I received an arc of this from netgalley for an honest review.

The beginning of it was interesting enough, but then around 60% through the book I noticed that I didn't enjoy the stories as often. To the point that there was a number of them that I skipped. It's an interesting premise to write an anthology about, and some of the stories were executed well. However I don't think all of them necessarily lived up to it. In my opinion, only about half of them interested me.

Thank you to NetGalley for allowing me to read this anthology in exchange for a honest review! I found this to be a well put together collection of stories where (at their very core) they’re about the power women can have and that’s definitely not something that should be underestimated.

This was a really well done compilation of feminist short stories and poems. I especially liked that after every story or poem, there was an exert from the author, explaining not only their inspiration and choices for the story/poem but also their feminist reading recommendations, so definitely read this with a notebook and pen so you can write them down!

The stories were a mixture of contemporary, fantasy, historical and sci-fi which was really interesting as each story was different and added a new layer to the book. I really enjoyed the majority of the stories which is really rare for me when its a collection of short stories, and I would love to see full novels from some of these stories because they left me wanting more.

- Vagina Dentata 4/5
- You Wake With Him Beside You 5/5
- The Weight of Iron 5/5
- What She Left Behind 5/5
- After The Foxes Have Their Say 3/5
- Shadows 3/5
- @Theguardian1792 4/5
- Gravity 3/5
- The Guardrail Disappears 2/5
- Good Sister, Bad Sister 3/5
- Vigilante Lane 4/5
- We Have But Lingered Here 3/5
- The Whispers 4/5
- Smile 4/5
- Potluck 3/5
- The Change 2/5

I will have detailed synopsis's with spoilers for each story/poem on my blog post, so as not to spoil it here.
I really do recommend this book, especially if you're in the angry feminist killjoy mood.

Trigger warnings for; sexual abuse, sexual assault, rape, emotional abuse, sexual harassment, gore, blood, and mutilation.

I quite enjoyed this collection of short stories with both feminist and horror themes. I thought it was a really cool take on an anthology; I've read feminist lit collections before, as well as horror anthologies, but the two genres work really, really well together, especially in our current political climate.

There were definitely some stories I enjoyed a bit more than others, but that's the nature of a collection like this. There is a story for everyone in this book, no matter your reading preferences! There are tales of ghosts, werewolves, vigilantes, and so much more. My personal favorites were "What She Left Behind" by E.R. Griffin and "Shadows" by Demitria Lunetta. If you're ambivalent about horror, I think this collection is a great way to get your feet wet in the genre. Most of the stories aren't super gory or nightmare-inducing. Rather, a lot of them feel more psychological or supernatural in nature--that's the kind of horror I tend to like a bit more.

All in all, I recommend giving this book a try. I'm looking forward to checking out these authors' other works!

If I could give this book more than five stars , I absolutely would. Short story collections are usually a bit hit and miss for me, I might find one or two stories I loved, a couple that are ok and usually at least one I hate, but this collection did not have a single weak link. This is collection of feminist horror stories ,featuring women who are ready to stand up for themselves and fight back, Within the collection you will find fairy tale retellings, , science fiction , a take on the pulpy jungle exploration tale, gore, ghosts and so much more, so there is definitely something for everyone, It is the perfect book to dip into whenever you have a few minutes to spare, with stories of varying lengths and some pieces of poetry , you should definitely find something to suit, It is also a very timely collection and one that I would recommend to all women and older teens. Particular standouts for me were You Wake With Him Beside You, by Cori McCarthy, one of the poetry pieces, Shadows by Demetria Lunetta , The Whispers by Lindsey Klingele and The Change by Kate Karyus Quinn, but as I said , I liked every piece included in the collection
I read and reviewed an ARC courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher, all opinions are my own.

There are many, many stories in this wonderful collection of stories by these brilliant authors. Read all of them savor them all they're every one an interesting dip into the female experience both of the past and present as well as fantastical and sobering. Brace yourself and enjoy there is a little bit of everything for everyone here.

trigger warnings
<spoiler>
sexual assault
gaslighting
emotional abuse
abusive relationship
self harm
mental illness
trauma
mutilaton
kidnapping
pedophilia
gore
transphobia
domestic violence</spoiler>

A teenager discovering her house is haunted, finding the diary of a girl murdered on the property fourty years ago. Another being attacked in the woods and feeling her body change. A woman asking for surgery to attach teeth to her vagina. A daughter having her DNA checked and finding out she has a biologial family she never knew about.

The short stories and poems in this anthology cover a wide range of topics, all centering on women and their problems. Yes, these are stories to scare the patriarchy by portraing women as complex human beings, but on the other hand, I'd say these stories are not only for feminists because they're simply about women being human and trying to survive, to learn.

