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The Poison Eaters: and Other Stories
by
Holly Black (Goodreads Author)
In her debut collection, New York Times best-selling author Holly Black returns to the world of Tithe in two darkly exquisite new tales. Then Black takes readers on a tour of a faerie market and introduces a girl poisonous to the touch and another who challenges the devil to a competitive eating match. These stories have been published in anthologies such as 21 Proms, The...more
Kindle Edition
Published
(first published February 9th 2010)
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4.5 stars. Absolutely brilliant. From the opening story, "The Coldest Girl in Coldtown," in which a desperate girl chooses to become a vampire in order to enact a rescue, to the final, eponymous story "The Poison Eaters," which stars three dead girls created as poisonous weapons, I was enthralled. This book had so many gems that it was easy to overlook the few stories that fell flat. Other favorites include "The Night Market," set in the Phillippines with a simultaneously endearing and terrifyin...more
Mar 30, 2013
Laura Zurowski
rated it
3 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
not-just-for-kids
I picked up Black's collection of YA short stories for an upcoming book club discussion. My knowledge of this genre is pretty limited and dated; do the names Judy Blume, Avi, and Gary Paulson ring a bell? Yeah, books from those authors were written long-hand on papyrus. Because of this obvious gap in my book knowledge, I was eager to dive into a title that today's YA readers might be enjoying.
While the first story, The Coldest Girl in Coldtown, left me (no, I won't say it!)... unenthusiastic, i...more
While the first story, The Coldest Girl in Coldtown, left me (no, I won't say it!)... unenthusiastic, i...more
Black, H. (2010). The poison eaters and other stories. New York: Simon & Schuster/Margaret K. McElderry Books. 213 pp. ISBN: 978-1-4424-1232-3. (Paperback); $9.99.
Holly Black’s visit to Grand Haven to record The Poison Eaters and Other Stories gave me an excuse to read this twisted collection of short stories and to do an interview with Holly: http://www.spicyreads.org/Author_Vide... . When my children were in high school, I still managed to find the time to read to them. I have been known t...more
Holly Black’s visit to Grand Haven to record The Poison Eaters and Other Stories gave me an excuse to read this twisted collection of short stories and to do an interview with Holly: http://www.spicyreads.org/Author_Vide... . When my children were in high school, I still managed to find the time to read to them. I have been known t...more
A solid collection of dark short stories, maybe about a 3.5 overall. As with Black's other YA series, it's definitely older-skewing, with a fair amount of teen drinking and sexual references. The majority are urban fantasy, including a couple that fit in with her Modern Faerie Tales series, with a few more classic fantasy stories. The first two startled me with their abrupt endings, but on a moment's reflection I realized that there really wasn't anything more that needed to be said. Some still...more
This book had its moments. I am not really a fan of books of short stories, I like huge epic battles between good, and evil. But I LOVE Holly Black so I dove right in.
I REALLY LIKED:
The first story "The Coldest Girl in Coldtown" was my favorite. And even as a short story I could see it being more. It was vivid and dark and in short awesome. The next story "Reversal of Fortune" is a great Faustian bargain tale. It made me giggle. "The Boy Who Cried Wolf" was next and is was a haunting tale, even...more
I REALLY LIKED:
The first story "The Coldest Girl in Coldtown" was my favorite. And even as a short story I could see it being more. It was vivid and dark and in short awesome. The next story "Reversal of Fortune" is a great Faustian bargain tale. It made me giggle. "The Boy Who Cried Wolf" was next and is was a haunting tale, even...more
Don't get me wrong. I love Holly Black's work. In fact she was the one who originally turned me on to fantasy/urban fantasy/paranormal romance books.
However it just seemed this book wasn't up to par with her others.
My biggest problem is that the stories would start off boring then suck me in then disappoint me with a too simple ending that felt like she took the easy route out. The only two I really enjoyed were "The Dog King" and "The Virgin".
The rest just seemed irritatingly predictable or...more
However it just seemed this book wasn't up to par with her others.
My biggest problem is that the stories would start off boring then suck me in then disappoint me with a too simple ending that felt like she took the easy route out. The only two I really enjoyed were "The Dog King" and "The Virgin".
The rest just seemed irritatingly predictable or...more
I gave Holly Black another chance. This time, I didn’t read one of her novels, but a compilation of some short stories. The Poison Eaters and Other Stories includes twelve short stories, with subject matter that runs the gamut. Vampires, werewolves, faery, devils, elves, and other magical beings are just a few of the characters contained in these pages.
