"You are one of the Makers who dreams the world, and the reflection of that dreaming is the place in which we live."

I really enjoyed reading this collection of short stories that are set in the amazing worlds that the incredibly talented Anne Bishop has created. It includes stories from her earliest writings, the Realms of the Blood and her darker fairy tale retellings, as well as stories from the Landscapes of Ephemera and the world of The Others. I loved that it included a holiday story for Simon and Meg and dearly enjoyed getting to visit with my favorite courtyard again. I also enjoyed the fairy tale retellings. Altogether, these stories were a great way to showcase Anne's talent and I will definitely be reading more of her book series. Thank you, Netgalley for giving me the ARC.

This absorbing collection of short stories by Anne Bishop ranges from horror and fairytales-with-a-twist to fantasy and science fiction. Delighted fans will find Black Jewel, Ephemera and The Others stories included. The new story "Home for the Howlidays" has Simon Wolfgard and other Lakeside Courtyard neighbors working together to forestall Meg Corbyn’s blood prophecy and bring everyone home for the Howlidays. "Friends and Corpses", the other new story in the collection, drops you into a community where corralling new zombies is normally a routine, if messy, job. Deceased Reclamation Officer Cecily Blanque arrives at the scene of a multiple homicide but trying to get her honorary aunt, the most cogent of the ADP (Animated Dead People), to tell the truth drags up the cost of bitter rivalry and family deceit. “The Voice” is horror at it’s lingering best as Nalah grows up and begins to discern what The Voice is and why everyone takes her gifts.

In reading Lady in Glass and other Stories by Anne Bishop, I found the overall story collection dark and thoughtful with a wonderful variety of stories. Each story was intriguing, offering little snippets of Anne Bishop’s various worlds. The fairytale stories were completely unlike others I’ve read, offering a different perspective and compelling narratives. Each story in the collection has amazing depth and complexity. I am hard pressed to pick a favorite but can share that while I did love the fairytale stories, the one story that still resonates with me is a unique spin on zombies, in a story full of unexpected turns and an unusual mystery. The last story in the anthology, The Day Will Come, is a powerful story that is the perfect end to the collection.
If you love Anne Bishop and want to collect all her short stories in one place, here is a great way to do so. If you like her work but haven’t read all of the novels yet, this is a wonderful book to pick up with stories that might not require as great an investment in time. I love that I get a beautiful sense of Anne’s writing style and her worlds even if I haven’t read all the novels yet. Most especially the stories are dark and thoughtful, just perfect for lovers of dark fantasy.

I've loved all of Anne Bishop's books, so it's always exciting to pick up a new one. This collection of short stories contains stories from Ephemera, Black Jewels, and The Others, as well as some stories that stand alone. I liked them all, although of course some resonated with me more than others. The takes on fairy tales were suitably chilling. It was fun seeing some of the author's earliest work. And I loved seeing more scenes/stories in series that I've loved and read several times.

But probably my favorite was the last part, subtitled "A Potpourri of Stories". They were thought provoking and I made lots of highlights in this section.

If you like Anne Bishop, or if you don't and want to explore some of her work, this is a great book to pick up. Please note that if you are triggered by violence against women, this may not be the best for you.

The Lady in Glass and Other Stories by Anne Bishop delivered short stories to delight readers. An all new Meg & Simon story and tales from her other series. A wonderful collection that I enjoyed reading over the span of a week.

A collection of new and old short stories by Anne Bishop spanning across some of her beloved series. I admit I grabbed this for the shorts set in THE OTHERS world. I absolutely love the series and own them all in hardcover & audio format.

