Review: Two and Twenty Dark Tales: Dark Retellings of Mother Goose Rhymes - Anthology

In this anthology, 20 authors explore the dark and hidden meanings behind some of the most beloved Mother Goose nursery rhymes through short story retellings. The dark twists on classic tales range from exploring whether Jack truly fell or if Jill pushed him instead to why Humpty Dumpty, fragile and alone, sat atop so high of a wall. The authors include Nina Berry, Sarwat Chadda, Leigh Fallon, Gretchen McNeil, and Suzanne Young.

Visit the Month9Books website for more information about the anthology

I thought I'd include a list of the short stories included in the anthology and the author they were written by for your information:

1. As Blue as the Sky and Just as Old - Nina Berry
2. Sing a Song of Six-Pence - Sarwat Chadda
3. Clockwork - Leah Cypress
4. Blue - Sayantani DasGupta
5. Pieces of Eight - Shannon Delaney with Max Scialdone
6. Wee Willie Winkie - Leigh Fallon
7. Boy and Girls Come Out to Play - Angie Frazier
8. I Come Bearing Souls - Jessie Harrell
9. The Lion and the Unicorn - Nancy Holder
10. Life in a Shoe - Heidi Kling
11. Candlelight - Suzanne Lazear
12. One for Sorrow - Karen Mahoney
13. Those Who Whisper - Lisa Mantchev
14. Little Miss Muffet - Georgia McBride
15. Sea of Dew - C. Lee McKenzie
16. Tick Tock - Gretchen McNeil
17. A Pocket Full of Posy - Pamela van Hyckama Vlieg
18. The Well - K.M. Walton
19. The Wish - Suzanne Young
20. A Ribbon of Blue - Michelle Zink

Review:
I think everyone must be familiar with at least one Mother Goose nursery rhyme, children have been reciting these rhymes in the playground for hundreds of years so even if you don't realise it I'm sure you'll recognise some of them. In the Two and Twenty Dark Tales anthology some of today's most popular YA authors have come together to look at the dark side of these nursery rhymes and give us their own take on them in the form of short stories. These short stories cover a whole range of genres ranging from historical to futuristic dystopian, from modern settings to fantasy lands and everything in between. The stories also range from fairly light hearted with a hint of romance through to downright creepy and with a touch of horror thrown in for good measure.

Personally I enjoy reading anthologies as a way to try out new to me authors. I was particularly interested in this anthology for Karen Mahoney's story called One for Sorrow though and I enjoyed it as much as I was expecting to, I love Karen's writing style and the story had a fab twist at the end. As with any anthology, particularly one with twenty different stories in it, there were some tales I really loved and others that I wasn't so keen on. What did surprise me was how many of the Mother Goose rhymes that I didn't actually recognise - thankfully each story starts with the rhyme it was based on because I have to admit that there were some stories I wouldn't have had a clue about otherwise. I think my main problem with the anthology was how short each story was, I know I should probably have expected that considering how many different stories are included but every time I started to really get into a story I'd reach the end. There were a couple of stores that I didn't enjoy because the author didn't have enough time to complete the world building needed to tell the tale, these stories had a lot of potential though and could have been wonderful as a full length novel or even a longer novella.

In spite of my problem with the length of some of the stories there were still some that really stood out as memorable and didn't get lost amongst the crowd. I'm not going to talk about each individual story in this review (although you can see my opinion about them all in my status updates on Goodreads) but I will mention that my favourites (along with Karen Mahoney's One for Sorrow) were Sing a Song of Six-Pence by Sarwat Chadda, Boys and Girls Come out to Play by Angie Frazier, I Come Bearing Souls by Jessie Harrell, Tick Tock by Gretchen McNeil and A Ribbon of Blue by Michelle Zink.