I believe my favorite story is Paper Cuts Scissors. It is about Justin, a young man who is trying desperately to get his girlfriend back after sh...more
I believe my favorite story is Paper Cuts Scissors. It is about Justin, a young man who is trying desperately to get his girlfriend back after sh...more
Until now, I was convinced that short stories really weren't my thing.
I mean, Lips Touch Three Times was okay; the writing was pretty and I enjoyed it. But other short story collections (see: Kelly Link's highly disappointing Pretty Monsters) just leave me scratching my head and wondering why someone would bother to write that out at all.
Short stories are hard. You have to develop a plot, a setting and characters, and you don't have a huge number of words to do that. And with a lot of them, the...more
I mean, Lips Touch Three Times was okay; the writing was pretty and I enjoyed it. But other short story collections (see: Kelly Link's highly disappointing Pretty Monsters) just leave me scratching my head and wondering why someone would bother to write that out at all.
Short stories are hard. You have to develop a plot, a setting and characters, and you don't have a huge number of words to do that. And with a lot of them, the...more
This book is a collection of Holly Black's short stories. Overall it is a decent collection. It you are a huge Holly Black fan, like I am, beware that many of these stories appear in other anthologies. So, I had already read some of them. There is a nice publication history in the back of the book just in case you want to check and see which stories you may have already read.
The stories tend to be dark and follow paranormal/urban fantasy themes. Most of the stories are a bit ironic and have some...more
The stories tend to be dark and follow paranormal/urban fantasy themes. Most of the stories are a bit ironic and have some...more
I'm usually not a big fan of short stories but after reading this novel I am. I was surprised at how much I really enjoyed these twelve stories. This collection showcases Black's talent for dark, edgy and macabre tales and yet she retains a humorous tint to her storytelling. I especially liked the world created in "The Coldest Girl in Coldtown," "Going Ironside" (featuring some of my favorite characters from the Tithe series), and the unique and curious spin on wolves in "The Dog King." These st...more
The Poison Eaters was as almost all collections of short stories are- a mixed bag. Some of them—such as The Night Market, In Vodka Veritas, and The Coat of Stars—were great and made me wish for more than just a few short pages. On the other hand, some of the stories were downright confusing and mildly disturbing. Virgin and Ironside were the two that left me scratching my head and wondering what the point was.
But, as in all Holly Black books, the good outweighs the bad. The standouts in this col...more
But, as in all Holly Black books, the good outweighs the bad. The standouts in this col...more
I love anthologies like crazy. They make me deliriously happy because you have so many story-lines in one place so it's like reading a whole bunch of books in one setting. So with that being said you know I was automatically excited to read The Poison Eaters and Other Stories.
Holly Black is an amazing author. Her stories are all so well written and full of life (well mostly...lol ). Every single character in this book of short stories is incredibly well developed and relatable. Though many of he...more
Holly Black is an amazing author. Her stories are all so well written and full of life (well mostly...lol ). Every single character in this book of short stories is incredibly well developed and relatable. Though many of he...more
Sep 05, 2012
Kereesa
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
Fans of Holly Black. Durr.
Recommended to Kereesa by:
No one. I just think Holly Black is awesome.
After devouring the entire Curse Workers trilogy and enjoying Black's Tithe trilogy, it's pretty much a guarantee that I'll at least semi-love anything Holly Black puts to pen. The Poison Eaters was no exception, and is filled with the dark, creepy, and wicked content that Black promises time and time again in her work.
Filled with stories about werewolves, vampire, and even zombie-like maidens, Black plays with both the fairy-tale motif, while still incorporating her own charm into the mix. Whi...more
Filled with stories about werewolves, vampire, and even zombie-like maidens, Black plays with both the fairy-tale motif, while still incorporating her own charm into the mix. Whi...more
Holly Black'in tarzını seviyorum!
Kısa hikayelerden bu kadar hoşlanacağımı hiç düşünmezdim. Holly Black'i Beyaz Kedi'de de sevmiştim ama bu küçük hikayeler onu çok daha iyi anlamamı ve kendimle bağdaştırmamı sağladı. Elinize aldığınız anda bitebilecek, masal anlatır gibi bir kitap. Bazı hikayeler gerçek anlamda karanlıktı. Bazıları ise gülümseyerek okuyacağınız derecede eğlenceli. Aslında hepsi hoşuma gitti ancak aralarında öne çıkanlar da oldu elbette.