The Lady and the Glass – a twist on Sleeping Beauty where a town of deformed humans, find a perfectly formed girl sleeping in a glass box after a landslide. A curious tale.
Bear Trap – The story of a young girl who gets herself caught in a bear trap. This was a short story with lessons on kindness and judgement.
Not A Princess – A Rapunzel tale with a delightful twist. A witch doesn’t want to be witchy. She wants to be Princess and devises a plan to get her into the castle. I had a good chuckle with this tale. Go Rachel!
The Weapon – This was a tale about battle, economics and magic. A haunting story that held my attention.
Hotting Fuggam and the Dragon – A man with tales comes to town deflating the spirits of many. A young woman tries to trick him into leaving and gets a surprise. A quirky little tale
Tunnel – A creepy tale about a young woman driving through a tunnel. Reminded me of the tunnels carved through mountains in Pennsylvania.
The Fairy Tales – short message from the author about the tales with warning. All deal with women being taken advantage of by men.

Match Girl – This was a dark tale that ends on a cheerful note for Phoenix. Be warned there is violence and rape.
Rapunzel – A tale about envy and cravings.
The Wild Heart – another version of Rapunzel with Sleeping Beauty twist.
The Fairest One of All – A dark look Snow White. Be careful what you ask the mirror.
Black Jewels – Three short stories from this world. Authors note describes where these take place. I skipped these, as I want to read the series first and was fearful of spoilers.

The Landscape of Emphermera – Author explains beginnings of City of Vision. Set in the series world of Ephemera.

The Voice – I enjoyed this tale about the woman with no voice. This was heavily themed with men taking advantage of women, but also showed us one girl’s strength and determination.
The World of the Others – author explains short stories from THE OTHERS and where they fall in the series.

Home for the Howlidays – A Christmas story about Simon & Meg. Of course I loved it! Christmas comes to the Courtyard, Meg has a vision and Simon wants to get her the perfect gift. Gads I miss this world.
The Dark Ship – This story was previously published and I loved reading it again. When a young girl in a seaside village helps a pony, she ends up saving herself and others.
New Places– Cecily Blanque.

Friends and Corpses – Cecily is a Deceased Reclamation Officer in Neuterville. The water in town has some magical properties. The first, it limits couples from having more than two offspring. The second, the dead sometimes don’t realize they are dead. Cecily and her team need to bring them to the End of Days facility. This story has a murder and hooked me from the start. All I can say is I want more.
Potpourri – A mix of standalone pieces.

The Day Will Come – September 11, 2011 remembrance.
Truth and Story – a clever short about a man who speaks truth, and a woman called story.
Stands A God Within the Shadows– This was a longer tale, and I quite enjoyed it. It’s about a woman held in a tower and a god who stands in the shadows of her prison.
She Moved Through The Fair – This was a clever ghost story.
A Strand in the Web– Loved this one. It had a science fiction vibe, off planet, end of days, survivalist.
I loved this collection by Anne Bishop. Whether you are a fan or new to her works, this collection has a little something for everyone.

Anne Bishop's The Lady in the Glass and Other Stories is a collection of over a dozen short stories, some longer than others, including some never before released short stories for this release. Two brand-new stories include Home for the Howlidays (The Others), and Friends and Corpses (unusual murder mystery). Some of the stories have not been available in decades, including tales that were released in a very limited way, or have been out of print, or were never published at all.

This collection will allow readers to experience a wide variety of Anne's shorter works, including all her very early stories that she wants to share, as well as all the other short pieces that were published over the years, and the two new stories.

The book starts with The Lady in the Glass which was written in 1989. First published in 2am Magazine. After the Great Foolishness, she came to them when the earth shifted one day, an unremarkable occurrence in the times. Men were out hunting and discovered a woman in a glass tube. The debate rages for a long time about what to do before choosing to let her remain isolated.

Bear Trap (2024) Published here for the first time by permission of the author. *The story is about a girl who gets caught in a Bear Trap by a hunter, later escapes, and finds her own happy ending. Not a Princess (2024) Published here for the first time by permission of the author. The story is about a woman named Matilda who decides that she is going to create a princess. Could be a recreation of Rapunzel. The Weapon (1991) First published in 2am Magazine. The story takes place during a war, maybe the Civil War? Hotting Fuggam and the Dragon (1993) First published in Figment. Tunnel (1998) Published in Horrors! 365 Scary Stories. Is there light at the end of the tunnel, or certain doom?

