The New Death and Others by James Hutchings

        

The New Death and Others
by James Hutchings

Summary from Goodreads:

"Death gets a roommate...

An electronic Pope faces a difficult theological question...

A wicked vizier makes a terrible bargain...

44 stories. 19 poems. No whiny vampires. There's a thin line between genius and insanity, and James Hutchings has just crossed it - but from which direction?"

Rating:

This book is way outside my comfort zone but since I’ve been trying to move outside my boundaries, the New Death and Others is just one of the books I needed to do so.

I’ve read a couple of anthologies before, but usually it’s a collection of stories and poems from a variety of authors, so I was a little surprised knowing that the author of this book solely wrote the stories and poems. I may not be a writer but I know that it’s hard to create anecdotes that would only take up a few pages and yet must have the establishment of characters and a moving story. Plus the idea alone is something hard to accomplish; so for that, kudos to you, James Hutchings!

Now on with the book’s content. What is it about? Well, the title and the cover pretty much says it all. I can’t say I loved all the stories but there are several that stood out and I somehow came to like. For instance, when I read The End, I liked the irony of what occurred with the characters, sorry for being vague but I’d be giving away the entire story if I go any further. 

I also like the touch of a Lovecraft tale. While I was taking up 3D Arts, we had a class called “Character Illustration” and part of our lesson was to get inspiration from H.P. Lovecraft’s works and create fantasy creatures. That was not an easy take for me so I commend the author’s ability to construct something out of that.

I do have to say that I struggled with some of the stores. I guess it’s because they’re not the type of stories I encounter with the books I’m accustomed reading. I also feel like some parts may’ve been unpolished or unclear to me; or maybe I just don’t get the idea of.

This may not have been a favorite of mine but I admire Hutchings for his creativity and I’d surely like to see more of his works.

The Faery Reel: Tales from the Twilight Realm edited by Ellen Daltow & Terri Windling

        

The Faery Reel: Tales from 
the Twilight Realm
edited by Ellen Daltow 
& Terri Windling

Summary from Goodreads:

"Faeries, or creatures like them, can be found in almost every culture the world over—benevolent and terrifying, charming and exasperating, shifting shape from country to country, story to story, and moment to moment. In The Faery Reel, acclaimed anthologists Ellen Datlow and Terri Windling have asked some of today’s finest writers of fantastic fiction for short stories and poems that draw on the great wealth of world faery lore and classic faery literature. This companion to the World Fantasy Award–winner and Locus bestseller The Green Man is edgy, provocative, and thoroughly magical. Like the faeries themselves."

Contributing Authors: Holly Black, Ellen Steiber, Nina Kiriki Hoffman, Patricia A. McKillip, Gregory Maguire, Hiromi Goto, A.M. Dellamonica, Neil Gaiman, Bill Congreve, Charles Vess, Jeffrey Ford, Emma Bull, Nan Fry, Charles de Lint, Delia Sherman, Tanith Lee, Gregory Frost, Kelly LinkTerri Windling, Steve Berman, Bruce Glassco, Katherine Vass

Rating:

I’ve always been in love with fairytales so I just had to have this book. I practically heard it calling me from the bookshelf of one of my favorite bookstores. LOL.
I loved the variety of faerie culture that this book has offered and I enjoyed reading different tales about the Fair Folk. 

I can’t say that I specifically had a favorite but there were stories that stood out to me more than the others, like Undine by Patricia McKillip and the Night Market by Holly Black. The latter was very significant to me because it had bits and pieces of our Filipino mythical creatures, the Enkanto to be specific. 

Anyway, I really like this anthology and I’m very much pleased to have this on my bookshelf.