"Even That Wildest Hope" by Seyward Goodhand is a dazzling and imaginative debut collection that showcases a stunning array of otherworldly, yet deeply human stories. Goodhand's prose is both lush and uncanny, drawing comparisons to the works of Angela Carter and Carmen Maria Machado. Each story in the collection is a testament to her unique talent, blending the fantastical with the familiar in a way that is both unsettling and deeply moving.

Due to a sudden, unexpected passing in the family a few years ago and another more recently and my subsequent (mental) health issues stemming from that, I was unable to download this book in time to review it before it was archived as I did not visit this site for several years after the bereavements. This meant I didn't read or venture onto netgalley for years as not only did it remind me of that person as they shared my passion for reading, but I also struggled to maintain interest in anything due to overwhelming depression. I was therefore unable to download this title in time and so I couldn't give a review as it wasn't successfully acquired before it was archived. The second issue that has happened with some of my other books is that I had them downloaded to one particular device and said device is now defunct, so I have no access to those books anymore, sadly.

This means I can't leave an accurate reflection of my feelings towards the book as I am unable to read it now and so I am leaving a message of explanation instead. I am now back to reading and reviewing full time as once considerable time had passed I have found that books have been helping me significantly in terms of my mindset and mental health - this was after having no interest in anything for quite a number of years after the passings. Anything requested and approved will be read and a review written and posted to Amazon (where I am a Hall of Famer & Top Reviewer), Goodreads (where I have several thousand friends and the same amount who follow my reviews) and Waterstones (or Barnes & Noble if the publisher is American based). Thank you for the opportunity and apologies for the inconvenience.

Doesn't play by the short story rules and the results are wonderful. Genuinely original, novel, strange. I love this book! Goodhand is CanLit's best-kept secret.

This cover is just the absolute moment. I love it so much. Beyond compare.
I've been trying to read more short stories recently and I did enjoy some parts of this book. It was interesting and at times unusual.

The highly anticipated debut short story collection by Journey Prize finalist Seyward Goodhand bursts with vibrant, otherworldly characters—wax girls and gods-amongmen, artists on opposite sides of a war, aimless plutocrats and anarchist urchins—who are sometimes wondrous, often grotesque, and always driven by passions and yearnings common to us all. Stylistic and primordial, Even That Wildest Hope is a chaotic but always satisfying fabulist journey in the baroque tradition of Angela Carter, Carmen Maria Machado, and Ted Chiang.

A collection of short stories, both wonderful and strange! I highly enjoyed it!

Okay - not gonna lie. I was interested in this book specifically because of the cover. it is so cute and I just love it.

About the book:


The highly anticipated debut short story collection by Journey Prize finalist Seyward Goodhand bursts with vibrant, otherworldly characters—wax girls and gods-amongmen, artists on opposite sides of a war, aimless plutocrats and anarchist urchins—who are sometimes wondrous, often grotesque, and always driven by passions and yearnings common to us all. Stylistic and primordial, Even That Wildest Hope is a chaotic but always satisfying fabulist journey in the baroque tradition of Angela Carter, Carmen Maria Machado, and Ted Chiang.

I thought this book was interesting, but could not find my footing nor was I really engaged. Perhaps it's just a consequence of the time, but I have to DNF this one all the same. Nevertheless, thanks for allowing me to read in advance — I really love the cover!

I will say I enjoyed the last two stories (out of ten). While not perfect, they showcase rich, detailed characters who make believable, though sometimes horrible, decisions. Ms. Goodhand, at her best, describes human feeling very well.

Ms. Goodhand has great potential. However, I won't let that distract from the fact that I simply disliked this collection. It "tasted" wrong. I expected something more magical (perhaps the title made me think it would be more, well, hopeful). This is ugly, and messy, and filled with morbid mixed-up feelings; it digs deep into the darker side of humanity.

I prefer not to give one or two-star reviews to budding authors. Therefore, I won't be reviewing the book on Goodreads.

I received a free digital copy of this book from the publisher via netgalley. A collection of perculiar short stories, it sounded exactly up my street. And in many ways it was… but it also took me over a month to read.

