Most of the tales were incredibly bizarre and not very enjoyable -- MNL Hanover, Cecelia Holland, Neil Gaiman, Peter Beagle, Marjorie Liu and Tanith Lee. The stories by Lisa Tuttle, Mary Jo Putney, Yasmine Galenorn, Jo Beverly, Melinda Snodgrass, Carrie Vaughn and Robin Hobb were ok but nothing special.
I was surprised by the Jim Butcher story - Love Hurts. I hated the first Harry Dresden book but this was very good. I will now have to go back to Harry's series and read book number 2 hoping it's better than the first.
I particularly enjoyed Linnea Sinclair and Diana Gabaldon's tales. For those [book:Outlander|10964] lovers, this is about Roger MacKenzie's parents.
This is an sff/romance anthology, with a contributor list definitely a cut above the average. (Editor Martin has the connections!) My favorites were the entries from Tanith Lee, Robin Hobb, Jacqueline Carey, Peter S. Beagle and Neil Gaiman (who contributes an actual story, rather than the short poem he usually gives anthologies!) - but many of the others were very good as well. Recommended.
Contents:
1. "Love Hurts" by Jim Butcher [a Harry Dresden story]
2. "The Marrying Maid" by Jo Beverly
3. "Rooftops" by Carrie Vaughn
4. "Hurt Me" by M.L.N. Hanover
5. "Demon Lover" by Cecelia Holland
6. "The Wayfarer's Advice" by Melinda M. Snodgrass [an Imperials story]
7. "Blue Boots" by Robin Hobb
8. "The Thing About Cassandra" by Neil Gaiman
9. "After the Blood" by Marjorie M. Liu
10. "You and You Alone" by Jacqueline Carey [a Kushiel story]
11. "His Wolf" by Lisa Tuttle
12. "Courting Trouble" by Linnea Sinclair
13. The Demon Dancer by Mary Jo Putney
14. Under/Above the Water by Tanith Lee
15. Kaskia by Peter S. Beagle
16. Man in the Mirror by Yasmine Ganelorn
17. A Leaf on the Wind of All Hallows by Diana Gabaldon (an Outlander story
So boring. Skipped most of it.
I got this book for the Diana Gabaldon story about Jerry Mackenzie, Roger's dad. Read it after An Echo in the Bone. It tells of what happened to Rogers parents.
But it is a great selection of 17 short stories, from different genres: sci-fi, horror, historical; paranormal. Take time to read this book one story at a time - they grip you and linger. Isn't that the best recommendation for a story, if it stays with you for a while? I really enjoyed reading most of these stories and some new authors.
