time of day.
The other aspect of organization that I really appreciated was the conscious choice to include one story that leads readers to previously published work and established characters within the second piece and one new piece. Too often, anthologies include either one type or the other. Having book allowed me to see a range of writing from these five authors. This collection is a hidden gem. My favorite pieces to read (and re-read) are, “Jellyfish Lovepotion”, "Radiant", and “Brie and the Marsh Kraken” (hot + tentacles + adventure= more please!)
Each story is well-written. This is a gem of a collection for those who want more f/f or wlw in sci-fi.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
This collection fills an often overlooked niche. Lesfic can go many ways, but this collection acknowledges up front common pitfalls found with works written to appeal to as lesfic or wlw (women loving women) readers. I particularly found the organization to be as equally strong as the variety of stories within the collection. As a fan of sci-fi and lesfic, I was pleased to note how the editors used the broadest terms for queer representation to include any who find themselves under any portion of the f/f umbrella. This makes the collection inclusive. The designations for Sapphic representation, heat level, and content warning before each story are a much valued addition. Depending on my mood, the heat level and content warning markings were helpful in choosing which pieces to read first and at what time of day.
The other aspect of organization that I really appreciated was the conscious choice to include one story that leads readers to previously published work and established characters within the second piece and one new piece. Too often, anthologies include either one type or the other. Having book allowed me to see a range of writing from these five authors. This collection is a hidden gem. My favorite pieces to read (and re-read) are, “Jellyfish Lovepotion”, "Radiant", and “Brie and the Marsh Kraken” (hot + tentacles + adventure= more please!)
Each story is well-written. This is a gem of a collection for those who want more f/f or wlw in sci-fi.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
February 28, 2023
Rounding down since the average of my rating for each story comes to 2.6.
This one was a bit of a miss for me. Many of these stories took me over an hour to read and felt like the pacing was a little off. There were a number of stories that were from a previously established world by that author, I found that it was hard to connect with these the most. Individual star counts are below beside the title names
Radiant - N.L Bates ****
Superhero story with a "super" that works in waste management tasked to remove some hazardous waste in the ocean. Interesting take and kept my attention.
Jellyfish Lovepotion - J.S. Fields ****
Carpenter gets a spot on the next ship leaving for a hospitable planet but the morning of the flight strange occurrences take place that threaten to delay the departure. The story is a little cliche but had a range of emotions and a bittersweet classic sci fi feel.
Thorns and Fur - William C. Tracy **
Two factions, one resembling bears and one resembling humans, fight over control of an uninhabited island. A warrior and scientist, on opposite sides fight, a growing attraction with one another. Just a little too weird for me. The one character was described with bear features, such as paws, but then also referred to as having fingers. There was also a scene where the characters were drugged to the point of not fully remembering they had sex before. Not my cup of tea.
Dew Diligence - Robin C.M Duncan **
Woman who recently suffered a breakup is transported to a fae realm where her grandmothers jam is stolen. Fearful of the effects of the jam on the fairyland inhabitants she teams up with another fairy to collect the sweet concoction. It felt like the story could have been refined a bit more. There were so many scene transitions that basically ended with "go here to continue your journey". I would have liked to see those cut down a bit and instead focus on the chemistry brewing between the two main characters. As it was signals seemed mixed, the attraction seemed rushed, and the physical affection moved way too fast for me.
Killer Trees and Second Chances - Sara Codair ***
A demon hunter must team up with her ex to find her cousin, the source of her power, while navigating a cannibalistic forest. The second chance romance was a bit weak but there was a bunch of action that made the story move fairly quickly. It was part of a previous series so getting used to the history of the established world was a bit slow.
How to Steal a Planet - N.L Bates **
Captain steers her crew to a planet that supports life. This one had an odd issue with pacing. The story started off way too far back before they find the planet. The tension is resolved very quickly at the end that it just did not feel satisfying.
Brie and the Marsh Kraken - Sara Codair ***
Woman teams up with a cryptid to stop an evil corporation from conducting experiments in the marshland in their hometown. This was the spiciest story in the whole collection and features tentacles in the steamy parts. The story overall was fine however there was an issue with some of the pacing. The car chase scene did not seem to add to the excitement at the end and could have been summarized for the same amount of effectiveness.
Down Among the Mushrooms - William C. Tracy **
Construction worker is behind on building an expansion for their colony and teams up with another scientist to solve the problem. The pacing felt off on this one, there was lots of description of this colony and how it worked and then the end just kind of happened. Felt like I was reading an allegory to boomers in society and how society no longer needs them.
The Bibliothek Betrayal - Robin C.M. Duncan *
A professor continues the mission started by her lover in hopes they might reunite. There was too much happening here. When were were not following the professor's perspective we were following a person named Quirk hired to help complete the mission. I had no interest in the Quirk perspective and the "twist" for the professor perspective was too convoluted. The story itself was not terrible after I got the whole picture, but it could have benefited from a little less is more.
Rings - J.S. Fields ***
A glimpse of what happens 3 years after the Tales from Ardulum's Final Chapter. This was more of a catchup story that I probably would have appreciated if I was aware of the series. As a standalone it was a bit heavy on the lore that I had no prior reference for. The story was simple and sweet.
This one was a bit of a miss for me. Many of these stories took me over an hour to read and felt like the pacing was a little off. There were a number of stories that were from a previously established world by that author, I found that it was hard to connect with these the most. Individual star counts are below beside the title names
Radiant - N.L Bates ****
Superhero story with a "super" that works in waste management tasked to remove some hazardous waste in the ocean. Interesting take and kept my attention.
Jellyfish Lovepotion - J.S. Fields ****
Carpenter gets a spot on the next ship leaving for a hospitable planet but the morning of the flight strange occurrences take place that threaten to delay the departure. The story is a little cliche but had a range of emotions and a bittersweet classic sci fi feel.
Thorns and Fur - William C. Tracy **
Two factions, one resembling bears and one resembling humans, fight over control of an uninhabited island. A warrior and scientist, on opposite sides fight, a growing attraction with one another. Just a little too weird for me. The one character was described with bear features, such as paws, but then also referred to as having fingers. There was also a scene where the characters were drugged to the point of not fully remembering they had sex before. Not my cup of tea.
Dew Diligence - Robin C.M Duncan **
Woman who recently suffered a breakup is transported to a fae realm where her grandmothers jam is stolen. Fearful of the effects of the jam on the fairyland inhabitants she teams up with another fairy to collect the sweet concoction. It felt like the story could have been refined a bit more. There were so many scene transitions that basically ended with "go here to continue your journey". I would have liked to see those cut down a bit and instead focus on the chemistry brewing between the two main characters. As it was signals seemed mixed, the attraction seemed rushed, and the physical affection moved way too fast for me.
Killer Trees and Second Chances - Sara Codair ***
A demon hunter must team up with her ex to find her cousin, the source of her power, while navigating a cannibalistic forest. The second chance romance was a bit weak but there was a bunch of action that made the story move fairly quickly. It was part of a previous series so getting used to the history of the established world was a bit slow.
How to Steal a Planet - N.L Bates **
Captain steers her crew to a planet that supports life. This one had an odd issue with pacing. The story started off way too far back before they find the planet. The tension is resolved very quickly at the end that it just did not feel satisfying.
Brie and the Marsh Kraken - Sara Codair ***
Woman teams up with a cryptid to stop an evil corporation from conducting experiments in the marshland in their hometown. This was the spiciest story in the whole collection and features tentacles in the steamy parts. The story overall was fine however there was an issue with some of the pacing. The car chase scene did not seem to add to the excitement at the end and could have been summarized for the same amount of effectiveness.
Down Among the Mushrooms - William C. Tracy **
Construction worker is behind on building an expansion for their colony and teams up with another scientist to solve the problem. The pacing felt off on this one, there was lots of description of this colony and how it worked and then the end just kind of happened. Felt like I was reading an allegory to boomers in society and how society no longer needs them.
The Bibliothek Betrayal - Robin C.M. Duncan *
A professor continues the mission started by her lover in hopes they might reunite. There was too much happening here. When were were not following the professor's perspective we were following a person named Quirk hired to help complete the mission. I had no interest in the Quirk perspective and the "twist" for the professor perspective was too convoluted. The story itself was not terrible after I got the whole picture, but it could have benefited from a little less is more.
Rings - J.S. Fields ***
A glimpse of what happens 3 years after the Tales from Ardulum's Final Chapter. This was more of a catchup story that I probably would have appreciated if I was aware of the series. As a standalone it was a bit heavy on the lore that I had no prior reference for. The story was simple and sweet.
August 4, 2021
Down Among The Mushrooms by William C. Tracy
I really thought a flower was just going to come up and eat someone like Seymour (laugh). Instead William C. Tracy has them shoot some pretty powerful weapons. I do not want to live in this world that Tracy has created. Wow betweeen agism, attacking environmental species, and no real food? Yeah...no. BUT this makes for a very fun read even if it is a bit gory at times. No one is safe from the fauna, but at least Agetha gets to hook up for a minute with Doctor Beth. This is a clean and sweet romance amidst the gore of everyone getting hurt. (laugh)
Dew Diligence by Robin C.M. Duncan
This story is just crazy and by that I mean it has so many twists that you can feel like Julia and never know what is quite going on. I think this is a take on Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, but sshhh I never read the book and I am going by the previews to the movies I have seen. The story moves quickly and has lots of action. There is a sweet romance going on in the background. Dew Diligence focuses on the world of Rowan and just staying alive.
Brie and the Marsh Kraken by Sara Codair
I don’t want to give anything away, but I would not be dallying with a kraken (laugh). Just saying.
