Strange Brew

Normally there is only one, maybe two authors in an anthology that I will read - maybe check out another. But this one???? the only one I DIDN'T already read was Maclaine. Briggs, Butcher, and Harris are on the 'Buy Me Now' list. Strange Brew is worth it for anyone who enjoys fantasy - urban fantasy, specifically - and this book would be for someone who wanted short bursts of otherworld breaks. Patricia Briggs Jim Butcher Rachel Caine Karen Chance P. N. Elrod Charlaine Harris Faith Hunter Caitlin Kittredge Jenna Maclaine I personally like to listen to audiobooks while on long drives or while doing housework or yardwork - it certainly makes the time go by much more quickly. With excellent writers like these, though, be careful, or you may forget to stop!

Enjoyed this book a great deal. It's nice to get an anthology introduction to authors, getting a idea of their writing style, before committing to purchasing an author's novels. _Strange Brew_ has a good selection of authors and well-written stories. If you like fantasy anthologies (and not all happy ever endings necessarily) you'll enjoy this one. A bit pricey for the large paperback, though.

I'm not going to go into a long, detailed account about the stories contained in this book I'm just going to say that this was a great collection of stories and I definitely recommend it for any fantasy fan or for anyone who likes these authors.

I thoroughly enjoyed all of the stories in this book with the exception of Dark Sins by Jenna Maclaine. For some reason it just didn't strike the chord with me that all the others did. If you enjoy short stories and want to get to know possibly new authors in the genre this is a good book for that. I've already found several new authors I anticipate reading soon.

These nine urban fantasies make for a terrific anthology with no clinkers and several super entries. Especially excellent is Jim Butcher's "Last Call" in which Harry stops for a beer while pursuing maenad Meditrina Bassarid, who stops for wine. Patricia Brigg's blind witch in "Seeing Eye" who cannot turn on the lights to get rid of the terrors of the dark is top gun. Also super are Ginger: A Nocturne City Story" by Caitlin Kittredge that follows the adventures of two sisters, one kick butt the other a wuss; and Rachel Caine's "Death Warmed Over" in which the resurrectionist Holly Caldwell is asked to bring back the hero of the zombie war , the late witch Andrew Toland. With Charlaine Harris providing "Bacon", the editor P.N. Elrod a 1937 family hunt ("Hecate's Golden Eye") and "Dark Sins" by Jenna Maclaine make this a winner. Finally fans will take a Chance on Karen Chance's "Vegas Odds" and have faith in the avenging vampires of "Signature of the Dead" by Faith Hunter which are top quality. These are fun supernatural mystery thrillers that accentuate why urban fantasy is so popular. Harriet Klausner