Part II of this collection is called The Fairy Tales. The stories include Match Girl (1995) Published in Ruby Slippers, Golden Tears. *According to the author, this is one of the darkest stories she's ever written, and I will have to agree with her. The story contains physical and sexual violence and torture. Rapunzel (1997) First published in Black Swan, White Raven. Villain origin story. The Wild Heart (1999) Published in Silver Birch, Blood Moon. Sleeping Beauty retelling. The Fairest One of All (2003) Published in Lighthouse Magazine. Snow White retelling

Part II is a collection from the author's Black Jewels series. The stories include By the Time the Witchblood Blooms (2000) published in Treachery and Treason by Laura Anne Gilman and Jennifer Heddle. The story takes place between the end of the Daughter of the Blood and the beginning of Queen of the Darkness. The Khaldharon Run (2024) Deleted scene from Heir to the Shadows was originally published in (1999). The story takes place between sections one and two of Chapter 10. The Price (2004) Published in Powers of Detection edited by Dana Stabenow. The story takes place between the story Kaeleer's Heart in Dreams Made and Tangled Webs.

Part III is from The Landscape of Ephemera with The Voice (2012) First published as an e-book in 2012. Part of Bridge of Dreams (2013).

The World of the Others: Home for the Howlidays (2024) Published here for the first time in any form by the author. This is a Meg and Simon story that takes place a few months after the events in Etched in Bone. "The Dark Ship" (2022) First published in Heroic Hearts by Jim Butcher. This is a story about pirates, vampires, and Elders, and a woman who ends up bridging the gap between humans and others.

Part IV is New Places including a story called "Friends and Corpses" (2024) Published here for the first time. If you like zombie stories, you'll enjoy this one. Cecily Blanque works for a company called Deceased Reclamation. But what happens when she discovers that her own mother and her aunt are not who they claim they are?

Part V is A Potpourri of Stories including The Day Will Come (2001) First published shortly after 9/11/2001. Truth and Story (2005) was part of the author's Guest of Honor speech at Tylacon in Tasmania. Stands a God Within the Shadows (2008) Published in Imaginary Friends. Inspired by a piece of music and the phrase "stands a god within the shadows." She Moved Through the Fair (2012) was First published by ArmadilloCon and Fandom Association of Central Texas. This is a freaky ghost story that spans generations. A Strand in the Web (2002) First published in Orbiter, reprinted in Stranded. The story originated by a quote about humankind being one strange in the web of life. "One Earth, One Chance."

I haven’t read all of Anne Bishop’s books but The Others is one of my favorite series so I knew I needed to read this collection. While there were a few that weren’t great for me (I haven’t read her other big series, so those didn’t hold the meaning they could have), but there were several stories in this collection that amazed me. While not the most amazing or with the best message the new to me Others story was obviously my favorite, but I really loved a couple of the twisted fairy tales (Match Girl and Rapunzel were my favorites). And the final story A strand in the Web was amazing and haunting. A possible future with barely a possibility to hold it together. Altogether this is a lovely collection of stories by a truly talent author who writes about humanity and the monsters and all that ties us together.

Single-author short story collections at their best tend to be somewhat educational as well as entertaining. Sometimes, they're simply a convenient way to bring together stories from a single series that you would otherwise have to hunt and peck to find individually. Other times, as in this case, they're a way to see the progress of the author's skills, to experience an exploration of a variety of themes, and yes, an opportunity to visit with beloved characters. There were several fairy tale-inspired stories in this collection, all with Bishop's dark filter putting a unique twist on familiar stories. While all enjoyable, you could also see the progress of her execution over time. My favorite stories, though, were all the new ones, both those from established series and those that were standalone. In particular, "Friends and Corpses" was a delightful crossover of zombie story and murder mystery.

THE LADY IN GLASS
This first story in the anthology is a take on Snow White. A village of people who have been deformed by some event find a woman ensconced in a glass tomb. She is brought back to their village where the men begin to see her as a vision of supreme beauty much to the dismay of their equally disfigured wives. It causes much consternation as to whether the lady might wake should her glass coffin be opened.