The good thing about having so many different authors and writing styles is that there is sure to be something that catches the imagination of everyone who picks up the book. I'm sure everyone will have different favourites but I don't doubt there being something that you like in here. One thing I was very happy to discover is that this is a charity anthology and the proceeds from the sale of the first 5,000 copies will be donated to www.yalitchat.org an organisation that works to increase awareness of YA literature. This is a fun anthology full of dark little stories that are quick and easy to read and include the occasional shock ending. You'll never be able to look at your favourite nursery rhymes in quite the same way again!

Source: Received from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review

Other Reviews:
If you have reviewed this book on your blog please leave a link to your review in the comments & I'll add the link here.

Review: Otherkin - Nina Berry

Sixteen-year-old Desdemona Gray doesn't even bother with crushes on cute boys now that she's forced to wear a hard plastic back brace all day. What guy would want to literally have to knock on a girl to be let in? So she squashes down every impossible desire until an uber-awkward brush with a boy brings out all her frustration and she changes...into a tiger. In that bewildering moment, she is captured by Ximon, the leader of a fanatical group hell-bent on wiping out the five remaining tribes of shape-shifters, known as the otherkin.

With help from a handsome, mysterious fellow captive named Caleb, she escapes and goes on the run, finding allies and learning the truth behind the legends of wizards and were-creatures. Then Ximon goes too far, and Dez must tap into all her buried desires to find her inner tiger and save herself, her new friends, and the boy she loves.

Otherkin Series:
Otherkin
Othermoon (2013)

Visit Nina Berry's website for more information.

Review:
Dez has always thought she was a normal teenager - apart from the back brace she has to wear 23 hours per day thanks to her scoliosis - so the day she gets angry and transforms into a tiger comes as quite a shock! The next thing she knows someone is shooting through her bedroom window and she wakes up trapped in a cage. She manages to escape captivity with fellow prisoner Caleb and finds herself on the run from a group of people she never knew existed. Learning she is one of the Otherkin is a lot to take in and she has little choice but to trust Caleb when he tells her about a school where she can learn about her powers and be kept safe from the members of the Tribunal who want to kill her.

As soon as I saw the cover for Otherkin I had to read it - just take one look at that image and tell me it doesn't make you want to pick up the book! I know you shouldn't judge a book by it's cover but I do it time and time again and luckily in this case my instincts were right. Nina Berry has created an interesting world with different kinds of shapeshifters, a world where two realities are layered on top of each other and the Otherkin are able to access the layer that most people can't see and use the shadow they find there to effect our world. I do still have some questions about exactly how the Othersphere works but I'm looking forward to learning more as the series continues.

The different shifters come from five different families - cats, wolves, bears, birds of prey and rats. All of the other species have died out and there are all sorts of conflicts between the remaining clans. Each group has very specific characteristics that don't always allow them to live in harmony together. It was believed that there were no tiger shifters left so when Dez turns up she comes as quite a surprise to the others and they aren't sure what to make of her. She was adopted as a baby and has no knowledge of her family history so this whole world is very new to her and there is a lot to understand. I did think that she accepted her very first transformation a little too easily but it was interesting to see her thrown in at the deep end and having to cope in an extremely high stress situation. She proves herself to be both strong and brave, especially when she refuses to leave without rescuing Caleb first.

I enjoyed meeting the different characters who were studying at the school and learning about the powers they all have. Along with the different kinds of shifters you also have Callers who have the ability to make things using the shadows from the Othersphere. There is distrust amongst the different shifters species but none of them trust the callers so this makes it easier for the Tribunal to pick them off one at a time. It is up to Dez to try and get the others to work together against a common enemy but that isn't going to be easy.

Otherkin is a great start to a new series and has left me excited to find out what happens next - I'll definitely be picking up a copy of Othermoon when it is published early next year. If you're looking for a YA urban fantasy with action, intrigue, a few surprising twists and the beginnings of a promising romance then look no further - Otherkin is just what you need.

Source: Received from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review

Other Reviews:
Artsy Musings of a Bibliophile
If you have reviewed this book on your blog please leave a link to your review in the comments & I'll add the link here.

Paperback / Kindle: