I don’t read many anthologies but I was drawn to this one because of the list of all the amazing authors that contributed to it! I loved this collection and think that every reader will find a new story to add to their favorites. It was a really well-rounded collection and I liked that you could read them in any order. There were some stories I liked more than others, but overall I enjoyed reading them, and I got the chance to read work from some new authors. The diverse representation in this anthology was also really good and the cover is so pretty!

I think that this is perfect for any YA readers that enjoy the works of any of the authors featured and anyone looking for stories with diverse rep. This is a fantastic anthology and I can’t wait to add it to my shelf!

This was such a fun read! A collection of short stories from many truly amazing authors. The stories in the book are diverse and exciting. There is a short story of Alucard Emery, one of my favorite characters from V. E. Schwab’s A Darker Shade of Magic series and it is fabulous! I’m not generally one to reach for short stories but I’m so glad I was able to read this collection! Another favorite was the short story by Jenni Balch! It was a wish granting story and so well written!

I recommend this read for any fantasy lover!

Thank you so much to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me the Ebook in exchange for an honest review!

Book Review for A Universe of Wishes by Dhonielle Clayton
Full review for this title can be found at: @fyebooks on Instagram!

Much needed diversity and representation in this collection of short stories. The stories were all engaging and entertaining. If you enjoy sci fi and YA fantasy this book will be right up your alley. Thank you NetGalley for allowing me to review this book in exchange for an honest review.

A Universe of Wishes by Dhonielle Clayton, 416 pages. CENTERING ME, SHORT STORIES. Random House, 2020. $19. LGBTQIA
Language: R (46 swears, 0 “f”); Mature Content: PG13; Violence: PG13
BUYING ADVISORY: HS - OPTIONAL
AUDIENCE APPEAL: HIGH
In fifteen short stories, these authors write compelling stories with heroes that break the molds we are used to reading. Readers are invited to stretch their imaginations with a variety of genres and characters that allow for everyone to see pieces of themselves reflected.
Jumping from story to story was a little disorienting because I would forget that each was only a short story; I want to see where the stories would continue if allowed more than one chapter. The stories I liked the least were the two connected to series I am not familiar with, but all of the stories are bewitching. The mature content rating is for innuendo, nudity, and illegal activity; the violence rating is for gun use and mention of suicide.
Reviewer: Carolina Herdegen

From We Need Diverse Books, A Universe of Wishes is a collection of fifteen YA fantasy/sci-fi short stories full of fantastic and diverse representation. From a boy who pulls wishes from the dead to a thief trying to steal back her home planet’s sacred objects to a medical procedure that weighs what’s in one’s heart to other amazing worlds and adventures, each of these stories is stunning, unique, and magical.

Anthologies are notoriously hard to review because they involve so many different plots, characters, and settings…but that’s also what makes them captivating, and A Universe of Wishes is no exception. In such an extraordinary collection of stories, five in particular stood out to me: “A Universe of Wishes” by Tara Sim, “Cristal y Ceniza” by Anna-Marie McLemore, “The Takeback Tango” by Rebecca Roanhorse, “The Weight” by Dhonielle Clayton, and “Longer Than the Threads of Time” by Zoraida Córdova. These stories caught my attention with strong protagonists, beautiful relationships, exciting plots, and creative incorporation of magic. Overall, the anthology was a pleasure to read, and I enjoyed every single story included. With amazing representation and diverse voices telling the stories, this book is perfect for anyone who loves fantasy, science fiction, or a good dose of adventure.

(Pine Reads Review would like to thank NetGalley and the publisher for providing us with an ARC in exchange for an honest review. Any quotes are taken from an advanced copy and may be subject to change.)

This was such a fantastic collection of not only amazing stories but full of super talented, wonderful authors!

I really loved each and every story but some favorites for me were Cristal y Ceniza by Anna-Marie Mclemore, Unmoor by Mark Oshiro, Longer Than The Threads of Time by Zoraida Cordova and Habibi by Tochi Onyebuchi!

I love when authors team up for anthologies and this one I have to say is one of the best ones I have had the pleasure of reading, both because of the talent chosen for it and the stories themselves!

Thank you to NetGalley, all 15 authors who contributed to this anthology, Random House Children's, and Dhonielle Clayton (editor) for the opportunity to read A Universe of Wishes in exchange for an honest review.

The reason I requested this book is that I love fantasy, seek diversity, and greatly admire many of the authors who have contributed to this anthology and looked forward to reading some of the short stories they have written.

This book has a nice assortment of diversity including LGBTQ and cultural tradition, along with a nice variety of settings from a morgue to space travel. I have reviewed each story individually based on content, diversity, style, and structure.

