The First Person and Other Stories - Ali Smith

A fresh collection of short stories from Ali Smith. The first story was definitely my favourite and looked at the form of short stories set with a cancer patient as the backdrop. There is a new expensive drug that could help lots of women, but as it’s expensive is not readily prescribed by doctors. The other one that really stood out was what happens when a woman is shopping in a supermarket and when she turns back to her trolley there is a toddler in it who calls her Mummy and everyone assumes is hers. I love how she deals with the situation.

I like how most of the stories feel like they could actually have happened in Smith’s real life. She is excellent at blending reality with fantasy. Unfortunately they didn’t grab me as much of some of her other collections and stories so I wouldn’t recommend this for your first dip into Ali Smith’s world.

Fragile Things - Neil Gaiman

A collection of short stories, a follow up to Smoke and Mirrors, by acclaimed Fantasy author Neil Gaiman. I won’t go through each story, just the ones that I particularly enjoyed. The first was A Study in Emerald that matches Sherlock Holmes with Cthulhu myths. Everything is twisted around in this excellent detective story. How to talk to Girls at Parties was a fun look at what happens when two human teenagers stumble into a party filled withwomen not quite of this world. Teenage angst with a sci fi twist.

The Problem of Susan is a tale I had often wondered about myself and it was interesting to read Gaiman’s take on what happened to Susan after the events of The Last Battle. She isn’t taken by Aslan as she is too into fashion and make-up. Harlequin Valentine was another dark and fun tale looking at love and is included in a Lisa Snellings-Clark book inspired by her artwork. The final tale is a novella which catches up with Shadow after American Gods finishes. American Gods is my favourite Gaiman book and it was a lot of fun catching up with him again. A strange tale, but one that will stick in my mind for some time to come.

There were a couple of stories I had read before in other collections, but for the most part they were all new to me. I read Smoke and Mirrors about 8 years ago and I don’t remember enjoying it as much as this set. There were a couple I didn’t take to, but overall a fun and freaky read. Everything you would expect from Gaiman.

Elementals - AS Byatt

This was my first collection by AS Byatt. It is a collection of six short stories and it is subtitled "Tales of Fire and Ice". They all have fantasy and fairy tale elements to them although "Cold" is the most traditionally fairy tale. It was also my favourite by far in the book. It follows a princess, the youngest child of the king and queen. She is loved by all but isn't very emotional and is often tired and sleepy. One day it snows and she finally comes alive and discovers one of her ancestors was a woman from the cold north lands. Her father wants her to marry (ideally from the North so she can be happy in the cold), but she chooses a man from the desert hotlands. She travels with him but begins to wane until her husband finds a compromise. It was beautifully told and mixed fantastical with cruel. It will definitely stick with me for a long time to come.

The other stories that stood out were "A Lamia in the Cvennes" and "Christ in the House of Martha and Mary". These were about a man who paints a lamia who lives in his swimming pool but tries to get out of marrying her once the painting is done. Christ is about two models who stood for Velsquez as Martha and Mary and where their lives have taken them since.

Unfortunately I wasn't so keen on the other three in the collection. They were a little dull and dragged. The three I did like more than made up for their lacking and as I said, Cold will stay with me a long time. From doing a search online it looks like this isn't the best introduction to Byatt's writing and I know I will be reading more by her in the future.

Dates from Hell - Various

A collection of 4 short stories (novella's really as they are all just over 100 pages long) by some of today's most popular paranormal romance and urban fasntasy authors.

Undead in the Garden of Good and Evil - Kim Harrison
This story started off quite confusing as it mixed alive and undead vampires with a confusing mythology that wasn't very well explained. It became a sexy murder mystery tale centred around alive vampire Ivy Tamnwood. To get ahead it looks like she will have to whore herself to her undead vampire boss Art by lettinghim suck her blood. The murder comes in as they are working in the police force and theirpower games get all mixed in. Pretty average, I hope her series is better...

The Claire Switch Project - Lynsay Sands
A fun and sexy tale about scientist Claire who gets hit with a destabiliser ray giving her the power to shapeshift. She uses photos to emulate the shape, clothes and looks of other men and women. It gets more complicated when she finally gets a first date to their high school reunion with long standing crush Karl, but promises his twin sister she will shift into a famous movie star and be her date too! A quick and fun read.

Chaotic - Kelley Armstrong
Half-demon Hope has inherited her father's love of chaos. She works as a journalist covering paranormal stories as well as working as an Agent for the Interracial Council on the side. At least that is what Tristin Robard has told her. Everything falls apart when she meets sexy werewolf Karl Marsten who brings together chaos, desire and the truth in an explosive adventure at a museum gala dinner.

Dead Man Dating - Lori Handeland
Kit goes on a date with a guy she has met over the internet. Things go very wekk until they stop to have sex in an alley, which is very unlike her as she is a virgin waiting until she is married or meets her true love. A strange man calling himself Chavez turns up and shoots her date who leaves no blood or body behind. He claimes to be a rogue demon hunter and here Kit's adventures really begin...

I really liked the Kelley Armstrong story and I am looking forward to reading Personal Demon which has more on Hope. The tales by Lori Handeland and Lynsay Sands were also a lot of fun. The only disappointment was Kim Harrison, but I am planning on reading more by her and not judging her only on this short tale.

Bite - Various

A collection of short stories by some of the hottest vampire authors around. Most of them have some very steamy sex scenes and a lot of action.

The Girl who was Infatuated with Death - Laurell K Hamilton

An Anita Blake story set between Blue Moon and Obsidian Butterfly. Anita is called in to investigate a case of a 17 year old girl whose mother finds two vampire bite marks at the top of her inner thighs. In this world vampires are citizens but it is illegal to turn someone under 18 which takes 3 bites. The twist is the girl has bone cancer and becomming a vampire will save her from a leg amputation. Anita goes to see her vampire "friend" Jean Claude and gets sidetracked by his sexiness.

One Word Answer - Charlaine Harris

A tale of Sookie Stackhouse. One night a strange black limo turns up with a strange supernatural man inside. He tells her that her cousin was turned into a vampire and then killed in a cemetary in New Orleans trying to raise the Voodoo Queen Marie Laveau. The plot twists as it emerges who the real killer was.

Biting in Plain Sight - MaryJanice Davidson

De Sophie Tourneau is a vet and a vampire and seems accepted by the twosnfolk of Embarrass, Minnesota. One man in particular, Liam, has accepted her and has been secretly in love with her for years. He decides to finally tell her as a vampire is causing young girls to seeminly kill themselves. The enlist the help of Queen Betsy on their quest to track him down and kill him.

Galahad - Angela Knight

A mixture of Arthurian and Grail legends with vampires, dragons, witches and hot hot sex! Some very silly ideas, but the sex scenes were amazinginly hot.

Blood Lust - Vickie Taylor

Daniel Hart is a microbiologist who has created synthetic blood when a vampire comes along and steals his research, home, woman and car. He tracks down another vampire, Deadre Rue, to turn him so it can be a fair fight. A few twists along the way.

