Strange Brew

I usually pick up an anthology if it has 1-2 authors I follow. This one had 4, and 1 I was interested in reading (Jane Yellowrock), so I considered it a good investment. I was not disappointed. The stories I read (Jim Butcher, Patricia Briggs, Karen Chance, Charlaine Harris, and Faith Hunter) were, generally, very good. The weak point was the Charlaine Harris, which was very dark with a somewhat formal, detached style, appropriate to the story, but it didn’t work for me. The Faith Hunter one was told from a supporting character point of view, but I knew from the first page I wanted to go seek out the rest of the series. The only problem I had was it seemed like they should deal with potions or drinking, and Jim Butcher’s was the only one that did. Not a big deal, though.

This was not what I expected. I really wanted to like it more.

There are several stories in here by authors I really like. The Charlaine Harris has a twist ending that was unfortunately telegraphed. The Faith Hunter tale, the introduction to Jane Yellowrock, was good, but I read it not long ago in a single author anthology of hers. And the Jim Butcher story was only so-so.

As far as the other stories went, they mostly held my interest, but none stands out as above the rest.

If you like urban fantasy, this might be enjoyable, but I would counsel against it for anyone coming new to the category.

Before I begin, please note that this review is for the audio version.

I love fantasy – and most of the authors included in this anthology are ones that I quite enjoy reading. However, I could not get through the stories in the audio because the reading was so distractingly horrible. When I’m driving in my car talking to myself about the voices rather than listening to the story itself, then there is a problem. I made it through the first two stories (by Patricia Briggs and Jim Butcher) before yielding in defeat.

In the first story, by Patricia Briggs, Tom (a werewolf) sounds like he’s constantly in pain. And in the Jim Butcher story, centered around Harry Dresden, Detective Murphy sounds like a bad imitation of RuPaul. Now I have listened to audio books in the past and enjoyed them – but then again, those books were not fantasy. Maybe it’s something about the genre that doesn’t lend itself to audio (with fantasy, much more tends to be left to a reader’s imagination than general fiction), or maybe it just happens to be these particular readers. I genuinely don’t know. What I do know is this – the audio version could go by “Bad Brew” rather than the original title. I deducted

Concerning the content itself, I quite enjoyed the stories (I downloaded the book to my Kindle so that I wouldn’t have to torment myself anymore.). “Bacon” by Charlaine Harris was enjoyable (though a little forced at times), and I quite liked “Death Warmed Over”. Honestly, I enjoyed all the stories, though I can’t say that they were particularly Earth-shaking. There were a few authors here that I had never experienced, so I don’t know if these short stories lived up to their novels, which seems to be a bit of a complaint with some. As a first time experience, I liked them enough to look up the authors and investigate their novels more.

So, to recap – AVOID the audio version of this and go straight to the book. It’s a worthwhile way to spend some time, and could be an excellent way to explore new authors.

(Audio book format) – Fantastic!!! All in all, the majority of the stories earn a five star rating. None of the stories, for me, earned less then three and half stars. I was disappointed in the Harry Dresden book; it didn’t seem to be as good as Jim Butcher’s novels. The story lacked that something that give his stories that little extra punch.

Favorites? Vegas Odd by Karen Chance, narrated by Dina Pearlman. Fast pace, no more like break neck speed in the beginning. Than like other good stories, it slows down so you can catch your breath before it speeds up again. Anyone who has ever played a D&D War Mage will appreciate a terrific story about an often-maligned character build. Fantastic characters, great story and Dina Pearlman excellent narration. The story opens with a scene straight out of any well-made action movie.

Second Favorite? Signatures of the Dead by Faith Hunter and narrated by Karen Chapman. I haven’t heard anything else narrated by Karen so I’m not familiar with her voice (accents) but I enjoyed her portrayal of the main character. Her southern accent was smooth and natural. The story was great, once again a wonderful mix of characters and action. (You see a theme developing?) I liked the Jane Yellowrock character but I hope the author will write a book featuring Molly Trueblood and her sisters.

My Third Favorite? Death Warmed Over by Rachel Caine and narrated by Gayle Hendrix. Action, tenderness, regrets, tension are some of the ways I would described this story. Again an excellent written story, performed by a talented voice actor. Any narrated who can make economics sound good is truly talented.

I love short stories I can sample a writers world and see if want to visit in a longer journey These were a dream since it contained known and unknowns so thatI could make choice without investing a huge amount for an unknown author

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