Down
These Strange Streets: All-New Stories of Urban Fantasy
edited
by George R.R. Martin & Gardner Dozois
Ace
(2011)
479
pages
ISBN
0441020747
For an anthology with so many high
profile names, particularly George R.R. Martin, I don't think I heard
a peep about this book. I just happened to spot it sitting on a shelf
at my local library during the winter and decided to check it out.
Mr. Martin doesn't include a story of his own, nor Dozois, simply
collecting a bunch of stories from other authors and providing an
informative introduction.
Despite my affinity for urban fantasy, my
familiarity with many of the authors included in this anthology is
rather limited. So, this book wound up as much a sampler of each
author's work as it was an excursion into one of my favorite genres.
Now, the whole UF genre is given a lot of
leeway in this anthology. Most folks probably picture sexy ladies in
the city thwarting villains while snogging some supernatural hunk of
man candy. This is not that kind of anthology. Well, there is a
little of that in this anthology, but there's way more to it than the
stereotypes would lead you to believe. Charlaine Harris's story
"Death of Dahlia" kicks things off with a vampire
investigating a murder inside a house with a bunch of other vampires.
I read the very first Sookie Stackhouse book, didn't care for
it a whole lot, but I enjoyed this vamp mystery.
A couple of the names that caught my eye
when first perusing the table of contents were Joe R. Lansdale, whose
story "The Bleeding Shadow" definitely stepped away from
the conventional idea of urban fantasy. Set in the late 40s with a
sometimes P.I. helping out a friend find her brother after she
receives a strange record from him that has an otherworldly hold to
it, only for the guy to find the brother and a whole lot more trouble
than he'd figured on. I'm a sucker for Lansdale's stories, and this
one didn't disappoint. The other name I noticed was Patricia Briggs.
I haven't read her Mercy Thompson books yet, but I've got one
on my bookshelf waiting to be read, and she's been recommended to me
enough times that this was my first real chance to sample her work.
"In Red, with Pearls" wound up being a standout story for
me, too. It involves Warren, a werewolf, and his lover Kyle trying to
figure out who sent a zombie to kill Kyle. With the help of a couple
witches, Warren sets off to hunt down who's responsible. The story
played out in a bit of a predictable fashion in the end, but it was
told in such an entertaining fashion that I didn't mind one bit. I'm
definitely making that Briggs novel on my shelf, Cry Wolf, a
priority to read this year.
Along with a few other enjoyable tales
like Simon R. Green's "The Hungry Heart" and Carrie
Vaughn's "It's Still the Same Old Story," this anthology
wound up a pleasant surprise in my wandering my local library's
shelves. After reading it, I think I'll need to look up a few of
these authors' UF novels and give 'em a go. In that sense, I suppose
this book accomplished what it set out to do.
Available via AMAZON and BOOK DEPOSITORY
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