I loved Galahad but more for the sex than the mythology. I also really enjoyed Blood Lust and Biting in Plain Sight. The Girl who was Infatuated with Death was my least favourite. It had a really good premise, but Hamilton seemed to forget it once Anita met up with Jean Claude sadly.

The Ladies of Grace Adieu - Susanna Clarke

A collection of eight short stories by Susanna Clarke with illustrations by Charles Vess. I had read two of them before in some of the Adult Fairy Tale Anthologies collected by Ellen Datlow and Terri Windling. The easiest thing is to go through the stories briefly one by one.

The Ladies of Grace Adieu - Three ladies, Mrs Fields, Miss Tobais and Miss Cassandra Parbringer forma close friendship and begin using magic. Jonathan Strange is the brother-in-law to Mr Woodhope who hopes to marry Miss Parbringer until Mr Strange discovers her use of magic and arranges for him to be relocated. At one point in the story two of the ladies turn themselves into owls to eat two men who they have turned into mice. A fun story looking at female magicians in the male orientated society of Strange and Norrell.

On Lickerish Hill - Set in East Anglia in the 17th centuary when the distinctions between superstition and science were blurred. Elements of Rumplestiltskin are seen in this tale told by Miranda Sownestron. One of the tales I had read previously.

Mrs Mabb - Venetia is set to marry Captain Fox, but on her return from Manchester she finds him gone to live with the mysterious Mrs Mabb. Venetia goes to her house in a number of different ways to see that he is ok and well. Each time she loses consciousness and wakes up back in her bed with no memory of events and various unexplained injuries. Eventually she bests Mrs Mabb and wins back her love. Echos of Tam Lin with her fighting a fairy woman for her love.

The Duke of Wellington misplaces his horse - Set in the world of Stardust written by Neil Gaiman and Charles Vess. The Duke of Wellington visits the villiage of Wall and annoys the folk living there so they lure his horse across the border. He follows and finds a beautiful woman sewing scenes from his life as far forward as his death. He is able to change his future by unpicking the stitches and sewing himself a new destiny.

Mr Simonelli or the Fairy Widower - A rendering of "Midwife to the Fairies" found in English, Irish, Scots and Breton variations. Also includes other fairy tale themes of a girl who was stolen away to suckle a fairy baby, the seeing eye, the fairy house in the woods etc. An interesting tale of fairy and magic told in journal and letter form. This was the other tale I had read previously.

Tom Brightwind or How the Fairy Bridge was built in Thoresby - A fun tale looking at the friendship between human David Montefore and fairy Tom Brightwind. Also discussed is the relationship between fairy parents and grandparents and their children. The issue of Tom and a human woman having a child together is disguised by him helping the town by building a bridge in Thoresby by fairy magic.

Antickes and Frets - Mary Queen of Scots has been imprisoned by Queen Elizabeth who she is trying to kill and gain her throne. She is trying to use enchanted embriodary to reach her goals. To explain this I noted down a quote: "In the light of the moon and bare winter branches appeared to her now like great, black stitches sewn across the window-like stitches sewn across the castle, across the Queen [Mary] herself. In her terror she thought her eyes were stitched up, her throat closed with black stitches; her fingers were sewn together so that her hands were become useless, ugly flaps."

John Uskglass and the Cumbrian Charcoal burner - Bears similarities to other stories where a great ruler is outwitted by one of his humblest subjects. After changing the Charcoal Burners pig into a slamon, the charcoal burner exacts revenge on John Uskglass without knowing who he is by speaking to various saints. John returnes eating his melted cheese and ruining his wood before a saint looses John's tongue forcing him to reveal many secrets that should have remained hidden. Everything is returned to normal by John in apologies to the charcoal burner, he also gives him a second pig and leaves most confused!

I really enjoyed this collection, especially Antickes and Frets and The Ladies of Grace Adieu which were the most interesting stories. Quite a short collection with longer stories than I have read in previous anthologies. It was great to revisit the world of Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell and I hope there will be more installments in the future. I also look forward toseeing what she will write next.

Black Heart, Ivory Bones - Ellen Datlow & Terri Windling

Sadly this is the last in the Adult Fairy Tale series of short stories collected by Ellen Datlow and Terri Windlin. It contains 21 tales and poems by 20 different authors. Below is a full list of the stories and a brief description of what they are about.

Rapunzel - Tanith Lee
A young Prince falls in love with a woman he meets on his way home after a battle. He spins his father a tale of Rapunzel to explain where he has been and why it took him so long to arrive home.

The Crone - Delia Sherman
A poem about the familiar figure of The Crone from many fairy tales.

Big Hair - Esther Friesner
A look at Rapunzel in relation to child Beauty Pagents. The end was quite chilling as her daughter follows in her footsteps and there is an illusion to child abuse.

The King with Three Daughters - Russell Blackford
A look at a troll killer based on the Norse tale The Three Princesses in the Blue Mountain. A strange tale about a warrior who has to "rescue" a King's three missing daughters where all is not what it seems.

Boys and Girls Together - Neil Gaiman
A poem covering a variety of fairy tales which looks at boys not wanting to be Princes (any other role is fine!) and girls secretly being Princesses. In their turn they become bad Kings and wicked step mothers, wood-cutters, ancient shepherds, crones and wise-women.

And Still She Sleeps - Greg Costikyan
A look at Sleeping Beauty after the authors marriage collapsed and suffered from depression. It also looks at the romantic notion of love when sleeping girl is dug up. Legends say only her true love can wake her up but it seems he isnot to be found as how can you truely someone from just looking at them, you have to know them first.

Snow in Summer - Jane Yolen
Snow White is better bale to look after herself in this tale by recognising her steo mother when she turns up on her doorstep one day. A bittersweet ending for our heroine.

Briar Rose and Witch - Debra Cash
Two poems with fairy tale themes. Not originally written as a pair but they go beautifully together.

Chanterelle - Brian Stableford
Part based on Hansel and Gretel with elements of the novella "Luscignole" and the play "the Sunken Bell" with illusions to the use of magic mushrooms along the way. Another strange and bittersweet tale.

Bear it Away - Michael Cadnum
A new look at Goldilocks and the Three BEars with talking bears that are chaed away by Goldilocks and a hunter.

Goldilocks Tells All - Scott Bradfield
The second Goldilocks tale in the series which sees Goldilocks cashing in on her tale and dishing the dirt in the media and in her novels of femal empowerment. It takes the stance that Goldilocks was never the innocent one in the tale...

My Life as a Bird - Charles de Lint
Set in Newford (de Lint's made up city) it contains elements of Rumpelstiltskin and The Fisherman and His Wife. Some familiar characters for those who are familiar with de Lint's tales with the addition of a grumpy dwarf.