"A Universe of Wishes" by Tara Sim
Individual Rating: 4/5
This was a fun cute story about, well, wishes! Thorn has a special ability. He can harvest magic from bodies in order to make wishes. This is not something that people of the living understand of themselves, so he must harvest them from dead bodies. When he sneaks into a morgue, he is caught by the son of the family who runs the morgue and gets caught explaining himself, only he must prove he can cast wishes by granting this other boy a wish. A newfound friendship evolves, dark pasts are revealed, and something more seems to bloom between the two.
I found this to be a genuinely entertaining story. You have a teenager who robs graves/morgues for dead body magic, which is an interesting creep factor and really adds to the mood of the story. There is also gay representation, which was a nice surprise. The fantasy element with the wishes was an interesting twist on the whole "three wishes" mythology that we see in various cultures. This was a highly delightful little story.

"The Silk Blade" by Natalie C. Parker
Individual Rating: 4/5
This story features a tournament of sorts for the hand of the Bloom (which, to my reading, feels like an Emperor). There are two female competitors and a male competitor. When the two females meet on a bridge, knowing instantly who they both are and why they are there, they both seem to have the drive to win the hand of the Bloom, but there also seems to be a spark of "love at first sight" between the two women. With a twist of the tournament results, they both struggle to decide just what they want in the end.
I am not sure if it was supposed to have a more Asian feel to it, but to me, it felt very much like an Imperial court type of setting. There is also a nice touch of "gender doesn't matter when it comes to love" as seen by the fact that the two women are interested in each other, yet compete for the hand of the Bloom (who I register as male), and the fact that another man is fighting for the hand of the Bloom. The world felt very smooth and natural.

"The Scarlet Woman: A Gemma Doyle Story" by Libba Bray
Individual Rating: 4/5
I haven't read the Gemma Doyle books before though I have certainly heard of them, the first of which is A Great and Terrible Beauty. Having not read those, yet read this short story, I would say the author did a great job making the story feel wholesome while making me want to read the original trilogy as well. This story had a very sophisticated air about it as well as mystery. Everything was explained just enough that I could fill in the gaps without having the prior context to the character and her world. The mystery and intrigue here were wonderful.

"Cristal y Ceniza" by Anna-Marie McLemore
Individual Rating: 5/5
One of my favorites in the collection, this features both Latinx culture and LGBTQIA in a way that feels natural, beautiful, and is perfectly executed.
This is a retelling of "Cinderella," though the main character is from a poor country where their people are treated unfairly or removed. She goes to the ball in a neighboring country to meet with the King and Queen to address this issue. Skirting around rumors that their prince is transgender, she finds that a country so open to transgender and same-gender marriage must be able to help her. When she is asked to dance, little does she know it's the prince she dances with, and she might just grow some feelings she wasn't expecting. All the while, someone else confronts her to stand down so that her own daughter can take the prince for herself. It is up to the leading lady to figure out just the right path to choose.
This is an absolutely magical tale full of romance and diversity, and Anna-Marie's writing style is stunning and cunning. This one is a must-read!

"Liberia" by Kwame Mbalia
Individual Rating: 4/5
The Liberia is a spacecraft heading to the New Africa colony. The main character is a young black man who is tasked with taking care of the plants and seedlings that need to be replanted on the new colony to ensure the colony's survival. There are two meanings here, as he struggles to keep the plants safe from the ship's captain and the dangers of space. One is the literal need for the plants to be able to grow and harvest on the colony. The second, deeper meaning, is the plants are grown and represent their ancestors, and having them planted at their family's new homes is the way to bring all their ancestors with them.
This is a very cultural-feeling story that I really appreciated when looking at the importance of family, culture, and heritage. I also liked how this took place on a space ship. There are elements of tradition, as well as those who feel the need to break away from tradition and the importance of holding on to one's culture, no matter where in the universe they may venture to.

"A Royal Affair" by V.E. Schwab
Individual Rating: 4.5/5
This short story, while reminisced during Alucard's volage to London for the Essen Tasch, takes place three years before the events of the Shades of Magic trilogy and features the relationship between Rhy and Alucard, highlighting their reason for breaking up and some of the hardships Alucard faced afterward.
Shades of Magic is a fantastic trilogy, and of course, I loved every moment of this short story. I wish there was a bit more Rhy and Alucard action, but it was more about the focus on how society has expectations of people and the reasoning behind why some people choose to break things off in a same-sex relationship (or any relationship) because of the pressures society thrusts upon them, despite how they truly feel about the other person.

