| Title | : | Strange Brew |
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | |
| ISBN | : | 0312383363 |
| ISBN-10 | : | 9780312383367 |
| Language | : | English |
| Format Type | : | Paperback |
| Number of Pages | : | 372 |
| Publication | : | First published July 7, 2009 |
In Charlaine Harris' "Bacon," a beautiful vampire joins forces with a witch from an ancient line to find out who killed her beloved husband. In "Seeing Eye" by Patricia Briggs, a blind witch helps sexy werewolf Tom Franklin find his missing brother—and helps him in more ways than either of them ever suspected. And in Jim Butcher's "Last Call," wizard Harry Dresden takes on the darkest of dark powers—the ones who dare to mess with this favorite beer.
For anyone who's ever wondered what lies beyond the limits of reality, who's imagined the secret spaces where witches wield fearsome magic, come and drink deep. Let yourself fall under the spell of this bewitching collection of short stories!
Strange Brew Reviews
-
Funnyish and ironic short story. Didn't seem pertinent to the series, but perhaps it'll come into play soon enough.
-
1.5 The Seeing Eye by Patricia Briggs
Too short!!!! I want more more MOREEEE!!!! The ending was so abrupt! *pouts* :( -
Halloween Bingo 2021
Any collection of short fiction is going to have some stories that work better for the reader than others. Your favourites may intersect with mine or we may like completely different things. C'est la vie.
For my money, the most enjoyable offering was that of Patricia Briggs. I've enjoyed all of her Mercy books and the Alpha & Omega series, which this story is an off shoot from. I guess I knew there was a story out there about Moira, the blind witch of the Seattle werewolf pack, but I hadn't actively sought it out. I'm delighted to have read it. If possible, I like Moira even more now.
I also liked the glimpse back into Faith Hunter's Jane Yellowrock series, centered on her BFF Molly and her witch family. I have two more books to read in Jane's world and this is my reminder of how much I enjoy Hunter's imaginative world.
Ditto with Pat Elrod. I like her vampire detective, Jack Fleming, although I think I prefer her novels to the short fiction. The story felt a bit rushed to me. There are some other well known authors here—Jim Butcher, Charlaine Harris, Rachel Caine. I'd read work by Karen Chance before too. Once again, as with Elrod, I find I prefer the long form stories, but this is a personal prejudice of mine. I like to inhabit their fictional worlds for a longer stay, rather than just get comfortable in time to have the story end and the carpet pulled out from under me!
Still, this was a fun sampling from a number of my favourite urban fantasy worlds and it was a good choice for Halloween Bingo.
-
Seeing Eye by Patricia Briggs
3.5 Stars
This was VERY short as in only 24 pages, but I still really liked it and it has encouraged me to give Patricia Briggs another shot.
Last Call by Jim Butcher
3.5 Stars
Another story that again was really short, about 50 pages, but was entertaining, I haven't read any of the Dresden Files books but this little snippet has inspired me to put it on my TBR mountain.
Death Warmed Over by Rachel Caine
5 Stars
I really liked this story, abobut a witch who resurrects the dead and falls in love with the man she brings back (not as gross as it sounds!) In the small amount of pages it had, it managed to fit in romance and some action.
Vegas Odds by Karen Chance
5 Stars
I don't know if I am bias giving this particular story 5 Stars as I am already a massive Karen Chance fan anyways. It packed in loads of action and a but like the Cassie Palmer books, Lia, our heroine stumbles from one fight to the next. It had some nice twists in it and a touch of romance and I really enjoyed it.
Hecate's Golden Eye by P N Elrod
4 Stars
This was a great read, it had a bit of humour, a stolen diamond and 1930s detective work with a vampire thrown in! I haven't read anything by P N Elrod before but I would again.
Bacon by Charlaine Harris
2 Stars
I didn't like this one at all, it was set in the same world as the Sookie books with a vampire called Dahlia who wants revenge on her husbands killers, I didn't like Dahlia, I found her irritating and didn't really sense that she was that anguished by her late husbands death to go to all this trouble to avenge him. This story also has a twist at the end the reminded me of a short story I once read by Roahl Dahl, but this had a very long build it to something that was just a bit "meh"
Signatures of the Dead by Faith Hunter
3 Stars
This was quite good, about some rogue vampires that rip apart a family and an earth with and Jane Yellowrock help track them down and take out the nest. Although this story was good to read at the time there was nothing spectacular or memorable about it
Ginger by Caitlin Kittredge
3 Stars
This was a novella in the Nocturne City series by Caitlin Kittredge, which I have actually read the first one of this month, much like the "Night Life" the first in th Nocturne City series, this was okay, but didn't really encourage me to go out and by the next in the series.
Dark Sins by Jenna Maclaine
4 Stars
I really liked this! It is a novella in the Cin Craven series and I don't think I should have read it really until I had read atleast the first book (which right now is looking at me from my bookcase!) but I couldn't help myelf and wanted a sample of what her writing was like. I wasn't disappointed and I found the story and characters really interesting and "Wage of Sin" has been bumped up on my to-read list.
