2012: #60 – Into the Woods (Kim Harrison)
Title: Into The Woods
Author: Kim Harrison
Format: Hardback
Pages: 528
Release Date: October 1, 2012
Publisher: Harper Voyager
Source: personal copy
Enter the woods . . . if you dare
For centuries, the woods have been a pivotal part of the wonder and danger of fairy tales, for once you enter anything can happen. Elves, druids, fairies—who knows what you will find once you dare step into the forest?
And now, New York Times bestselling author Kim Harrison ventures into these mysterious, hidden lands of magic and mystery in her first short-story collection. Into the Woods brings together an enchanting mix of brand-new, never-before-published stories and tales from Harrison’s beloved, bestselling Hollows series.
The tales here include an original Hollows novella, Million-Dollar Baby, about Trent Kalamack’s secret elven quest in Pale Demon; two original short stories, “Pet Shop Boys” and “Temson Woods,” that explore just what happens when humanity and the supernatural collide; and two novelettes, “Spider Silk” and “Grace,” set in new worlds of imagination and adventure. Into the Woods also contains all of the previously published Hollows short stories—together in one volume for the very first time.
Step into the woods and discover the magic for yourself.
My thoughts:
This book is a collection of already published short stories together with a few new ones. As a big fan of Kim Harrison, I couldn’t resist. I hadn’t read any of the already published stories yet (I don’t read many anthologies), so everything was new to me.
Most of my favorites were, of course, the Hollows-related stories. I liked seeing things from other characters’ perspectives, because normally we see everything through Rachel’s eyes. But the other star of the show was “Grace”, which was a completely new world including a different sort of ability — electricity manipulation. This is the sort of story that I would love to see her turn into an entire series, because it’s unlike anything else I’ve read in urban fantasy. Much preferable to yet another fae story, which is what “Pet Shop Boys” boils down to. I didn’t dislike the story, but it really didn’t excite me like “Grace” did.
On the other side of the coin, dryads don’t ring my bell like they obviously do Harrison’s. I found her dryad stories rather boring, and skipped most of “Temson Woods” and “Spider Silk” entirely.
Overall, this did a great job of filling in the time gap between one Hollows novel and the next for me. And my ARC of Ever After arrived shortly after I finished, so the timing couldn’t have been better!
Available from: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | IndieBound | WorldCat
Other reviews:
- “Into the Woods is an enjoyable anthology. Fans of Kim Harrison’s Hollows series will love having all the short stories in one place. Recommended.” — Badass Book Reviews
- “In general it’s a nice book I enjoyed yet, whether from my personal dislike of short stories or simply from the stories within, it felt like a rather unnecessary book.” — Fangs for the Fantasy
- “I may be biased, but I think Into the Woods is an absolute must buy for fans of The Hollows, as it gives deeper looks that we don’t get to see in the main series.” — A Book Obsession
I’m still finishing up The Hollows Series but it is good. I think I might get this to read someone the shorts relating to it.
Sounds like a good one.
Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!