"The Takeback Tango" by Rebecca Roanhorse
Individual Rating: 4/5
The title is pretty cute as it relates to the main character, a girl with dark skin and dark hair, who enters a museum with the plan to take back artifacts from her home planet and culture. When she meets a blond-haired, blue-eyed boy in the exhibit, she sure doesn't expect that he is in disguise to take back artifacts from his own culture. You know the saying: "It takes two to tango," thus, two people just trying to retrieve something that belongs to their culture.
Yet another fantastic short story about the importance of holding on to one's culture.

"Dream and Dare" by Nic Stone
Individual Rating: 4/5
This one was somewhat abstract for me to follow at first, as I couldn't tell if Dream and Dare were two separate identities of the same person. It turns out they are, in fact, two separate people. Dream is a girl who tends to dress more like a boy and is interested in things like exploration and possibly hunting the monster that kills men in the nearby forest. Dare is a princess who seems to have disappeared and Dream has her sights set on this princess from a time when they were children.
This story once again has a fantasy element to it with a touch of LGBTQ diversity, though it didn't really stand out to me the way some of the other stories in the collection do.

"Wish" by Jenni Balch
Individual Rating: 4/5
I greatly enjoyed this story. It is about a Granter (basically a genie) that can grant someone's ultimate wish...with limits, of course. The Granter in question finds himself on a space colony, something very different from the last few times he was summoned from the LAMP. The girl who wants a wish has a wish that cannot be granted because the Granter cannot change a person. The girl in question wishes to go to Earth. Unlike others who come of age, she cannot be flown to earth because she has a disability in which her body would basically be crushed from the force of planetary entry. The Granter can do what he can and hope it is enough.
I appreciated this story because of the disability diversity in it (as well as the fact that it took place in outer space.) This collection is within "We Need Diverse Books," and disabilities are diverse as well, so I was really hoping to see some of that in this collection. This was a fun story.

A BELLE's Story by Dhonielle Clayton (not official story title)
(This short story was not included in the ARC of the anthology, though will be something to look forward to for BELLE's fans upon publication.)

"Unmoor" by Mark Oshiro
Individual Rating: 4/5
This was quite an interesting story. An Unmoor is a magic user that specializes in "unmooring" memories from specific places. For the main character, memories of the boy he loves and the places that trigger those memories are just too much for him to handle. Instead of going on a nice trip, he uses his saved money to hire an Unmoor to go to each location and remove the memories of his time with the boy he loved in those places.
This was a very well-written and rather heart-wrenching story. It felt like I needed just a little bit more to the end, but at the same time, I loved the ending and how it made me feel. Usually, I don't like works that make me feel down, but this one had more of a message about moving on, even when you don't want to because sometimes moving on is the best thing we can do in our given situations.

"The Coldest Spot in the Universe" by Samira Ahmed
Individual Rating: 4/5
Yet another interesting story that takes place in space (sort of?) and also has some dealings in the existence of a multiverse. There are two alternate plots happening here. One takes place in 2031 as journal entries while the other takes place in 3027 as voice logs. The girl in 2031 talks about an event that basically destroyed her planet and pitted it into a sheer cold wasteland where everyone slowly froze to death. In the narrative of the girl doing the voice logs, she is with an exploration crew looking through the remains of the frozen planet.
If I say too much more, it will be spoilery for sure, so I'll just say the twist at the end was interesting, though somewhat predictable, and the back and forth between what happened to the planet and the girl exploring the planet's ruins was quite intriguing. The philosophy behind this story was quite the enthralling capture and this story reflects what could happen to Earth if we, the people living here, are not careful with how we use our seats and weapons of power.

"The Beginnings of Monsters" by Tessa Gratton
Individual Rating: 4/5
This story was probably the most abstract for me, but it was definitely still interesting. In this world, it seems architects are those who go to college to one day be able to reshape others' bodies to whatever they want. Flaws can be removes or claws can be added. Whatever the person wants, they can make it happen.
The genders in this are interesting as well. There are four genders and there seems to be a faction that seeks to add more pronoun availability for gender. One of the ones I picked out as seemingly non-binary, though it was hard to tell, was an/ans (as opposed to he/she/they). This story involves romance and some political intrigue when it comes to the choices this society has to make. When reading this one, keep the title in your mind.

"Longer Than the Threads of Time" by Zoraida Cordova
Individual Rating: 4/5
This was an interesting cultural twist on the story of Rapunzel full of magic and Latinx culture. A girl is trapped in a tower in Central Park, but only brujas or those with the Sight can see this magical place. Trapped for seventy years, there is no way to escape, the only thing able to leave is her ever-growing hair that she can toss out the tower window. A Brujo boy passes by nearly every day and for the first time decides to talk to the girl. They soon form a budding relationship, or so it would seem, though when it comes to the one way the girl can escape the tower, feelings are torn

"Habibi" by Tochi Onyebuchi
Individual Rating: 4/5
The structure of this story is very interesting. It is told in the form of letters between two boys in different prisons across the world from each other, though the method of how they send and receive the letters is a bit...different. Let's just say one boy swallows his letter and the other boy receives it through...well, you can guess. One is Middle Eastern and seems to be a prisoner of war and he sends these letters to a Black boy in a different prison (in Los Angeles, I think). The Middle Eastern boy is unsure that these letters are real, but his corresponding person assures him that he is a real recipient. When both find themselves in times of despair, they are able to find comfort in each other and the title has great significance in this idea.
I thought the structure was a great way to tell this story. I also enjoyed the different voices of each character. I could really picture them both and the situations they are trapped in. Excellent writing with a message about friendship and love.

I don't usually read anthologies because either I think the stories don't have enough plot to them or they're really good and I wish they were a full book, but I'm glad I picked this one up. The stories all center around wishes, some for good and some for bad. Most of them also have POC and LGBTQ main characters which made me really happy!

I've read a lot of these authors and it was fun seeing what they came up with. Some of the stories, like Cristal y Ceniza and Longer Than the Threads of Time I would love a full book of. They have such strong beginnings and I need more! Others are kind of sad and The Coldest Spot really shook me. Climate change is real and seeing a future of what could happen is scary.

This is definitely worth reading, each author brings a unique view to the wish theme. The diversity is also amazing and I thank the authors for their characters.

I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

I absolutely love anthologies and this title was a true joy to read. I love anthologies so much because it is fun to read just quick snippets of stories and discover authors you wouldn't have found otherwise, which this definitely did for me! I can't wait to find more stories by each of these authors. While not all the stories blew me away, the ones that did were AMAZING! I loved that this collection had stories from authors' series and has given me peak into those worlds enough that I can't wait to pick up their stories! The diversity and LGBTQ+ representation in these were stories were the biggest reason for wanting to read and I was not disappointed. I wish more stories had this representation and am now on the hunt for more from these authors and this kind of representation! Thank you NetGalley and Random House Children's for the advance e-copy of this title!

I'm not going to lie, I generally don't read too many short stories or anthologies, but I was immediately drawn to this collection after reviewing the list of contributing authors! In general, this is a very well-rounded collection and I definitely believe everyone who picks this up will find at least a story or two to add to their favorites. Were they all my favorite? No, but I enjoyed reading them and getting the opportunity to sample some new authors.

I highly suggest everyone try out this collection as I truly feel like it's a wonderful collection! My only negative is just with Libba Bray's story, and that is purely because I want there to be more so I can dive back in to Gemma Doyle's world (loved that series growing up so it is purely a bias lol).

I LOVED this anthology. Short story anthologies are generally hit or miss with me, and I tend to be very picky about them. But this one I absolutely loved Every. Single. Story. I don't know if it was the focus on diversity, but every story was so fresh and new and bold.

I haven't read a Darker Shade of Magic, but it's definitely moved up my list after the background story in this volume. It's been years and years since I read the Gemma Doyle books, but I was immediately sucked into the related story and actually was shocked out of the book, blinking, when it ended and I remembered that I was reading a story in an anthology and not another full novel. I would definitely read a full novel about Gemm and her friends after the original trilogy.

For that matter, I would read an entire novel about pretty much all of these stories and will be searching out full novels from all of its authors.

I absolutely love anthology novels, so I was very excited to start this one. Featuring several of my favorite authors and new-to-me authors, I was very eager to see what the authors all came up with. For the most part, I was not disappointed and was able to find joy in each story. However, there were some stories that I definitely cared less for, due completely to my own personal preferences.

I could make this review super long and review each short story on it’s own, but for the sake of the average blog-reader’s attention span, I won’t. However, I have a ton of notes, so I might do dedicated reviews for each story and link them all together in one big master post. Let me know what you’d think about that! I think it could be a fun way to pay tribute to each of these authors and their respective stories.

Anyway, as a whole I really enjoyed this anthology. I loved that I could read it in any order I wanted, whenever I wanted. I immediately skipped to the story The Silk Blade by Natalie C. Parker, as I was so excited to see what she had written. I found that most of the stories were quite interesting and compelling. A few were spin offs or origin stories of other characters, who I didn’t really feel invested in. Also, since there were a variety of different authors, some of whom I had never read before, I wasn’t completely sold on some writing styles, but that’s totally just a personal preference. The stories were all very interesting and different, and I liked how they all approached the general theme of wishes in a variety of different ways.