The Red Boots - Leah Cutter
Based on the Hans Christian Andersen tale "The Red Shoes" the girl in this tale differs by never giving up her desire to outdo everyone else at dancing to the detriment of her personal relationships and love life. She suffers beatings and loses her best friend who she loves as more than a friend along the way.

Rosie's Dance - Emma Hardesty
Based on Cinderella after reading a poem from "Transformations" by Anne Sexton and looking at a painting by Terrin Windling. Filled with poverty and cruelty as one girl leaves behind her inherited family to make a life for herself. Contains many of the original elements of the tale despite the setting being very different from the original tale.

You, Little Match Girl - Joyce Carol Oates
Evoking the horror that happiness is but an illusion. The central character believes that if she loves no one she is free until her last close relative dies and she is in a car accident armed with just a fading flash light.

Dreaming Among Men - Bryn Kanar
A very odd tale where it turns out that the dreamer is an animal and not a human at all.

The Cats of San Martino - Ellen Steiber
Based on an Italian fairy tale found in Italo Calvino's collection. An interesting tale about a woman who runs away from her boyfriend after he cruelly dumps her for another woman he has been sleeping with behind her back. She finds solace in a house with no doors filled with cats that it turns out can talk. They lok after her until she is ready to return to the human world and carry on with her life. Unfortunately her ex-boyfriend is not so lucky...

The Golem - Severna Park
Looking at the parallel between the alienation of Jewish woman within their own culture with the alienation of the Jews in general. A older woman makes a golem to protect her and her friends from a group of men killing all of the Jews in the area. She is able to bring new life in the form of the golem, and in it's death, new life to an otherwise barren land.

Our Mortal Span - Howard Waldrop
A theme park named Story Book Town where one of the automations (a troll) breaks free and starts to smash up the others including Hans Christian Andersen, the Brothers Grimm and Perrault among other fairy tale characters. His issue is that the story tellers have lied to us and their dead ideas need to be overthrown.

Mr Simonelli or The Fairy Widower - Susanne Clarke
In a similar vein to Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell. It is a rendering of "The Midwife to the Fairies" found in English, Irish, Scotish and Breton variations. Many other fairy tale themes are used in this charming tale of a fairy, his servant and the man who tries to trick them to save the life of a mortal woman.

My personal favourite was The Cats of San Martino very closely followed by Mr Simonelli or The Fairy Widower, My Life as a Bird and The King with Three Daughters. Others that deserve an honourable mention are Big Hair, Boys and Girls Together, Snow in Summer, Briar Rose and Witch, Chanterelle, Goldilocks Tells All, The Red Boots, You Little Match Girl, The Golem and Our Mortal Span. I am really sad this series has ended and I look forward to re-visiting them in the future. I also look forward to reading more anthologies by both women, either together or singly and I higly recommend their collections.

Silver Birch, Blood Moon - Ellen Datlow & Terri Windling

Another beautiful collection of fairy tales for adult readers collected by Ellen Datlow and Terri Windling. There are 21 tales by 21 different authors, some are new to the series and others are old favourites from previous collections.

Kiss Kiss – Tanith Lee
A variation on The Frog Prince. It continues the tale after the frog has changed back into a Prince and they are married. She loses her best friend to her husband after that “hateful betrayal of a kiss”.

Carabosse – Delia Sherman
The author says bad fairies may create problems, but they often offer the young prince and princess they curse the opportunity to become more than they would otherwise have been. They do everybody a favour by stirring things up a bit, and should be given more credit (and sympathy) for their subversive roles. The tale is a look at Sleeping Beauty and the good fairies motivations behind the spell told as a poem.

The Price – Patricia Briggs
A reworking of Rumplestiltskin. A much more human story somehow with some of the gaps from the original tale filled in.

Glass Coffin – Caitlin R Kiernan
A contemporary re-telling inspired by the song “Hardly Wait” by PJ Harvey sung by Juliette Lewis. Salmagundi Desvernine lives in a junkyard with 7 other discarded children waiting for Jimmy Desade to return. While he is away selling drugs she cuts her thumb on some sharp rusty metal and dies. He makes her a glass coffin before leaving the other children for good. Very bleak and desolate.

The Vanishing Virgin – Harvey Jacobs
Inspired by Hans Christian Andersen’s The Flea and the Professor. Magic, even the most controlled, has a way of spinning out of control and creating magic of its own. This is about escape, a neglected magicians assistant and wife Ms Molly turns left inside the vanishing box during a trick. She is told to try it by the rabbit they use Pooper who turns out to be a man from a magical world she finds when she turns the opposite way in the box.

Clad in Gossamer – Nancy Kress
About court life, it’s pressures and its intrigues. Based on The Emperor’s New Clothes about Prince Jasper, second in line for the throne. He envies his brother and wants his intended bride for himself as well as the throne. Along the way the truth becomes twisted and he is no longer sure what is happening.

Precious – Nalo Hopkinson
She says “I’ve always hated the ending of the fairy tale about the good sister who has jewels and flowers fall from her lips when she speaks. Of course, the prince marries her, supposedly as her reward for being virtuous, but its obvious that the prince sees her more as a boon to the royal coffers and a beautiful sex toy than as a person. “Precious” takes up the thread after the marriage.” Jude beats Isobel to get more and more jewels until she eventually runs away keeping her address and number unlisted. He finally tracks her down and while she is telling him exactly how she feels he becomes buried under an increasing pile of jewels. She coughs up a ruby as big as a human heart which knocks him out. When she calls the police on her intruder she notices nothing leaves her mouth but the sounds she makes.

The Sea Hag – Melissa Lee Shaw
This tale originated as a rebellion against the multitude of strong, sympathetic adult female characters mostly found in Disney films. Most are either adolescent heroines or bumbling grandmothers. Anyone inbetween in age is usually portrayed as the villain in the tale. This story looks at the Sea Hag from The Little Mermaid from a different perspective. Beautiful and sad it sheds a new light on the popular tale.

The Frog Chauffeur – Garry Kilworth
The inspiration for this tale came from wondering whether a traumatic event like a frog being turned into a human would have residual effects. It considers the consequences of a human male as a frog with an active sex drive producing many tadpoles with a mixture of human and frog DNA. This tale tells of what happens when one such offspring becomes human after a traumatic event and marries Isobel Fairfax.

The Dybbuk in the Bottle – Russell William Asplund
Usually the genie who grants wishes is honourable, but this tells the tale of a dybbuk (a demon from Jewish folklore). It teaches the protagonist a few lessons along the way as he tries to trick the dybbuk back into its bottle with the help of Rabbi Meltzer after it takes over his house.

The Shellbox – Karawynn Long
Beautiful story based on various Selkie tales with a little bit of Bluebeard thrown in for good measures. About a woman who marries a man who treats her like dirt. She has a gift from her mother before she disappeared back into the sea, a shellbox that can hold anything she puts in it. During the tale she puts her voice in it singing to keep her husband company while he fishes, but he abuses it using her voice to call fish to him and then tells her he lost it when he disapproves of her friendship with a deaf and mute woman.