There is definitely something in the water in Cape Cod. Sara Codair has two childhood friends meet again to save their homesteads from corporate marauders. Luckily for us Brie and Gretchen have unresolved crushes to fix. Odair brings some heat and maybe a helping hand to the task of getting reacquainted. We get action, sex, and a severe anxiety riddden ADHD heroine to root for.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
I really thought a flower was just going to come up and eat someone like Seymour (laugh). Instead William C. Tracy has them shoot some pretty powerful weapons. I do not want to live in this world that Tracy has created. Wow betweeen agism, attacking environmental species, and no real food? Yeah...no. BUT this makes for a very fun read even if it is a bit gory at times. No one is safe from the fauna, but at least Agetha gets to hook up for a minute with Doctor Beth. This is a clean and sweet romance amidst the gore of everyone getting hurt. (laugh)
Dew Diligence by Robin C.M. Duncan
This story is just crazy and by that I mean it has so many twists that you can feel like Julia and never know what is quite going on. I think this is a take on Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, but sshhh I never read the book and I am going by the previews to the movies I have seen. The story moves quickly and has lots of action. There is a sweet romance going on in the background. Dew Diligence focuses on the world of Rowan and just staying alive.
Brie and the Marsh Kraken by Sara Codair
I don’t want to give anything away, but I would not be dallying with a kraken (laugh). Just saying.
There is definitely something in the water in Cape Cod. Sara Codair has two childhood friends meet again to save their homesteads from corporate marauders. Luckily for us Brie and Gretchen have unresolved crushes to fix. Odair brings some heat and maybe a helping hand to the task of getting reacquainted. We get action, sex, and a severe anxiety riddden ADHD heroine to root for.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
August 10, 2021
An interesting group of stories that stretched my imagination. Killer fungi, radioactive sea kelp forests, fairies & goblins, space mutinies and so much more. A book to sit with as each author effectively carried me into their world of choice. Enjoyable.
August 4, 2021
Distant Gardens is a diverse group of short stories from various authors compiled by William C. Tracey. There were stories that were very unique and well written. One of my favourites was Sara Codair's Killer Trees and Second Chances. I love a good supernatural story.
The Bibliothek Betrayal by Robin C.M. Duncan was another one that stood out, it is a nice addition to the spy falling in love with the mark trope.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
The Bibliothek Betrayal by Robin C.M. Duncan was another one that stood out, it is a nice addition to the spy falling in love with the mark trope.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
August 5, 2021
this was a wonderfully done anthology series, each story was well done and the characters felt like real people.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
September 3, 2021
This is a great and diverse collection of short stories that were very entertaining to read. I enjoyed the different worlds these stories are set in. It was a wonderful read.
August 8, 2021
Very nice collection of ten stories, two stories each by five different authors. I have to say that these stories are unlike any I have read before encompassing people on many different worlds with different types of plants and animals. It is definitely a science fiction book with some FF and other relationships and romances with a variety of steam levels. I have never read any of these authors before, but by being able to read a story in their normal world as well as a story in an alternate world from each, I got a really good idea of whose books I want to read more of first. The writing is very good and clear while drawing me into the stories. Nice.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
October 22, 2021
Distant Gardens is a fascinating collection of sci-fi/fantasy short stories, all with sapphic representation. There is something for everyone, with a wide rage of sexualities and gender identities (including trans and non-binary), as well as more specific personal preferences (Furries!). And the themes are all quite unique: superheroes, space ships, foreign planets, fairyland. The list goes on and on, each totally different experiences that somehow fit together perfectly.
The stories range from:
"Low/None: There may be talk of sex, holding hands, or possibly
kissing.
Medium: Mention of body parts, touching, and make-out sessions,
but all scenes are “fade to black.”
Hot!: Has at least one full sex scene, start to finish. You have been
warned (or encouraged…)."
I think the low range ones are still very tantalizing and won't disappoint if you're in to the steamier romances.
One of my favorite quotes comes from 'Jellyfish Lovepotion', "Clara appraised her for exactly three seconds longer than was
heterosexually polite." It's like 'Passengers' meets 'Wall-E' but with hot WLW. It is by far my favorite story in the collection, followed closely by Radiant (Super heroes catching feelings while being total badasses, yes please!).
If you're a fan of Shakespeare you'll be as delighted as I was when I realized a character in 'Dew Dilligence' was speaking in aimbic pentameter. The story is set in what seems to be the world of 'A Midsummer Night's Dream, so it isn't super shocking, but still a nice treat.
I gave this 4 stars partially because not every single story was for me, but that's kind of the joy of it. Go in with an open mind and you may even discover something you didn't know was your thing.
I found it harder to stay drawn in without a continuing storyline, but that's a personal preference. However, the excerpt and blurb (if you are reading the digital version, as I did) weren't very clear that this WAS a collection of stories. It only lists one author, despite it being several different authors. So I didn't even realize what it was before I downloaded it. Hopefully you'll read reviews like mine before purchasing, so you know what you are in for.
This was a super fun, light read with a lot of twists and turns. I suggest you give it a chance. You never know what might catch your attention.
***I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.***
The stories range from:
"Low/None: There may be talk of sex, holding hands, or possibly
kissing.
