Tag Archives: Seanan McGuire

Black Feathers edited by Ellen Datlow

June 5, 2019Book ReviewA.C. Wise, Alison Littlewood, Black Feathers, Ellen Datlow, Horror, Jeffrey Ford, Joyce Carol Oates, Livia Llewellyn, M. John Harrison, Mike O'Driscoll, Nicholas Royle, Pat Cadigan, Paul Tremblay, Priya Sharma, Richard Bowes, Sandra Kasturi, Seanan McGuire, Short Story Collections, Stephen Graham Jones, Usman T. Malikskyebjenner

Image result for black feathers ellen datlow book cover

Title: Black Feathers
Author: Ellen Datlow, Sandra Kasturi, Nicholas Royle, Seanan McGuire, Paul Tremblay, Joyce Carol Oates, Richard Bowes, Alison Littlewood, Jeffrey Ford, Mike O’Driscoll, Usman T. Malik, Stephen Graham Jones, A.C. Wise, M. John Harrison, Pat Cadigan, Livia Llewellyn & Priya Sharma
In: Black Feathers (Ellen Datlow)
Rating Out of 5: 4 (Really good read!)
My Bookshelves: Horror, Short story collections
Dates read: 23rd January – 27th April 2019
Pace: Slow
Format: Short story
Publisher: Pegasus Books Ltd.
Year: 2017
5th sentence, 74th page: A sudden croaking cry, and she turns to see the great blue heron flying overhead.

A dazzling anthology of avian-themed fiction guaranteed to frighten and delight, edited by one of the most acclaimed horror anthologists in the genre.

Birds are usually loved for their beauty and their song. They symbolize freedom, eternal life, the soul. But there’s certainly a dark side to the avian. Birds of prey sometimes kill other birds, destroy other birds’ eggs, and even have been known to kill small animals. And who isn’t frightened by birds who eat the dead – vultures awaiting their next meal as the life-blood flows from the dying.

In each of these stories, you will encounter the dark resonance between the human and avian. You will see in yourself the savagery of a predator, the shrewd stalking of a hunter, and you will be lured by birds that speak human language, that make beautiful music, that cypher numbers, and seem to have a moral center. You will wade into this feathered nightmare, and brave the horror of death, trading your safety and sanity for that which we all seek – the promise of flight.

This is my first collection of horror stories. Actually, it’s really my first ever horror novel. So reading this has been a very interesting journey. One that I was surprised to enjoy so much. And, although I didn’t really read any of these stories late at night, I also didn’t get any horrifying nightmares from the tales either. Unlike some of the crime, mystery and thriller novels that I’ve read.

Birds have always fascinated me. And I’ve been wanting to get a parrot for a little while. This collection definitely cured me of that desire. Actually, it cured me of really wanting anything much to do with birds for a little while if I’m being honest. This story not only used the symbolism and activities of birds as a catalyst for the tales of horror, but also pulled them out of your worst nightmares.

Pick this book up if you want a great introduction to the horror genre. And if you have a bit of a fascination with the avian community…

<- The Best Horror of the Year Volume Eleven

O Terrible Bird ->

Image source: Amazon

Mad Hatters and March Hares edited by Ellen Datlow

May 14, 2019Book ReviewAndy Duncan, Angela Slatter, C.S.E. Cooney, Delia Sherman, Ellen Datlow, Genevieve Valentine, Jane Yolen, Jeffrey Ford, Kaaron Warren, Katherine Vaz, Kris Dikeman, Mad Hatters and March Hares, Matthew Kressel, Priya Sharma, Retellings, Richard Bowes, Seanan McGuire, Short Story Collections, Stephen Graham Jones, Wordplay, Ysabeau S. Wilceskyebjenner

Image result for mad hatters and march hares ellen datlow book cover

Title: Mad Hatters and March Hares
Author: Ellen Datlow, Kris Dikeman, Delia Sherman, C. S. E. Cooney, Jane Yolen, Priya Sharma, Richard Bowes, Stephen Graham Jones, Jeffrey Ford, Angela Slatter, Matthew Kressel, Seanan McGuire, Andy Duncan, Kaaron Warren, Ysabeau S. Wilce, Genevieve Valentine, Catherynne M. Valente & Katherine Vaz
In: Mad Hatters and March Hares (Ellen Datlow)
Rating Out of 5: 5 (I will read this again and again and again)
My Bookshelves: Retellings, Short story collections, Wordplay
Dates read: 22nd December 2018 – 29th March 2019
Pace: Slow
Format: Short story
Publisher: Tor
Year: 2017
5th sentence, 74th page: Beyond it were the cells.