So.....
I have decided to give this anthology a 4 Star rating, it had some great stories in there, especially the Karen Chance, Rachel Caine and Jenna Maclaine ones. There was only one story that I actually disliked, "Bacon" by Charlaine Harris. So this book is well worth a look at, and I would recommed it to anyone looking for something new to read who wants to look at some new authors styles. -
For some reason GR keeps showing this as one of a series as if it is exclusive to one. It's not. It's a bunch of short stories by some of the hot UF/PNR writers around so there are a lot of series represented. They're all women, with the exception of Butcher, FWIW. While there were a few good stories, most were barely OK. Considering these authors are churning out several books a year, I expected a little better, although wasn't holding out too much hope.
Most of the fighting was fairly horrible & the characters were pretty flat. There weren't any surprises nor tough decisions. Lots of stupid people trying not to kill people that obviously were going to die for dumb reasons. Seriously, it was old comic book material with a few exceptions.
"Seeing Eye" by
Patricia Briggs pg.1 is set in the Mercy Thompson universe, but doesn't feature her. It's a quick, good story with a witch & werewolf.
"Last Call" by
Jim Butcher pg.40 - is a good Dresden story. Harry at his typical. Fun.
"Death Warmed Over" by
Rachel Caine pg.78 - Caine will never be my favorite author. Great imagination, but her writing, especially action scenes, doesn't work for me. As usual, there's a ridiculous love angle & she spends too much time filling in the back story, too. If you like her, this is a Holly Caldwell, resurrection witch, story. I've only read the first of her Weather Warden & Morganville Vampire series & one short story of the latter. If I never read another word by her, that's OK.
"Vegas Odds" by
Karen Chance pg.123 - wore me out, just like the later books of the Cassandra Palmer series did. I got to the third book & haven't had any desire to read another. Too much silly action. It might make a good comic book, but doesn't work as a novel for me.
"Hecate's Golden Eye" by
P. N. Elrod pg.181 - was the first short story that I've read by Elrod, I think. It was excellent, another Jack Fleming story, the main character of her 'Vampire Files'. It's set back in the 30's with Charles, a short case. Lots of fun.
"Bacon" by
Charlaine Harris pg.225 - Not Harris' best. It bugged me that two major points of the story seemed to contradict the rest of her Sookie Stackhouse world. If I could forget those two items, the story still didn't fly too well. The tone was uneven, going into boring detail about some things & then trying to be subtle, even mysterious elsewhere. Still, it was kind of fun. I don't think short stories are her forte.
"Signatures of the Dead" by
Faith Hunter pg.259 - This is the first story I've ever read by this author. Not bad. Kind of an interesting world. A major character of this story is Jane Yellowrock, who is the subject of a series. If I stumble across the first one, I'll probably read it, but won't go out of my way to get it.
"Ginger: A Nocturne City Story" by
Caitlin Kittredge pg.295 was OK. Again, the first time I read anything by this author. Again, kind of dumb action. The heroine kept trying to be shown as meek, but didn't come off that way very well.
"Dark Sins" by
Jenna Maclaine pg.338 again, simply OK.Somewhat interesting, but there was no real suspense.
Overall, I wasn't thrilled with this collection. -
I won this book through First Reads. It's interesting to see how the 9 stories in this collection apply the central theme (witches and magic) to flesh out pre-exisiting characters and worlds (with a couple of exceptions, to be mentioned later). In order of appearance:
Patricia Briggs' "Seeing Eye" takes place in the Mercy Thompson universe, but aside from a few general references, it focuses on new characters and new situations, like the magic system and the role of witches in that world. The characters are interesting, and the story leaves itself open for more information and further adventures - which is slightly annoying if there aren't going to be any, but there's hope - she's introduced new characters in short story collections before.
"Last Call" is everything I've come to expect from Jim Butcher's contributions to collections. It's better if you already know Harry Dresden and the major players in his world, but it works without it. It's enjoyable and light, and Butcher gets points from me for writing a story about beer in a collection called Strange Brew.
Rachel Caine's "Death Warmed Over" reads like a stand-alone, though I'm not sure if it is or not (I haven't read any of her long fiction). The mystery was good, and I liked the interactions of the romantic leads, but the end felt kind of like a cop-out, given the established rules of the world. I'd like to see these characters again, if only to have that explained in more detail.
"Vegas Odds" takes place in the Cassandra Palmer universe, focusing on an unorthodox member of the Silver Circle. I liked the character, and the plot was well done, if a bit convoluted. I liked getting a perspective on different members of the supernatural comunity in that world.
P.N. Elrod, also the editor for the collection, contributed "Hecate's Golden Eye," a Jack Fleming story. I liked the plot twists, and it made me curious to read more about the main characters. Compared to another Jack Fleming story in a different collection, this one felt less self-contained. It would probably be most enjoyable if the reader already knew the Vampire Files series.
