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398th out of 1,858 books
—
9,856 voters
Queen Victoria’s Book of Spells: An Anthology of Gaslamp Fantasy
by
Ellen Datlow (Goodreads Author) ,
Terri Windling (Goodreads Author) , Jeffrey Ford , Genevieve Valentine , Maureen F. McHugh , Delia Sherman , Kathe Koja , Elizabeth Wein (Goodreads Author)
,
more…
“Gaslamp Fantasy,” or historical fantasy set in a magical version of the nineteenth century, has long been popular with readers and writers alike. A number of wonderful fantasy novels, including Stardust by Neil Gaiman, Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell by Susanna Clarke, and The Prestige by Christopher Priest, owe their inspiration to works by nineteenth-century writers ran...more
Hardcover, 352 pages
Published
March 19th 2013
by Tor
(first published 2013)
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911)
I made the mistake of thinking this was a steampunk anthology; it’s not. It’s Gaslamp Fantasy; fantasy stories set in the Victorian era with magic included. Here you will no find brass goggles or airship pirates. But it was a happy mistake, because I enjoyed this book very much.
Victoria reigned for a very long time, so there is variety of events, inventions, real people, and movements to choose from when writing in the era. A couple of the stories are actually about Victoria; the title story is...more
Victoria reigned for a very long time, so there is variety of events, inventions, real people, and movements to choose from when writing in the era. A couple of the stories are actually about Victoria; the title story is...more
I thoroughly enjoyed the introduction and the fact that there was a recommended reading list at the back of the book. I also found the inclusion of brief story notes from each individual author after their contribution quite clever. As always with anthologies though, mixed bag of actual tales.
Certain aforementioned author notes helped pinpoint where my dissatisfaction may stem from. I had an unconscious expectation of being able to plunge myself into an unending stream of escapism. But several o...more
Certain aforementioned author notes helped pinpoint where my dissatisfaction may stem from. I had an unconscious expectation of being able to plunge myself into an unending stream of escapism. But several o...more
Apr 01, 2013
Catherine Siemann
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
neovictorians
Thoroughly enjoyable anthology of neoVictorian fantasies. I was lucky enough to hear Leanne Renee Hieber, Genevieve Valentine, Ellen Kushner, Delia Sherman, and Veronica Schanoes read from their stories at the book release party -- all excellent, though very different. Other favorites included stories by Jeffrey Ford, Maureen McHugh, Elizabeth Gatland, and Jane Yolen. Theodora Goss' "Estella Saves the Village" hit a personally sour note for me - the girl who dreams of being a writer and grows up...more
Before I started reading the stories in this book, after reading only the preface and introduction, I blithely blew this anthology off as "Steampunk, with a side of Fae". It most definitely is not. Each story was engrossing; spellbinding (as promised on the tin) and a number of them were quite dark. Theodora Goss's "Estella Saves the Village" was unabashed Great Expectations fanfic, while Cat Valente's "We Without Us Were Shadows" is intriguing Real-Person Fiction of the troubled Bronte family....more
May 18, 2013
Snail in Danger (Sid) Nicolaides
rated it
4 of 5 stars
Recommended to Snail in Danger (Sid) by:
Ellen Kushner (blog)
3.5, I think. I think I only passed on four stories, and a couple of those were because I wasn't in the mood for the style of the piece or author at the time. But it also has a really useful and interesting introduction.
I jumped right to the Caroline Stevermer-Ellen Kushner story, because I am a huge Caroline Stevermer fangirl. Then I kind of forgot about the rest of the collection, possibly because it blended together in my mind with Willful Impropriety. The collections aren't actually that si...more
I jumped right to the Caroline Stevermer-Ellen Kushner story, because I am a huge Caroline Stevermer fangirl. Then I kind of forgot about the rest of the collection, possibly because it blended together in my mind with Willful Impropriety. The collections aren't actually that si...more
I can't give this anthology more than four stars because there are a couple of stories in here that are just annoying and which I could not read. But 95% of these stories were very entertaining. I have never been a fan of sticking historical figures into narratives willy nilly as a way of explaining the person's later achievements. But in the few instances where that happened here, it was done in such a way that it served as an homage rather than a justification. If you're looking for steampunk,...more
Anything Ellen Datlow and Terry Windling work on together is irresistible and this collection does not disappoint. From the heartbreaking and tragic 'Phosphorus' to sweet revenge in 'The Fairy Enterprise', beginning to end, a truly necessary journey to take and while I will treasure this on my shelf, I will also immediately begin to press it into the hands of my fellow readers. Delightful.
