[Review] A Thousand Beginnings and Endings - Edited by Ellen Oh and Elsie Chapman

A Thousand Beginnings and Endings 

Edited by Ellen Oh and Elsie Chapman

Format: ARC

Rating: 4 stars

Release Date: June 26th 2018

Goodreads Synopsis:

Star-crossed lovers, meddling immortals, feigned identities, battles of wits, and dire warnings. These are the stuff of fairy tale, myth, and folklore that have drawn us in for centuries.

Fifteen bestselling and acclaimed authors reimagine the folklore and mythology of East and South Asia in short stories that are by turns enchanting, heartbreaking, romantic, and passionate.

Compiled by We Need Diverse Books’s Ellen Oh and Elsie Chapman, the authors included in this exquisite collection are: Renee Ahdieh, Sona Charaipotra, Preeti Chhibber, Roshani Chokshi, Aliette de Bodard, Melissa de la Cruz, Julie Kagawa, Rahul Kanakia, Lori M. Lee, E. C. Myers, Cindy Pon, Aisha Saeed, Shveta Thakrar, and Alyssa Wong.

A mountain loses her heart. Two sisters transform into birds to escape captivity. A young man learns the true meaning of sacrifice. A young woman takes up her mother’s mantle and leads the dead to their final resting place. From fantasy to science fiction to contemporary, from romance to tales of revenge, these stories will beguile readers from start to finish. For fans of Neil Gaiman’s Unnatural Creatures and Ameriie’s New York Times–bestselling Because You Love to Hate Me.

I received this ARC from Miss Print's (Emma) ARC Adoption over here! Thank you Emma!

What a wonderful anthology! I normally struggle with more pieces in a collection than enjoy, but here it was the opposite. I loved how each short story honed in on different cultures and myths. The Filipino ones especially made me wish that I was more connected and aware of my own background.


Breakdown for each -

1. Forbidden Fruit by Roshani Chokshi
4 stars
Great start for the anthology - I loved the mythicism and lessons taught, and the ending itself took me by surprise.

2. Olivia's Table by Alyssa Wong
4.5 stars
So I encountered something similar with Chinese ghosts/spirits in The Astonishing Color of After by Emily XR Pan. It was pleasant to read this story from a different lens! I enjoyed Olivia and Mei Ling - and especially how the author took it from a historical approach, as well.

3. Steel Skin by Lori M. Lee
3 stars
I had to reread this one to fully get what was going on - it eventually made sense but I didn't really connect to Yer.

4. Still Star-Crossed by Sona Chaipotra
3.5 stars
I adored how poetic this story was on love, but I would have wanted more! It was so short.

5. The Counting of the Vermillion Beads
3.5 stars
I really felt bad for both Cam and Tam, but some aspects of this story were a bit confusing to me.

6. The Land of the Morning Calm by E.C. Meyers
5 stars
Oh god this was so good. Like really freaking good. One of my favorites in the anthology, and I loved how this meshed Korean gaming culture with folklore at the same time. Both creepy and mysterious.

7. The Smile by Aisha Saeed
4 stars
A powerful retelling - happy to say that it didn't end on a tragic note!

8. Girls Who Twirl and Other Dangers
4 stars
This was fun and lighthearted. I never heard of Navrati before, but I enjoyed the modern take.

9. Nothing into All by Renee Ahdieh
4.5 stars
This was a really cool short story - goblins aren't really featured that often in the fiction I've read, and it was a pleasant departure from fae. Also the love Charan had for her brother Chun was certainly admirable. It was such a mystical, forest-y read.

10. Spear Carrier
3 stars
It reminded me a lot of Ready Player One and Armada - very gamer-esque with the main character's POV. This was one of the stories where I couldn't connect to the main character, or his story that well.

11. Code of Honor by Melissa De La Cruz
3.5 stars
I would have wanted more of this! I heard this was also connected to the author's other stories, so I'm kind of conflicted here, because the concept is really freaking cool. But at the same time the main character was a Mary Sue and that killed me.

12. Bullet, Butterfly by Elsie Chapman
5 stars
Another of my favorites! I heard of Liang Zhu - the Chinese Romeo and Juliet, when I went to China this past January. It was such a tragic tale, and this one was, as well. I love the fresh, futuristic take on it.

13. Daughter of the Sun by Shveta Thakrar
5 stars
Again, another favorite. I loved Savitri's cleverness in winning back Satyavan. It reminded me of Orpheus and Eurydice, but this story ended on a happy note!

14. The Crimson Cloak by Cindy Pon
5 stars
I'm literally calling all of these my favorite haha. I just loved how sassy and in control the narrator was of her fate.

"I know how the legend goes for Cowherd and me, Dear Reader.
We married, I was the perfect wife, I birthed him healthy twins..." 

This was such a lighthearted, funny story.

15. Eyes Like Candlelight by Julie Kagawa
4 stars
Ugh this was so sad. Romantic and sad. Also very spooky - a good Halloween tale.

Overall, a great anthology! I definitely recommend it! Also #diversereads and #ownvoices !!