Otherwere: Stories of Transformation

Orville Nesbit Mysteries #1

by Laura Anne Gilman (Editor), Keith R.A. DeCandido (Editor), Craig Shaw Gardner

These masterful tales do not involve werewolves, butr a wonderfully diverse assortment of creatures including a serpent, a child, an elephant--even a right-wing Republican. Blending elements of fantasy, mystery, comedy and mythology, these extraordinary tales take lycanthropy into an entirely new realm.

Castro, Adam-Troy - The way things ought to be
Cox, Greg - ...so tears run to a predestined end
David, Peter - Moonlight becomes You
Doyle, Debra & McDonald, James D. - Ecdysis
Ecklar, Julia - Thylacine Dream
Egan, Doris - Going too far
Friesner, Esther M. - The strange case of Ludwig the Unspeakable
Gardner, Craig Shaw - Stealing the Moon
Golden, Christie - Stag Party
Hoffman, Nina Kiriki - Inner Child
Lewitt, Shariann - Sharewere
Nye, Jody Lynn - What? And give up Show Business?
Salvatore, R. A. - The Coach with big teeth
Sherman, Josepha - I've got the Horse, right here

Genres: Fantasy, Anthologies, Urban Fantasy, Short Stories

272 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published September 1, 1996

About the author

Laura Anne Gilman’s work has been hailed as “a true American myth” by NPR, and praised for her “deft plotting and first-class characters” by Publishers Weekly. She has won the Endeavor Award for THE COLD EYE, and been shortlisted for a Nebula, (another) Endeavor, and a Washington State Book Award. Her work includes the Devil’s West trilogy, the Cosa Nostradamus urban fantasy series, the Vineart trilogy, and the story collection WEST WINDS’ FOOL. Her upcoming move, UNCANNY TIMES, will be out from Saga Books in 2022.

She lives in Seattle with a cat, a dog, and many deadlines.

Reviews

[Erin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Obviously, several of the stories in this collection were things of their time and seem a bit dated now. But overall, I really enjoyed most of them and their divergent views on lycanthropy. Were-elephants, were-guppies, even a reverse werewolf ... they were all very fun ways to treat the standard werewolf/lycanthropy tropes and I had a lovely time strolling through these stories.

[Jim · Rating 3 out of 5]

3. 5 stars. As always with anthologies, it can be hard to give a rating as a whole. In this case, stories were at least average, with a number of them better than, well-written with interesting scenarios with the were-angle. I don't know that I'd recommend just for casual reading, but if one were to have an interest in lycanthropic stores, worth the read.

[Bruce Kline · Rating 3 out of 5]

Picked this anthology up for the coda to Peter David's Howling Mad but enjoyed the other short stories as well.

[Lindsey Duncan · Rating 4 out of 5]

An entertaining and varied collection of short stories, running the gamut from serious to silly to reflective to scientific. These are all contemporary / urban fantasy stories, but with the imaginative types of were-creatures presented, no tale feels repetitive.

Highlights for me were Shariann Lewitt's "Sharewere" (where the shapechanging involves artificial intelligence!) and Greg Cox's "... So Tears Run To A Predestined End." In general, I especially enjoyed the more humorous stories. Two stories didn't work for me. R.A. Salvatore's "The Coach With The Big Teeth" could have achieved the same effect in three pages, unless you're an avid sports fan. Adam-Troy Castro's "The Way Things Ought To Be" has an interesting premise based on were-politics, but its execution is too militant unless you agree with the outlook presented.

Overall, this is a solid anthology with several strong stories. Recommended.

[Julia · Rating 4 out of 5]

“The Way Things Ought to Be” by Adam- Troy Castro is about a liberal who gets bitten by a reactionary and becomes a hater.

“Moonlight Becomes You” by Peter David is about a werehuman, whose wolf pack is decimated, so goes to see his human lover and finds they have a son. Josh is explaining to Darlene’s mother, “She knew what I was saying was the truth. Why not? After all, I spoke of things that were mythical, but myths were created to explain that which was not fully understood.”

“I’ve Got The Horse Right Here” by Josepha Sherman is about a wereracehorse. Who, like the title, can do.

This book does do something unusual: it goes from page 198 to page 23 and then from page 54 to 231. I don’t think this was supposed to be one of the tranformations in the book...