Charlaine Harris's "Bacon" brings back the character Dahlia (from one of the stories in My Big Fat Supernatural Wedding). She's looking for revenge, but the form that takes is a bit odd. I liked how mythology was worked into the story, but it seems like a lot of the action is glossed over in favor of keeping the twists a surprise (which is only partially successful).
Faith Hunter's "Signatures of the Dead" has, as a supporting character, the main character for her new series. I didn't really connect with this story - it felt rushed, and there were hints about broader social conflicts that were left frustratiingly unclear. I miss having backstory for this one.
"Ginger" is part of Caitlin Kittredge's Nocturne City series (which I haven't read). Again, it works best if you already know the world, but that mostly helps with the magic system and politics, as far as this story is concerned. There's enough for broad outlines, and it helps that the main character for the series is a supporting character here. Some if the plot events seem truncated, which can make the flow of the story confusing at points.
My least favorite story in the collection is the last one, Jenna Maclaine's "Dark Sins." This is another one that's part of a series (the Cin Craven series, according to the blurb at the end). The writing style just didn't really work for me, and the inclusion of Celtic mythology was a bit odd, given the time frame presented. I like the idea of a roaming band of vampire law enforcers, but I'm a little fed up with the inexplicably-over-burdened-with-superpowers heroine trend. Perhaps the books are better representations of the series (as is true of many of the stories in this collection), but I really have no desire to find out.
All in all, like many collections, a mixed bag. -
I didn't read all 9 of the stories because some are for series I'm not reading.
Seeing Eye by Patricia Briggs-4 stars
This is the story of the witch Moira and the wolf Tom who both had a part in the Alpha & Omega series and I liked all of the story a LOT but the ending was a bit abrupt.
Last Call by Jim Butcher- 3 stars
I've been meaning to start this series, so I read the short story to see if I'd like it, and I do! I just bought the first book, Storm Front.
Bacon by Charlaine Harris-1 star
What a mess. A vampire wants revenge against the killer of her werewolf husband, but the whole story is just a big weak mess that hops in random directions.
Signature of the Dead by Faith Hunter-3 stars
Jane Yellowrock prequel, told by Molly instead of Jane. I have wanted to read Jane Yellowrock for a while, but I'm not a huge fan of Urban Fantasy, and this series is a definite UF. A dark and gritty well-written UF series. I don't think I'll read it...yet. My tastes have been known to change :)
Ginger by Caitlin Kittredge-DNF
I've read one short by her and swore I'd never read her again. Wish I'd remembered that.
Dark Sins by Jenna Maclaine-5 stars
This is Cin Craven 1.5 and it's really important to the series. Cin and the Righteous are captured by an evil wizard who tries to turn Cin to the dark side...and succeeds...kind of. The goddess Morrigan helps out a bit, and I really enjoyed this one. It explained some things I didn't quite understand in the full-length novels. -
Seeing Eye by Patricia Briggs ★★★★½
It’s the Tom and Moira origin story! I’ve read it before and I enjoyed it again. Tom, the werewolf seeks out the powerful blind witch to save his brother from an evil coven.
Death Warmed Over by Rachel Caine ★★★★½
Excellent PNR of a resurrection witch and a long fallen hero. If there had been sexy time it would have been five stars. The best short stories, like this one, are full stories.
Bacon by Charlaine Harris ★★★★½
I love Dahlia stories! This clever old vampire deserves her own series.
Vegas Odds by Karen Chance ★★★★☆
Delicious action packed PNR with a war mage and a were.
Ginger: A Nocturne City Story by Caitlin Kittredge ★★★½☆
A cautious witch stumbles into helping her badass werewolf cousin in police work.
Hecate’s Golden Eye by P.N. Elrod ★★★½☆
A diamond caper and long con face two private detectives, one of whom is a vampire.
Signatures of the Dead by Faith Hunter ★★★☆☆
A witches and Jane Yellowrock hunt down a crazed group of vampires. The story was problematic in that halfway through it was mentioned vampires sleep in the day but by the end of the story that is not true. It’s important to stay plausible and consistent.
Last Call by Jim Butcher ★★½☆☆
Similar to the Maryann Forrester plot line in True Blood. That meaningless crazy is when I stopped watching that show.
Dark Sins by Jenna MacLaine ★½☆☆☆
A vampiric witch comes into her power and everyone of her friends is ashamed of her. They believe themselves to be avenging forces of good but they hamper themselves. It was stupid.
Average 3.5 that I rounded up to four stars. This was a lovely audiobook to listen to while knitting. -
I bought this anthology for Seeing Eye, by
Patricia Briggs, because it belongs in her Alpha & Omega series, about werewolves and other magical beings. It was good, but I tend to gobble up everything Briggs.
Anyhoo... in Seeing Eye, Tom and Moira are introduced, a scarred and cynical old werewolf and a blind but capable white witch from Seattle. They meet and begin to fall in love. The plot is sorta scary, with a vicious bunch of dark witches. My only gripe? It's over too soon -- blasted shorts! But the good news is that Tom and Moira also play major supporting roles in book 2 of the Alpha & Omega series,
Hunting Ground.