Goodhand certainly has a wonderful ability to take basic human feelings and struggles and portray them in bizarre and unusual narratives. Emotions made physical, philosophical concepts became human, and moral debates turned into fairy tales.

I loved a lot of the stories in this book. Several were must-keep-reading good. So I Can Win, the Galatrax must Die, about an… unusual… superfood and the lengths people go to to consume it. The Fur Trader’s Daughter, about family, love, and what truly makes us human. The Gamins of Winnipeg, about staying true to yourself verses playing the game of life. The Parachute, about passion and success and jealously. Hansel, Gretel, and Katie, a wonderful twist on the classic that kept me guessing till the very end.

Though I would say none of the stories in this collection were bad, some dragged more than others. Enkidu, about the unequal relationship between a man and a god, and Pastoral, about a woman defined by the men who pursue her and the life experiences she had no choice in, were both very interesting stories, but I took days to read both. They felt stretched out and unnecessarily long–my investment in the stories began to lag because I needed them to move a little faster.

The other stories were fairly short, wonderfully weird, and oddly moving. Felix Baumgartner’s Guardian Angel, about a reluctant guardian angel following its ward into a dangerous situation. What Bothers a Woman of the World, about a woman’s emotional vulnerability taking physical form and the relationship she has with it. Embassy Row, about a group of secluded couples without care or responsibilities trying to find meaning in their lives.

Every story provided a lot of food for thought and although I have my favourites, each and every story has stayed with me in its own way.

Overall this book was fairly mixed bag. Some strong 4- and 5-star stories, but definitely a few 2- and 3-stars as well. Hence the middle-ground rating of 3.5. I think everyone will find a story to love in this book, but not every story will be someone’s cup of tea.

I didn't care for this book at all. Each story was more painful to read than the next and every time I picked it up, I found it was a strain to force myself not to put it back down. It isn't my type of thing. It's too trying-hard-to-be-avant-garde, too out there. there wasn't anything that felt real or authentic to attach to.

It wasn't for me. It took me a long time to get through (longer than 3 months) and ultimately I DNF'ed it. Maybe I'll give it another chance when it comes out, but I don't think so. The first story just felt like climbing up a steep hill and I kept wondering, why is it that I have to keep going? So, overall, I wasn't engaged at all, which is a shame, because I was really looking forward to this arc. My suggestion is, maybe don't have the first story be the first? The consensus seems to be that it is not the strongest in the collection.

'Because her pleasure looks so small, I suspect Agvagvat of thriving on minutiae.'

The stories in this novel are intriguing, sometimes peculiar particularly when you enter the realm of the galatrax, So I Can Win, the Galatrax must die. A beloved, woodland creature with a gamey taste just going about living the life of ‘fuzzy innocents’ until… How many stories can set off your gag reflex and sympathy at the same time? It is What Bothers a Woman of the World, The Fur Trader’s Daughter and Hansel, Gretel and Katie that had me riveted. The stories do flirt with the fairy-tale realm but if you pick it clean you feel the hum of reality within’ the lines. Wax girls, “if she’s bad I can melt her back down into wax”, are we all at some point being molded, others trying to form our personalities so we don’t spoil or turn? “Don’t stare, what kind of daughter are you? Pervert.” This story caused a revolt inside of me, is it generational, the type of girl you’re meant to be, what kind of daughter are you, indeed? It turns brutal, as dark and grim as any genuine fairy-tale. There is a line, “My father erupted off the couch” and the violence of it, what writing!

What Bothers a Woman of the World is painful, another creature following a narrator around but just what is this creature that ‘nothing sticks to.’ Life causes the mutilation, hope survives still somewhere hard inside of a woman, this is by far the best story in the collection. We’re half alive in there somewhere, lying in wait for a time when being pleasing isn’t instinctual. Mother, batten down the hatches of your eternal hope, get on with life, want not.