Medium: Mention of body parts, touching, and make-out sessions,
but all scenes are “fade to black.”
Hot!: Has at least one full sex scene, start to finish. You have been
warned (or encouraged…)."
I think the low range ones are still very tantalizing and won't disappoint if you're in to the steamier romances.
One of my favorite quotes comes from 'Jellyfish Lovepotion', "Clara appraised her for exactly three seconds longer than was
heterosexually polite." It's like 'Passengers' meets 'Wall-E' but with hot WLW. It is by far my favorite story in the collection, followed closely by Radiant (Super heroes catching feelings while being total badasses, yes please!).
If you're a fan of Shakespeare you'll be as delighted as I was when I realized a character in 'Dew Dilligence' was speaking in aimbic pentameter. The story is set in what seems to be the world of 'A Midsummer Night's Dream, so it isn't super shocking, but still a nice treat.
I gave this 4 stars partially because not every single story was for me, but that's kind of the joy of it. Go in with an open mind and you may even discover something you didn't know was your thing.
I found it harder to stay drawn in without a continuing storyline, but that's a personal preference. However, the excerpt and blurb (if you are reading the digital version, as I did) weren't very clear that this WAS a collection of stories. It only lists one author, despite it being several different authors. So I didn't even realize what it was before I downloaded it. Hopefully you'll read reviews like mine before purchasing, so you know what you are in for.
This was a super fun, light read with a lot of twists and turns. I suggest you give it a chance. You never know what might catch your attention.
***I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.***
November 5, 2021
Purely on content, I'm giving Distant Gardens four stars. Sure, not all of the stories were to my taste, but half the joy of a short story anthology is skimming through the stories that don't grab you and then reading with delicious intensity that ones that, expectedly or unexpectedly do. I loved Jellyfish Lovepotion, How to Steal a Planet and Brie and the Marsh Kraken, and enjoyed several other stories, and I really enjoyed the fact that the collection, although focussed on lesbian love, is explicitly trans and non-binary inclusive.
Unfortunately for me, I found the font of the collection really hard to read and this affected my enjoyment of all the stories. In fact, I have to confess that I barely skim-read the last couple of stories, just because my brain didn't want to have to fight the font any more. Most of the other reviews of this collection don't even mention the font, so perhaps it's just a function of my struggling non-neurotypical brain that it even found this difficult.
I'd recommend this collection for people who want some fun sapphic sci-fi with a leaning towards the ecological. Thanks to Book Sirens for the ARC!
Unfortunately for me, I found the font of the collection really hard to read and this affected my enjoyment of all the stories. In fact, I have to confess that I barely skim-read the last couple of stories, just because my brain didn't want to have to fight the font any more. Most of the other reviews of this collection don't even mention the font, so perhaps it's just a function of my struggling non-neurotypical brain that it even found this difficult.
I'd recommend this collection for people who want some fun sapphic sci-fi with a leaning towards the ecological. Thanks to Book Sirens for the ARC!
December 9, 2021
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
Distant Gardens is a lesbian-centric anthology featuring female characters in science fiction and fantasy settings.
As soon as I read the blurb for this book, I was intrigued right away as this sounded right up my alley. It was overall an excellent read. I liked that the type of relationship was listed before each story so that I had some idea going into the story what I was getting myself into. I also liked that the stories were all a decent length and weren't as short as stories in most anthologies. I liked the representation especially ace representation which I don't see in books often enough. Unfortunately I did have a hard time getting into some stories and it just felt like they were dragging on longer than necessary. My favorite stories from this anthology ended up being Radiant, Jellyfish Lovepotion, Killer Trees and Second Chances, How to Steal a Planet, and Brie and the Marsh Kraken. Overall it was a good way to find more authors to follow.
4/5 stars
Distant Gardens is a lesbian-centric anthology featuring female characters in science fiction and fantasy settings.
As soon as I read the blurb for this book, I was intrigued right away as this sounded right up my alley. It was overall an excellent read. I liked that the type of relationship was listed before each story so that I had some idea going into the story what I was getting myself into. I also liked that the stories were all a decent length and weren't as short as stories in most anthologies. I liked the representation especially ace representation which I don't see in books often enough. Unfortunately I did have a hard time getting into some stories and it just felt like they were dragging on longer than necessary. My favorite stories from this anthology ended up being Radiant, Jellyfish Lovepotion, Killer Trees and Second Chances, How to Steal a Planet, and Brie and the Marsh Kraken. Overall it was a good way to find more authors to follow.
4/5 stars
January 17, 2023
There isn't one story in this collection that I'd pass by. If you love space opera, aliens, sentient plants, and lesbians... with writers sharing their stories filled with new love, life threatening situations, lies, betrayals ... you know ...all that complicated life stuff that lesbians seem destined to get tangled up in... then READ. THIS. BOOK.
Thank you BookSirens for introducing me to authors I'd probably not of known about otherwise. I'm already saving up so I can go buy some of the books mentioned that preceded a short story. Which says a lot about this anthology because I'm cheap. I like stuff I can borrow from my online library or read with my Kindle Unlimited account. I'm also poor, but I won't be stingy on titles that give my life so much enrichment and entertainment.