For readers of the Mercedes Thompson series by Patricia Briggs, Alpha & Omega books involve Bran's younger son, Charles, the pack enforcer. Charles is an "alpha" type and his mate Anna is an "omega" wolf. You'll see plenty of Bran from Mercy Thompson in A&O, but only a little of his elder son Samuel. Mercy and Adam are only mentioned in A & O books.
Here is the order for Alpha and Omega, including this short story:
0.5 Alpha and Omega, a novella, prequel (it's in the anthology On the Prowl, and also as a stand alone e-release). In this book, Charles first meets his omega werewolf, Anna, in Chicago (overlapping plot with Moon Called).
1. Cry Wolf, set in the wolf lair area in Montana
1.5 Strange Brew anthology introduces Tom and Moira in Seeing Eye
2. Hunting Ground, set in Seattle (Tom and Moira in secondary roles)
3. Fair Game, set in Boston -
*** 3.25 ***
This is a part of Mercy Thompson world. I enjoyed the story about the werewolf and the blind witch, but it was too short! It actually could have gone longer and deeper, since Molly's character is very likable and has humongous potential for depth and rich background. I hope they get another full book! -
Jane Yellowrock....
This short novella shows a little of what Jane is really like, I had no idea she was a shifter!!! This has made me want to read this series really soon!!! -
Доста се забавлявах със сборника, макар да излиза малко от зоната ми на литературен комфорт. Подлъгах се по разказа на Бътчър, където основната тела – „Особени варива“ – беше преструкторирана в проблеми с любимата на Дрезден крафт бира. Естествено установих, че той е единствения достатъ��но мръднал да обърне „варивата“ в алкохолни такива. Трябваше да се усетя, след като съставител е Патриша Елроуд, която е известна най-вече с "Дневниците на вампира". Въпреки това, имаме класни автори, които знаят как да пишат, макар романтиката (все пак една от трите основни съставки на градското фентъзи) да ми дойде в повече.
Seeing Eye от Патриша Бригс – Много класно начало на Сборника. Мрачен ноар с вещици, където главната героиня е получила силата си на зверска цена. Когато на вратата ѝ сер появява върколак, търсещ брат си, тя осъзнава, че ще трябва да се изправи срещу кръвожадното си, безморално семейство. Патриша Бригс има вече две доста успешни поредици в жанра и определено знае как да хване читателя за гърлото. Оценявам, че тук е започнала нещо ново и то със зверски потенциал.
Last Call от Джим Бътчър – Класа направо, най-шантавото и добро произведение в книгата. Хари просто иска да си почине и да попие бири, но установява, че в любимия му пъб има сериозни проблеми. Някой е омагьосал всичката бира. На двамата с Мърфи ще им се наложи да нахлуят на футболен финал и да наложат запор на цяла партида вариво, но има древно божество, което е против.
Death Warmed Over от Рейчъл Кейн – Холи е некромансър от правилно добрите. Налага и се да извърши възкресение и то за втори път на същия човек – колега, който отдавна е трябвало да бъде оставен да почива в мир. За съжаление е нужен за да предотврати убийството на самата Холи. Доста прилично ърбънче със завързан криминален сюжет. Предните два разказа го превъзхождат, но с малко.
Vegas Odds от Карън Чейс – Може би разказът с най-много бойни сцени, за съжалене леко разводнен с мрънкането на главната героиня, че мъжът и не иска да я шиба като животно. Акелия де ла Кроа работи като обучаващ нови куки с паранормални способности. Една лежерна сутрин на Свети Валентин е нападната от група магьосници, които се оказват настоящите ѝ ученици. Това ще доведе до лабут, последван от скоростно разследване и разкриване на мръсни тайни в самия център на вегаското управление за паранормални шитни.
Hecate’s Golden Eye от П. Н. Елрод – Доста прилична криминална история, където свръхестествения елемент е само за фон. Риърдън е вампир, който по стечение на обстоятелствата работи за частния детектив Прескот. Двамата са наети да оправят положението с едно не особено легално семейно наследство, над което тегне проклятие. Това ще доведе до развръзка стил мис Марпъл. Доста симпатично.
Bakon от Чарлейн Харис – Това ми дойде леко слабовато на фона на предходните произведения. Като цяло подборката върви в низходящ ред, а клишетата стават все повече и повече. Далия е вампир, женена за върколак, който леко е поумрял. Тя се свързва с вещица, потомък на самата Цирцея, уж за да нагласи отмъщенийце. Вещицата, „за изненада на читателя“, се оказва замесена в самото покушение и бля, бля, бля... справедливостта възтържествува. Имаше доста забавни моменти, но до там.
