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Liked It1 of 1 members found this review helpful “An above-average anthology! With most anthologies, I find myself reading in between books. This one I actually looked forward to picking up again whenever I had to put it down. Much better than the previous offering by the Harris/Kelner team, Many Bloody Returns, the werewolf/Christmas theme was...” see full review » see other reviews » |
Didn’t Like It “Unless you're a huge Charlaine Harris fan, don't read this. Trust me.” see full review » see other reviews » |
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“Gift Wrap by Charlaine Harris: ★
Midu wrote this review Tuesday, February 5, 2013. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
Just plain creepy! Your grandfather setting up a one night stand for you? Ew!
The Haire of the Beast by Donna Andrews: ★★
When your brother won't stop seeing your cheating ex, turn them both into dogs!
Lucy at Christmas Time by Simon R. Green: ★★★
Very Simon. A werewolf reminisces about his first.
The Night Things Changed - Dana Cameron: ★★★
A good enough short story about a crime fighting brother & sister duo.
The Werewolf Before Christmas - Kat Richards: ★★
A werewolf substitute for Randolph in Santa's sleigh.
Fresh Meat by Alan Gordon: ★★★
A guard-dogs trainer, a werewolf hunter, a little girl, a dumped girlfriend and some very smart dogs.
Il Est Né by Carrie Vaughn: ★★
Kitty helps a new werewolf accept and adjust to his new lifestyle.
The Perfect Gift by Dana Stabenow: ★
Being the seventh son is a big deal.
Christmas Past by Keri Arthur: ★
A werewolf tries to make amends.
SA by J. A. Konrath: ★★★★
Craziness, Santas, shifters and a werecoral!
The Star of David by Patricia Briggs: ★★★
It takes a vampire and a wizard to bring an estranged werewolf and his daughter back together.
You'd Better Not Pyout by Nancy Pickard: ★★★
Santa's a vampire, so obvious!
Rogue Elements by Karen Chance: ★★★
Girls belonging to rich werewolf families start disappearing. Two rogues team up to find out why.
Milk and Cookies by Rob Thurman: ★★
A bully gets what he deserves.
Keeping Watch Over His Flock by Toni L. P. Kelner: ★★★
A teenage wolf saves the day.”
“Excellent collection of stories. I enjoyed it very much.”
DJ Rost wrote this review Saturday, December 29, 2012. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No“Unless you're a huge Charlaine Harris fan, don't read this. Trust me.”
Lana Banana wrote this review Sunday, November 25, 2012. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“Marked Favorite and rating because of Patricia Brigg's short story.”
Kat wrote this review Friday, January 27, 2012. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“A series of short stories, different authors. All have the same theme of werewolves and Christmas. As always, some were better than others, but I enjoyed it. ”
Kathy D wrote this review Wednesday, January 25, 2012. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“Much, much better than Death's Excellent Vacation! "Werewolf Before Christmas" is a real gem!”
Rosereader wrote this review Monday, January 23, 2012. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“Very good anthology from some of the best in the business. Some harsh and others light. JA Konrath makes me laugh out loud 4 stars”
moondance120 wrote this review Monday, January 2, 2012. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“Some of these stories were absolutely hilarious!”
Boudica Babe wrote this review Thursday, December 22, 2011. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“Barbara M said: 3 stars
Play Book Tag Shelf wrote this review Saturday, July 23, 2011. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
As (nearly) always, some stories are strong and some are just passable. Each story is preceded by a brief description of the author with information about some of their published works. The Christmas theme did nothing for the stories IMHO.
Gift Wrap by Charlaine Harris – ehh, not so great.
Haire of the Beast by Donna Andrews – very short story with a neat twist. Dark humor.
Lucy, at Christmastime by Simon R. Green – Sad and dark.
The Night Things Changed by Dana Cameron – Nicely turns the myth on its head. In this story the Vampires and Werewolves are Fangborn, not turned. They are also the good guys, seeking out evil. I really liked it and will probably look into others by Cameron, maybe the Emma Fielding Archaeology mysteries. The Massachusetts setting certainly appeals to me since I lived there from the age of 3 to 54 (with a short 3 years in Connecticut).
The Werewolf Before Christmas – very easy to skip through, I kept jumping ahead to see if it would get better – it didn’t so I didn’t waste my time.
Fresh Meat by Alan Gordon – quite good, I would mind reading more with Sam in it although the Wolf phase for him was nearly human because he could speak while in his Wolf stage which I found disconcerting but the right of the author to do so.
Il Est Ne by Carrie Vaughn – Enjoyable; two strangers meet at a Waffle House on Christmas Eve.
The Perfect Gift by Dana Stabenow – This story didn’t make much sense. I felt as though it was just a venue for a sexy romance with a very abrupt ending. Didn’t care for it at all.
Christmas Past by Keri Arthur – Started out pretty good and then turned into a pure romance with lots of sexual tension. Nevertheless, the plot was good as was the humor.
SA by J. A. Konrath – Way, way, out there with werecheetahs, were tortoise, even a werecoral (yes like under the sea) plus a bunch of evil Santas and a lost book of the bible. The beginning was a bit off-putting but the story was very imaginative.
The Star of David by Patricia Briggs – An estranged daughter and father find each other. One of the good ones.
You’d Better Not Pyout by Nancy Pickard – I expected better but I couldn’t even finish this one. Santa is a vampire and those aren’t elves – they are children who have been turned. I dropped this one before the werewolves were introduced. Hated it.
Rogue Elements by Karen Chance – Good adventure, plenty of action with good characters and a giggle or two at the sexy humor.
Milk and Cookies by Rob Thurman – Young Nick (13 years old) is “too young to be cynical” according to his school principal. He’s dealing with being harassed by the school bully and is planning how to get out without too much injury. He’s following his father’s advice. The ending was quite a surprise and pretty intense.
Keeping Watch Over His Flock by Toni L. P. Kelner – One of the best in the book, a coming-of-age story. In this story werewolves are born, not made, with a delightful legend dating back to the birth of Jesus. Jake is learning how to be part of a pack after being in foster homes most of his life.”
“As with most books of short stories, some are good and some just don't do it for the reader. This book had two that I just skipped through after the first two pages, checking to see if they got better - they didn't. The other 12 were imaginative and entertaining. Not my usual fare but read for a group game. The Christmas theme wasn't the strongest part of the book and I doubt it would put readers in the mood for the holiday!”
Barbara M wrote this review Saturday, July 23, 2011. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
