Review Detail

Once again The Merry Sisters of Fate--YA authors, Maggie Stiefvater, Tessa Gratton, and Brenna Yovanoff--have written a collection of short stories that are haunting, powerful, and magical.

I'm a big fan of the first anthology, THE CURIOSITIES: A COLLECTION OF STORIES. What made that collection so unique is the authors added their own writing process to the tales which made it personal. Readers felt as if they were in a room with the authors as they shared their own take on writing stories.

I was so excited to hear that they put together another collection of short stories. THE ANATOMY OF CURIOSITY has a short story by each of the authors, which is broken down by their own take of the creative process. This collection is inspiring, magical, powerful, and beautiful.

Can you tell how much I loved this book?

The cover alone is gorgeous and colorful. The clerk at Barnes and Noble, where I purchased a copy, mentioned that. I agreed.

Maggie Stiefvater's way of weaving magic with words is powerful. She's able to make word choices that are colorful, evocative, and just perfect. Her short 'Ladylike' shows a girl who stumbles but not when she recites poetry. Add an unique twist on a monster and you have a perfect combination.

I have to admit Tessa Gratton's short 'Desert Canticle' had to be my favorite. Gratton paints the desert in haunting colors and uses flowers to show landmines. She shares how she uses world building which gives readers a glimpse into her writing. Loved the twists and turns throughout this short. She lays 'hints' throughout so when a major reveal happens? You'll still have a 'ohmigod' moment but realize that she shadowed this from the beginning.

I love Brenna Yovanoff's quirkness and her short 'Drowning Variations' shows how she uses ideas when writing. Readers see two different versions of drowning. Yovanoff's writing is haunting and very gripping. The end version of her story ends with a powerful punch of images that are very evocative.

The one thing I really loved about this collection is how inspirating it is for fellow and wannabe writers. There's glimpses into the writing process that include such topics as doubt, editing, revising, and creating worlds. This collection shows a creative twist on how to write fiction by three very talented YA authors.

Powerful, inspiring, and haunting, this anthology of shorts by The Merry Sisters of Fates is sure to resonate with readers and authors. A very satisfying follow-up to THE CURIOSITIES, these shorts won't disappoint.