Signatures of the Dead от Фейт Хънтър – Една вещица, с помощта на приятелката си шейпшифтър, ще разгони фамилията на гнездо подивели вампир��. Тук имаше доста прилични сцени на чист хорър, и то без да се съобразяват с читателски чувствителности. Иначе доста изтъркан сюжет, но добре изложен на хартията. Малко си личи, че е страничен проект от по-голяма поредица, чисто главната героиня не е развита, за сметка на второстепенната, която е водеща в поредицата. Става.
Ginger от Катлин Китредж – Забележките към предходния разказ важат и тук с пълна сила. Шаблонните герои леко поомръзват вече с напредването на сборника. Съни е вещица, доста неуверена и когато братовчдка и – върколак, полицай – я въвлича в паранормално разследване, тя се оказва в лайна до ушите, което пък ще я накара много бързо да израсте или да умре. Нещо, което съм чел десетки пъти. Отчитам добро авторово чувство за хумор, без палячовщини, доста зряло.
Dark Sins от Джена Маклейн – Слаб финал на компилацията. Според мен, тук трябваше да е Бътчър или Бригс, за силна последна точка. Супер силна вампирка/магьосница. Кърваво стълкновение във Венеция. Бог от машина и богоизбрани. Не ми хареса, ама хич. Много авторово точене на лиги по нездрави сексуални фантазии, абе точно частта от изстъпленията с ърбъна, които го изместиха от праведната литература. -
Read the Tom and Moira story that fits into the Alpha & Omega series (by Patricia Briggs) as book 1.5, "Seeing Eye."
-
A rounded up 3.5 stars.
I read all of the stories, but since I'm only familiar with half of the series, that's what the rating and reviews are for. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
SEEING EYE- PATRICIA BRIGGS
This is the get together origin story of a couple who appear as supporting characters in the Alpha & Omega series. I really enjoyed seeing more of Moira, the blind white witch whose strong morals led her to destroy her own eye as a young girl rather than fall prey to Kouros, a coven leader: "Sacrifice is good for power," she said again. "But it works best if you can manage to make the sacrifice your own."
This story is her chance to help bring Kouros down when Tom, a werewolf, approaches her to help save his brother who has been taken by the coven for a fatal ritual. The plot moved along at a nice pace, but we went from zero to one hundred red roses very, very quickly on Tom's end. He and Moira were strangers locked in a pact of mutual cooperation and by the literal end of the day, Tom was calling her family. Partially the nature of werewolf fiction, but eh, not Into That.
LAST CALL - JIM BUTCHER
I forgot how much the Dresden books remind me of A Series of Unfortunate Events in the way it explains magic much like Lemony Snicket explains "big words". But Harry's always good for a laugh.I shook my head at Murphy and said, "Let him scamper, Murph."
BACON - CHARLAINE HARRIS
She let him go, and Caine fled for the stairs on his hand and knee, sobbing. He staggered out, falling down the first flight, from the sound of it.
I wrinkled up my nose as the smell of urine hit me. "Ah. The aroma of truth."
Dahlia, a vampire widow, contacts a witch to make plans to annihilate an entire pack of werewolves for their "legal murder" of her own werewolf husband. The witch is a descendant of Circe and they have a hilarious back and forth about the size of Odysseus's dick (since Circe kept him on her island for a year, he had to be good for something, right?)
Weirdly, amongst the vampires and werewolves and witches, what I found most implausible was the story they used to spy on their suspected murderer. The idea of some rando guy claiming to be from the local university to film children "for a short feature" would not fly? Like, at all? I worked as a photographer employed by a school district and we still needed permission for certain events. Privacy is a thing they took seriously then (2005-2007) and it's increased ever since.
In the end, Dahlia is a Stone Cold Bitch and I am here for it.
SIGNATURES OF THE DEAD - FAITH HUNTER
I stopped reading the Jane Yellowrock series mostly because I hated her love interests so much, but this story starts from the POV of her earth witch friend Molly, as they work together with a police officer to find a group of rogue vampires who had brutally murdered an innocent family. Seeing Jane from an outsider's point of view makes me want to try this series again. It has a much more violent, realistic tang to the concept of Other existing alongside humans. -
This was pretty good, short stories of witches and magic with Werewolves and Vampires and shapeshifters thrown in for fun.
Seeing Eye-Patricia Briggs. I really liked this. The blind witch Moira was a really interesting character, I think I’d like more about her.
Last Call-Jim Butcher. Really fun, reminded me I should read some more of the Dresden Files.
Death warmed Over-Rachel Caine. I really loved this, the characters, Holly and Andrew, the unconventional romance, I found the world building intriguing. It hit my sweet spot.
Vegas Odds-Karen Chance. Enjoyed this one.
Hecate’s Golden Eye-P. N. Elrod. Really liked this one, I loved the noir feeling of it and the narrator’s voice. I think this is part of a series I’d like to check out.
Bacon- Charlaine Harris. This was just ok.
Signatures of the Dead-Faith Hunter. I liked this. I found the characters really interesting, especially Jane Yellowrock, I just found it so bleak. The murders that the story began with were so awful. But good nonetheless.