The rest of the stories, some new, others reprints, are as follows:
THE EARLY STORIES
Bear Trap, Not a Princess, The Weapon, Hotting Fuggan and the Dragon, Tunnel
THE FAIRY TALES
Match Girl, Rapunzel, The Wild Heart, The Fairest One of All,
BLACK JEWELS
By the Time the Witchblood Blooms, The Khaldharon Run, The Price
THE LANDSCAPES OF EPHEMERA
The Voice

THE OTHERS

HOME FOR THE HOWLIDAYS

This Simon and Meg story takes place a few months after ETCHED IN BONE. Meg had been traumatized by the events at the end of that book because of what Monty’s evil brother did to her sensitive, vision seeing skin. Flashes of visions and other stressful events worry not only her, by her mate, Simon, and the terra indigene who care about Meg. As the Winter Solstice approaches, Simon is learning what exploding fluff balls aka the female pack expect in the way of gifts from their mates. On a more ominous note, not all the HFL troublemakers have been rounded up; there have been attacks and worse against the police. Monty and Karl go on a mission that might just turn deadly without a little help from their Other friends. Fans of this series will be thrilled to be back in this world with their favorites, especially Meg and Simon.

DARK SHIP

This World of the Others story takes places in Ms. Bishop’s version of the Mediterranean Sea. A young Intuit woman, Vedette, whose fishing village who is brutalized by a man, essentially a pirate, and she by family as well, makes a decision to protect and save those most vulnerable at personal cost. She aids a terra indigene pony and is eventually helped by a Sanguinati sea captain, Corvo, and some very scary Elders. This story has some very dark elements of women used and abused reminding me of Ms. Bishop’s other long running series.

NEW PLACES

Friends and Corpses

A POTPOURI OF STORIES

The Day Will Come, Truth and Story, Stands a God Within the Shadows, She Moved Through the Fair, A Strand in the Web

This collection includes several of the author’s works, series, and standalones. Fans of the Others series will be quite pleased to have a new story for Simon and Meg while those who also enjoy the Black Jewels will be happy to have some new additions. As often with Ms. Bishops writing, some of the tales are very dark, often violent, and always thought provoking.

The lady in glass and other stories is a short story collection by Anne Bishop that is broken up into five sections the early stories, fairytales, black jewels, the story of the others and a potpourri of stories. While reading these short stories I found Ann Bishop has a way of ending every story with a twist and although it is rare to have a short story collection with so many surprising endings in every story be a class act but that was the case with this collection. There’s a short note at the beginning of the section she also has short stories in here that correlate with her which in vampire book series and although I have never read those books I absolutely enjoy the short stories. Whenever reviewing a short story collection I always pick my favorite story and in this one there were two. The first one is Truth And Story it was a really quick story that was so cute, then secondly there was She Walks At The Fair. It was a ghost story and a murder mystery and although it was hard for me to pick my favorite in this collection especially with the great Rapunzel and the title story and many others those are the two that stood out to me I am sure if you read it you’ll have your own. If you love magical realism Syfy and all the goodness that genre has to offer including fairytales the you absolutely love this book, I certainly did! I want to thank Berkeley publishing and Net Galley for my free arc copy please forgive any mistakes as I am blind and dictate my review.

This is a collection of short stories ranging from fairytale, to fantasy . Some of the tales were interesting and some I didn’t care for.
The best story in the book in my opinion is “Home for the Howlidays,” Here we get to catch up with Meg. and Simon.. I would love to have more stories of the courtyard and World of the Others. The characters are very captivating, and the storyline is very intriguing..
Also another one that I enjoyed reading was “Friends and Corpses “its a murder mystery.
This was different for me but so quirky I really enjoyed reading it.

I receive a free ARC from NetGallery for my honest review.

