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    The Curiosities: A Collection of Stories
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    The Curiosities: A Collection of Stories
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    The Curiosities: A Collection of Stories
    Ebook296 pages3 hours

    The Curiosities: A Collection of Stories

    By Brenna Yovanoff, Tessa Gratton and Maggie Stiefvater

    4/5

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    Currently unavailable

    Currently unavailable

    About this ebook

    From acclaimed and New York Times best-selling YA authors Maggie Stiefvater, Tessa Gratton, and Brenna Yovanoff comes The Curiosities: A Collection of Stories.

    • A vampire locked in a cage in the basement, for good luck.
    • Bad guys, clever girls, and the various reasons why the guys have to stop breathing.
    • A world where fires never go out (with references to vanilla ice cream).

    These are but a few of the curiosities collected in this volume of short stories by three acclaimed practitioners of paranormal fiction.

    But The Curiosities is more than the stories. Since 2008, Maggie, Tessa, and Brenna have posted more than 250 works of short fiction to their website www.merryfates.com. Their goal was simple: create a space for experimentation and improvisation in their writing—all in public and without a backspace key. In that spirit, The Curiosities includes the stories and each author's comments, critiques, and kudos in the margins. Think of it as a guided tour of the creative processes of three acclaimed authors.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherLerner Publishing
    Release dateAug 1, 2014
    ISBN9781467768139
    Unavailable
    The Curiosities: A Collection of Stories

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    Reviews for The Curiosities

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    • 5/5
      Got this as an ARC at BEA. We ended up WAAAAAAAAAAY in the back half of the line for ARCs/signing of The Curiosities. In fact, we ended up standing in front of a Hello Kitty merchandise booth most of the way down the next aisle over. One of the women manning the booth was like, "What's this line for?". I immediately launched into telling her all about the "Merry Sisters of Fate", and what hilarious, funny, and generally amazing people and writers the three authors are. Next thing you know, she's joining us in line, excitedly chattering along with the people around us too. (Word of mouth in action, people!!). I was very amused. Not only did Maggie remember us from an event we went to in Austin (Em's wheelchair makes her stand out, and so people remembering us isn't that unusual, but it's still nice!!), but Tessa remembered my crit partner KT from a Kansas City writers thingy that I'm spacing on the name of (OWFI?), which amused me to no end. Their memories rock!

      This is a book that, I don't care how much you love your ereader, you should get in paper format. I think it'd be hard for the doodles/comments to translate as well to ereader formatting without losing a lot of the details. (Though I haven't seen the ebook version yet, obviously, so that's conjecture on my part.)

      As a writer, it's both entertaining and very useful to see the kinds of things these three amazingly talented writers say about each story, and then to read the story with all the notes. A lot of the comments reminded me of things my crit partners and I have said to each other at various points. I also went through, and, without looking at who the author was on each story, tried to guess. Because all three have such distinct voices, and approaches, it was surprisingly easy most of the time, though they tricked me some too.

