Review: Grim by Ellen Hopkins, Julie Kagawa, Rachel Hawkins plus many more....

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16115038-grim
Genre: Dark Fantasy, Young Adult
Publisher: Harlequin Teen
Expected Publication: February 25, 2014

Inspired by classic fairy tales, but with a dark and sinister twist, Grim contains short stories from some of the best voices in young adult literature today.

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Review
I don't read many Anthologies, in fact, I tend to avoid them because I wind up being disappointed by the content inside more often than not. However, despite my less than stellar track record when it comes to anthologies I decided to picked this one up because a. I love the Grimm Fairy Tales and b. I'm an admitted sucker when it comes to Grimm retellings.

Now like all anthologies some stories are better than others. So rather than prattle on endlessly, I'm just going to jump straight in and tell you which I liked the best. In no particular order here are my favorites:

The Twelfth Girl by Malinda Lo
This was a very unique twist of The Twelve Dancing Princess and that ending was so shocking and yet not surprising. Really great though.

Beast/Beast by Tessa Gratton
I loved this Beauty and the Beast retelling. In fact, Can we please have a whole book set in this world? I want to know more!

A Real Boy by Claudia Gray
This story was part Pinocchio, part IRobot. I loved this story and  that is was set in a futuristic world. Like Beast/Beast I want to read what happens after the end. Full book please!

The Raven Princess by Jon Skovron
 I actually hadn't read this author before but I really enjoy his spin on The Swan Princess. It was dark, twisted but still embodied what I liked about the original tale.

Thinner Than Water by Saundra Mitchell
 Disturbing story and definitely one of, if not the most twisted in the Anthology. However, as uncomfortable as it made me, I really thought it was a great story. I really hope Augusta succeeded in her quest after the close of the story.

Better by Shaun David Hutchinson
 I believe this is another Pinocchio retelling. However, the twist of the story is different. The ending, wow..... brutal but necessary.

Now even though the above mentioned were my favorites, I did get enjoyment out of couple others as well. Key by Rachel Hawkins & Beauty and the Chad by Sarah Reese Brennan were definitely unique reads with different takes on the stories they'd been based on.

My main problem with this anthology isn't the 1 or 2 lackluster stories (my mind really started to drift during The Brothers Piggett by Julie Kagawa and I can't even remember what Light It Up by Kimberly Derting was about) it is the sheer amount included. By mid book I was wondering how close I was to the end only to find out I had 9 stories to go.  Had this anthology been splint into two parts with 8 stories each (well technically 9 in second) I think it would've been much more enjoyable overall. Also depending on the order those that weren't as enjoyable might of been spaced out more making the pacing of the anthology as a whole better. You don't realize how much some stories can bring you down when they take place back to back.

Final Thoughts
While I really enjoyed parts of this Anthology, I do think it needlessly suffered in the entertainment department by choosing to include so many Authors/stories. I also really think this anthology could've benefited  from showing which stories each Author was choosing to retell. Some were obvious (Beast/Beast & The Twelfth Girl spring to mind) but others like Untethered by Sonia Gensler & Skin Trade by Myra McEntire I really had no clue on. Despite my issues with this anthology, as a Grim fan I will probably add this to my collection, even if just to reread the stories I loved at some point. I'd definitely recommend checking out Grim if you enjoy Fairy Tale retellings. Your favorites might be different than mine and if so I'd love to hear your reasons why. With that being said, I'll be rating Grim  ★★★.

 *Copy reviewed  through netgalley. All opinions are my own and I was not compensated in an which way  for providing them.

Comments

  1. This book is amazing! my favourite story so far is the key as it is very interesting and the ending is great due to it being different than what you expect

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yeah The Key's ending definitely turned out differently than where I thought it was heading.

      Delete

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