Ginger-Caitlin Kitteridge. Really liked this. Especially Sunny and Luna.
Dark Sins-Jenna MacLaine. Pretty good. I didn’t love this but I did like it.
Three and a half stars rounded up. -
The theme of Strange Brew is witchcraft. This anthology features nine well-known urban fantasy authors, each with their own spin on the theme. Some of these stories feature well-known characters. Others focus on characters who are secondary in the author's series, or characters who are entirely new. Glancing at the table of contents and doing a little mental math, most of the stories are around 40 pages, give or take a few. (The longest is Karen Chance's at just under 60.) As is always the case with anthologies, I had my favorites and my less-favorites, but if you like urban fantasy, there will probably be something here for you.
"Seeing Eye" by Patricia Briggs: A werewolf enlists the help of a blind witch to help him find his missing brother, who has been kidnapped by a sinister coven. The witch has some history of her own with this group. Moving and bittersweet, with a hint of romance. I liked the explorations of good family relationships vs. bad ones, and healthy covens vs. cultlike ones.
"Last Call" by Jim Butcher: Harry Dresden goes to his favorite bar one night and finds a scene of chaos. Someone has put a spell on Mac's beer, and Harry has to stop the culprit before anyone else can drink the tainted brew. This story had me in stitches. Any character who refers to a pretentious "dark arts" store as "Bad Juju-Mart" is cool by me. I've been meaning to read the Dresden Files for ages, and "Last Call" helped cement that desire.
"Death Warmed Over" by Rachel Caine: A resurrection witch has to raise a dead man to help the police with a dangerous assignment. Trouble is, she's in love with him and doesn't want him to suffer any further. This story is emotionally compelling in a sad sort of way, right up until the last page. The ending features a great big deus ex machina. I have no idea how this event occurred; there's nothing in the story that suggests that it's possible. It would have been better if it had been foreshadowed, or if the story had ended the way it looked like it was going to end.
"Vegas Odds" by Karen Chance: Starts with a bang. Lia de Croissets, who trains war mages for the Corps (a magical bureaucracy), is suddenly attacked in her home by a group of intruders. Karen Chance is good at writing action scenes, and this one is no exception. It's fast, furious, and sometimes funny: "The bathtub ended the discussion by taking that moment to kamikaze the kitchen table." After the battle, Lia must unravel the plot that led to the attack. It's an interesting plot with lots of schemes and betrayals. I have to confess, though, that the opening fight scene was my favorite part.
"Hecate's Golden Eye" by P.N. Elrod: Noir-inspired story featuring vampire Jack Fleming and "private agent" Charles Escott. They've been hired to recover a stolen, cursed jewel. The "witchcraft" element is more McGuffin than anything else, but the story is a lot of fun, and a nice change of style and setting from the other contributions.
"Bacon" by Charlaine Harris: Harris is, as always, great at characterization. Both of the main characters in this story (a vampire and a witch) are hard to like, but no one can say they're not vivid. This is a twisted little tale of revenge. And the idea of Circe having a surviving grimoire, passed down through the generations, full of spells and gossip--well, that would have to be an interesting read!
"Signatures of the Dead" by Faith Hunter: Molly, a witch, teams up with her shapeshifting friend Jane Yellowrock to take on a nest of murderous vampires. Molly makes a lot of narrative observations about Jane's personality and mannerisms, with the effect that Jane jumps off the page more strongly than Molly does. The writing is good, and Hunter has some refreshingly original ideas. Looking forward to Skinwalker.
"Ginger" by Caitlin Kittredge: Sunny, cousin of Luna the werewolf, is used to thinking of herself as a wimp. However, a situation arises in which she has to be the hero. I think this is a story where I'd have benefited from being more familiar with the Nocturne City universe, but it was fun watching the "weak" character get to kick some butt.
"Dark Sins" by Jenna Maclaine: An episode from the (undead) life of Cin Craven, set in Venice in 1818. For some reason, it never quite felt like 1818. Authors walk a fine line when setting stories in the past; the tone can't be so modern that it throws the reader out of the story, and it can't be so archaic that it's unreadable. I felt like this was a little toward the too-modern side. I liked the Goddess intervention, involving a deity you might not expect in a vampire story. I'm always impressed when an author does something unique. On the other hand, it seemed like this intervention made Cin a little too powerful. I haven't read the Cin Craven books, but a quick look at Maclaine's website tells me that this story takes place between the first two novels in the series.
Overall, Strange Brew was enjoyable. It's "fluff" reading for the most part, but sometimes that's just what the doctor ordered. And the stories are short enough that you can squeeze one in when you don't have time to immerse yourself in something longer. My favorite stories were "Seeing Eye," which was the most emotionally engaging, and "Last Call," which was the funniest, with an honorable mention to "Bacon," which set a deliciously nasty mood by playing on some of the older, more sinister views of witches. -
I read this as part of the workshop I'm attending in April, and one of the rules is that we're to read the books for enjoyment--not analyzing or looking at them like a writer. I originally decided that meant I wouldn't review the books at all, but I changed my mind last night. I did my best to follow instructions, but I don't think it means I can't look back on it and think about what I liked, or didn't like.