Ivory Bones – Susan Wade
Based on Thumbelina by Hans Christian Andersen. It tells the story from her intended mole-like husband who is a collector of rare oddities. He has in his possession a pearl ring made from Thumbelina’s skull. It contains dark connotations that suggest he had her deliberately turned into pearls so he could keep her with him always.

The Wild Heart – Anne Bishop
The Wild Heart is half of the princess in Sleeping Beauty. It has been travelling making itself strong enough to reunite with it’s other Gentle Heart. A dark look at the tale with a happy ending.

You wandered off like a foolish child to break your heart and mine – Pat York
Written by York after reading the manuscript for Bishops The Wild Heart. It looks at how someone might die by thorns which would be unable to kill someone quickly. A Queen nurses her son who is caught in the briar around the castle. There are 7 men still alive in the thorns which grow every day and try to strangle and kill them. When the prince arrives who is able to reach Sleeping Beauty, the remaining men are all killed when the roots move to let him through.

Arabian Phoenix – India Edghill
A version of “Scheherazde” from the Arabian Nights told in a modern setting. In this tale the reason the new Queens last only a week is due to their marriage contract only being set for that long. Shahrazad works out what happens to them as they are never seen again, the King is selecting the brightest woman and sending them off to university in the Western world. There is even the possibility of them getting married properly in the future.

Toad-Rich – Michael Cadnum
The “other” sister tells the tale of The Fairy Gifts by Charles Perrault. She is the sister who spits frogs, toads, snakes and spiders. After her sister marries the prince jewels become commonplace and it is her insects that become valuable. Her and her mother hope to use them to buy back her sister from the ungrateful prince.

Skin so Green and fine – Wendy Wheeler
A look at Beauty and the Beast. Bruno Bettelheim suggested that this story showed the Beauty could not love the beast until she had transferred her affection for her father to him at it looks at the Oedipal-conflict. The transfers the story to Spain adding in Voodoo and spiritual possession along the way.

The Wilful Child, the Black Dog, and the Beanstalk – Melanie Tam
This tale grew out of the authors duel passions for fairy tales and her job as a social worker. A social worker is teaching a class when someone stays behind at the end to discuss a case she was handling where the young girl killed her adoptive mother shortly before it could be finalised. It turns out she had tried to kill previous mothers-to-be in different fairy tale ways. One had nearly been pushed into an oven, another nearly had her ladder (beanstalk) chopped down and the final one was killed by stabbing her open from throat to sternum like the wolf in the original tales of Little Red Riding Hood.

Locks – Neil Gaiman
A poem inspired by Gaiman reading the story of Goldilocks to his daughter when she was young. It is a dialogue between father and daughter that has the father looking into the future and seeing her loss of innocence and him becoming the father bear checking all the windows and locks.

Marsh-Magic – Robin McKinley
A strange tale about a line of Kings, their mages and the local marsh people. Each King marries one of the marsh woman who produces only one male heir before disappearing. It takes one 22 generations later to break the bind by learning the mage’s true name and unveiling his real identity.

Toad – Patricia A McKillip
Written in response to unanswered questions surrounding the tale of The Frog Prince, especially why any self-respecting frog would want to marry a spoiled brat of a princess!

This is my favourite collection of tales in the series so far. I loved all of the tales and my particular favourites were The Sea Hag by Melissa Lee Shaw, The Wild Heart by Anne Bishop and The Shell Box by Karawynn Long. Other tales I enjoyed immensley were Kiss Kiss by Tanith Lee, Carabosse by Delia Sherman, The Price by Patricia Briggs, Clad in Gossamer by Nancy Kress, The Frog Chauffeur by Garry Kilworth, Ivory Bones by Susan Wade, You Wandered Off by Pat York and Arabian Phoenix by Indian Edgehill.

Black Swan, White Raven - Ellen Datlow & Terri Windling

Another great collection of adult re-tellings of fairy tales. This collection focuses mostly on The Brothers Grimm and Hans Christian Andersen re-tellings and is composed of 21 tales by 21 different authors.

The Flounder's Kiss - Michael Cadnum
Based on the Grimm fairy tale "The Fisherman and his Wife" looking at greed to also making it a more sinister version. One day a fisherman catches a fish that says it will grant him a wish if he lets it go. When he tells his wife about it she gets greedy and keeps sending him back for more and more wishes. Eventually he kills the fish after wishing for silence from his wife.

The Black Fairy's Curse - Karen Joy Fowler
A version of Sleeping Beauty where she dreams beautiful and erotic dreams during her long sleep only to be suddenly awoken by kiss from a Prince and not being too happy about losing her dreams.

Snow in Dirt - Michael Blumlein
Another look at Sleeping Beauty about a man who digs up the body of a woman from his garden. She is sleeping and he tries everything to wake her up until she does so suddenly by herself one morning. She is beautiful and becomes a model before their marriage starts to suffer. She isn't able to handle aging and eventually falls back asleep.

Riding the Red - Nalo Hopkinson
A very dark, sexual and strange look at Little Red Riding Hood.

No Bigger than my Thumb - Esther M Friesner
A dark version of traditional fairy tales of thumb sized children. Lord Galeron has been cursed by a witch making him unable to have children. He visits her after his third wife dies to see if the rumours are true and she has born his daughter. She tricks him after he kills her and her grandmother showing him the daughter he is not quite expecting and in turn killing him.

In the Insomniac Night - Joyce Carol Oates
Inspired by the ballad version of "The Elfin-Knight" where the pivotal character is a false suitor who kills the woman he seduces. A single mother feels like she is being stalked on the order of her ex-husband who wants custody of their two children. On her nightly run she has an encounter with a car and she imagines the childrens father has broken into her house and is videotaping himself raping their children. Filled with suspense.

The Little Match Girl - Steve Rasnic Tam
A poetical re-telling of the tale by Hans Christian Andersen.

The Trial of Hansel and Gretel - Garry Kilworth
Here Hansel and Gretel are portrayed as German peasants who are possibly victims or possibly guilty of sorcery and greed. They are accused of murdering a blind old woman who lived in the forest by pushing her into an oven which they admit to. They claim it was because she was a witch and was going to cook them, but their story has many inaccuracies in it. They stole her treasure and when the judge accuses Gretel of being a witch, their father appears and delays the trial until their step mother can arrive to free them. The judge is turned into a pig as he walks away from the trial.

Rapunzel - Anne Bishop
Another tale of peasants, greed and sorcery. Very similar to "The Root of the Matter" by Gregory Frost in the first anthology (Snow White, Blood Red). The main difference is that the narrator of the story changes between Rapunzel's mother, witch Gothel and Rapunzel herself at the end. Rapunzel is redeemed at the end and is the only one who doesn't bow down to greed.

