Devil's Ways Anthology - Rajiv's Reviews

Devil’s Ways Anthology
Authors: Nancy Kress, Ben Loory, R. S. A. Garcia, Michael Swanwick, Andy Duncan, Curtis C. Chen, Darrell Schweitzer, Imogen Howson, Edwina Harvey, Avram Davidson, J. M. Sidorova, Nancy Kress, (Edited by Anna Kashina and J. M. Sidorova)
Release: June 25, 2020
Format: Ebook
Publisher: Dragonwell Publishing
Source: Rockstar Book Tours
Find it at: Goodreads, Amazon, Kindle, B&N, iBooks, Kobo, TBD, Bookshop.org

There is no light without dark, no highlights without shadows and no good without evil. The Devil is where things happen. Where stories begin. This collection brings together stories from multiple cultures, featuring the Devil both as an abstract concept and a creature, a terror, a force of nature, an enemy, a trickster, and so many more.

Step into the world of shadows, and travel through Devil’s many incarnations spanning centuries of history and myth, from the Ancient Greece, African and Caribbean folklore, dark ages in Europe, all the way to the present day.

This anthology features new and established authors from diverse, multicultural backgrounds.

About the Authors:

Founded in 2012, Dragonwell Publishing is based in the US Northeast and publishes 4-6 books a year, focusing mostly on science fiction and fantasy. Dragonwell Publishing titles have been featured by Publishers Weekly, ForeWord Magazine, RT Book Reviews, San Francisco Book Reviews, and Portland Book Reviews, and highlighted by Historical Novel Society and Mythopoetic Society. Their books have been among the winners of the 2013 ForeWord Book of the Year Award and 2014 Independent Publishers Book Award.

Get to know all the authors here on the Dragonwell Publishing Site!

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Devil’s Ways Anthology Review:

I love reading creepy short stories, and this book offers a very nice collection of them! What struck out about this anthology is how different each of the stories are. There is a variety of themes, cultures and folklore mentioned. Moreover, each story stands out in its own manner.

“Of Finest Scarlet Was her Gown” was my favorite story! I loved everything about the story and how Su-Yin goes to the depths of hell just to bring her father back. My second favorite story was “The Hag”. The story has a nice medieval setting, and what the knight experiences in the woods is terrifying. “Frayed Tapestry” was my third favorite story and I loved how Candy tries to find out what is happening to her.

A lot of the other stories were nicely written too. “Fire in his eyes, Blood on his teeth” was very nice and felt like a wonderful Gothic revenge love story. “Unto the Daughter” was an interesting take on Adam and Eve from the devil’s point of view. Also, I liked the quick small tales like “Death and the Lady” and “The Fisherman”.

However, I did not give this book a 5 star rating was because I felt a few of them were too confusing. Even though “Nzembe” is unique in its own way with the African folklore, I didn’t get a clear view of the evil mentioned. Also, I felt like some of the stories were not really scary in any manner. For example, “Where is Evil” is also a nice story that changes our perception of good and evil, but there was no horror element to it.

Overall, “Devil’s Ways Anthology” offers a nice variety of creepy short stories about good vs. evil and our perceptions of them.

Giveaway:

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I am thrilled to be hosting a spot on the DEVIL’S WAYS ANTHOLOGY Blog Tour hosted by Rockstar Book Tours. Check out my post and make sure to enter the giveaway!