Naked City

I expected this to be more fantasy but most of these were really boring. The narrators were good, but i couldnt get into the writing. I bought this for Jim Butcher and enjoyed that story immensely, as I always do with his stories. I had to skip through most of the rest as it was just sort of strange and disconnected. I liked Hex Appeal and Stormy Knights much better. Those compilations made more sense together and were more true to the fantasy genre.

I really liked some of these stories -- and a couple, not so much. I see anthologies as a smorgasbord, allowing me to sample the style of authors with whom I'm not familiar without having to commit to an entire novel which I may or may not like. I taste a little here, a little there, and then I can go back to enjoy more of the ones I favor.

The one thing I really did come away with was an appreciation for these three narrators. They are excellent. Eliza Foss' voice is similar to Kate Reading's (if you need a reference). British narrator Nicola Barber's Irish is impeccable -- and expressive -- and wonderful (her American accent isn't bad, either)! Richard Topol has done one other book on Audible, and I checked it out. It's nonfiction, and he maintains a very conversational tone in that, as well. Excellent first person storyteller. And speaking of first person narration, if there HAD to be a change, I wish he'd read Jim Butcher's Ghost Story. His voice has a similar tone & timbre to James Marsters', and his cadence/timing sounded familiar. I could imagine him telling Harry's tale as I listened to Elizabeth Bear's Vegas story. It may have made the transition much less (painful) glaring.

Groups of short stories are always a bit of a roll of the dice. A majority of the stories are good with a few by the big name authors really good. There are a few that just seemed unfinished. Over all I enjoyed this book.

I picked this up b/c it had a Dresden tale. But it was less than satisfying and I have yet to find another story (I have not finished the book yet) that has really grabbed me. I'd skip this over if I had to do it again.

Groups of short stories are always a bit of a roll of the dice. A majority of the stories are good with a few by the big name authors really good. There are a few that just seemed unfinished. Over all I enjoyed this book.

This book was a waste of my credit. None of the stories captivated me.

Nihilists

Several of the stories were extremely introspective and sad, not the urban adventure stories I was expected given the other work by the featured authors. I couldn't even finish it. Terrible. Particularly true of the small name authors. One or two stories stood out, but really the overall impression was no fun.