Josh thinks he has the perfect plan – he’s got a vampire trapped, he’s going to be immortal and he’s going to get rid of his mum’s annoying boyfriend. But, as with all teenage plans, things just don’t quite go to plan.
I always want to yell at the silly children in vampire stories who make a deal with, well, a vampire… I mean, come on! Haven’t you read the stories? Don’t you understand that it NEVER TURNS OUT WELL?!?!?
This story was no different. I spent the whole time metaphoriy banging my head against an imaginary wall… I mean, seriously Josh? You expected any of this to end in any other way? Silly, silly boy…
Alright, even though I was constantly finding Josh frustrating and seriously silly in this… I did also enjoy the story. It was one of those that you knew things would end bad, but you kind of wanted to see HOW they would end badly…
In this thrilling collection of original stories, some of today’s hottest paranormal authors delight, thrill, and captivate readers with otherworldly tales of magic and mischief. In Jim Butcher’s “Curses”, Harry Dresden investigates how to lift a curse laid by the Fair Folk on the Chicago Cubs. In Patricia Briggs’s “Fairy Gifts”, a vampire is called home by magic to save the Fae who freed him from a dark curse. In Melissa Marr’s “Guns for the Dead”, the newly dead Frankie Lee seeks a job in the afterlife on the wrong side of the law. In Holly Black’s “Noble Rot”, a dying rock star discovers that the young woman who brings him food every day has some strange appetites of her own.
Featuring original stories from twenty authors, this dark, captivating, fabulous, and fantastical collection is not to be missed!
This is a seriously diverse collection of urban fantasy short stories. Not to mention fun and engaging. Probably moving right to the top of my list if I’m being honest. Normally my purview of urban fantasy is kind of small. But the breadth and width of these stories and the style in which they’re written… just wow.
I loved the fact that most of these short stories were standalones. I used to really enjoy finding new series through short stories and novellas. But, I have so many now that sometimes just reading a standalone without having to hunt out more of that world (I’m obsessive, I do this EVERY time) was kind of nice. I got a great taste of the imaginations and storytelling talents of a variety of authors, without actually feeling the need to buy more, more, more. Honestly, there is nothing worse than finding myself a new series to obsess over and then realising that I have a whole slew of new books to buy…
Although this is an urban fantasy collection, it does have a darker twist to it than usual. Every single one of these stories is a little bit dark, a lot bit fun and most don’t have a happy ending. Which, I tend to love, because I get a bit over all the happily ever afters… but it’s definitely something to keep in mind as you rip through the stories.
Title: The Way Station Author: Nathan Ballingrud In: Naked City (Ellen Datlow) Rating Out of 5: 4 (Really good read!) My Bookshelves:Paranormal fantasy, Urban fantasy Dates read: 6th November 2019 Pace: Slow Format: Short story Publisher: St. Martin’s Press Year: 2011 5th sentence, 74th page: I’m worried, bro.
We are all slightly lost, but Beltrane is more lost than most. Especially when he is forced to leave his own city. Will he embrace the beauty of his past, or the hope of his future?
We’ve all felt like we’re a little in the “between”. Which
means that a story about this feeling makes total sense, and is a completely
relatable feeling. Alright, the paranormal, drifty feel of the story isn’t as
relatable. But that in between, lost ideal is.
Beltrane is an engaging lead. Normally I would find a man
like this as a lead a little bit tedious and irritating. Yet, there is
something relatable about him – his sense of loss with the advent of Katherine,
his need to reconnect, but his unwillingness to let go of his past. This is
echoed gloriously in the flickering between the stories’ timelines.
Whilst Beltrane didn’t really seem creepy, the presence of
the other Betweeners highlighted that there is just something not right about his
foot in the past. We all need to find a way to move forwards in our life, and sometimes
to do so we have to actually let go of the past.
