Darker than I expected - some was pretty dark, even for me, but I appreciate Gaiman's darkness perhaps because he sees the dark so differently. I enjoyed the Study in Emerald - an exception to the general rule that its tough to use familiar characters. October in the Chair reminded me of the fairy tale about the 12 Seasons and the young girl whose stepmother sent her out for strawberries in the dead of winter though it was nothing like that. Keepsakes and Treasures was one of the distressing ones - still good, just that shade of dark I'm never quite expecting. The Problem of Susan, too...though an intriguing idea about one of my favorite stories. I tend to think retellings or alternative perspectives don't fundamentally change the tone or color of the original, which is very one-dimensional of me. Gaiman doesn't just clean off the dirt of centuries from the Sistine Chapel - he repaints it and its not necessarily God's hand reaching out. I was very pleased to read Monarch of the Glen - I loved American Gods and this novella wove some new things (at least for me) into the tale.