I think that this book would make a great gift for YA readers who love any of the authors featured in this anthology. I think that even reluctant readers might be able to find a newfound love for reading in this anthology, due to its amount of diverse representation! I’ll give the anthology as a whole 4/5 stars, with individual reviews to come!

Actual Rating: 4.5 stars

A Universe of Wishes is a YA fantasy short story collection featuring some top notch stories and a well-curated array of diverse voices. It's among the better such anthologies I've read even if there were a few weaker tales. Here are some standouts:

The eponymous story from Tara Sim (A Universe of Wishes) is a darkly charming tale following two boys in a world where magic lives inside people even if most of them don't know how to use it. One boy works for a funeral parlor, the other steals magic from the dead.

In The Silk Blade by Natalie C. Parker we get a vividly described world with a very different approach to understanding gender as our main character competes for the hand of royalty. It's engaging, whimsical, and ends perfectly.

In The Scarlet Woman by Libba Bray, we get a return to the world of Gemma Doyle! As a longtime fan of her earlier series I loved getting to revisit those characters, although it's a very unsatisfying ending that leaves many questions unanswered. Perhaps we might get a new book in the series?...

Liberia by Kwame Mbalia is an absolutely fantastic sci-fi story that centers African heritage, and I would LOVE to see him write a full-length novel set in the world he has created! It's intriguing with interesting characters and a story I want to know more about.

If you're a fan of ADSOM by V.E. Schwab, then get ready because we get the origin story of Rhy and Alucards relationship! It's heartbreaking but so very good.

The Takeback Tango by Rebecca Roanhorse is another great sci-fi story that tackles colonization and cultural appropriation. The main character is on a mission to steal back religious artifacts stolen from her people.

Dhonielle Clayton brings us an unsettling story in The Weight where a teen couple are going to have their hearts weighed to determine how much they really love each other. But do you really want to know the truth?

In Unmoor, Mark Oshiro explores the intersection of memory, heartbreak, and place through magic that can remove memories. It's emotionally compelling and really captures the ways that memories of small moments can hurt, and can be triggered by specific locations.

In The Beginning of Monsters Tessa Gratton weaves a fascinating, futuristic world that takes body augmentation and genetic manipulation to whole different level with warring factions and a forbidden romance.

Zoraida Cordova reimagines the story of Rapunzel in modern day New York City. It's set in the world of the Brooklyn Brujas series and doesn't end the way you might expect....

Clearly, I was a fan of most of the series and found it to be a very strong collection. Definitely worth a read if you like anthologies! I received an advance copy of this book for review via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

I have to say I enjoyed every story. The writing from each individual author were amazing and absolutely beautiful. If I had to pick just one I would have to say A Royal Affair because V.E. Schwab is my favorite author and I will forever support her and read anything that she has published. I can’t wait to get my hands on a physical copy to add it to my collection.

Wishes, they look different for each person who holds one but they each exude the same emotion: hope. In this YA anthology edited by Dhonielle Clayton, A Universe of Wishes gives us 15 tales tied in the plurality of the natural human desire to find happiness on the other side of hopelessness. This tome hosts a bevy of accomplished authors from The Plot Thickens frequent, Rebecca Roanhorse, to friend of BGC Mark Oshiro, to V.E. Schwab.


With wishes, you are guaranteed to run into pleasant and not-so-pleasant surprises and A Universe of Wishes delivers its own delights by offering up vignettes into the pre-existing universes of V.E. Schwab’s and Zoraida Córdova’s A Shade of Magic and Brooklyn Bruja series via the stories, “A Royal Affair” and “Longer Than the Threads of Time” respectively. While the latter is more a loose tie-in, the former is situated thoroughly within Red London with one of the series’ central characters. Those familiar with A Shade of Magic’s universe will be happy to join our favorite noble pirate, Alucard Emery, in his darkest hour — his banishment from his familial home and the lead up to his bad breakup with Prince Rhy. A story more about being forced to work contrary to one’s wishes, this tale is more about the dark side of the power of wishes. Córdova’s “Longer Than the Threads of Time” gives Rapunzel a New York City twist as inquisitive brujo Fabían Macías unravels the mystery behind who has been imprisoned in Central Park’s Belvedere Castle for the past five decades. What he learns is that some mysteries are perhaps better left uncovered, even if your heart calls you to fulfill someone else’s wish. Romantic love is also central to Nic Stone’s “Dream and Dare” and Mark Oshiro’s “Unmoor.” Stone’s works within the theme of fairytale reimagining similar to Córdova’s and Anna-Marie McLemore’s stories. Oshiro’s gives strong Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind and “White Christmas” episode of Black Mirror – but magic – vibes.