Given that I seem to have gone off urban fantasy recently, I was surprised that I liked this as much as I did. I won't rate the individual stories because I want to look at the collection as a whole. The authors represented are at the top of the genre, and even I knew who almost all of them were. (The one exception also happened to be the only story I actively hated, the last story in the book, which was an unfortunate note to end on.) The collection also represents a broad look at what falls under the urban fantasy umbrella. I discovered that my personal tastes extend to really liking stories about mages (interesting, since I wrote
a book that qualifies as urban fantasy about mages) and really, deeply disliking vampire stories. As many of these stories take place in the authors' created worlds, I don't hesitate to recommend this to anyone interested in testing the waters, though its age is enough that many of these authors have moved on to new projects. Still, when Jim Butcher's Harry Dresden story sits near the middle of my personal ranking of these stories, the collection was a pleasant surprise. -
A collection of short stories by some of the best-known authors in the paranormal romance/urban fantasy genre. Each is set in the author's already popular series. On the plus side, this means the writing is at least readable and some small effort has been put into the world building. On the minus side, nothing important can happen for fear that regular readers of the books will miss out.
Patricia Briggs's "Seeing Eye" would have been good as a book--as a short story, there is barely a climax and the denoument is unbelievably rushed. The last few paragraphs in particular are wretched.
I hate Jim Butcher's Dresden series, so I simply skimmed his "Last Call" and believe it to be just as pedestrian and poorly developed as all his work.
Rachel Caine's "Death Warmed Over" was the highlight of the collection for me, for the simple reason that I like the concept of her story. And the love interest is a zombie!
Karen Chance's "Vegas Odds" has my favorite world and characters and some very good action scenes. But she spent too much time explaining her characters and their backstories, and I felt the romance was shoe-horned in to make her story fit the genre's conventions. Not every heroine needs to date a werewolf biker!
PN Elrod's "Hecate's Golden Eye" was totally lackluster and unconvincing. No emotion, no heat, no memorable characters, and not much of a plot.
Charlaine Harris's "Bacon," about a vampire using a Circe to get revenge, would have been much better under the knife of a good editor.
Faith Hunter's "Signatures of the Dead" has interesting world building and a unique main character. The stand out to me was her friend Jane, a vicious, fearless shapeshifter. I'd like to read more about her. (ETA: having read the first novel about Jane,
Skinwalker, I take that back. She is boring and annoying in novel format.)
Caitlin Kittredge's "Ginger" has no point--it just sort of meanders, stumbling as it tries on several different plots at once.
The worst of the book is the last, Jenna Maclaine's "Dark Sins." The love interest immediately calls the heroine "mo ghraidh", the heroine and her bffs are "The Righteous" (who answer only to the High King of the Vampires, btw), and in the end the heroine defeats the baddie cultists (who have chained the vamps to marble alters! naked!) by summoning the Morrigan, who tells our dear heroine that she is the Chosen One. Melodramatic and lazy writing style, as well. Blegh. Definitely giving this author's books a miss. -
Strange Brew is a nice mix of stories. Most, if not all, of the authors in the collection have novels that make use of the characters in the short fiction. I've read some of the books.
In this collection, I truly enjoyed "Bacon" by Charline Harris. It is set in her Sookie world, but does not feature Sookie. I found to be a good use of myth, and I loved the ending. It almost made me wish I was still reading Sookie, almost.
Jim Butcher's story, "Last Call" is also good, though I'm not entirely sure I like what happenes to Murph. I feel like I should be vaguely insulted, but some how can't get up the engery.
I haven't read Rachel Caine before and her short story, "Death Warmed Over", while somewhat predictable, makes me want to try her other work.
I skipped Chance's story because I didn't like the novel of hers I tried to read. Briggs and Hunter have okay stories. Predictable, but not bad. Just okay. "Dark Sins" by Jenna Maclaine I totally lost interest in when it was quickly revealed that Cin is a witch who is also a vampire. (I have to gag).
Elrod's short story actually doesn't feature a real magic weilding witch (or does it?), but was the best story in the collection. -
I enjoyed the Patricia Briggs story, which is set in the same universe as her Mercedes Thompson books, but with new characters. (ETA: Moira and Tom show up as secondary characters in Hunting Ground, the second book in her Alpha & Omega series.)
Butcher's Harry Dresden story was pretty good, and so was Elrod's Jack Fleming story. I didn't like Charlaine Harris's contribution at all - it's not a Sookie story, but it's set in that universe.
I only skimmed the rest of the book, because I don't much like short stories that are part of a series I'm not familiar with. -
Seeing Eye by Patricia Briggs
4.5 Stars
Last Call by Jim Butcher
3 Stars
Death Warmed Over by Rachel Caine
4.5 Stars
Vegas Odds by Karen Chance
5 Stars
Hecate's Golden Eye by P.N. Elrod
3.5 Stars
Bacon by Charlaine Harris
4 Stars
Signatures of the Dead by Faith Hunter
4 Stars
Ginger by Caitlin Kittredge
4 Stars
Dark Sins by Jenna Maclaine
3.5 Stars Haven't read the parent series so I was floundering at first. -
3 stars.