I like leaving this world ...
I received a free ARC and am leaving this review voluntarily.
Thank you BookSirens for introducing me to authors I'd probably not of known about otherwise. I'm already saving up so I can go buy some of the books mentioned that preceded a short story. Which says a lot about this anthology because I'm cheap. I like stuff I can borrow from my online library or read with my Kindle Unlimited account. I'm also poor, but I won't be stingy on titles that give my life so much enrichment and entertainment.
I like leaving this world ...
I received a free ARC and am leaving this review voluntarily.
February 14, 2022
Received as an audio review copy from Story Origin, this is and honest review. Narrated by Lynn Norris this anthology contains ten beautiful, uniquely different stories featuring strong lesbian women; stories that are snarky, funny and deeply adventurous across the genres of fantasy and science fiction. Whether it's a superhero's journey deep below the ocean to retrieve radioactive material to a brand new captain heading to an unknown planet as things go off the rails fast as here her flips on her... making it a very memorable journey. Beyond the brilliant tales is the statements of types of content each story has but also a heat level of how far the intimacy goes, giving you the choice of what you want to hear or read. Highly recommended.
August 10, 2021
These authors love lesbian sci-fi fantasy as much as I do and display that love to spectacular effect here. The heat levels vary and are specified up front. There are tentacles, fungi, carnivorous plants, inter-species pairings, dimensional rifts, life-or-death struggles, pirates and politicos, intergalactic espionage, nerds and naifs, immortals and pixies, evil corporations and bureaucracies to circumvent, all paving the way for non-binary and sapphic heart bonds. We need more of those unconventional balances in our own reality, so what better way to seed them in our imaginations than this?
Each of the five gifts us with a tale from their established sff universes, as well as one that takes place elsewhere, providing a wonderful introduction to their worlds, and their literary chops. The volume delivers exactly what I wish for in boundary breaking romances. May they all live long and prosper, writing happily ever after.
Each of the five gifts us with a tale from their established sff universes, as well as one that takes place elsewhere, providing a wonderful introduction to their worlds, and their literary chops. The volume delivers exactly what I wish for in boundary breaking romances. May they all live long and prosper, writing happily ever after.
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October 13, 2021October 13, 2021
Hi Folks! Publisher and one of the authors of Distant Gardens here. Just popping in to say as of October, the audiobook is live! So if you want your sapphic romance read to you while you work out, or drive, or mow the yard, check out the audiobook on Audible!
Hi Folks! Publisher and one of the authors of Distant Gardens here. Just popping in to say as of October, the audiobook is live! So if you want your sapphic romance read to you while you work out, or drive, or mow the yard, check out the audiobook on Audible!
March 17, 2024
This collection was recommended to me by someone in the dealers' room at Satellite 8. I hadn't realised until I finally picked it up to start to read it that the theme of the collection was sapphic, much more than the found families referenced on the cover. That's not an issue, but just it's worth pointing out if you're as unobservant as me when reading the description. The book also introduced me to the acronym WLW (women loving women) as an inclusive term encompassing bi/pan folks as well as trans people, and characters of all those types make appearances in the stories.
There are five authors in the anthology, each of whom contributed two stories: one standalone, and one set in an existing universe. This mostly worked well, but there were a couple of stories where I struggled to follow what was happening, due to a lack of knowledge of prior events (JS Fields' story Rings fell into this category for me).
There's a wide variety of material here, including a superhero story, near and far future science fiction, fantasy, technothrillers and more. I really enjoyed the superhero story, Radiant, by NL Bates, highlighting someone with more of a "utility" power, than is usual in these stories. Here, the protagonist is unaffected by radiation, so can go into areas that robots might have trouble with, and clean up nuclear waste. That's the sort of thing that's really neat, but which doesn't often show up in your average MCU film. That, and Jellyfish Lovepotion (which, despite sounding like a What Three Words grid reference is actually the name of a spaceship) are probably my favourite stories in the collection.
Each story comes with a set of content warnings, and the different kinds of sapphic representation that are present in the book. And there's also a "heat level" indicator, to indicate how graphic the romance gets. There's only one "hot" story (Brie and the Marsh Kraken, which was a lot of fun, but also made serious points about anxiety), a couple of lows (not much going on), and the others are medium, which have a "fade to black" tendency.
The stories that didn't work so well for me included How to Steal a Planet, which broke my suspension of disbelief too much; and The Bibliothek Betrayal, a near-future technothriller involving the Isle of Skye having been sold to a corporation, betrayal, and genetic engineering going horribly wrong. This was one set in an existing universe, and I feel that there was a lot that I wasn't getting, due to not having read others in the series.
There were definitely more hits than misses in this collection, so if you're looking for new writers, or sapphic representation in speculative fiction, you could do much worse than look at this book.
