brightstar reviewed on 11/19/2012 + 10 more book reviews

This pairing of two award-winning sci-fi novellas is a treat! The masterful and polished Tiptree and the crafty, more in-your-face Russ explore gender issues through Sci-fi and some elements of Fantasy (in Souls).

These novellas were far more shocking and innovative in their time than they seem now (too bad because I love a good shock). It's important to remember how much these authors have influenced others that came later and that they were really two true groundbreaking originals. Even though some elements might seem a little dated, the power of the narrative remains and makes them classic.

This was my first read of both novellas. They each told a thought provoking story. I can't go on enough about how fine a writer Tiptree is, she ran me in what turned out to be a flawless circle and still packed a wallop in an ending. Even though it was the conclusion I had been predicting, it stayed with me long after I put the book down.

Souls tells the story of a preternaturally brilliant abbess in Medieval times who survives using her wits in a brutal world. When a group of Vikings arrive to pillage she is put to the test but human nature intervenes and suddenly nothing is as it seems.

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