The anthology is a mixed bag. I'm not sure what I thought it was going to be and after the first short story - Queen Victoria's Book of Spells - I had high hopes that were quickly dashed. I found it a bit uneven in that some stories were interesting, while others I skippd over without much guilt. The Memory Book, The Governess, For the Briar Rose and Phosphorus were the most interesting and readable.
Terrific. I've never read gaslamp fantasy or steampunk before. This is a great intro to the genre--a lighter taste of the fantastic...less steam work type stuff and more heavy on the magic and fantasy, except based in the Victorian era, a great way to start off for folks not prepared for the steampunk genre. There was at least one steam driven story, which was good, and has made me curious about others.
Mar 07, 2013
Nadine
marked it as to-read
I just read the Jane Yolen short story, "The Jewel in the Toad Queen's Crown," about Queen Victoria and Disraeli. So perhaps its not fair to rate this whole book as "read," but gr does not list the Yolen short separately ... it was delightful. Not at all what I expected.
Had read some of the authors included in this anthology before so I knew it would be good. Loved getting the chance to read new authors that write in a similar world. All the stories are well written and have great atmosphere and wonderful characters. Great read:)
Some of the stories in this collection were great (The Memory Book; For the Briar Rose; The Governess) and others not so great(The Fairy Enterprise; the one about London's Great Exhibition, the title is crazy-long; La Reine D' Enfer). It is a good collection, though, containing different writing styles on the same theme.
WANT WANT WANT.
I don't generally review anthologies. It's hard because I usually skip around in them and it can take me a long time to read the entire thing. But yeah, this just sounds too awesome to pass up ;)
I don't generally review anthologies. It's hard because I usually skip around in them and it can take me a long time to read the entire thing. But yeah, this just sounds too awesome to pass up ;)
May 12, 2013
Emmalee
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
fantasy,
historical-fiction
This is more historical fiction than out and out fantasy. Some of the short stories on the book are more fantasy and some are better than others. I'd probably rate this as 3.5 stars, but I can't do that.
As usual in an anthology, some of the stories were excellent, some not as excellent. I would definitely recommend this one to people who like steampunk fantasy, or alternative history.
I didn't care for a couple of the stories, but others were awesome, so it balances out. This anthology is a nice antidote to pure steampunk, showing a much wider view of the genre.
Much different than steampunk and also much better, IMHO. My favorites were Phosphorus, The Jewel in the Toad Queen's Crown, and Their Monstrous Minds. But overall, a really great collection.
A mixed bag of Victorian-era fantasy short stories. As with most anthologies, some were better than others, with Catherynne M. Valente and Jane Yolen really standing out.
An anthology that is more than a sum of its parts. I was pleasantly surprised to find it, for the most part, unsentimental, with a real feel for the nuances and the exploitativeness of the era. Varied, surprising, and just good.
This showed up today and looks delish. Wonder what "gaslamp" fantasy is? Steampunk without the punk?
I really dislike rating anthologies because I'm so picky about genre stories. A few of these stories I truly enjoyed and felt they really captured the spirit of the anthology but most were lacking.
A lovely collection. Catherynne M. Valente "We Without Us Were Shadows" is my favorite.
Another anthology that may as well have been compiled just for me. Life is so good.
a good mix, some very good, others not so much. Great setting though
I did like several of the stories very much, but the overall tone of the book was far darker than I expected. Several of the stories edged into what I'd call horror, which isn't my preference.
Great introduction to a lesser-known genre!
With the exception of a couple of the stories, I enjoyed them all. I didn't feel that all the stories were firmly within the Gaslamp genre. Would I recommend it anyway - Yes, yes I would.
Read three: spells, shadows and toad queen
Very much not my thing, sadly. I just couldn't do it.
Steampunk's not really my thing, I guess.
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Ellen Datlow has been an award-winning editor of short science fiction, fantasy, and horror for over twentyfive years.
She is editor of the Best Horror of the Year and has edited or co-edited a large number of award-winning original anthologies. Her most recent are Supernatural Noir, Naked City, Blood and Other Cravings, The Beastly Bride, Teeth, Trolls Eye View, and After (the last three with Ter...more
More about Ellen Datlow...
She is editor of the Best Horror of the Year and has edited or co-edited a large number of award-winning original anthologies. Her most recent are Supernatural Noir, Naked City, Blood and Other Cravings, The Beastly Bride, Teeth, Trolls Eye View, and After (the last three with Ter...more
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Apr 27, 2013 01:19pm