2022 Free Range Reading
A book chosen for fun, not part of any project, plan, or list. In fact, I purchased it primarily for Patricia Briggs' short story about her ancient werewolf character, Asil. That one was the best of the lot for me, as Asil is a favourite of mine, smart, handsome, and proud as he is.
The other short fiction collected here consists of stories designed to be hopeful. Since I mostly find urban fantasy to be a hopeful genre, I'm not sure how it differs from regular anthologies. There were several stories that stood above the rest, in my opinion. No Greater Love by Kacey Ezell was a great twist on the werewolf theme, from a Mormon point of view. I was struck by the dilemma of a very devout person having to choose a path that would normally be anathema. I was also very taken with Skjoldmodir from the duo of Michael Z. Williamson and Jessica Schlenker. I am very impressed with several writing teams of mixed gender. They seem well balanced to me, and this interpretation of Beowulf is intriguing and reinforces my impressions. I also enjoyed Last Contact by M.C. Sumner, in which I saw significant echoes of Arthur C. Clarke's Childhood's End.
As in any anthology, there were tales that I found less captivating and one or two of them even boring. But even those have their place, probably appealing to folks with divergent tastes from mine. Literally something for everyone.
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