Soğuk Kasaba'daki En Soğuk Kız: Bir tür vamp...more
Kısa hikayelerden bu kadar hoşlanacağımı hiç düşünmezdim. Holly Black'i Beyaz Kedi'de de sevmiştim ama bu küçük hikayeler onu çok daha iyi anlamamı ve kendimle bağdaştırmamı sağladı. Elinize aldığınız anda bitebilecek, masal anlatır gibi bir kitap. Bazı hikayeler gerçek anlamda karanlıktı. Bazıları ise gülümseyerek okuyacağınız derecede eğlenceli. Aslında hepsi hoşuma gitti ancak aralarında öne çıkanlar da oldu elbette.
Soğuk Kasaba'daki En Soğuk Kız: Bir tür vamp...more
Mar 23, 2011
Jenni
rated it
2 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
paranormal,
anthologies
I don't know if i'm dumb or just ignorant of the obvious, for most of the short stories I've read, I couldn't understand the underlying meaning behind the plot. Maybe it's transperant for you guys who gave it a high rating but that's not in my case. The stories could be paranoramal or leaning against serious weirdness. None of them really got to my mind except the two I commented below. This is not a book I will recommend, but I picked this up because I was curious of how good Holly Black is, si...more
I got a copy of Holly Black's short story collection, The Poison Eaters, as a giveaway at the World Fantasy Convention this past weekend and decided to read it on the way home on the plane. The only other Holly Black I've read (other than a few various stories that have appeared in collections) was her novel Tithe, which I read ages ago, but which I liked quite a lot.
I always have pretty low expectations for short story collections, unfortunately, for the most part, I find them to be weak. It t...more
I always have pretty low expectations for short story collections, unfortunately, for the most part, I find them to be weak. It t...more
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
I had a lot of hope for this one when I picked it up out of the bargain bin a my LBS. Shame it didn't turn out.
The cover is compelling and haunting. A tad creepy, which I appreciate as well. I despise horror movies, but I like a good horror story so I turn to books for this aspect and I was suspecting that maybe there would be a little bit of that represented in the stories. Not so much.
A few things:
Well, more than a few things really, but I'll stick to the most obvious for me.
It was a hit-miss...more
The cover is compelling and haunting. A tad creepy, which I appreciate as well. I despise horror movies, but I like a good horror story so I turn to books for this aspect and I was suspecting that maybe there would be a little bit of that represented in the stories. Not so much.
A few things:
Well, more than a few things really, but I'll stick to the most obvious for me.
It was a hit-miss...more
Holly Black is another one of my favorite young adult writers. Mainly because she does to Young Adult what I want to do: makes it fantastic. This book is a collection of her short stories and it's my understanding that all but a few of these are published in other places. I do distinctly remember reading one in Troll's Eye View but that's fine. The stories range from interesting take on the genre ("The Coldest Girl in Coldtown") to just plain great reads all around ("The Virgin"). I love short s...more
Çok ilginç ve güzel bir kitaptı. Doğrusu beklediğimden daha iyiydi. Sanki ben çocukmuşum , kitapta korkunç hikayeler anlatmayı seven büyükannem. Biliyorum saçma bir tanım oldu ama gerçekten bunu hissettim. Özellikle Şeytanla olan yemek yarışması , Soğuk Kasaba , Köpek Kral ve Kağıt Makası Keser hikayeleri çok hoşuma gitti. Şu alıntı o kadar doğru ki , bir kaç dakika kitaba öylece bakmama sebep oldu.
'Korunması gereken okurlar ... Okurlar kitapların kurbanıydı. Makul giyinmiş nemrut suratlı kadın...more
'Korunması gereken okurlar ... Okurlar kitapların kurbanıydı. Makul giyinmiş nemrut suratlı kadın...more
I really enjoyed this anthology. I'm not going to get into each story, but as a whole the book was dark and fun. Not all of these stories have a happy ending, but all are deliciously twisted. Some stories stood out a bit more than others but as a whole they all seem to fit together. Not as entwining stories, but more as stories with the same sense of supernatural darkness. This is also a collection of YA "faerie stories" that adults will enjoy as well as the YA crowd. Especially those sick of th...more
A collection of short stories by one of my very favorite authors (although that list seems to get longer and longer...Neil Gaiman, Jim Butcher, Seanan McGuire, Meg Cabot... you see where I'm going with this...?)