Hansel, Gretel and Katie, is a bitterness, a raging hunger and someone must provide reluctant nourishment, if not love. This is what it means to try and remain human, this tale is a little confection with a bite at the center. Maybe the best we are, even though it could be the worst, sometimes has to be enough. I wasn’t engaged in every story, but the ones that burrowed in, didn’t let go. I think Seyward Goodhand can whip up a hell of a story and I have my fingers crossed that a full blown novel will hit the shelves one day. Some of the stories flirt with horror, because what is uglier than what is put upon us or the shame we carry? There are always ghosts of our actions waiting in the night, sometimes people, sometimes just thoughts. Yes read it.

Publication Date: September 16, 2019

Invisible Publishing

I'm not going to lie, I had to struggle through this short story collection, and I really shouldn't have, considering how small it is, and how relevant to my interests the story subjects are. I particularly struggled through "Enkidu" (and it was the very FIRST story! Setting the tone for the rest of my reading experience, I guess) and "Pastoral" the most.

The best story was, by far, "The Fur Trader's Daughter". Absolutely excellent, and it'll undoubtedly stay with me for a while.

An eclectic collection of strange short stories, ranging from the gruesome to the quite charming, all invoking strong emotion in the reader.

Enkidu ★★☆☆☆
So I Can Win, the Galatrax Must Die ★★★☆☆
The Fur Trader's Daughter ★★★★★
Felix Baumgartner's Guardian Angel ★★★☆☆
What Bothers a Woman of the World ★★★★☆
Pastoral ★★★★☆
The Gamins of Winnipeg ★★★★★
Embassy Row ★★★☆☆
The Parachute ★★★★☆
Hansel, Gretel, and Katie ★★★★★

Average: 3.8

I'll admit, when I first started reading this collection of stories, that started with 'Enkidu', I had a sinking feeling that it wasn't the book for me. However I got through the first story, which had the vibe of a religious mythology origin story (which is the kind of thing I usually like but couldn't get into on this occasion), and was pleasantly surprised! Each story invoked a strong sense of emotion in me. In particular my favourites were The Fur Trader's Daughter, The Gamins of Winnipeg, and Hansel, Gretel, and Katie. I think what these stories had in common, apart from the Gamins of Winnipeg, is that they all had an air of fairytale (with Hansel, Gretel, and Katie obviously being a reimagining of the classic Hansel and Gretel). This is also something I enjoyed about Pastoral too. I think this is the kind of story Goodhand writes really well; although the strangeness that creeps out of the other stories is a particular highlight too.

If you like the kind of stories that will stick with you, I definitely recommend this collection. In a nutshell I would describe this book as strange, thought provoking, engrossing, and wonderful.

I received a free copy of this from the publisher on Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you!

*Received via NetGalley for review*

An interesting collection with many different genres and styles. Unfortunately, the various stories didn't really engage me.

I gotta say this was a weird book.
Like all short story collections, the quality of each story differed dramatically. Some stories were very well written but ended too abruptly to be memorable for anything other than that sudden ending. And others were so short that there was so little semblance of character to be explored within them that it made me eager to move onto the next one to get it out the way.
One was just so nonsensical I skipped it altogether.
Writing being bizarre is good but a book still must maintain a person's interest so they aren't skipping chapters to get to the end quicker.

My favourite of the short stories centred around the Wax girls and this it was brought that rating up from one star. I would read another book by Goodhand but perhaps not another short story collection.

I was sent this book as an ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

An engrossing read, a wonderful collection of short stories, from the weird to the wonderful , a completely different collection from the norm. Stories that make you think and leave you wondering. Very well written and very thought provoking and even scary at times, but always entertaining.


Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for a free copy for an honest opinion

An engrossing and entertaining read. I appreciated this collection of well written, quirky and weird stories.
Recommended!
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.

A wonderful collection of varied, quirky and strange stories, perfect for any fan of the fantastical and bizarre. I would love to see Goodhand bringing out a full-length fiction book by the calibre of these short stories.

Even That Wildest Hope is a strange, yet fascinating, collection of short stories. They are bizarre are quirky in a way that kind of makes you believe some could be true. We're in the Upside Down. Attention getting yet terrifying! Thanks to NetGalley for an arc in exchange for an honest review.