3.2 at least, pretty Lana-lessLove the concept and cover, but hardly Lana-inspired minus the first two (best) stories—unless you think feminine arrogance is associated with her? Strangely, half the stories seem written by the same person despite the semi-specific style. So many revolve around ghosts and cheating rich husbands with 2D “heroines” who don’t care about themselves beyond appearing old Hollywood.Even when murder, drugs, and paranormal activity are afoot...everything borders on boring....

Sigh...there is a reason I don't (for the most part) read modern books. I find that most modern authors lack subtlety and finesse. I really wanted to enjoy this, as the concept is genius. But I found it severely missing the mark, even a little offensive. I'm no prude, but does everyone nowadays only "fuck". Or rather, is that the only word used for it these days? Perhaps it was a requisite for making it into this collection. 🙄Not a spoiler per se, but if you have squeamish sensibilities or refra...

Full Review3.5 StarsWhile I found several of the stories forgettable, I still recommend Tragedy Queens. There’s an incredible range of diverse types of stories and I think every reader will find a lot to enjoy in this anthology. The ones I enjoyed I believe are good enough to pick up this book and I believe that others who have more of an affinity for artists like Lana Del Rey and Sylvia Plath than I do will get even more out of it.

Short story collections are usually grab bags full of material that work for you and full of material that gloriously doesn't and this collection's no different. What makes it more interesting that most, though is how it captured the essence of its muses Sylvia Plath and Lana Del Rey without sticking too much to their actual work. For most stories (most of the successful ones anyway) it's like their essence permeates the narrative. Sylvia and Lana are haunting this book, if you will. Among the s...

This anthology was a wonderfully emotional, vivid, poetic experience. Though some stories weren’t quite my vibe, I, like any other sensible person, love Sylvia Plath and hugely appreciated all the themes, symbols, and references scattered throughout. Though I’m reaaaally not into Lana del Rey (don’t get me started) I can understand her whole sadgirl shtick serving as great inspiration, and I really enjoyed what some of the contributors did with it. Most of the stories were just beautifully writt...

A story collection inspired by Sylvia Plath and Lana del Rey? Ummm, color me intrigued. There is such a wide variety of unusual stories in this collection, and I loved that. The authors all took on the theme and gave it their own unique twist with Sylvia and Lana serving as more of spiritual guides for the stories rather than taking over the tale entirely. In the best stories, it is just like you can sense their influence.My favorite thing about reading anthologies is uncovering voices I’ve neve...

This collection is both riveting and visceral, and the stories do justice to their muses. A few stories were sci-fi, a few were timeless, and all of the stories were harrowing in some way. My favorites in this book were fantastical, dreamlike, and deeply cerebral. If I had to choose one word to describe the collection as a whole, it would be haunting.

I loved this book! Out of the 24 short stories I loved almost every single one, they are inspired by Lana Del Rey and Sylvia Plath (though in my opinion more so Plath than Lana) and were written beautifully. I did find myself hoping that we would see some stories inspired by Lana's songs as I'm a huge fan. There was one story by Laura Diaz de Arce where the ending of the story reminded me of the song 'Ride' which I enjoyed. I also liked that some stories involved lesbian and transgender relation...

I don't usually review books that I'm in, but this anthology is truly everything the title promises: lush prose, abstract tragedy, beautiful revenge. I loved every story and am so honoured to share this space with these amazing writers.

I chatted with editor Leza Cantoral about this book and more on Losing the Plot—listen here!!Cathartic, psychedelic and brimming with torrential emotion, these expertly written stories are of their time and part of a timeless sad-girl canon pre-paved by women like Del Rey and Plath. One of the best anthologies I've read in a good while!

While there were a couple knockout stories in here- Crazy Mary and Sphinx Tears especially- this anthology usually fell into the tropes of Lana Del Rey and Sylvia Plath rather than truly exploring their worlds. Some of the stories, like Corinne and Dayglo Reflection, reeked of misogyny somewhere deep inside, while many of them, like Because of Their Different Deaths and Dayglo Reflection (again), were just poorly written. The biggest problem was the editor, who missed typos throughout and fundam...

One of my favorite anthologies I’ve read in a while. Deeply cathartic, sometimes emotionally devastating stories written in a great mix of styles and genres. Some faithfully referenced the poetry and biographical details of Sylvia Plath, others delved into the lyrics and moods of Lana Del Rey’s music, and some forged their own paths. The best of them combined all of these elements into a synthesis greater than the sum of its parts. All of the stories were good, many were great. Tragedy Queens ge...

It is a compilation of very interesting little stories and some very rare ones. I loved some very much, others less but I still give them 5 stars for the great variety. Now I want to read some sylvia plath for all the references that are mentioned. In conclusion I loved it 💖

eeee i was giddy when i found this and still giddy after finishing it...yes I am obsessed with LDR and the idea of a "queen of sadness" and apparently I am not alone in this sickness. I enjoyed all of the stories very much, with a few exceptions being that the writing was way obscure or it was more plath than lana. I am more into lana, but clearly after reading this need to venture into plath. I will read some ariel next. There are 23 stories and was thinking of my favorite(s), there are 14 that...

Melancholic and bloody, raging and mournful, there’s so many things going on in this anthology, but it’s all wonderful work. I’ve been looking forward to reading this one for a while, and nothing disappointed. Excellent from first to last.

I bought this interesting anthology of short stories purely because of Lana Del Rey and Sylvia Plath on the front cover. They feature a wide range of topics, all controversial, tragic, and jarring. The collection is a bit eclectic, and honestly, none of the pieces stand out to me as profoundly moving. They work efficiently together, but would not stand separately. Most of them picked a controversial topic or focus, but the topic was more important than any other aspect of storytelling. I don’t r...

Only a few of these I liked. The rest were full of obnoxious, unlikable characters. I felt like every single story was trying so hard to be quotable, dark, and impactful, but they fell flat. I was just left annoyed at the authors for writing these. I enjoy Lana’s music but the thing about her music is that you don’t have to retain the impact and story she tells. It’s easy to just listen to it as a song. But when you’re reading a short story that vividly describes an abusive relationship, or a su...

"All I want is my loneliness and my dreaming and my want to be realized." -Lisa Marie Basile3.5⭐I was so excited when I heard about Tragedy Queens! I adore Sylvia Plath and Lana Del Rey, and I love that so many authors were inspired by them. The idea for this anthology is amazing. Unfortunately, my experience with reading it was kind of uneven. There are some amazing stories in here, but there are many that I couldn't connect with. I think I may have expected something different, and that led to...

eh some stories were better than others. am a Sylvia Plath and Lana fan so I expected more but I appreciate the book.

This collection of short stories is at once spellbinding and disturbing, like a poisonous dark liquor you can’t stop sipping. Each tale was unique and yet they all blended so well together, aesthetically harmonious in their allusions to the most infamous song lyrics or music video imagery of Lana Del Rey and the poetry of Sylvia Plath. Any fan of Shirley Jackson or Welcome to Night Vale would enjoy this! *My only critique is that there were some grammar mistakes that keener proofreading could ha...