I have to admit, I'm disappointed. This book is a mishmash of stories - a few basic re-tellings, a few stories that should have been put together into their own standalone book, and a few random stories that featured recurring characters. The collection just didn't hang together. The writer is good at creating a fairy tale atmosphere, and creating memorable characters. The two standouts for me were The Coffin-Maker's Daughter and Bluebeard's Daughter. The first was chilling, the second had an un...

Arc Provided by Prime Books Released on October 4th This is a collection of stories that feature women as the main charactersNot one of them tries to pass them as perfect, and most of the times, in their imperfections you'll find their strongest asset.Vengeance links them throughout time and ages, despite (most of the times) not sharing a particular DNA. The language is raw and up in your face. No pretty words here to lighten up the dark in which they take place.Infidelity, lust, perversion,

I always love fairytale retellings. These short stories are focused on underdog women who have to work against the injustice against them. I love the worldly details too and the subverted endings

I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.A praise to strong women as they live through fairy tales! Very emotional and provoking!

Angela Slatter is not easy to find in the US, and I've only read one other book by her. I've laid hands on one of her novels and I'm excited to read it!This book puts together many of her short stories. Slatter works mostly on the theme of reimagined fairy tales, or stories that feel like fairy tales. Some of them take place in the same world, and occasionally characters reappear, but each story stands on its own.The world of the stories is similar to about our 18th century, I'd say (although th...

The more I read of this author, the more I love her writing.In the past five years, I've found a whole new set of authors whom I really enjoy, such as Elizabeth Bear, Catherynne M. Valente, and Margo Lanagan, but I think Slatter is my favorite. Something about the way she tells a story resonates strongly within me.This is the first of her short story collections I've been able to get my hands on. Typically, I find her work online and read it there. I'm currently trying to track down Vigil so I c...

Nice anthology by an author new to me. I liked "The Jacaranda Wife" and "The Badger Wife" best of all the fourteen stories it contains.

***** Sourdough • (2007) When a baker is called upon to demonstrate her wares for a big wedding catering order, the last thing she expects is to fall in love with the groom. But things happen as they will. Although it's an arranged marriage, it's unsurprising (except to the baker) that the fiancee is none too pleased with their affair. The events that transpire will involve curses and revenge. In these stories, there tends to be no 'innocent' party.***** Dresses, Three • (2008) Terrible and exqu...

I wasn’t super crazy about the last three stories (“The Tallow-Wife” and its related spin-offs) because there was so much happening that related to earlier stories in the collection that I just felt like I was missing half of what might be happening under the surface. Otherwise, though, I really loved this collection. It’s like reading brand new Grimm stories, except these are modern, feminist, and overflowing with delicious feminine rage.

I enjoyed this collection of short stories. The author captures the fairytale atmosphere well, but these are no ordinary fairytales, with their powerful heroines who take control of their stories. I appreciated the subtle links and common characters across many of the stories. While each story was separate and self-contained, I enjoyed the sense that they were taking place in the same time and place. As in any collection of stories, I found that some stories worked better for me than others. I p...

This was an AWESOME set of stories of vengeance and good vs. evil in a fairy tale setting. It's a world similar to ours, only the fairy tale version of it, but not Disney fairy tales. Yes, good does win, but evil gets a LOT of good punches in before going down.TRIGGER WARNINGS!!!Infanticide/miscarriages/children being stillborn. Rape, both attempted and successful. Incest, both attempted and successful. Bestiality of a kind, necrophilia of a kind. LOTS of violence and female on female hate. And

The book is the first United States collection whic has fourteen of her stories. The stories are dark fairy tales. The stories are about strong women and girlssome of these are fairy tales being retold. The stories are a combination of fantasy and horror. For example, Bluebeard' daughter is the traditional Bluebeard story but has blended Snow White and Hansel and Gretal into it.The author's storyingtelling is fantastic! It kept me reading the collection and when the book ended, I realized that I...

I had been going to knock off like half a star for the weirdly loose ends at the very end, but her afterword explains that they're part of a longer book that will come out later. Just devoured this, and need to read her backlist.

A Feast of Sorrows by Angela Slatter3.75 starsThis is a short story collection that is dark, gritty, and slightly unsettling at times. Slatter tackles many simple and famous stories and puts her own spin on them. It was incredibly fun and entertaining to read new tales that have connection to the past. I do enjoy a good retelling and Slatter is capable of creating new worlds and building upon old ones and expanding on them. This makes her a strong short story writer and since finishing this coll...

I was instantly swayed by the cover with its Game of Thrones-esque title. A Feast of Sorrows is a collection of short stories. I felt that the atmosphere of the majority of the stories to be as dark as what we find in a Grimm's fairy tale. A word of caution that this book does have certain words that might not be appealing to a younger audience. In addition, there are themes of rape, murder, incest, and betrayal. As this is a collection, I believe that I will rate the stories as they appear in

I've heard about Angela Slatter for a long time--people who know me have recommended her to me. (I love fairy-tale retellings--especially dark, feminist ones.) And wow was that recommendation correct! Her stories are must-reads for any fans of Angela Carter's The Bloody Chamber and Other Stories, or anyone who loves modern takes on fairy tales.What I love best is the complexity of her heroines. In most traditional fairy tales, the protagonists are blank slates--they are "good girls" or "clever g...

I wanted to like this but ultimately didn't--the four stars are because I recognize that it's well-written, just not to my tastes. The style was too slow for me; I kept finding myself skimming. And there was a lot of summary vs. scene--another place where I tune out. Additionally, it was a very "feely" book--stories driven by the same sense of "Well, my feelings were hurt and so I lashed out at someone." Which was GREAT for the first three stories but ran me down afterwards. All of those things

Collection of short stories. Dark, full of vengeful women, witchcraft, punished abusers and greedy women, stolen lovers...Unfortunately I only read three of the stories, before the NetGalley license ran out. But based on those I think this is a worthwhile collection of wickedly dark stories.I received this free e-copy from the publisher/author via NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review, thank you!

I enjoyed this book, I haven't read anything like that before. I usually stick with big stories but it was pleasant surprise. I expected that I would get bored in some parts but it didn't happen.

This book contains an array of short stories plus two new novellas written by World Fantasy and British Fantasy Award-winning Australian author Angela Slatter:1. Sourdough2. Dresses, Three3. Bluebeard's Daughter4. The Jacaranda Wife5. Light as Mist, Heavy as Hope6. The Coffin-Maker's Daughter7. By the Weeping Gate8. St. Dymphna's School for Poison Girls9. By My Voice I Shall Be Known10. Sister, Sister11. The Badger Bride12. The Tallow-Wife13. What Shines Brightest Burns Most Fiercely14. Bearskin...