We have a great mix of unique stories that capture the imagination of the reader and tales that speak to you if you have experienced some kind of gendered bullshit. They say <i>we hear you. You are not alone.</i>

I guess what I want to say that this book does two things:
- it's feminist
- but it's also a collection of gripping narratives. It's not something where you sit there and like the premise but wish it would have been executed better. It works. It makes you want more.

I wish I'd had this collection as a teenager instead of the sexist stuff I read because it was all I could get my hands on. It makes me realise that there might be a reason I usually feel left out and misfit, and that it's not to do with me, but the stories I am told.

I recieved a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This anthology was fantastic. I don't usually read horror but the description was amazing. I loved every story. They were all great and fierce and definitely not for everyone. I found new favourite authors. It was definitely worth to read. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. I really loved it.

“You could see there was blood coming out of her eyes, blood coming out of her wherever.”

** Trigger warning for misogyny and violence against women, including rape. **

I found out that there was much knowledge that Chira had kept from me. The women of the village knew that a man was necessary for procreation; they just did not see his value for anything else.
(“Shadows” by Demitria Lunetta)

Most women didn’t smile. Those that would usually kept walking, a little faster than before. But this one stood directly in front of them, a tremendous grin on her face as though nothing pleased her more. The men felt triumphant.
Except several moments passed and she was still standing there, smiling wider and wider. One of the men coughed. The other smiled back, weakly.
“You need something else, hon?”
She said nothing. Her smile kept growing. Grotesque now, her lips stretched as far as they could go, teeth shining in the morning sun.
(“Smile” by Emilee Martell)

It may look like we are scared. Like we are running. But we are not. I am not. Not anymore.
(“The Change” by Kate Karyus Quinn)

The second I saw Mindy McGinnis’s name on this book, I hit “request” without knowing anything else about it. As it turns out, I got extra lucky, because feminist horror stories? Are my peanut butter, jam, and jelly. Incidentally, BETTY BITES BACK: STORIES TO SCARE THE PATRIARCHY (that title! gives me goosebumps!) started its life as a Kickstarter campaign – the funding of which made the world just a wee bit richer.

This anthology is every bit as awesome as it sounds. Inspired by, uh, let’s just say “events” (current, past, and future), the women who populate these stories have had enough: of the cat-calling, non-consensual sharing of nude pics, and bullying. Of sexual harassment and assault. Of being gaslighted, dismissed, silenced, and ignored. Of being told to smile, or not; to laugh, or not. Of being mistreated because of their gender in a supposedly equal world. And they’re fixing for revenge. Let’s do some vicarious living, shall we? Bonus points if some of this bad***ery spills out into the “real” world.

So, listen. Did I love some stories more than others? Sure, but that’s an anthology for you. There was really only one story I didn’t much care for; the rest are entertaining at worst, downright life changing at best. If you do nothing else, read it for editor Kate Karyus Quinn’s “The Change,” which needs to be a summer blockbuster like yesterday.

“Vagina Dentata” by Mindy McGinnis – ?/5

A woman walks into a plastic surgeon’s office (one of maaaany) and requests dental implants in her vag. It’s an exciting concept, but at barely a page long, the story ends before it even begins. This made me extra-sad seeing as McGinnis is one of my favorites, an insta-read, and I would have wanted more even if the story was 1000 pages long.

“You Wake With Him Beside You” by Cori McCarthy – 4/5

An unexpected and cutting poem about escaping one unhealthy relationship only to become trapped in another: “you wonder about the Titanic, was it so bad? / you’re drunk on melancholy, and it’s not even eight AM.” I think we’ve all been there, yeah?

“The Weight of Iron” by Amanda Sun – 3.5/5

Accused of witchcraft and sentenced to death as a sacrifice for “seducing” the innkeeper (read: being sexually assaulted by the innkeeper), Galen finds redemption, understanding, and revenge in the most unlikely of places – her would-be executioner. This story gets a little weird, but the ending is lovely and delicious.

“What She Left Behind” by E.R. Griffin – 4/5

In 1976, a young woman named Erin Wilcox vanishes from her bedroom; the only clue, a faux diamond earring discarded in the dirt below her window. Forty-two years later, her ghost reaches out to the home’s newest resident, a girl named Mel who understands Erin’s trauma all too well. I think my favorite part of this story is the multitude of baddies – or rather, how Griffin guts the Nice Guy ™ trope.

“After the Foxes Have Their Say” by Tracie Martin – ?/5 WTF happened

There’s a prison in the desert. A Warden who takes a wife who takes off with a caravan of orphans, on account of they’re girls and she doesn’t like how the men folk are eyeing them. And then there’s a daughter. Honestly, I have no idea what this story is about, though the imagery of your heart waltzing around in someone else’s rib cage will strike a chord with anyone who’s loved and lost.