The Lady in Glass and Other Stories is an anthology of a collection of short stories written by Anne Bishop throughout her career. Anne Bishop is a master in creating wonderful fantasies, which I have loved them all. Some of these stories are previously published or unpublished tales from her fantastic fantasy world of amazing books; which include my favorites, Black Jewels, Ephemera, and the World of the Others. Two brand-new stories include Home for the Howlidays (The Others), and Friends and Corpses (unusual murder mystery).

Some of the collections were very short from her early days, and others were longer; such as from Realms of the Blood, Fairytales, Landscapes of Ephemera and the World of The Others. Of course, my favorites were from Black Jewels and The Others, though I have loved everything she has written.

Black Jewels has always been my go to all-time series (I never have enough from this series), and every time Anne gives us a new book, I cannot wait to savor it. I loved reading more or reminding me of these two additions. It was wonderful to read more about Jaenelle, Lucifer, Daemon and Surreal.

Home for the Howlidays was a wonderful new addition to The Others, as this took place after Etched in Bone. I loved seeing Meg Corbyn, Simon Wolfgard, and all our favorites from this series; it was so much fun to read. I'm would love to have more from the Courtyard and the World of the Others. The Dark Ship was also very good, with everyone, including the elementals trying to save two officers, as the Elders are creating havoc to stop the evil humans from killing.

Friends and Corpses is one of the new stories, which is a murder mystery, with corpses remaining alive for a short time. It is an unusual story, with solving the mystery, as well as the police controlling these zombies, it was actually good, but very different.

As noted above, I am a big fan of Anne Bishop, loving all of her series, as she is a master at creating wonderful unique fantasy worlds. I look forward to what she gives us next. If you are a Fantasy lover, I wholly suggest you read anything by Anne Bishop.

A fabulous and fun set of short stories by Anne Bishop.

I needed to have this books as soon as I saw there was a Simon/Meg story from The Others series. It turned out to be a very, very short holiday-themed story of Meg’s first Winter Solstace celebration.  As it is her first, it especially important to Simon, as her new mate, to make sure he made it special for her.  The sad part is it was way too short, more like a treat an author might post on their blog. The interesting part is that we see Meg post Etched in Bone and beginning shortly after her rescue and abuse. We see the effects of the improper cuts by her captor and how it has messed with Meg’s Cassandra Sangue abilities-- as we find that Meg is often dragged helplessly into prophecy and stands around mumbling to herself. Simon is heartbroken that he needs to assign Nathan to drive her around the courtyard for her deliveries since she has blanked out behind the wheel. He hates that he has been forced to steal some of her new found freedoms.  As much as I enjoyed our other glimpse into the World of the Others, I do wish we could go back to the courtyard and spend more time with our friends there.

The Dark Ship is the next story from the World of the Others series.   Here we see what is happening across the sea from the Courtyard in Cel Ramano after the happenings of the Human First and Last Movement and after the Others sanctioned humans moving about this area of the world.  While Dett doesn’t know for sure that she is an intuit, she does get feelings with regard to the sea.   Since it is nearly impossible for humans to get around, this area is now  subjugated by Captain Star and his crew and anyone going against them is subject to their punishment, including death.  Regardless of the risk, Dett gets a feeling one morning and arrives at the beach to fund a chubby, blue pony caught in one of the Captain’s nets. She frees the pony who promptly disappears into the sea.  Dett pretends ignorance when the Captain’s men come calling but she knows she probably won’t get away with it.  She is approached by the sanguinati who comes asking his own questions and leaves a gift of assistance from the terre indigene.  A gift which might be the only thing that can save Dett and her friends from being sold by pirates.

Friends and Corpses is a standalone short story featuring Cecily Blanque who works as a  Deceased Reclamation officer or corpse chaser in the town of Neuterville. A town known for their water which #1 only allows you to have two children and #2 slows the decomposition after death which means ADP (animated dead people) might not realize right away that they are dead and have to be rounded up and brought to a End of Days Facility to live out their last few days in a contained area.  This was a very creative story as people can still be up to no good, post-death.