Note: Rating is for Seeing Eye by Patricia Briggs only.
June 2021 - re-listened.
________________________
Nov 2018 - re-listened.
A short side-story of the Alpha & Omega series. Moira, a blind "white" witch is asked by Tom, a werewolf to locate his undercover cop brother who's been kidnapped by a coven led by Moira's black witch father. The reason for Moira's blindness is a bit icky though. Moira and Tom appear as secondary characters in the next book Hunting Ground -
Patricia Briggs' SS: 4.5*
Karen Chance's SS: 5* -
3,5/5
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I thought all of the stories were good, but a couple of the narrators were so-so.
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only read Last Call by Jim Butcher
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Urban fantasy writers add to their existing series characters' lore.
I'm not a huge fan on any of these series. It felt like most of these authors were depending on me already having feelings for these characters, and I was expected to react in certain ways to them that depended of familiarity with other books, not with what was on the page, which was uncomfortable. I had expected stories that would help me decide whether I wanted to start reading any of these series, but instead they mostly left me feeling like I wasn't part of the club.
If you're not already a fan of a series, I can't recommend this anthology. -
"Seeing Eye" by Patricia Briggs was a tight story of a blind witch, who after a werewolf comes to her door, faces off for the fight of her life.
Jim Butcher, as always presents an excellent Dresden story, "Last Call" - all Dresden wants in some of Mac's beer, and of course, its not that simple. Certainly not a required reading for the series, but a great, funny story neverless.
"Death Warmed Over" by Rachel Caine was an ok story about a necromancer, who oddly and disturbingly, falls in love with one of those that the brings back from the dead.
"vegas Odds" by Karen Chance is a pretty good story of a witch who discovers assasins at her door on valentine's day.
"Hecate's Golden Eye" by PN Elrod is features the characters from her Vampire Diary files - nicely done, with a cute twist.
"Bacon' by Charlene Harris is a non-Southern Vampire mystery vampire story. Its ok....but she dared thrown a line next to Butcher himself.
The only sorcerer who's gone public is in Chicago, and I hear he is struggling..
Ouch! Dresden has been doing fine since he became a Warden, too, dammit.
"Signatures of the Dead" by Faith Hunter is a rather dark story of a witch and a shapershifter who team up to kill a particularly gruesome group of vampires.
"Ginger" by Caitin Kittridge is an ok story, but just ok, to be honest just ok. The details the story escapes me.
"Dark Sins" by Jenna Maclaine I couldn't get through. -
My Thoughts:
This is one of the better anthologies I've read. After buying the hot mess that was
My Big Fat Supernatural Honeymoon I decided to get the majority of my anthologies from the library. If there is anything I hate more than spending money, it's spending money on crap.
My favorite shorts in this collection were Briggs Seeing Eye, Chance's Vegas Odds, & Hunter's Signatures of the Dead. My one big disappointment was Harris's Bacon. The protagonist in Bacon, Dahlia, appeared in "Tacky" which was in another anthology,
My Big Fat Supernatural Wedding. I enjoyed it very much but the continuation of her story felt flat & unappealing. What made "Tacky" so good imo was the chemistry between Dahlia & Todd & an enjoyable look into werewolf dynamics. The werewolves were barely present in this novel & Todd (now Dahlia's husband) is deceased when this story begins.
Overall, I liked this anthology a lot more than I expected to & wouldn't have minded buying it at all for my bookshelf. -
Seeing Eye by Patricia Briggs: The best of the lot. I wanted more once I was done reading it. 5/5
Last Call by Jim Butcher: Not exactly my cup of tea, but it made me interested in reading the series. 3.5/5
Death Warmed Over by Rachel Caine: Not bad. Disliked the heroine intensely. "Bad things happened to me, that's why I'm a b*tch!" Sure. The romance was meh. 3/5.
Vegas Odds by Karen Chance: Not bad. It had its funny/sweet moments, but I found the action and intrigue a little lacking. 3.5/5.
Hecate's Golden Eye by P. N. Elrod: Didn't finish. Wasn't to my taste. Story set in the '30s...supposedly. 1/5
Bacon by Charlaine Harris: Didn't love it, but it was fun to read. I like Harris' work in general. 3.5/5
Signatures of the Dead by Faith Hunter: Skimmed. Wasn't liking it. The basketball belly was the only thing that stood out to me...fun stuff.
Ginger: A Nocturne City Story by Caitlin Kittredge: Read/skimmed it. Hated Luna. Found out she had a series. Was shocked. 2.5/5
Dark Sins by Jenna Maclaine: Skimmed/did not finish. Boring and overly dramatic. 1/5
My rating: 3/5 or 6/10