“Shadows” by Demitria Lunetta – 5/5

When Dr. Janet Sayre’s colleague, Dr. Peter Harvey, disappears while studying an isolated South American tribe, she travels into the Amazon rainforest in search of him. Here, she encounters the Ayhua, a community made up exclusively of women:

“The women of this small village have developed a society completely devoid of male influence. Women provide everything for themselves and take the responsibilities that other native tribes have delegated to men, including hunting, protection, and all leadership roles. They have remained undiscovered and untouched from modern ideas and ideals. They live their entire lives within a twenty-mile radius of their birthplace, and they seem to exhibit no curiosity about the outside world. They are exceptional among all other cultures and present us with a unique opportunity to study what has in the past only been a hypothetical: What path would a society take if it were women, and not men, who ruled the world?”

Though there are many children present – children who are mothered communally – Sayre and her companion, a linguist named Cassie, cannot figure out how the women are becoming pregnant. Nor do they know what becomes of the male babies. As she becomes closer to the women who have so generously welcomed them into their home – chieftess/medicine woman Chira in particular – Sayre must decide to what lengths she’ll go in order to protect her adopted family.

This story a) is bonkers; b) has the potential to become a racist, imperialist mess; c) is handled with care; and d) would make an amazing horror film, but only in the hands of screenwriters and directors and producers who would nurture it with an equal amount of care. This is easily one of my favorite stories in the book, and the length makes me feel like Golilocks discovering that perfectly sized bed.

“@Theguardians1792” by Jenna Lehne – 4/5

Kind of like THE CHAIN, but swap out the land lines for twitter and kidnapped children for humiliated/injured/murdered misogynists.

“Gravity” by Kyrie McCauley – 5/5

All of the girls in the narrator’s family are cursed:

“We bear the curse of levity. Laughter. Humor and mirth. But we cannot stop it, so even when things go wrong, a feeling of joy surges over us, like a wave obliterating a sand castle. One crest of foaming water, and our pain is erased from the world forever. That is how our sadness feels. Temporary. Gone before it ever reaches the surface. Also, we float.”

She has to wear weights to keep her tethered to the earth, and the only time she can connect with her negative emotions is when she’s submerged in a large body of water. Her sweet, unassuming demeanor is a curse, but also a defense mechanism, meant to camouflage her from predators (nothing to see here), i.e. men. But her best friend Odette is the only one she cares about.

“Gravity” is a beautiful, surreal F/F romance story that “feels like braids coming undone.” I’m counting down the days until the release of McCauley’s upcoming debut novel, IF THESE WINGS COULD FLY.

“The Guardrail Disappears” by Melody Simpson – 3.5/5

This is your standard LAW & ORDER: SVU episode wherein a young woman realizes that she’s been kidnapped and raised by a stranger – but in a not-so-distant future, complete with autonomous vehicles.

“Good Sister, Bad Sister” by Azzurra Nox – 3/5

“Good Sister, Bad Sister” is a like your classic YA werewolf story, only the protagonist is a young Muslim woman whose mother is pressuring her to wear a hijab, and instead of using her newfound powers to dominate the basketball court and woo her crush, Dilay gets revenge on the dude who assaulted her older sister Sanem. I really dig the idea, but the writing feels a bit clumsy in places.

“Vigilante Lane” by S. E. Green – 4/5

The protagonist of this story is a close cousin of Alex Craft, she of Mindy McGinnis’s THE FEMALE OF THE SPECIES. But with a little more gore.

“We Have But Lingered Here” by Liz Coley – 4/5

In which a nonbinary fight choreographer named Jules drafts the recently summoned spirits of Shakespeare’s plays to help her slay a demon – namely, her abusive father. This is a great story on its own, but I REALLY wanted to see the fallout.

“The Whispers” by Lindsey Klingele – 5/5

Inspired by the Suffragettes, the young women of Little Falls have run amok: refusing perfectly good marriage proposals; announcing their intentions to remain single; laughing and cavorting in public; and just generally flouting decency and societal norms. And so the men of the town devise a modest solution: cut out their voice boxes so that they need not be heard. It’s no wonder that, before long, the Falls will run red with blood. This is another gem that needs to grace the big screen, shut up and take my money please!

“Smile” by Emilee Martell – 4/5

This story is best summed up by that one BROAD CITY “smile” gif + the movie TEETH. File alongside “Vagina Dentata” as a story that’s freaking amazing, but entirely too short for civility.

“Potluck” by Kamerhe Lane – 4.5/5

A story of a wake, told by the foods prepared for it. Or, perhaps more accurately, by the female hands that made the food.