There was a Potpouri of Stories at the end, including A Strand in the Web, an interesting one where a civilization was tasked to re-establish planets where life had died. They had to do this as atonement but for or what? Maybe destroying life on their own planet?  Maybe a foreshadowing of our own future?  It is told by  Willow, a student in training to become a Restorer.  She explains how the ecosystem needed to be balanced and how it collapses if not built properly.  We also see that petty jealousy and rivalry have not died out in the future as it is Willow's own team working against her and destroying the fragile ecosystem they are trying to rebuild.   But as part of their atonement, they aren’t allowed to go down to any of the planets they rebuild and enjoy the feel of the wind blowing or touch the plants or animals they have established.   And when their ship begins to malfunction, they are in a race to finish creating life on the planet before life ends on the ship

There is also a collection of twisted fairy tales; some with a HEA, and some that left us  guessing.  Interesting enough when these stories are read one after the other, you can't help but notice that the vast majority of these stories focus on the idea that men just speak honeyed words to get you in bed and then leave when they get bored, someone better comes along or as soon as she gets pregnant.    There is definitely a statement being made here.

Finally, there are three Black Jewel short stories which I haven't read yet as I haven't started that series yet.  I will wait and read them where she indicates they come up in that series.

THOUGHTS:
This was a great collection of stories each bringing something different whether it is sweet, or thought provoking or simply disturbing.  There is so much difference between these stories, I forgot they were all Anne Bishop and not just another anthology featuring different authors.  Regardless, each story was very entertaining on their own.

THE LADY IN THE GLASS is an Anthology of Author Anne Bishop's short stories written throughout her career including both previously published and unpublished tales from both old and new worlds. This collection of work ranges from the very dark retelling of well-known fairy tales to horror to sci-fi to fantasy.

Fans of Bishop's The Others award winning series will be ecstatic to discover a new story taking place after Etched In Bone and featuring Meg Corbyn, the blood prophet and Simon Wolfgard, the shapeshifter in "Home for the Howlidays. Friends to Corpses will appeal to zombie fans as well as fans of police procedurals in a world where the police are tasked with controlling the zombies.

Author Anne Bishop is a master at bringing fantasies to life - from the very darkest to the scariest to the heartwarming. I found it interesting to read some of her earlier writings and hear from the author herself about her progress in her writing journey. From Realms of Blood and fairytale retellings to stories of space exploration with its' unique creatures, the evolution of the author's work is evident.

Fans of Author Anne Bishop will want to grab this collection and settle in for an entertaining afternoon of reading. While every story isn't for everyone, there's something here that will appeal to readers of various genres of fiction. Bishop's work is unique and magical with a tendency to skate on the dark side just like, I suspect, the author herself. Highly recommended.

If you are an Anne Bishop fan, you have to read these stories. If you are new to Anne Bishop's excellent writing, this book is one of the best ones you could read. It is a sample of her writing skills as she matured and expended her skills. She will quickly become a followed author that you'll recommend over and over.

I'm here for The Other universe♡

It's full of wonderful characters and scary monsters.

I love the small town feel of it, the friendships, the smart and witty dialouges, and the unique creatures that are part of this universe.

There is no other series like this.

Scary monsters that balance good and evil.

Actually, these monsters have the last word about how humans live. And they don't care if humans die and in some instances get eaten. It's such an interesting and unique concept. A universe were humans are not the biggest predators, and someone else decides over life and death.

The author's stories are about the few humans that have found a way to live and coexist with the monsters, made friends and even formed relationships.

When I read the two The Other novellas, “Home for the Howlidays” and "The Dark Ship" I got the biggest urge to re-read some of the books again. I miss these characters so much and really hope that the author decides to write more full novels in this universe.

I'll be the first to buy them.

I got this for World of the Others stories, and I was not disappointed. I've been hoping for more about Simon and Meg and the others in the Courtyard, and "Home for the Howlidays" is a happy little bite of their life after Etched in Bone.
What gift should Simon get Meg...will the exploding fluffballs help or bite him? Will Skippy be allowed decorate cookies with the other children? Will Meg's vision prevent a tragedy in the police force? I loved this story and the scene of comfy home time for Simon and Meg at the end. I'm so very hopeful there will be more from the Courtyard and the World of the Others.
I also took a look at "Friends and Corpses". I am not usually a zombie fan, but I really enjoyed this police procedural look at a society that has to police its zombies. I haven't read the other stories yet, but based on these two, I know I'll find more good stuff.