Anyhow, most of these stories have been printed in other anthologies, but it's definitely much easier in this one volume. I like this trend of collecting previously-anthologized stories; especially when it's in the context of the Sookie or Dresden books... I think my two favorites here we...more
Anyhow, most of these stories have been printed in other anthologies, but it's definitely much easier in this one volume. I like this trend of collecting previously-anthologized stories; especially when it's in the context of the Sookie or Dresden books... I think my two favorites here we...more
Dec 19, 2011
Nancy O'Toole
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
fantasy,
short-fiction
The Poison Eaters is a slim volume of a dozen short stories by fantasy author Holly Black. Although there were couple of of stories that I didn’t like as much, the majority of the stories are really strong. They often take interesting new perspectives on established tropes, such as vampires and unicorns. Some stories are lighthearted and fun, while others have a rather enchanting fairy tale quality to them. The collection reads lightning fast (I read the majority in just one setting) and should...more
Holly Black is fairly known in the YA world for her urban fantasy novels about fairies as well as in the Middle-Grade world for her Spiderwick Chronicles (with illustrator Tony DiTerlizzi). The first novel I read by her was Tithe, part of her Modern Fairy Tales series and it was also the book that introduced my to YA fairy fiction. I also happen to love short stories, so when I saw the paperback edition of her short story collection at the bookstore, I just couldn't resist. I thought it was a co...more
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
This is my first book by Black and I'm still a bit torn. She's definitely an imaginative person and some of her stories are very engrossing, but I'm not sure I really like the writing style. The whole book is made up of short stories.
Coldest girl: An interesting plot. I like that they are still considered vampires but she put an cool twist on it.
Reversal: Liked the plot but I think the reason Nikki did what she did was a little unbelievable.
Boy who cried wolf: I would totally tell this story t...more
Coldest girl: An interesting plot. I like that they are still considered vampires but she put an cool twist on it.
Reversal: Liked the plot but I think the reason Nikki did what she did was a little unbelievable.
Boy who cried wolf: I would totally tell this story t...more
Mar 10, 2010
Katya
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
urban-fantasy,
wishlist
Holly Black, I love you.
Being somewhat disappointed by Kith and Kin, I picked up this book, eager to get back into Holly's prose. And she doesn't disappoint. Although her writing is a bit formulaic - she drops the reader in at a random point in a character's life, right before something happens to them, and doesn't bother to explain background until later in the story - it works for her, and I like feeling like I already know the characters, like they're old friends. From a girl who challenges t...more
Being somewhat disappointed by Kith and Kin, I picked up this book, eager to get back into Holly's prose. And she doesn't disappoint. Although her writing is a bit formulaic - she drops the reader in at a random point in a character's life, right before something happens to them, and doesn't bother to explain background until later in the story - it works for her, and I like feeling like I already know the characters, like they're old friends. From a girl who challenges t...more
From the author of the delightful fairy tale series Tithe, Valiant, and Ironside, this is a collection of short stories that won’t disappoint fans of that series. Here are dark and unsettling fantasy stories of werewolves and sinister fairies and sadistic kings. A particularly haunting story is “The Coat of Stars,” in which a highly successful New York costume designer visits his hometown and realizes that his teenage boyfriend didn’t actually die all those years ago: he was taken away by fairie...more
Let me preface this review by saying that I am not generally a huge fan of short story collections. I enjoy spending a good amount of time reading and I find that short stories are better for small bits of time as I cannot move from one directly into the next as I can with chapters of a novel. I think good short stories are also incredibly difficult to write as the author must convey enough background information to the reader for the story to make sense while also keeping the narrative short.
Wi...more
Wi...more
Sep 26, 2012
Debbie
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
lovers of fantasy and horror
Horror is not usually a genre I read, but I'm a huge Holly Black fan so I read this anthology. I did not care for the first two stories, but the rest of the stories were out standing. The Night Market was a dark romance. The Dog King I thought could have been a novel. It had a great plot and characters and there could have been so much more. Vodka Veritas was just a fun story and it gives the reader a small introduction into Wallingford from Curse Workers. I love The Coat of Stars because it was...more
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Holly Black is a best-selling author of contemporary fantasy novels for kids, teens, and adults. She is the author of the Modern Faerie Tale series (Tithe, Valiant, and Ironside), The Spiderwick Chronicles (with Tony DiTerlizzi), and The Good Neighbors graphic novels (with Ted Naifeh) The Poison Eaters and Other Stories, a collection of short fiction, and The Curse Worker series (White Cat, Red Gl...more
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“I envy what I fear and hate what I envy.”
—
45 people liked it
“Farewell, Father," she said. He fell back upon his chair, choking. She laughed, not with mirth or even mockery, but something that was closer to a sob. "You crafted me so sharp, I cut even myself.”
—
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Jul 18, 2012 09:35pm