From Master Anthologist Ellen Datlow comes an all-original book of weird tales inspired by the strangeness of Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass and What Alice Found There.

Between the hallucinogenic, weird, imaginative wordplay and the brilliant mathematical puzzles and social satire, Alice has been read, enjoyed, and savored by every generation since its publication. Datlow asked seventeen of the most brilliant and acclaimed writers working today to dream up stories inspired by all the strange events and surreal characters found in Wonderland.

I began my obsession with Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland in childhood, but kind of forgot about it until the last year – when I finally got around to reading the original story! And then my obsession began to take a bit of a turn for the… well, obsessive… so I bought this collection as soon as I found it. And opened the page within days of receiving it.

This collection takes all of the many aspects of Alice in Wonderland and turns them around and around until your dizzy. From cute poems, to horrific ideals about Alis and retellings of particular aspects of the original. This collection of short stories and poems has it all. And it is just impossible to put down!

My only piece of advice with this amazing collection is to maybe not read these tales when you’ve been drinking. I tried a few times and it just makes you feel incredibly tripped out. And confused. And just not really sure where reality is situated… kind of like the original.

<- Children of the Fang

Gentle Alice ->

Image source: Bookdepository

Sentence Like a Saturday by Seanan McGuire

March 12, 2019Book ReviewEasy Reading, Fantasy, Mad Hatters and March Hares, Seanan McGuire, Wordplayskyebjenner

Title: Sentence Like a Saturday
Author: Seanan McGuire
In: Mad Hatters and March Hares (Ellen Datlow)
Rating Out of 5: 5 (I will read this again and again and again)
My Bookshelves: Easy reading, Fantasy, Wordplay
Dates read: 18th February 2019
Pace: Fast
Format: Short story
Publisher: Tor
Year: 2017
5th sentence, 74th page: “- just a little girl.

When a small child travels down the path to Wonderland, they have to swap places… Kitty finds herself in a whole new riddle and body. Once a Cheshire, and now a little girl. So why is a sentence like a Saturday?

This is my second Seanan McGuire short story (the first being The Mathematical Inevitability of Corvids) and it is just as twisted! In a less sick, going to kill someone way. But in a twisting of words and riddling kind of way. After finishing each paragraph I would take a deep breath. Just because the way the sentences stream into one another was so intensely done that I wouldn’t breathe. It almost worked like one whole sentence.

I’ve never been insanely into riddles, yet this story (and many of the others in this collection) have made me think that there is a need to ignite this interest. After all, the entire story read like a riddle. And I couldn’t tear my eyes off of it.

I loved the ending of this tale. It was both sad and sweet. Perfect and tragic. It certainly bought a tear to my eye as I turned the last page, and that’s something that I always enjoy and appreciate.

<- In Memory of a Summer’s Day

Worrity, Worrity ->

Image source: Bookdepository

The Mathematical Inevitability of Corvids by Seanan McGuire

February 20, 2019Book ReviewBlack Feathers, Horror, Mental health, Seanan McGuireskyebjenner

Title: The Mathematical Inevitability of Corvids
Author: Seanan McGuire
In: Black Feathers (Ellen Datlow)
Rating Out of 5: 5 (I will read this again and again and again)
My Bookshelves: Horror,
Mental health
Dates read: 28th January 2019
Pace: Fast
Format: Short story
Publisher: Pegasus Books Ltd.
Year: 2017
5th sentence, 74th page: She’s the only one that’s stayed.

“One’s for sorrow, two’s for joy.” Brenda counts corvids as a way to understand the mathematics of her day. But when the unthinkable happens, will her counting and corvids help her? Or will they spell the end?

I feel like I liked this story a little tooooo much. It was dark, twisted and resulted in murder. And yet I absolutely loved it. Can’t stop thinking about it. Feel almost completely obsessed with it. Although, unlike most short stories that I love this much… I’m more than happy that it ended when it did. This was poignant and powerful, but it was also perfectly succinct in what it was attempting to entail.

There’s something hard about being different. And in this short story, the horrific way in which others can treat a child who is different are highlighted. There is a knowledge and understanding in the slightly jittery voice that highlights just how aware the young protagonist is. And when this hatred of her difference leads to something far too horrible to contemplate… well, that’s why this short story is on the horror shelf.

I don’t often feel sympathy for people who do a “bad thing”. Especially not something delivered in cold blood. But I definitely did in this story. And it left me feeling both awed and uncomfortable. A feeling that I think is fantastic to gain from a well-written short story.

<- The Obscure Bird

Something About Birds ->