There are five authors in the anthology, each of whom contributed two stories: one standalone, and one set in an existing universe. This mostly worked well, but there were a couple of stories where I struggled to follow what was happening, due to a lack of knowledge of prior events (JS Fields' story Rings fell into this category for me).
There's a wide variety of material here, including a superhero story, near and far future science fiction, fantasy, technothrillers and more. I really enjoyed the superhero story, Radiant, by NL Bates, highlighting someone with more of a "utility" power, than is usual in these stories. Here, the protagonist is unaffected by radiation, so can go into areas that robots might have trouble with, and clean up nuclear waste. That's the sort of thing that's really neat, but which doesn't often show up in your average MCU film. That, and Jellyfish Lovepotion (which, despite sounding like a What Three Words grid reference is actually the name of a spaceship) are probably my favourite stories in the collection.
Each story comes with a set of content warnings, and the different kinds of sapphic representation that are present in the book. And there's also a "heat level" indicator, to indicate how graphic the romance gets. There's only one "hot" story (Brie and the Marsh Kraken, which was a lot of fun, but also made serious points about anxiety), a couple of lows (not much going on), and the others are medium, which have a "fade to black" tendency.
The stories that didn't work so well for me included How to Steal a Planet, which broke my suspension of disbelief too much; and The Bibliothek Betrayal, a near-future technothriller involving the Isle of Skye having been sold to a corporation, betrayal, and genetic engineering going horribly wrong. This was one set in an existing universe, and I feel that there was a lot that I wasn't getting, due to not having read others in the series.
There were definitely more hits than misses in this collection, so if you're looking for new writers, or sapphic representation in speculative fiction, you could do much worse than look at this book.
September 4, 2021
This book is difficult for me to review because it is very different to what I usually read. I love the cover, and I find the idea of this anthology interesting. I didn't enjoy it as much as I hoped to though. I found the writing in a lot of stories to be clumsy, sometimes I thought a plot twist had been prepared and then it never came. I like the sci-fi setting though, and I did appreciate the intro notes on all of the stories including a note on sapphic representation and "heat level". My favourite stories were “Dew Diligence” and "Jellyfish Lovepotion".
I would recommend this book for people with more of an interest in both sci-fi and romance.
(I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.)
I would recommend this book for people with more of an interest in both sci-fi and romance.
(I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.)
July 24, 2023
This is a great collection of stories - I found almost all of them engaging with interesting and well-formed characters. Usually I am fairly critical of short story collections since it's rare that I ever find any where I enjoy most or all of the stories, but I was happy to find that I really enjoyed almost all of these. Definitely check it out if you want some sapphic sci-fi :)
September 20, 2021
Lesbians in sci-fi with science and magic. Hooray!
Distant Gardens is a collection of one shots that is all about featuring representation. It's one of the few anthologies I've read that rather kindly prefaces each story with trigger warnings (death, cursing, etc.) and spice rating (any sex?) in advance. Dearest me, has Archive of Our Own's tag and rating system invaded published literature now? Stories are primarily lesbian yet there are other outlets of LGBTQ representation too.
Also, thank you for encouraging me to really look up what sapphic means. Learn something new every day!
Many stories were catered to be modern and casual, which caused some stories to bleed together to me. I was hooked onto whatever went into the deeper end of sci-fi, both stories written by William C. Tracy. There's something fun about their approach to aliens and space exploration that grabbed my attention. Probably not everyone's favorite brew, but that's okay. Don't think too hard about the science, and there's parts to like from every story.
Regarding the character dialogue within the anthology, that's where I hiccup. So much quipping and angst from young characters it's like marathoning seasons of Firefly, Andromeda, or Almost Human in one sitting. If there were two breaks between the smarmy protagonist stories, I'd manage. Since they were back-to-back, I felt bloated and struggled. Two stories felt YA rather than adult, which made me somewhat confused at their inclusion within the anthology.
If curse words, violence, and instant flirting don't bother you, try Distant Gardens to expand your lesbian fiction library. It's certainly not a collection you'd see every day, and that's a shame! I'd like to see further explorations into this funky niche.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
Distant Gardens is a collection of one shots that is all about featuring representation. It's one of the few anthologies I've read that rather kindly prefaces each story with trigger warnings (death, cursing, etc.) and spice rating (any sex?) in advance. Dearest me, has Archive of Our Own's tag and rating system invaded published literature now? Stories are primarily lesbian yet there are other outlets of LGBTQ representation too.
Also, thank you for encouraging me to really look up what sapphic means. Learn something new every day!
Many stories were catered to be modern and casual, which caused some stories to bleed together to me. I was hooked onto whatever went into the deeper end of sci-fi, both stories written by William C. Tracy. There's something fun about their approach to aliens and space exploration that grabbed my attention. Probably not everyone's favorite brew, but that's okay. Don't think too hard about the science, and there's parts to like from every story.
Regarding the character dialogue within the anthology, that's where I hiccup. So much quipping and angst from young characters it's like marathoning seasons of Firefly, Andromeda, or Almost Human in one sitting. If there were two breaks between the smarmy protagonist stories, I'd manage. Since they were back-to-back, I felt bloated and struggled. Two stories felt YA rather than adult, which made me somewhat confused at their inclusion within the anthology.
If curse words, violence, and instant flirting don't bother you, try Distant Gardens to expand your lesbian fiction library. It's certainly not a collection you'd see every day, and that's a shame! I'd like to see further explorations into this funky niche.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
August 4, 2021
Disclaimer: I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
I was initially drawn to the concept of this anthology (and the gorgeous cover), and while I enjoyed several of the stories individually, as a collection I felt like it was inconsistent. The writing in some of the stories struck me as a bit clunky, and a few felt out of place with the theme of the collection (“Dew Diligence,” for example, is a straight up fairy tale and seemed to be only included because of the sapphic element).
My favorite stories both feature menacing mushrooms. “Jellyfish Lovepotion” is just the right amount of weirdly dark humor for me, and “Down Among the Mushrooms” features cohesive and interesting world building that I would be interested in exploring beyond a short story. “Brie and the Marsh Kraken” is a fun ride if you can handle the tentacles 🦑, and “Rings” is an odd, yet sweet and entertaining glimpse into Field’s Ardulum novel series.
Each story in the collection is prefaced by a note that includes the type of queer representation, any content warnings, and a “heat level” rating, and I thought this was a unique and helpful addition. If you’re a fan of sci-fi and want to see more sapphic representation in what you’re reading, this collection likely has something you can enjoy!
I was initially drawn to the concept of this anthology (and the gorgeous cover), and while I enjoyed several of the stories individually, as a collection I felt like it was inconsistent. The writing in some of the stories struck me as a bit clunky, and a few felt out of place with the theme of the collection (“Dew Diligence,” for example, is a straight up fairy tale and seemed to be only included because of the sapphic element).
My favorite stories both feature menacing mushrooms. “Jellyfish Lovepotion” is just the right amount of weirdly dark humor for me, and “Down Among the Mushrooms” features cohesive and interesting world building that I would be interested in exploring beyond a short story. “Brie and the Marsh Kraken” is a fun ride if you can handle the tentacles 🦑, and “Rings” is an odd, yet sweet and entertaining glimpse into Field’s Ardulum novel series.
Each story in the collection is prefaced by a note that includes the type of queer representation, any content warnings, and a “heat level” rating, and I thought this was a unique and helpful addition. If you’re a fan of sci-fi and want to see more sapphic representation in what you’re reading, this collection likely has something you can enjoy!
January 8, 2022
(I received an ARC for an honest review.)
I really enjoyed this book. It's 10 stories by 5 authors who met in a writing critique group. Each wrote 2 stories--1 tying into their main story universe (some still unpublished, I think) and 1 standalone. The editing is solid.
Every story starts with a list of its sapphic representation (lesbian, bi, trans, etc), a heat rating for those of you who do/don't like spicy romance, and content labels for gore, violence, etc. I think that's amazingly thoughtful. I read all 10, but this allows you to skip stories that just aren't for you.
The stories themselves are amazingly diverse. I do think the ones that were standalone were generally better than the tie-ins. They had more of a beginning, middle, end, and character arc. All were pretty fun though. We get aliens, tentacles, super pretty nailpolish and just wonderful stories with amazing characters.
I recommend this book for lovers of scifi and sapphic fiction.
I really enjoyed this book. It's 10 stories by 5 authors who met in a writing critique group. Each wrote 2 stories--1 tying into their main story universe (some still unpublished, I think) and 1 standalone. The editing is solid.
Every story starts with a list of its sapphic representation (lesbian, bi, trans, etc), a heat rating for those of you who do/don't like spicy romance, and content labels for gore, violence, etc. I think that's amazingly thoughtful. I read all 10, but this allows you to skip stories that just aren't for you.
The stories themselves are amazingly diverse. I do think the ones that were standalone were generally better than the tie-ins. They had more of a beginning, middle, end, and character arc. All were pretty fun though. We get aliens, tentacles, super pretty nailpolish and just wonderful stories with amazing characters.
I recommend this book for lovers of scifi and sapphic fiction.
July 28, 2021
I received an advance review copy for free from booksirens.com , and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
While I really enjoyed the concept of this collection I found the stories felt uneven to me and were harder for me to get through than typical. Though I did love the fact that there were several ace/demi identified characters in various stories which is always cool.
Part of my struggle was I have recently read a similar collection of LGBTQ+ plant stories (which were focused on the gay experience instead of this collections focus on the lesbian experience) which felt like it had greater variety in terms of plots.
While I really enjoyed the concept of this collection I found the stories felt uneven to me and were harder for me to get through than typical. Though I did love the fact that there were several ace/demi identified characters in various stories which is always cool.
Part of my struggle was I have recently read a similar collection of LGBTQ+ plant stories (which were focused on the gay experience instead of this collections focus on the lesbian experience) which felt like it had greater variety in terms of plots.
December 21, 2022
Anthologies tend to be rather mixed bags, but this one stands out by containing not a single story I didn't at least like enough to read with interest.
A collection of ten sapphic sci-fi/fantasy stories of various degrees of hotness, two each from the five participating authors, this book provides a wonderful range of tales that are entertaining, diverse, and weird in all the best ways. (Well, okay, I'd have been fine without the tentacle sex, but... y'know. Whatever floats your boat.)
My favourites among these stories were How to Steal a Planet by N.S. Bates (Great space opera fun!) and The Bibliothek Debacle by Robin C.M. Duncan (Futuristic European settings for a change? Hell yeah!).
*** I received a free copy in exchange for an honest review. ***
A collection of ten sapphic sci-fi/fantasy stories of various degrees of hotness, two each from the five participating authors, this book provides a wonderful range of tales that are entertaining, diverse, and weird in all the best ways. (Well, okay, I'd have been fine without the tentacle sex, but... y'know. Whatever floats your boat.)
My favourites among these stories were How to Steal a Planet by N.S. Bates (Great space opera fun!) and The Bibliothek Debacle by Robin C.M. Duncan (Futuristic European settings for a change? Hell yeah!).
*** I received a free copy in exchange for an honest review. ***
February 22, 2022
A fun adventure through 10 different stories by 6 different authors. Overall each story was fun and added a piece to the collection quite well. Good character development, stories, and my favorite characters...snarky sarcastic ones. Didn't know what I was getting into, apparently I didn't real the full synopsys, but I was not dissapointed. Audio Version: The narrator was a great choice for this collection and she did a great job.
December 13, 2021
To see more reviews check out MI Book Reviews.
I got an ARC of this book.
This is the first book in the August indie author spotlight! I want to say an extra thank you to Sara Codair for being a part of this. They can be found at their website or on Twitter. This is just one of the books that Codair has been a part of. One of the others has been reviewed by me and iam already. So I am already a fan.
Codair has two stories in this one. The rest are from their writing group. They are all queer and all sci-fi, so my weakness. I will be focusing on Codair’s stories though. The first one is an epilogue of sorts of their trilogy that I have read the first two books of (I might need to read the third now). It is a bit hard to jump right into, so I highly recommend reading at least the first two books to understand a lot of what is happening. It might be understood without reading those, but I think they give a lot of context for the way the magic and the angels/elves/humans work in Codair’s universe.
The second story though. Oh goodness. I was not expecting that second story at all. Please give me more lesbian krakens. I did not know I needed lesbian tentacle sex, but I apparently did. I am super iffy on shifters, but kraken shifter? SIGN ME UP. The story wasn’t just a romance, but I would have read a full on romance. It was more of an adventure to defeat a corporation who wanted to terraform a marsh. I am all for ecological justice. This really was the story for me.
Codair writes adventure so it is fast paced and emotionally charged. I am not a big adventure fan or a fantasy fan, but somehow Codair is able to draw me in and before I know it I am feeling all sorts of unexpected emotions. The characters are far from perfect, most have some mental health issues. Some of those are really large and make me feel so deeply that I had issues finishing a book (I kept reading, I loved the book but it was hard). Sometimes they are less emotionally intense, but really make a character feel more real like in these stories.
Seriously. Sapphic kraken sex. If that doesn’t entice you, we are drastically different people.
Codair is one of the indie authors I adore and I highly recommend their books!
I got an ARC of this book.
This is the first book in the August indie author spotlight! I want to say an extra thank you to Sara Codair for being a part of this. They can be found at their website or on Twitter. This is just one of the books that Codair has been a part of. One of the others has been reviewed by me and iam already. So I am already a fan.
Codair has two stories in this one. The rest are from their writing group. They are all queer and all sci-fi, so my weakness. I will be focusing on Codair’s stories though. The first one is an epilogue of sorts of their trilogy that I have read the first two books of (I might need to read the third now). It is a bit hard to jump right into, so I highly recommend reading at least the first two books to understand a lot of what is happening. It might be understood without reading those, but I think they give a lot of context for the way the magic and the angels/elves/humans work in Codair’s universe.
The second story though. Oh goodness. I was not expecting that second story at all. Please give me more lesbian krakens. I did not know I needed lesbian tentacle sex, but I apparently did. I am super iffy on shifters, but kraken shifter? SIGN ME UP. The story wasn’t just a romance, but I would have read a full on romance. It was more of an adventure to defeat a corporation who wanted to terraform a marsh. I am all for ecological justice. This really was the story for me.
Codair writes adventure so it is fast paced and emotionally charged. I am not a big adventure fan or a fantasy fan, but somehow Codair is able to draw me in and before I know it I am feeling all sorts of unexpected emotions. The characters are far from perfect, most have some mental health issues. Some of those are really large and make me feel so deeply that I had issues finishing a book (I kept reading, I loved the book but it was hard). Sometimes they are less emotionally intense, but really make a character feel more real like in these stories.
Seriously. Sapphic kraken sex. If that doesn’t entice you, we are drastically different people.
Codair is one of the indie authors I adore and I highly recommend their books!
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