The Slantwise Histories:
Collected Stories
by Alix E. Harrow
My Star Rating: 4.5 Stars
Page Count: 304 pages
Genre: Adult Fantasy, Historical Fiction, and Historical Fantasy Short Stories
Date Read: October 7th-9th
Publication Date: October 20th
Publisher: Tor Publishing Group & Macmillan Audio
Review:
Alix E. Harrow has a masterful writing style that I enjoy so much every time I pick up a new one of her works. I was thoroughly looking forward to this short story collection when I first heard about it earlier in the year. Each of these stories is uniquely told and stands out.Short stories are such a great medium for Alix's writing and I love how each of these fifteen stories reflects on the human experience in so many different ways. There were stories that had me laughing out loud, while others had me deeply moved. I've heard such incredible things about a couple of the stories in this collection and they definitely didn't disappoint.
Below, I'm going to give a short review for each of the stories. For the most part, I highly love all of them so very much and cannot recommend them enough. This is one of my favorite short story collections I have ever read and listened to. Jeanette Illidge and Jenn Lee were great narrators for each of the stories. I highly enjoyed reading along in the ebook while listening to their narration.
"The Tale of Two Brothers, or, The Famous Folklorist Confesses Fratricide!" - 4.5 stars
- Loved this entire story felt like a fairy tale, especially with the way it was written and how it also referenced other famous tales in the plot.
"Mr. Death"- 5 stars
- A beautiful story about grief and life. Such an interesting take on the afterlife where Alix E. Harrow took this story.
"A Whisper in the Weld"- 5 stars
- A beautiful story of a mother's love for her daughters and what she will do to protect them.
"The Knight and the Butcherbird"- 4 stars
- This is one of the stories from this collection I have heard about before picking it up. I didn't know anything about the plot though. What an interesting take on demons.
"The Six Deaths of the Saint"- 5 stars
- Such an incredible story! I can see how the idea of Alix's book The Everlasting came from this. I love the way she chose to write this story. So far this is my favorite of the collection.
"The Final Voyage of the Good Ship Fortune"- 3.5 stars
- An epistolary story that grew on me by the end.
- An epistolary story that grew on me by the end.
"Do Not Look Back, My Lion"- 3 stars
- I didn't love this story but really enjoyed the ending.
- I didn't love this story but really enjoyed the ending.
"The Ransom of Miss Coraline Connelly"- 5 stars
- I adored this story so very much! Another epistolary one, which is told through letters an empress sends to the mother of Miss Coraline Connelly, who she took into her realm.
- I adored this story so very much! Another epistolary one, which is told through letters an empress sends to the mother of Miss Coraline Connelly, who she took into her realm.
"The Long Way Up"- 4 stars
- The myth of Orpheus and Eurydice is one of my favorites and I love when I find a new take on the classic tale. I enjoyed the direction of this one.
- The myth of Orpheus and Eurydice is one of my favorites and I love when I find a new take on the classic tale. I enjoyed the direction of this one.
"Up in Flames (Working Title)"- 6 stars (Because it was just that great)
- My favorite story from the entire collection. I love how we got the story and then the comments throughout from Val. Brilliantly told!
- My favorite story from the entire collection. I love how we got the story and then the comments throughout from Val. Brilliantly told!
"A Witch's Guide to Escape: A Practical Compendium of Portal Fantasies"- 4.5 stars
- The story from the collection I was looking forward to the most because of the title, other than "The Six Deaths of the Saint." I love the idea of some librarians being witches.
- The story from the collection I was looking forward to the most because of the title, other than "The Six Deaths of the Saint." I love the idea of some librarians being witches.
"Dustbaby"- 4 stars
- What a story. This one it me really hard.
- What a story. This one it me really hard.
"The Sycamore and the Sybil"- 4 stars
- I love this take on an empowerment story, especially with how it dealt with the trees.
"Roadside Attraction"- 5 stars
- I'll always love a time travel story and this one was perfect for me. It surprised me how much she was able to put into such a short story.
- I'll always love a time travel story and this one was perfect for me. It surprised me how much she was able to put into such a short story.
"The Last Archive"- 4.5 stars
- One of the most interesting aspects of every story in this entire collection is how Alix E. Harrow decided to tell them. They each have a style of their own. I like how this one was the narrator telling the story to the boys she took in. Such a beautiful story.
My favorites from the collection:
"Up in Flames (Working Title)"
"The Six Deaths of the Saint"
"Mr. Death"
"The Ransom of Miss Coraline Connelly"
"Roadside Attraction"
This collection was everything I could have wanted and I know I will revisiting many of these stories in the future. I cannot wait to add this to my growing collection of Alix E. Harrow's books.
*Thank you to Tor Publishing Group, Macmillan Audio, Alix E. Harrow, and NetGalley for my ARC of this book. All opinions are my own.*
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