Not every story in this anthology includes a love interest, as Kwame Mbalia’s “Liberia” and Samira Ahmed’s “The Coldest Spot in the Universe” revolve around the granting of dire last wishes. Both stories are set in post-apocalyptic futures where the Earth as we know it is no longer viable for human life due to human folly. In “Liberia,” we follow a spaceship crew of teenagers selected by their society in a last ditch effort to carry on humanity once the world has become uninhabitable. The protagonist, Kweku, is the ship’s agricultural expert and worries over making sure the plants he cultivates survive to feed the next generation. Feeling the importance of this duty is a major motivator for his protectiveness over his crops when the ship runs into emergencies, but the love he feels for his grandmother and family members who have trained him in this work drives him most. This story brings up a lot about legacy being the fulfillment of our ancestors wishes through the sacrifices they made to make sure their descendants would live on. “The Coldest Spot in the Universe” hits the same thematic harmonies as we read entries made by two different girls from two different times with the same name. One exists in the aftermath of a great climate tragedy, slowly enduring in the days the human population of the world dies off, while the other ventures to Earth on an exploratory mission to learn more about this civilization centuries later. As the explorer gains direct insight into the world left behind, she learns more about the other girl and finds the opportunity to bring her wish to life.

Wishes. Love. Danger. Each story in A Universe of Wishes seems to reinforce that to explore a wish means to court danger. Beside the stories I mention above, Tara Sim’s “A Universe of Wishes,” Natalie C. Parker’s “The Silk Blade,” and Anna-Marie McLemore’s “Cristal y Ceniza,” throw us into hit jobs, betrothal tournaments, and elitist viper pits. In fact, this anthology yields so many intriguing stories featuring diverse depictions of gender, ethnic, and sexual orientation that I found myself enjoying a higher ratio of stories in this anthology than others that I’ve read.

First I want to say thank you to Terminal Book Tours, NetGalley, and Random House Children's Crown Books for Young Readers for the e-ARC of this book in exchange for participation on this book tour and thanks to Terminal Book Tours for picking me to be a part of it. THIS. BOOK. IS. EVERYTHING!!!!!! This collection of stories needs to be in everyone's library like yesterday. Not only are these stories incredibly beautiful they all have diverse characters that we need in ALL stories. Since this is an anthology I will be rating each of these 15 stories and then will have an average rating of those individual ratings for the final book rating.
(5/5) A Universe of Wishes by Tara Sim - This story is heartbreakingly beautiful. There's hidden magic and wishes and blinding hope.
(4/5) The Silk Blade by Natalie C. Parker - I love the world this story takes place in. The imagery is incredible.
(5/5) The Scarlet Witch (A Gemma Doyle Story) by Libba Bray - This story had me wanting more and boy was I excited to learn that these characters are part of a trilogy!!!
(5/5) Cristal y Ceniza by Anna-Marie McLemore - This was another heart achingly beautiful story set in a world that a lot of people still have to live in even to this very day. I hope everyone gets this happy ending someday.
(2/5) Liberia by Kwame Mbalia - This one I just did not get. I was confused for most of it honestly.
(5/5) A Royal Affar by VE Schwab - Set in the world of Shades of Magic, one of my current FAVORITE worlds!! This story absolutely broke my heart for so many reasons. You can also read more about these characters in the Shades of Magic trilogy.
(3/5) The Takeback Tango by Rebecca Roanhorse - I like this one ok. Something about 2 "vigilante" characters finding each other is a cool concept.
(5/5) Dream and Dare by Nic Stone - This was one of my favorite of the whole book! It's hard to say anything without giving it away, but I will say that nothing is what you expect with this story....in a really delicious way.
(3/5) Wish by Jenni Balch - This one was really sad. I've never seen a fantasy story that includes a character like Ariadne.
(3/5) The Weight by Dhonielle Clayton - This one really stuck in my mind. It was also one that I wish wouldn't have ended. I would love to find out what happened next for Marcus and Grace.
(5/5) Unmoor by Mark Oshiro - This one destroyed me over and over.
(4/5) The Coldest Spot in the Universe by Samira Ahmed - Wow. Just wow! A scary look into what we have done and are doing to ourselves.
(2/5) The Beginning of Monsters by Tessa Gratton - This was really creepy but another I had trouble following and understanding.
(5/5) Longer Than the Threads of Time by Zoraida Cordova - An incredible twist on a classic fairy tale. I need to know what happens next!!!
(5/5) Habibi by Tochi Onyebuchi - This one got me good. I was in tears for almost the entire reading. It was poignant and eye opening. Definitely a heart breaker.
Overall rating averaged out to a 4 out of 5. I can't wait to pick this book up to add to my ever growing library.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for this review copy of A Universe of Wishes edited by Dhonielle Clayton.
Like many anthologies this collection of young adult fantasy stories is a mix of enjoyable and easy to jump into stories along with ones that felt like you either needed to read previous works of the author or just didn’t work as a shorter length story. There were some standouts that I really enjoyed and look forward to seeing more from that author .
Here are my comments and ratings in order of appearance:

Universe of Wishes by Tara Sim
Orphan teen boy who robs graves to steal the magic out of dead bodies. Finds companionship and help from a boy who works at a funeral home ⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Silk Blade by Natalie C Parker
Girl competes to be the consort of a prince. Finds herself drawn to a fellow contestant. Just okay, insta-love ⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Scarlet Woman by Libba Bray
Girls in late 1800’s NYC are pulled into a mysterious missing person case with magical roots. This one didn’t feel like a story you could go into blind. You need to read the rest of the series. ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Cristal y Ceniza by Anna-Marie McLenore
Cinderella story about a Latina girl who travels to a nearby land to win the heart of a prince and ask for refuge for the same-sex couples that are facing discrimination in her homeland ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Liberia by Kwame Mbalia
Sci Fi space story about a boy who is keeping his ancestors memories alive through the plants he grows on a spaceship. Could see where the author was going with this one but wasn’t really intriguing to me personally
⭐️⭐️⭐️

A Royal Affair by VE Schwab
A man looks back on his doomed affair with a prince as he heads back to London for the first time in years. My favorite story in the anthology and now I want to read this series!
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Takeback Tango by Rebecca Roanhorse
A teenager from a tribe that no longer exists steals her ancestor’s relics back from private collectors and meets an mysterious young man during the heist. Fun.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Dream and Dare by Nic Stone
A story about princesses, girls and dragons. I’m not sure I fully understood this one
⭐️⭐️

Wish by Jenni Balch
A genie in a bottle story
⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Weight by Dhonielle Clayton
Two childhood sweethearts have their hearts weighed to see if they really love each other. Imaginative and thoughtful.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Unmoor by Mark Oshiro
Boy wants to have all his memories removed from a romance that went badly. Relatable.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Coldest Spot in the Universe by Samira Ahmed
Girl stuck in a dying Chicago in 2031 has an interplanetary traveler find the objects and memories she left behind a century later. Haunting.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Beginning of Monsters by Tessa Gratton
High fantasy/Sci Fi that was over my head and I didn’t really understand what was happening.
⭐️⭐️

Longer Than The Threads of Time by Zoraida Córdova
Urban fantasy about a boy from New York that meets a girl trapped in a magical tower in the middle of Central Park. Great twist on Rapunzel.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Habibi by Tochi Onyebuchi
Two young men incarcerated across the world from each other reach across space and time to provide comfort. Beautifully written.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Average of 3.4 stars overall

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for my copy to read and review.

I was super excited about this book when I first seen it because it had some authors in that I really wanted to check out for a while now and not to mention that gorgeous cover on this book! God it's so beautiful! I really can't wait to have a physical copy to see it in person.

I havent had the best experiences with short story collections before so going into this my expectations wasn't that high but I was pleasantly surprised I really liked some of the stories in this but there were a couple that I didnt really care for. One story I didnt even finish because it just couldn't keep my attention at all it was Cristal y Ceniza and the one by V. E. Schwab was a little confusing to me because I've never read any of the books that this short story went along with but it was easy to follow along with and understand what was going even if I was sad and dark. I also didn't know anything that was going on with the Scarlet Woman by Libba Bray story. The world building was great in both V. E. Schwab's and Libba Brays stories but beyond that I was just lost. My favorite short story was the very first one in the book A Universe Of Wishes by Tara Sim. I really wanted it to be longer. I really loved that this was all a fantasy and scifi collection written by inclusive authors. I loved how much diversity was in this book even though that is the point of this book. Some of the representations in this collection you dont find much else where in books and with authors. I feel like everyone would find something they like in this book. Even though I was confused about Schwabs story I really want to read the novels now because it sounds interesting. I love reading about magic. I hope there is more books like this in the future.