Sparks - Gregory Frost
A contemporary version of "The Tinder Box" by Hans Christian Andersen. An old Spanish lady hires a war veteran to retrieve her lighter from the bottom of a hollow tree. In the tree are three dogs guarding bronze, silver and gold. He keeps the lighter which turns out to summon the three dogs who also grant wishes. He is able to get the girl of his dreams with the help of the dogs despite being captured along the way.

The Dog Rose - Sten Westgard
Sleeping Beauty told from the prespective of one of the local peasants who is waiting for a prince who can wake her up. Edward is a gardener and has a relative in Beauty's house. He hears the roses are in bloom so goes off to see if he can reach the castle at the centre as they are said to part for the right man when blooming.

The Reverend's Wife - Midori Snyder
An oral tale collected from the Kardofan people of Sudan origianlly titled "The Muezzin's Wife". It sees two very different woman tricking each others husbands to lie with them for their own pleasure. The husbands do not realise they are doing anything wrong. Somehow sharing their husbands for a time brings them closer together and both woman are able to get what they most want.

The Orphan the Moth and the Magic - Harvey Jacobs
Based loosely on "The Cottager and his Cat" from a book called The Crimson Fairy Book edited by Andrew Lang. Wilbur's father dies leaving him a secret stash of money, but in a dream a moth tells him to dispose of it as it was won through evil deeds. He does so and ends up on a beach, startled by a strange animal and is taken in by a blind old woman who mistakes him for her cat. There is only one cat in the land and noone knows what it looks like. He ends up sold to the King as a cat and falls in love with Princess Etoile. He tricks them into letting him sleep with her and when the real cat appears he tricks them again into believing it tried to steal his essence and he is now a man again.

Three Dwarves and 2000 Maniacs - Don Webb
A look at Snow White and the Seven Dwarves. Alfred Byron Spencer is known as the Prince of Psychtherapy running an asylum with a great success record. He marries his Snow White, Susan Pelham who he had a crush on in high school and defeats her step mother Rachel Jackdawe and step sister Bertha Goose Girl style.

True Thomas - Bruce Glassco
Based on the famous ballad. True Thomas is forever asking himself if love will endure whilst dwelling on how he met the Queen of the Faeries. He made the choice to stay with her in faerie land with her. The faeries and his life with them are beautifully described and very different fomr the usual depictions.

The True Story - Pat Murphy
The true story of Snow White as told by her step mother turns the tale completely on its head. She sends her daughter away to avoid the advances of her father who is a paedophile and is abusing her. The princess is cared for by seven old woman in the forest (thought by many to be witches), and when her father dies and it is safe she is brought back to rule the kingdom in her own right and not at the side of a prince.

Lost and Abandoned - John Crowley
A divorced father gains custody of his children, but soon falls into poverty. He talks about abondoning them for their own good, Hansel and Gretel style, but can't bring himself to do it.

The Breadcrumb Trail - Nina Kiriki Hoffman
Her first poetical poetry sale after having more than 150 short stories published. The trail leads home, but not to safety as this was the place they were sent from. It also doesn't return at the beginning and they are able to pick their own paths in future.On Lickerish Hill - Susanna Clarke
Set in East Anglia in the 17th centuary when the distinctions between superstition and science were far more blurred. Elements of Rumplestiltskin fill this tale of fairies and weaving.

Godmother Death - Jane Yolen
A re-telling of "Godfather Death" with Death as a woman this time. The ending is also changed, after tricking Death, instead of getting the princess the king takes offense to his low background and arrests him to be hanged instead.

My favourite tale was easily "The Reverend's Wife" by Midori Snyder. It was the most original and inventive in the collection. I also very much enjoyed "Snow in Dirt", No Bigger then my Thumb", "The Trial of Hansel and Gretel", "Rapunzel", "True Thomas", "The True Story", "On Lickerish Hill" and "Godmother Death". As now many of the authors are repeated from earlier anthologies, I have come to really look forward to reading new stories by authors I enjoyed from previous anthologies but hadn't read before. I think my favourite two new authors from these collections so far are Midori Snyder and Susasnne Clarke.

Ruby Slippers, Golden Tears - Ellen Datlow & Terri Windling

This volume contains 22 tales and poems by 21 different authors. It is another blend of science fiction, fantasy, horror and erotic adult re-tellings of fairy tales. It includes a few from ouside Europe and is my favourite of the series so far.

Ruby Slippers - Susan Wade

A mixture of "The Wizard of Oz" and "The Red Shoes" by Hans Christian Andersen told as an interview with Dorothy later on in her life. I like the twisting of the original tale by Frank L Baum.

The Beast - Tanith Lee

Her take on "Beauty and the Beast". Isobel is married to the handsome and rich Vessavian who collects beautiful objects. As time goes on she uncovers his secret collection of beautiful objects he has taken from ugly settings.

Masterpiece - Garry Kilworth

A look at "Rumplestiltskin" and people who make bargains and fail to keep them. Susan Quarry is offered a deal by mysterious Mr Black one day that will make her a famous painter and let her create one masterpiece. Along the way she falls in love with her dealer, marries him and has a son. When Ms Black returns to collect her most precious object she is torn between giving her husband, child or masterpiece up.

Summer Wind - Nancy Kress

A look at the takes of "Sleeping Beauty" and "Briar Rose". Here Briar Rose awakens long before everyone else in the castle and becomes an old woman watching vaiours princes die in the briar surrounding the castle. Eventually one breaks through and the inhabitants awaken and she slips away, an old woman not recognised by her staff and subjects.

This Centuary of Sleep or, Briar Rose Beneath the Sea - Fariada S.T Shapiro

A poetical re-telling of Sleeping Beauty.

The Crossing - Joyce Carol Oates

Another look at Sleeping Beauty and Briar Rose looking at Martha who is in a coma after a car accident. She lingers on life support and dreams she is in an aunts house watching the train go by until one day she boards it and never wakes up.

Roach in Loafers - Roberta Lannes

A look at Puss 'n' Boots but with a cockroach instead of a cat. Funny and quirky.

Naked Little Men - Michael Cadnum

"The Shoemaker and the Elves" told by his wife.

Brown Bear - Lisa Goldstein

A blend of "Goldilocks" with animal bridegroom elements. It is a lovely blend of Native American symbolism of bears and a girl from their tribe Quick who marries and bears a child of the bears linking the two for ever.

The Emperor who had never seen a Dragon - John Brunner

Based on many Chinese tales looking at unjust rulers being overthrown by the common people and the moral that they need not forever be slaves to Imperial rule.

Billy Fearless - Nancy A Collins

Based on the Brothers Grimm "A Tale about a boy who went forth to learn what Fear was" but with an added Southern flavour. Billy manages to survive three nights in a haunted house winning riches and a wife.

The Death of Koshohei the Deathless (a tale of Old Russia) - Gene Wolfe

A Russian fairy tale with some of the blanks fomr the original filled. A son avenges his father who unknowingly fell in love with his sister. A fun tale but with sinister overtones with much still left unsaid.

