Book Review: Of Claws and Fangs by Faith Hunter

 

From the publisher:

Collected together for the first time, this volume contains shorter works featuring heroines Jane Yellowrock and Nell Ingram, as well as a host of other characters from the Jane Yellowrock and Soulwood series. Faith Hunter is “an expert at creating worlds filled with intriguing supernatural elements and exciting scenarios”* and her skills are on full display in this collection. From a vampire-filled Halloween evening in New Orleans to the searing tale of how a certain were-leopard first got his spots, this collection has something for everyone, and each story is sure to put the super in supernatural.
 
With eighteen stories in all, Of Claws and Fangs will enrich and entertain—it’s a must-have for Faith Hunter’s readers and all lovers of fantasy.

Of Claws and Fangs was published May 3rd, 2022 by Ace.

My thoughts:

The stories may have been previously published, but not all of them are readily available elsewhere. Faith Hunter puts a note at the beginning of the collection about this as well as brief notes before each story explaining its origin and where it might fall in the timeline of things. 

I thought all of the stories were excellent which is often unusual in a collection or anthology. While I enjoyed them all, the story "Bound into Darkness" stood out to me. It's a little longer than the rest, but it held me rapt. It's got Liz Everhart and Eli Younger as the main characters. It's told in alternating points of view between the two. There's plenty of action and magic. And there's loads of suspense.

Overall, I give this collection 5 out of 5 stars. I agree with the publisher that this is a must read for anyone who enjoys Faith Hunter's books. Other fans of urban fantasy might enjoy the book as well. It could serve as an introduction to Jane Yellowrock, Nell Ingram, and other characters and elements of their world.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley. This did not affect my review.

Can't Wait Wednesday/Waiting on Wednesday #317: Fantastic Hope ed. Laurell K. Hamilton and William McCaskey

"Waiting on Wednesday" is a weekly event that had been hosted by Jill over at Breaking the Spine where we spotlighted upcoming releases we are eagerly anticipating. I'm now linking up with "Can't-Wait Wednesday" hosted over at Wishful Endings.

From Goodreads:
A collection of sci-fi and fantasy stories edited by #1 New York Times bestselling author Laurell K. Hamilton and author William McCaskey.

A child’s wish for her father comes true. The end of the world has never been so much fun. Conquering personal demons becomes all too real. It’s not always about winning; sometimes it’s about showing up for the fight. It’s about loving your life’s work, and jobs that make you question everything.

In this anthology, seventeen authors have woven together brand-new stories that speak to the darkness and despair that life brings while reminding us that good deeds, humor, love, sacrifice, dedication, and following our joy can ignite a light that burns so bright the darkness cannot last.

Laurell K. Hamilton and William McCaskey are joined by Kevin J. Anderson, Griffin Barber, Patricia Briggs, Larry Correia, Kacey Ezell, Monalisa Foster, Robert E. Hampson, John G. Hartness, Jonathan Maberry, L. E. Modesitt, Jr., Jessica Schlenker, Sharon Shinn, M. C. Sumner, Patrick M. Tracy, and Michael Z. Williamson in this collection.

Fantastic Hope edited by Laurell K. Hamilton and William McCaskey is expected to be published April 7th, 2020 by Berkley.

Why am I waiting on this one? I generally enjoy sci-fi and fantasy short story collections. And I like the particular angle, the positive take, that this one has reminding us that there are things that can "ignite a light that burns so bright the darkness cannot last." There is so much dark dystopian literature that we all could stand a little hope instead.

What book are you waiting on this week? Share it or a link in the comments so we can check it out and maybe add it to our TBR lists. Thanks for coming by and Happy Reading!

Teaser Tuesday: Sleigh Bells and Sleuthing

Teaser Tuesday is a weekly bookish meme hosted by The Purplebooker.
Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

• Grab your current read

• Open to a random page

• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page

• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (Make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)

• Share the title and author so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

From the novella: "The Claus Killing" by  Carolyn Ridder Aspenson

She blew her nose into the tissue, and it sounded like an eighteen-wheeler horn blowing on Interstate 85 in downtown Atlanta. "I know he's not real, you jerk. I'm not talking about that Santa. I'm talking about our Santa, the Bramblett County one. He's dead." (1% in on my Kindle)

Sleigh Bells and Sleuthing: a Collection of 16 Cozy Mystery Novellas Featuring Female Sleuths was published November 20th, 2018 by Good Fortune Farm Refuge. All profits from this collection go to the Good Fortune Farm Refuge, a No-Kill animal refuge in Alabama.

Would you keep reading? What's your teaser this week? Share it or a link in the comments. Are you enjoying your book? Let us know! Happy Reading!

Review: Brief Cases by Jim Butcher

This is considered #15.1 in the Dresden Files series. The stories are enjoyable even if you haven't read the complete series yet. Though if you haven't read all of the series, there are spoilers. It contains 11 short stories that were previously published and one novella that is new. The entry for Brief Cases on Goodreads has a list of all of the stories with about a one sentence summary of each.

I enjoyed all of the stories, but maybe in particular that there were 3 of them about a Bigfoot. They were mostly lighter than some of the others in the collection. I also found that I liked the story "Even Hand" which is told from Johnnie Marcone's point of view. It was nice to see another side of him, a deeper side.

The novella, "Zoo Day," I probably would have skipped if I knew ahead of time that it was in part a dog story. I generally don't read those in case something happens to the dog. But, the story was good.

The stories are all from various points in the series. Goodreads again includes where each story falls in the series in their synopsis here.

I'd have to say overall I give the book 4 out of 5 stars. The stories are well-written. You can enjoy them without having read the series, but you will encounter spoilers. There is a variety. Not all of the stories are from Harry's point of view. I would recommend this book and the series to fans of urban fantasy.

Brief Cases by Jim Butcher was released June 5th, 2018 from Ace.

Disclaimer: I received a copy of the book from the publisher through NetGalley. This did not affect my opinion of the book. The review is unbiased and honest.