What an absolutely amazing anthology! This is a collection of fantasy and science fiction stories written by an inclusive group of authors and starring a diverse cast of characters. With everything from retold fairytales to apocalyptic landscapes, there’s a little bit of something for any young adult reader. While I’ve read some of the included authors before, most were new to me, and these stories were a great introduction to their work.

“Wonder, Thorn realized, was beautiful; it banished what was impossible and made room for belief.”


“A Universe of Wishes” – Tara Sim – ★★★★★

A boy harvesting wishes from the dead, caught by the boy who works at a funeral parlor, offers him three wishes in exchange. I loved the world building and the sweet development of the m/m relationship, plus the resolution on this one is just sheer perfection!

“The Silk Blade” – Natalie C. Parker – ★★★★

Willador, one of three warriors chosen to compete for the hand of the Bloom, heir to Everdale’s throne, has second thoughts after meeting Rabi, one of her fellow competitors. Lots of excitement and fun worldbuilding.

“At last! A proper adventure!”
“Two dead men and a missing Rakshana agent isn’t an ‘adventure,’ Fee. It’s trouble.”
“Trouble is always an adventure.”


“The Scarlet Woman” – Libba Bray – ???

I haven’t read the Gemma Doyle books, so I honestly had no idea what was going on. The worldbuilding seemed interesting, and I liked the byplay between Gemma and Fee, but I was so confused I don’t feel like I should rate this one. Not recommended if you’re not already familiar with the books.

“Cristal y Ceniza” – Anna-Marie McLemore -★★★★★

A gorgeous reimagining of Cinderella with a trans prince and the difference between tolerance and acceptance. I haven’t read this author before, but her books are going straight on to my TBR.

“Liberia” – Kwame Mbalia – ★★★★

What we leave behind is almost as important as what we take with us in this story about teens piloting an aging spaceship to a colony.

“A Royal Affair” – V.E. Schwab – ★★★

Another story where I haven’t read the series, but this one was much more understandable. It’s quite sad and dark, which *waves at 2020* isn’t really to my taste right now, but the worldbuilding was interesting.

“The Takeback Tango” – Rebecca Roanhorse – ★★★★

Loved this one! A teen thief plans a caper to steal back her planet’s artifacts, but there’s a complication. I’d love to read a set of stories about Vi and Val!

“Dream and Dare” – Nic Stone – ★★★

I liked the message behind this one – about girls who don’t fit into the traditional gender roles – but the writing didn’t work for me.

“Wish” – Jenni Balch – ★★★

An imaginative retelling of the genie myth, but this time in… spaaaaaace. Honestly, this one just fell a little flat for me.

“But she chose to believe the world would be better if everything had its place and every question had its answer, like pairs of matching socks. So she could prepare.”


“The Weight” – Dhonielle Clayton – ★★★★★

A young couple is preparing to undergo a medical procedure that will tell them who they love and how much they love them. Dhonielle Clayton writes stories that are amazing in their own right and then absolutely roiling with meaning under the surface.

“Unmoor” – Mark Oshiro – ★★★★★

The world building in this one was exquisite. A teenager employs a magic service to help ease his heartbreak. It sounds like a great idea, except, well, there are always trade-offs, aren’t there?

“The Coldest Spot in the Universe” – Samira Ahmed – ★★★

I was all-in on this lyrically sad intertwined tales of an alien civilization investigating Earth many years after global warming destroyed it, and a teenager living through those last days. Then there was a twist at the end – “synchronicity” – that was just too preachy for me.

“The Beginning of Monsters” – Tessa Gratton – ★★★★

Unbelievably imaginative. In a world where bodies can be magically re-architected – adding claws or changing genders – what does being “human” really mean?

“Longer Than the Threads of Time” – Zoraida Córdova – ★★★★

A Rapunzel retelling that stopped much too soon for me! Another author going to the top of my reading list!

“Even though they were rarely about Arabs, and rarely about young Arab boys like me, if I squinted, I could see in the contours of their heroes something of my shoulders and my hair and my hands and feet. If I closed my eyes, I could imagine myself as the main character. And I was a hero who did not destroy things but saved them.”


“Habibi” – Tochi Onybuchi – ★★★★★

Two imprisoned teen boys – one from Long Beach, California and one from Palestine – communicate through magical means. An absolute powerhouse ending to this anthology.

Overall, while some stories didn’t work for me, this was an excellent collection and I’ll definitely be picking up the rest of the We Need Diverse Books anthologies, as well as checking out many of the authors’ individual works. Highly recommended!

I received an advance review copy of this book from NetGalley. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.