      It's just such a fun romp through their playground, that even though I'd read many of the stories on their group blog, I found myself drawn in, laughing aloud, in public... Which I never, ever do. It's that good!
    • 5/5
      I loved this book. It had me hooked just reading the first couple lines of the first story. Not only are the stories written so well, it is inspiring. I felt inspiration to write short stories and I even felt the inspiration to doodle! Speaking of doodles, the doodles in the book were absolutely cute and amusing! If I were asked to pick a favorite story from this book, I wouldn't be able to. I love them all and each and every story is unique and creatively put together. This book surely is a great piece to someone's library!
    • 3/5
      Almost every story in this series was good and I hated almost all of them. Why? Because they're short stories and for some reason I always forget that I don't like short stories: 1) they're short, 2) they're usually really (devastatingly) sad and 3) they are completely unsatisfying. The short stories in this collection are actually quite well written, they are by three different authors (Brenna Yovanoff, Tessa Gratton, and Maggie Stiefvater) as part of a project/website that I'm only vaguely familiar with. Before each story are two short paragraphs (sometime they're shorter, other times longer) -- the first buy one of the women who isn't the author of the story, the second by the author. In between collections there are discussions about writing (I wasn't as interested in this). Above I said that I hated most of the stories, and this is true. It's not a reflection on the authors, their writing or the subject matter -- because actually, most of the stories were interesting (there was only one I didn't like, it was one of the King Arthur ones and it didn't hold my interest). For the most part, the stories were strong. The problem is me. I know a lot of people love short stories, I'm just not one of them. That being said, I don't regret reading the stories. And, of course, there were some that were better than others -- but my favorite was by Tessa Gratton, the short story entitled Puddles.If you like short stories, especially those with twists (both of the supernatural and sometimes not), definitely check The Curiosities out. Especially if you're a fan of any of these three authors -- their writing is all quite good. It's just a shame that I don't like short stories.
    • 5/5
      Review courtesy of All Things Urban FantasyIn May of 2008, three unknown writers formed a critique group and website (MerryFates.com) for posting short stories and honing their craft. Fast forward to today, and these three writers are among the best and brightest YA authors writing today. Maggie Stiefvater, Tessa Gratton, and Brenna Yovanoff are what I consider to be the holy trinity of YA, and in this wonderfully imaginative anthology, it is abundantly clear why.I kid you not, there isn’t a single crummy story in THE CURIOSITIES. I’ve never said that about an anthology, but it’s true. There are strange, spooky, and sad stories mixed with charming, creepy, and comical tales. Curious to see how Maggie Stiefvater writes zombies? Or Brenna Yovanoff’s version of a ghost story? How about Tessa Gratton’s take on vampires? Most–though not all–of the stories have an element of the supernatural, but even the “normal” stories have that magical pull about them that make you sigh with frustration that the stories aren’t longer.Authors will be especially interested in the notes and introductions to each story as the insight into the creative processes of these three authors in invaluable. The whole collection feels like a private journal with all the little doodles and margin notes. It was incredibly fun to see the birth of characters that later found themselves in full novels like Cole from Maggie Stiefvater’s Shiver series. There was unfortunately no table of contents, but here are the 30 stories included:The Vampire Box by Tessa GrattonA Murder of Gods by Maggie StiefvaterThe Power of Intent by Brenna YovanoffA History of Love by Maggie StiefvaterGirls Raised by Wolves by Brenna YovanoffDate with a Dragon Slayer by Tessa GrattonScheherazade by Brenna YovanoffThe Spiral Table by Tessa GrattonThe Madness of Lancelot by Brenna YovanoffThe Wind Takes Our Cries by Maggie StiefvaterAuburn by Brenna YovanoffThe Deadlier of the Species by Maggie StiefvaterPuddles by Tessa GrattonThe Bone-Tender by Brenna YovanoffDeath Ship by Tessa GrattonThe Last Day of Spring by Maggie StiefvaterCut by Brenna YovanoffPhilosopher’s Flight by Maggie StiefvaterAsh-Tree Spell to Break to Your Heart by Tessa GrattonRain Maker by Maggie StiefvaterDumb Supper by Tessa GrattonNeighbors by Brenna YovanoffCouncil of Youth by Maggie StiefvaterThe Summer Ends in Slaughter by Tessa GrattonBlue as God by Brenna YovanoffThomas All by Tessa GrattonHeart -Shaped Box by Maggie StiefvaterBerserk by Tessa GrattonLazarus Girl by Brenna YovanoffAnother Sun by Maggie StiefvaterSexual Content:Kissing. References to sex. References to rape
    • 4/5
      The Curiosities started out as a collection of short stories that Maggie Stiefvater, Tessa Gratton, and Brenna Yovanoff were writing on their blog, The Merry Sisters of Fate. I don't know that they even intended for these to be printed, but they were there for the public to read, for the three authors to practice and possible write things stories that were not their normal fare. However, what really makes this collection stand out, at least to me, is that each of the three authors were asked to go through and mark up a manuscript, jotting down their notes, thoughts, and critiques on their own and each others' stories. There are notes written to each other, little doodles, inside jokes, and other fun facts strewn throughout the stories. I had almost as much fun reading their notes as I did reading the stories.Now, I have books by all three authors on my shelves, but I've never gotten around to reading any of them, but when Maggie Stiefvater was doing a signing at my local indie, Schuler Books, they had this for sale, and it seemed like such a clever idea of a book, I decided to pick up a copy. Needless to say, I know want to read at least one book by each of the authors by year's end. I so thoroughly enjoyed working my way through this collection that I would like to see what each author can do with a full length novel.The stories in the collection are: The Vampire Box by Gratton A Murder of Gods by Stiefvater The Power of Intent by Yovanoff A History of Love by Stiefvater Girls Raised by Wolves b Yovanoff Date with a Dragon Slayer by Gratton Scheherazade by Yovanoff The Spiral Table by Gratton The Madness of Lancelot by Yovanoff The Wind Takes Our Cries by Stiefvater Auburn by Yovanoff The Deadlier of the Species by Stiefvater Puddles by Gratton The Bone-Tender by Yovanoff Death Ship by Gratton The Last Day of Spring by Stiefvater Cut by Yovanoff Philosopher’s Flight by Stiefvater Ash-Tree Spell to Break to Your Heart by Gratton Rain Maker by Stiefvater Dumb Supper by Gratton Neighbors by Yovanoff Council of Youth by Stiefvater The Summer Ends in Slaughter by Gratton Blue as God by Yovanoff Thomas All by Gratton Heart-Shaped Box by Stiefvater Berserk by Gratton Lazarus Girl by Yovanoff Another Sun by StiefvaterNothing against the other two authors, but I think I found myself enjoying Yovanoff's stories the most. There was something about her writing and storytelling that just really clicked with me and I think I'd like to start one of her books sooner rather than later.Overall, an excellent collection and highly recommended!