The Real Princess - Susan Palwick

A look at the sinister motives in "The Princess and the Pea" of a Prince who wants a wife who bruises easily. Fairies are mixed in as well as much violence.

The Huntsman's Story - Milbre Burch

A poem written in response to the discovery of Polly Klass's body two months after the 12 year old was kidnapped. A sinister look at the huntsman who comes unbidden into our lives.

After Push Comes to Shove - Milbre Burch

Written during the 1993 Los Angeles fires. The witch from Hansel and Grettel burns in the oven and looks ahead to the death of the children who poison each other fighting over their forgotten fathers will.

Hansel and Grettel - Gahan Wilson

Hansel and Grettel in this story come from a very rich family and after finding their way home are given a large sum of money to live their own lives. They do much pleasure seeking staying only in the best hotels and later searching out other hidden places of interest. They discover a castle in the Black Forest which contains many life-like gold statues of humans in warrior poses. They are taken to the secret centre of the castle where there are statues looking afraid. They discover the truth of the statues and the story is told to a listener encouraging them to seek out the castle in turn.

Match Girl - Anne Bishop

Her first professional sale looking at the tale of The Little Match Girl but with more violence as well as a different kind of release for her at the end.

Waking the Prince - Kathe Koja

A look at "Sleeping Beauty" twisting the original to the Prince being the one who sleeps. His mother works magic to let him life a half life in our time but remain sleeping in his own.

The Fox Wife - Ellen Steiber

An interesting Japanese tale based on a doctor who treated patients said to be possess by Kitsume (the Fox) in 1892. The Fox is known as a trickster and in this tale it aids Haruko who is forced to marry a viscious Samauri Lord Ikeda. She takes her maid O-Shima who tells the tale of her possession and later escape.

The White Road - Neil Gaiman

A poem based on the fairy tale "Mr Fox" with a violent and unsettling ending dream sequence and ending.

The Traveller and The Tale - Jane Yolen

A science fiction story of a woman sent back in time to add stories into the French villages history to help them fight off alien invaders in the future and not succumb to their rule. Once she has travelled back she is unable to return to her own time. It contains another story within it, one the travller told to the village, which involves changeling aspects.

The Printer's Daughter - Delia Sherman

A re-telling of a Russian tale "The Snow Child" originally about a middle-aged couples desire for a child. This version sees an alchemist helping a printer who needs an apprentice to print his papers into a book. He makes a child out of paper and as the printer finds work hard to come by she can only speak from the paper she is written on which is a porographic tale and a series of sermons by the local reverend. She is turned into a book at the end by poet Robert Blanke with a dedication to her father and the poet.

My favourite tale was "The Real Princess" which is the second time I have enjoyed a re-telling of The Princess and the Pea the most. I also really liked The Beast, Masterpiece, Roach in Loafers, The Huntsman's Story, Hansel and Grettel, Match Girl and The Fox Wife (by far the longest tale in the collection). Recommended to all lovers of fairy tales and great stories.

Black Thorn, White Rose - Ellen Datlow & Terri Windling

The second in the fairy tale anthologies collected by Ellen Datlow and Terri Windling. Again it contains short stories that are adult re-tellings of fairy tales. This time there are 18 tales by 18 different authors with the only cross overs from the first in the series being Susan Wade, Nancy Kress and Jane Yolen with Susan Wade writing the only completely original tale in the collection again.

Worlds Like Pale Stones - Nancy Kress
A re-telling of Rumplestiltskin looking at the magic of words and the power of knowledge. Ludie is the daughter of a drunk and a boastful washerwoman who tells people she can spin straw into gold. She is taken to the Prince and told if she cannot spin gold she will be killed. A rat-boy comes to her aid, one of the Old Ones, and when she spins gold she is forced to marry the Prince. She gives birth to the savage Dirk before finally running away when a woman who can spin straw into diamonds is found.

Stronger Than Time - Patricia C Wrede
A bittersweet look at Sleeping Beauty. A Prince appears on the doorstep one evening of a woodcutter and persuades him to help him reach the keep contained within the thorns. He claims there is an enchantment within caused by the Count insulting a witch-woman at the christening of his daughter. She laid a curse that on the girls sixteenth birthday she would die, but the Queen was able to counter it keeping her alive for 100 years safe in her resting place. She was very specific and her magic was to cause a specific Prince to arrive to set her free the day after the 100 years had passed. Unfortunately the Prince was impatient and arrived a day too early and was killed by the thorns. This new Prince is a relative of the one who died and has come to finish the task.

Samnus's Fair Maid - Ann Downer
Another Sleeping Beauty tale. The roles are slightly reversed and it is the male who has the sleeping sickness which his Aunt believes can be cured by a kiss from the one he loves.

The Frog King or Iron Henry - Daniel Quinn
A look at what happened to the Frog King after he was rewarded by the Princess for bringing back her golden ball. Scattered bits of information recalled by one with amnesia.

Near Beauty - M E Beckett
A strange science fiction tale if a sleeping beauty and an amphibian. Amanda talks to the three foot toad she finds in her boyfriends shower called Kane and they strike up a friendship that no one else knows about. An odd tale that sees them leaving and her becoming the Pilot for the Carnival the toad is in.

Ogre - Michael Kandel
Another strange tale about an ameatur dramatics group putting on a fairy tale performance of "The Yellow Dwarf". One of the cast members is an ogre who eats human flesh sandwiches prepared by his mother. When the director is fired by the ogre-like Connie, it is the ogre who is kind and thanks him for his direction.

Can't Catch Me - Michael Cadnum
A look at The Ginger-Bread Man. He is born in a hot oven before escaping into the cold world. On escaping from his parents and running away from them and his neighbour who chases him with a pitch fork, he stops long enough to repeatedly taunt those chasing him. He crosses a rinver on the head of a river fox who eats him all up, but ginger doesn't agree with foxes and the parts brought back up run away faster!

Journey Bread Recipie - Lawrence Schimel
A strange, short poem on how a wolf, child and hood for grandma can be made into bread. I very much enjoyed this short poem:
"5. Now crack the wolf and sseperate the whites -
the large eyes, the long teeth - from the yolks."

The Brown Bear of Norway - Isabel Cole
A classic Scandinavian tale in the "animal bridegroom" folklore tradition.It implies that the sorcery of shapeshifting is not to different from the magic used in turning from adolescence to adulthood.It follows a young girl living in New York who has a boy from Norway in her class. He gives her an address of someone back home who wants a penpal. They begin to write to each other and he signs his letters The Brown Bear of Norway. He starts to visit her in the evenings and tells her not to look at him, but one day she cannot resist and he is gone. She learns Norwegian and tracks him to his homeland, eventually finding him changed from a bear to the boy she knew from school.