“To Mary,” someone says. Or maybe they all say. Hard to tell. “She’s free.”

Very weird and experimental but, ultimately, fierce AF.

“The Change” by Kate Karyus Quinn – 5/5 holy s***

This story, y’all. WOW. What a note to end on.

A little bit CHILDREN OF MEN, a little bit WILDER GIRLS, “The Change” takes place in a near-future dystopia in which the next generation of young women, upon reaching puberty, sprout spikes and scales and quills and wings and fangs. Like the levity in “Gravity,” these biological weapons are defense mechanisms that women can use against their most dangerous predators: men. Only Mother Nature’s attempt to level the playing field backfires, and women become regulated, restricted, hunted.

Except. When our unnamed narrator gets her period, nothing happens: “I changed, but nothing changed.” As news of her existence spreads and she and Mother are beset by men who want her to bear their children, to make more of her – sweet, docile, unarmed women – they go into hiding. But they cannot outrun Adam’s Soldiers (“To be a member / they removed the same rib given to Eve.”) … but maybe that’s not a bad thing? Only by confronting the patriarchy does Eve’s daughter discover her true power.

Side note: I would love for Betty White to play Daughter’s ill-fated driver in the movie adaptation of this, for reasons.

Betty Bites Back - The overall collection is definitely worth looking into. The wasn't a single story I disliked.
⦁ Vagina Dentata, By Mindy Mcginnis: 5 Stars, a perfect bite size piece to start off this collection.
⦁ You Wake With Him Beside You, By Cori McCarthy: 3 Stars
⦁ The Weight Of Iron, By Amanda Sun: 4 Stars, I really loved the mixture of space and sea imagery.
⦁ What She Left Behind, By E.R. Griffin: 5 Stars
⦁ After The Foxes Have Their Say, By Tracie Martin: 4 Stars
⦁ Shadows, By Demitria Lunetta: 5 Stars. This story was unpredictable and felt raw. I was completely immersed in it.
⦁ @Theguardians1792, By Jenna Lehne: 3 Stars
⦁ Gravity, By Kylie McCauley: 5 Stars. A really sweet and sincere piece filled with whimsy. Perfect to break up some of these harder hitting stories.
⦁ The Guardrail Disappears, By Melody Simpson: 4 Stars
⦁ Good Sister, Bad Sister, By Azzura Nox: 4 Stars
⦁ Vigilante Lane, By S.E. Green: 4 Stars
⦁ We Have But Lingered Here, By Liz Coley: 3 Stars
⦁ The Whispers, By Lindsey Klingele: 4 Stars
⦁ Smile, By Emilee Martell: 4 Stars
⦁ Potluck, By Kamerhe Lane: 5 Stars. This story felt very real. These women were people I could very easily meet in my day to day life.
⦁ The Change, By Kate Karyus Quinn: 5 Stars. I loved the descriptions and creativity in this one.

Yeah, wow, this book was a really awesome read! The whole concept behind this collection is fighting back against the patriarchy, which is pretty awesome. The patriarchy sometimes makes me boil at the unfairness. So taking it on in stories, I just had to read it!

I enjoyed all of these stories. There was one where the ending, I didn't like so much, it was pretty well written, but the story itself...it was good but I didn't like the direction that it went. Because oh, there are going to be consequences for this and it's not fair!

The first story is about 3 pages long. And there's 2 I believe that are more poetry. So there's a few variations so I never knew what to expect, how many more pages were left for each story. It had me racing and devouring this book!

I don't have a clear stand out favourite. This collection was pretty great, but it was about even, there weren't any over the top wow's for me. And that's OK, because like I said, these stories were all at a pretty high level, all together. That's kinda better too, rather than have a stand out, and a bunch of just OK stories. Yep.

Loved this collection, it was an amazing read!

This was a great read. First and foremost it was a really well compiled anthology with a good mix of length, tone, narrator voice, and poetry v. prose.

The stories were both enjoyable and relevant, looking at modern issues from various lenses.

The only thing I would have liked to see is a little more obvious diversity. While the shortness of the pieces means that there were definitely constraints on how much various characters could be shown to be non-white, non-cis, etc. it would have been nice to see that intersectional representation. Off the top.of my head I can only think of one poc main, one non-cis, and one queer main character.

this anthology was a lot of fun, each story was interesting and you could hear each author's voice without taking away from the collection.

I’m neither young nor a feminist so I would say I’m not the target audience for this anthology, however I don’t believe there should be a target group for this book, I can see some accusing this book of misandry but in a time where being able to voice fears and concerns is encouraged I would encourage old men like me to challenge their perceptions and read this book, it’s not pleasant reading if your male but it is very much worth reading

Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC of this book. I loved these stories. Powerful women. Women who have been ran through the mill, and fight back.