    • 5/5
      Tessa Gratton, Maggie Stiefvater, and Brenna Yovanoff comprise the Merry Sisters of Fate. As a group they have each been posting a short story a week to an online blog. Some of those stories have been selected to be included in this book. On the whole, there is not one story I dislike in the entire book — most of them were good and some were so fantastic they gave me chills. Here are a few of my favorites from each of the authors. Tessa Gratton: — "Puddles" is an eerie story that takes a normal everyday object and makes it terrifying. — In "Ash-Tree Spell to Break Your Heart", Melea has built (with rose petal lips and a butterfly heart) to destroy a rival magician, but falls in love with him instead. Apparently there are three other stories on the Merry Sisters of Fate website that include Melea as a side character, so I'm going to have to go find and read them. — "Thomas All" about a human kidnapped by deadly fairies is a story I would love to see turned into a novel. Maggie Stievater: — "The Last Day of Spring" reveals a species of creatures called papillions that are born, live, and die in a matter of only a few days. — "Philosopher's Flight" is about an alchemists assistant that comes to an unsettling discovery as he sets to testing his master's new flying machine. — "Heart-Shaped Box" presents a bleak post-apocalyptic story that resonates with love. Brenna Yovanoff: — "Girls Raised by Wolves" gave me chills. It has no magic, but presents two unique and complete characters and the cruelties of teenage girls in rather a short space. — "The Bone Tender" reveals the double edged sword of magic via the interaction between one boy who has a habit of breaking bones and another boy who can heal them. — "Blue as God" is an unsettling retelling of the Bluebeard myth (which I'm a sucker for) set at a Hollywood party. One of the other fantastic things about this book is how it's been published in large format, leaving it with wide margins, where the authors have written hand scrawled notes, representing their thoughts on their own and each other's works. It's so much fun to read their comments and thoughts and the little back and forth banter between the authors. I loved this book, and plan to buy it to have on my shelf. As soon as I finished this book, I went to the library to find books by Tessa and Brenna to read (I've already read Maggie's Shiver), since I loved their stories so much. I'm looking forward to reading Blood Magic and The Replacement as soon as I'm done with my current challenge.
    • 4/5
      Review courtesy of Dark Faerie TalesQuick & Dirty: Entertaining and strange short stories for those who like their stories on the weird side.The Review:The Curiosities is a collection of short stories from Maggie Stiefvater, Brenna Yovanoff, and Tessa Gratton. If you are unfamiliar with these authors they have a website called Merry Fates that they each contribute a short story to every week. These stories are for those who like their stories on the strange or “curious” side of life.What I liked about this collection was the fact that the authors contributed their thoughts to each other’s stories and the interesting tidbits that they would contribute about their own stories. I wished there were more notes than there actually were. This inside look into their minds was quite funny and horrifying at the same time. I highly recommend this collection for those who want to write because of some of the insight these authors have to give.This collection is filled with a bunch of short stories. Some of these stories are wonderful and others left me shaking my head. I don’t want to go into each story because that is just too much so I am going to focus on the one main story that I really enjoyed by each author.Berserk by Tessa Gratton is clearly the longest story in this collection. (Maggie and Brenna give her crap for writing the longest stories.) Rein is a Berserker who just got done from a terrible war where his ilk were all killed. The troll wars continue and he is a lone rider that discovers a lone survivor after her family is slaughtered. This story was heartbreaking yet empowering at the same time. A young girl discovers the strength in herself to destroy those who ripped apart her life. Tessa writes before the story that this came from a thought about why being a Berserker would be a good thing. This story came from wanting to understand a characters motivations and why they were the way they were. Plus, this story gets bonus points for mentioning my home state.Heart-Shaped Box by Maggie Stiefvater is a strange take on immortality. What would you do to live forever? This story may not actually be about immortality, more of a how do I keep living for now instead of dying from a terrible disease but I think deep down it was a story on immortality. It also brings up the fact, why is one person more important to live than another. This was another story that made me a bit sad but I’m still thinking about it and the terribleness of this world. Maggie states that this story was based off of the box from Snow White but I can’t help but think of the Nirvana song.Brenna Yovanoff really enjoys the tragic stories with messed up endings. I feel like she’s got something for deadly men and even deadlier women. That being said, Scheherazade is the one story that really stuck with me. A woman is confronted with a man who wants to kill her only he doesn’t realize that he’s more than met his match on the killing front. I had a hard time picking which story to choose from her because I did like her take on the fantasy genre.The Curiosities was a fun collection. I enjoyed every story even the ones that left me scratching my head saying “What?!?” I’m not much of a fan for open endings so there were a couple stories that matched that criteria. As discussed within, opening endings are endings too, I just like having a definitive ending. I’m really excited to see that they have released a second collection. I can’t wait to pick it up.FTC Advisory: Lerner Publishing Group provided me with a copy of The Curiosities. No goody bags, sponsorships, “material connections,” or bribes were exchanged for my review.