The Goose Girl - Tim Wynne-Jones
Tells the story from the viewpoint of the Prince in the traditional tale. For a lark a Princess and her chambermaid exchange places before they meet the Prince the Princess has been sent to marry. Things go a little further than planned with the Prince marrying the chambermaid and the Princess being sent to work with the geese. The Old King realises what has happened and asks the chambermaid what punnishment someone who had done something like this should recieve, and then committs this punnishment upon her. Things do not quite end happily ever after as the new Queen is cold and unforgiving on the Prince.

Tattercoats - Midori Snyder
A lovely tale of Lilian who has been married to Edward for 7 years before feeling something is missing from their marriage. Her mother, the Queen, gives her a series of impressive gifts including a tattered coat made of animal skins which she says is the most important as it will teach her about herself. Lilian tries wearing the different beautiful dresses to attract her husbands attention, but ends up wearing the tattered coat on a bridge and seducing her husband. They begin to meet in secret, her hidden in the furs and him unsure who she is, until one day after they have rebuilt their marriage she decides it is the final meeting and she is going to tell the truth. Turns out Edward was not so unsuspecting afterall.

Granny Rumple - Jane Yolen
Yolen's take on Rumplestiltskin using her Granny as the main storyteller and the sad murder of her husband for being Jewish. It brought a lovely personal twist to the well known tale.The

Sawing Boys - Howard Waldrop
Based on a tale I didn't know called "The Bremen Town Musicians" and retold in the South of America. A group of people end up in a small town in Kentucky intent on mischief and murder, until they are dissuassed by local musicians entering the towns music contest.

Godson - Roger Zelazny
A very cool tale about David who has a very interesting Godfather. It is based on a Brothers Grimm tale and I don't want to say too much as it will spoil the story and it is one of the best in the collection.

Ashputtle - Peter Straub
A strange and unsettling tale about a Kindergarden teacher called Mrs Asch. She is excellent at her job although it is unclear whether she even likes the children she teaches and their parents. Every so often a child or parent goes missing from where she teaches and the implication is that she is killing them. Each time she moves on with no suspiscion to another town.

Silver and Gold - Ellen Stribar
A poem baed on Little Red Riding Hood looking at the path we take through life and the wolves we face in the real world. It is sometimes hard to tell the difference between the ones who love you and the ones who will eat you alive.

Sweet Bruising Skin - Storm Constantine
A wonderful re-telling of The Princess and the Pea told from the eyes of the Princes mother who is a cruel sorceress. Lots of alchemy, magic and death, the story looks at what happens after the Prince marries the Princess with the bruised skin. My favourite in the collection by far.

The Black Swan - Susan Wade
An original tale looking at how far women will go to transform themselves to a particular ideal of feminine beauty. Ylianna is dark to her cousins light and desires to change everything about herself secretly. When she unveils herself to everyone in the Kingdom including Prince Sigfried they all fall in love with her. However, she is accused of having an affair with the kind servant who helped her to transform (the narrator of the tale) and Sigfried openly denies her. She rushes upstairs and throws herself off the balcony, but instead of hearing her body hit the ground a beautiful black swan flies away to freedom.

My absolute favourite was Sweet Bruising Skin. It was interesting to sympathise with such a controlling tryant rather than the innocent Princess. I also really enjoyed The Black Swan, Silver and Gold, Godson (perhaps my second favourite), Tattercoats, The Goose Girl, The Brown Bear of Norway and Journey Bread Recipie. It took me a little longer to get into this anthology as the first stories didn't appeal to me as much, but I am so glad I stuck with it as they got much better.

Snow White, Blood Red - Ellen Datlow & Terri Windling

This is the first published in a series of 6 short story collections edited by Ellen Datlow and Terri Windling. Each story is an adult re-telling of a fairy tale. Some are very well known like Little Red Riding Hood, Snow White and the Seven Dwarves and Jack and the Beanstalk, while others I didn't know like The Dead Moon, Le Petit Poucet and The Glass Coffin by The Brothers Grimm. The stories are told from a fantastical or horror perspective with many focusing on the erotic elements of the original stories. The anthology contains 20 tales in total by 21 different authors.

1. Like a Red, Red Rose - Susan Walde
The only completely original tale in the anthology that is not a re-telling of another existing fairy tale. It combines many key elements of fairy tales with a witch, roses that represent a daughters virginity and love for a man, and a magic garden. The witch is not evil, she is just trying to keep her daugher away from men so she will not fall in love, It turns out she has good reasons for this which only become apparent after she dies. A sad and poignant tale. Blanche loses her love but gains a new daughter to raise in her own magic wood.

2. The Moon is Drowing While I Sleep - Charles de Lint
Based on a tale I didn't know, "The Dead Moon", this is set in Charles de Lint's Newford with one of his regular characters Sophie Etoile. She is having lucid dreams where the moon (a lady who looks just like her) has been trapped under water and is slowly drowning. Sophie wonders whether the moon is the mother who left her and her father suddenly when she was young. Like many of the fairy tales in this book she goes through a sexual awakening as well with Jack Crow.

3. The Frog Prince - Gahan Wilson
A strange tale about a frog in psychtherapy who dreams every night he is the frog prince in the tale. Everything seems so real to him and like a true memory and he spends his waking hours weeping over the dream and true love he lost.

4. Stalking Beans - Nancy Kress
Jack and his wife Anna have lost all their finery. He exchanges their best cow for some beans which grows into a beanstalk and he has made many trips up to the top to sleep with the giantess wife to the giant who lives up there. The giantess Maria becomes pregnant with the child Anna could never have when Jack is finally chased away by the blind giant for good, never to see his son.

5. Snow-Drop - Tanith Lee
A different version of Snow White and the Seven Dwarves. Cristena lives in a house that looks after itself and her new husband is often away for long periods of time on business leaving her alone there. He was married once before and his first wife died in suspisious circumstances which the house cleaned up. She had been an artist and the house is filled with paintings of a woman with raven hair and dark eyes but porclain skin. One day Cristena destroys all the paintings but then sees the girl on television advertising the circus where she performs with seven dwarves. Cristena goes to see the show and then brings her back home where things take an interesting turn.

6. Little Red - Wendy Wheeler
The story is told from the perspective of the wolf in the Little Red Riding Tale. Josef is a dark hairy man who has made an effort to culture himself. One day he embarks upon an affair (nothing new for him) with Helen who is married to a priest and has a young daughter. When he meets the daughter (who he has bought a red hat for) he finds his tastes are for her rather than the mother.

7. I Shall do thee Mischief in the Wood - Kathe Koja
Another Little Red Riding Hood re-telling also from the wolfs perspective involving lust for the young girl. The young girl in this tale has a red cape and the villagers think she is simple. She lures the wolf back to her house in the woods where he meets the beast of the forest, her grandmother for a nice role reversal.

8. The Root of the Matter - Gregory Frost
The story of Rapunzel focusing on the sexual aspects of the tale. It sticks pretty closely to the original but exands in the witch who has Rapunzel in the tower (in this version a lighthouse). She had been abused by her father at a young age and ran away from home before she was 14 scorning all men. She locks Rapunzel away (the daughter she tricked from another family) to keep her safe from men and tells her all kinds of horror stories about sex and penises. One day however a man finds his way into the tower and opens Rapunzel's eyes to the real meaning of sex.

