Early Book Review: Nordic Tales: Folktales from Norway, Sweden, Finland, Iceland, and Denmark Illustrated by Ulla Thynell

Nordic Tales: Folktales from Norway, Sweden, Finland, Iceland, and Denmark is a collection of 17 traditional tales from Norway, Sweden, Finland, Iceland, and Denmark. Translated and transcribed by folklorists in the nineteenth century, these stories are by turns enchanting, hilarious, cozy, and chilling. Readers will encounter terrifying trolls, plucky heroes and heroines, and one princely polar bear. Each tale is paired with a luminous illustration by Finnish artist Ulla Thynell. And this special gift edition features an embossed, textured case and a ribbon marker. It is currently scheduled for release on August 13 2019.

Nordic Tales: Folktales from Norway, Sweden, Finland, Iceland, and Denmark is divided into three groups of tales:  transformations, wit, and journeys. While I had seen some of the sixteen stories before, and others had fairy tale tropes that were familiar, some were new to me. Like with most collections of short tales like this there is not much depth to individual characters or relationships, things are just the way they are to get to the point of the story. That is the way these classic tales were told and shared over the years, and adding that sort of depth would take each individual tale into novel proportions (which would not be a bad thing, but is not the intent of this kind of collection). Some of the stories are darker than others, but I really enjoyed learning more of the folk and fairy tales from this part of the world. I liked the illustrations by Thynell and found them to be lovely, adding beauty and a nostalgic charm to the individual stories and the book as a whole. I think the artwork is worth looking at a few times; before, during, and after the read.

Nordic Tales: Folktales from Norway, Sweden, Finland, Iceland, and Denmark is a nice collection of tales, and I enjoyed reading some that I had never seen or heard before.

Book Review: The Labours of Mrs Stella Ryman: Further Fairmount Manor Mysteries by Mel Anastasiou

The Labours of Mrs Stella Ryman: Further Fairmount Manor Mysteries by Mel Anastasiou is the first book I have read featuring Stella.  Replete with packet chicken noodle soup and grilled cheese, Stella Ryman paused just outside Fairmount Manor’s dining room, where she used the sleeve of her fleece warm-up suit to wipe condensation from the streaked and fog-edged windows along the corridor. There was so much springtime glory outside Fairmount — although she was not allowed out on her own to see it — and there was so much gloom inside, that she didn’t want to add to it. But she couldn’t deny that trouble had resurfaced at Fairmount Manor. When the machineries of institution fail to protect Fairmount Manor, octogenarian amateur sleuth Mrs Stella Ryman rolls up her fleece jacket sleeves to protect Fairmount from a thief, investigate a gun-toting resident, set right a mishandled investigation of a man’s death, pursue spectres and footpads walking at midnight, and discover Thelma Hu’s long-lost fortune. No good deed goes unpunished, though, and Stella will face struggles, mysteries, and sacrifices that hit her where she lives. Mrs Stella Ryman is a fish out of water, a stranger in a strange land — an amateur sleuth, trapped in a down-at-heel care home. You’d be cranky, too.

The Labours of Mrs Stella Ryman: Further Fairmount Manor Mysteries is a collection of short mysteries that are entertaining but still heart wrenching at times because the reader can see certain things happening that Stella is not aware of. I thought that the setting, characters, and mysteries were all very well built and believable. I could see these people and their problems arise in almost any similar setting. Stella might be a little directionally challenged and forgetful, but she sees to the heart of the matter and cares more for the people than the things or consequences involved. I enjoyed getting lost in Stella's world and slowing down enough to notice some subtle clues about Stella and her world along the way.

The Labours of Mrs Stella Ryman: Further Fairmount Manor Mysteries is a fun and engaging read that made me care about the characters. I plan on taking the time to read more by this author.

Book Review: Check Out the Library Weenies: and Other Warped and Creepy Tales by David Lubar

Check Out the Library Weenies: and Other Warped and Creepy Tales is the ninth short story collection by David Lubar. There are thirty stories for middle grade readers with a mix of spooky and silly in each tale in the collection.  What I love about collections like this is that if one of the stories does not make you happy, it will be over soon or you can just skip ahead to the next tale. Each story of short, so it is the perfect book for those with short attention spans or reading times as well as anyone that enjoys stories with a dark twist, but that ever get too scary. One of the best parts of the collection is that Lubar shared some of his inspirations for the stories with readers. 

Check Out the Library Weenies: and Other Warped and Creepy Tales is the perfect read for middle grade or older readers that like scary stories. There are vampires, werewolves, magic, suspicious pets, zombies, scientists, and more. There is a good amount of bodily humor, and none of the stories are too scary for some of the more sensitive readers. I like that the stories and dark and creepy, with unexpected twists, but never nightmare inducing. There is humor and a generally entertaining, non-threatening vibe to the read. Those that like the Schwartz scary stories books will enjoy these as well. The only down-side to this series is that the covers are a little goofier and younger that the content of the books. While it might encourage readers that are intimidated by books, it might also discourage those that consider the books to young or silly for them because of the cover.

Book Review: Shadowed Souls edited by Jim Butcher and Kerrie L. Hughes

Shadowed Souls, edited by Jim Butcher and Kerrie L. Hughes, is a collection of urban fantasy featuring short stories from Jim Butcher, Seanan McGuire, Kevin J. Anderson, and Rob Thurman. These stories offer nothing is as simple as black and white, light and dark, good and evil. Unfortunately, that is exactly what makes it so easy for the characters in these tales to cross the line. In Jim Butcher's Cold Case, Molly Carpenter—Harry Dresden's apprentice-turned-Winter Lady—must collect a tribute from a remote Fae colony and discovers that even if you're a good girl, sometimes you have to be bad. In Seanan McGuire's Sleepover finds half-succubus Elsie Harrington kidnapped by a group of desperate teenage boys. Not for anything “weird.” They just need her to rescue a little girl from the boogeyman, no biggie. In Kevin J. Anderson's Eye of Newt, Zombie P.I. Dan Shamble's latest client is a panicky lizard missing an eye who thinks someone wants him dead. But the truth is that someone only wants him for a very special dinner. In Rob Thurman's infernally heroic Caliban Leandros takes a trip down memory lane as he deals with some overdue—and nightmarish—vengeance involving some quite nasty Impossible Monsters. There are also stories from genre favorites Tanya Huff, Kat Richardson, Jim C. Hines, Anton Strout, Lucy A. Snyder, Kristine Kathryn Rusch, and Erik Scott de Bie.

Shadowed Souls is a fine collection of short stories connected by characters forced to venture into the shades of gray in the process of trying to do the right thing, or what needs to be done. I really enjoyed the look into Molly Carpenter's mind, as I am a long standing fan of Jim Butcher. I also particularly enjoyed the contributions of Lucy A. Snyder, Kat Richardson, Seanan McGuire, and Tanya Huff. None of the stories stuck me a badly written, but some I just did not connect with as easily as I did others. In some cases it was because I had not read the books set in the same world as the short story, and some it was merely a matter of my personal preferences. However, I think collections like this are a great sampler for those looking to explore new authors without committing to an entire book or series.

Shadowed Souls is a nice collection for fans of the urban fantasy genre, and a nice way to visit the worlds of favorite authors as we wait for the continuation of their next book, and a fun way to explore the writing style of other authors that just might become new favorites. As with any collection, there were some stories that I enjoyed more than others. However, I think this is a great collection for anyone that enjoys reading about characters discovering how far into the dark side they might be willing to go for the greater good, or the good of those they care for most.