9. The Princess in the Tower - Elizabeth A. Lynn
A second Rapunzel tale told from a more humorous slant. Margheritina (Rapunzel) is scorned by her family and friends as she has such a tiny waist and barely eats. In their culture larger woman are much sexier and desirable and it is thought she might be anorexic. She meets her prince despite being locked in the house by her mother and they run away together.

10. Persimmon - Harvey Jacobs
Thumbelina told with not too many plot differences, just with humans rather than animals. Persimmon (Thumbelina) ends up having the power of restoring life and escaping a marriage unsuiltable for her leaving with the man she has revived. He has considerable wealth and takes her away to his island where they live together as father and tiny daughter. He realises she is lonely so introduces her back to her people who he has been growing to take over the world and not be a drain on its resources.

11. Little Poucet - Steve Rasnic Tem
The darkest of the tales based on Le Petit Poucet. This reminded me of the old, true fairy tales the most. It has elements of Hansel and Gretal as little Poucet and his 6 brothers are led away by their father and left as they do not have enought food to feed them all. Poucet has used biscuit crumbs as a trail and leads the way back, but the second time one of his brothers eats all the crumbs and so they are lost. They end up in a house with Auntie and her 7 demonic daughters. Their father is a cannibal who returns wanting to kill and eat the boys the next day. They disguise themselves as girls and give the daughters fake penises so the father kills the wrong ones leaving them to escape and return home with jewellry, money and torture devices stolen from the house. Little Poucet is able to sleep in his parents bed with the comfort of holding the torture devices under his pillow when he hears his parents speak of not having enough food...

12. The Changelings - Melanie Tem
A sad tale in modern times of Scandinavian chanelings and forest trolls. Bridget had a baby aged 16 with no support from the father or her own mother. When she gets the baby home it disappears and she is left with a changeling. When her daughter is 11 she finds a girl who she believes is her original daughter whose mother seems to have a forest-like aura about her.

13. The Springfield Swans - Caroline Stevermer and Ryan Edmonds
Based on The Wild Swans but set around a father who dreams of having enough sons to start his own baseball team. When he dies their stepmother curses the boys into swans and it is up to their eldest sister to make them jerseys without speaking or smiling until they are complete.

14. Troll Bridge - Neil Gaiman
A tale with one billy goat (human male) trip trapping over the trolls bridge. The first encounter is when he is just a boy and he puts the troll off eating his life by saying he will come back when he has lived more as there are so many things left to do. The second encounter is when he is a teenager and he offers up the girl he supposedly loves in his place. Again he escapes by saying he has more life to live and promises to return. The final visit is as an adult with a sense of missed opportunity and loss.

15. A Sound, Like Angels Singing - Leonard Rysdyk
An interseting re-telling of a famous fairy tale from the animals perspective. It is more about not heeding warnings in this version than favouring the people of the town.

16. Puss - Esther M. Friesner
In this version Puss-in-Boots is a shafeshifter who changes after tasting blood. He promised his former master he will get his son "bred by princes". He does this by tricking a king and another shafeshifter to get his young master married to the kings daughter, the princess. Puss then takes pity on the princess after his contract runs out and ends up making her a shafeshifter in a vampire fashion involving sharing blood.

17. The Glass Casket - Jack Dann
Based on "The Glass Casket" by The Brothers Grimm, set in Italy in the time of Leonardo da Vinci with poet, philosopher and magus Picodella Mirandola as the main character. He hears a womans voice and sees her in a dream before following her and freeing her from her glass casket. She is named Ginevra and lives 79 years in the past. Pico stays with her as long as he is able, listening to her tale and falling more in love with her. Eventually he has to return to his own time to face the emptiness of his destiny and never hear her voice again.

18. Knives - Jane Yolen
A short poem looking at the language and symbolism in Cinderella. Yolen focuses on the meaning of shoes, glass and knives.

19. The Snow Queen - Patricia A, McKillip
Pretty close to the original by Hans Christian Andersen in plot. Kay and Gerda and a married couple, Kay is annoyed by Gerda's innocence and turns to the sophisticated Nerva instead. Gerda meets thief Briony and ends up setting up a flower shop in the middle of winter filling peoples lives with colour. They end up rediscovering each other and Kay goes on to try to find the right flower to express how he feels for Gerda.

20. Beadcrumbs and Stones - Lisa Goldstein
Another tale looking at the metaphorical langugage used in fairy tales, this time based on Hansel and Gretal. Lynne and Sharon's mother is in hospital with camcer. They know little about her life as she keeps her secrets close to her after escaping Germany as a Jew. Her parents were both killed in concentration camps when she was young and she was raised by a foster Christian family. Once released from hospital she tells her girls the story of Hansel and Gretal leaving a trail of stones and the breadcrumbs. She tells them she used to have a brother, their uncle Johann who they never knew existed. It turns out he was killed in Auschwitz (possibly in an oven like the witch tried to do to Hansel). Sarah and Lynne realise their mother has always told them the breadcrumbs of her life to distract them from the stones.

My favourite in the anthology was "Like a Red, Red Rose" and I look forward to reading more tales by the author in the future. I also really liked "The Moon is Drowning While I Sleep", "The Root of the Matter", "Little Poucet", "Troll Bridge" and "Breadcrumbs and Stones". I can't wait to start the next anthology in the series, "Black Thorn, White Rose".

Rhinoa's Challenge List

I only read my first short story collections last year (Edgar Allan Poe "Complete Stories and Poems"; Charles de Lint "Waifs and Strays"). I picked out a further 7 collections to read in 2008 for other reading challenges and have added a couple of titles to put me in for options 3&4. My list is:

1) Black Heart, Ivory Bones - Ellen Datlow & Terri Windling
2) Black Thorn, White Rose - Ellen Datlow & Terri Windling
3) Blood Red, Snow White - Ellen Datlow & Terri Windling
4) Ruby Slippers, Golden Tears - Ellen Datlow & Terri Windling
5) Black Swan, White Raven - Ellen Datlow & Terri Windling
6) Silver Birch, Blood Moon - Ellen Datlow & Terri Windling
7) The Ladies of Grace Adieu - Susanna Clarke
8) Bite - Laurell K Hamilton
9) Buring Your Boats - Angela Carter
10) Dates from Hell - Kelley Armstrong

The first six are all collections by different authors edited by Datlow and Windling that are adult re-tellings of fairy tales. The seventh is by the author of Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell which I really enjoyed last year. It has a couple of stories that relate to Strange & Norrell and some completely new ones. The last three on the list are just for this challenge and are urban fantasy and fairy tale based again. I know there is a bit of a running theme, but what can I say I like fairy tales and urban fantasy! I haven't read anything by a lot of the authors featured before so I am hoping to discover some new favourites and people I can follow up on.