The Lady in Glass and Other Stories is an anthology of Anne Bishop’s short writing pieces from various times in her career. It’s a bit of a hodge-podge—some are new, some are old, some from existing worlds, others not—connected solely by Bishop as the author.

While I liked all of the stories, what I’m realizing more and more is that I prefer Bishop’ older writing style to her newer works. There’s something about it that draws me in. I thought it was just her most recent books I didn’t love, but seeing the dates of each writing piece in the back of the book, I could clearly predict when each one was written based on how much I enjoyed it. To that end, here is a list of the works in this collection with some keywords:

“Scribere”—Short poem. Reprint.
“The Lady in Glass”—Snow White retelling. Reprint.
“Bear Trap”—Girl gets caught in hunter’s trap. New story.
“Not A Princess”—Rapunzel as an adopted princess. New story.
“The Weapon”—War telekinetic explosion ability. Reprint.
“Hotting Fuggam and the Dragon”—Talkative town guest. Reprint.
“Tunnel”—Title covers it. Reprint.
“Match Girl”—Pheonix. Reprint.
“Rapunzel”—Sold for some lettuce. Reprint.
“The Wild Heart”—Personality-split Sleeping Beauty. Reprint.
“Fairest One of All”—Danger of aging Snow White. Reprint.
“By the Time the Witchblood Blooms”—Surreal assassination. Reprint.
“Khaldharon Run”—Deleted scene; Test of Lucivar’s healing. New story.
“The Price”—Surreal tracking down an assassin. Reprint.
“The Voice”—Eating sorrows. Reprint.
“Home for the Howlidays”—Meg’s first Christmas. New story.
“The Dark Ship”—Others of the sea. Reprint.
“Friends and Corpses”—Reanimated Body Collectors. New story.
“The Day Will Come”—9/11 Reaction story. Reprint.
“Truth and Story”—Anthropomorphized attributes of Truth and Story. Reprint.
“Stands a God Within the Shadows”—Apocolype survivor and remaker. Reprint.
“She Moved Through the Fair”—Fairground Guardian Ghost. Reprint.
“A Strand in the Web”—Restorers of Destroyed Ecosystems. Reprint.

Short stories are always a bit hit or miss with me, but I read pretty much everything that Anne Bishop publishes and so I decided to give this a try. The Lady in Glass is a collection of stories spanning a wide range of genres and giving a great overview of Anne Bishop's development as a writer. There are fairy tale retellings, dark fantasy, horror, sci-fi, and a few stories set in her familiar universes.

Like most short story collections some of these entries hit with me more strongly then others. Some of the stories I loved, some I felt lukewarm towards, and it's always nice to revisit favorite characters from previous books. One of the things that Anne Bishop does best is use her storytelling to evoke strong emotions, and that talent is in full view here. Whether a story creates horror, joy, amusement, discomfort, or a plethora of other emotions, you can always trust Bishop to make you feel something with her writing.

If you like Anne Bishop's other work then you are very likely to enjoy at least many of these short stories. It's interesting to see her development as a storyteller throughout this collection, and it was also nice to see some very different types of stories from her (since all of her series trend towards fantasy, the more sci-fi leaning shorts were particularly interesting to see). If you are already an Anne Bishop fan then I highly suggest picking up this collection. If you are unfamiliar with her work then this might be a reasonable place to start.

Twisted fairy tales, science-fiction, paranormal urban fantasy... this is a collection of short stories were Bishop plays with the tools of her trade, learning how to tell a dark and satisfying story.

Why I started this book: I will request any and all Bishop ARCs that I find on Netgalley.

Why I finished it: Fun to read the various stories were Bishop learned her craft... and explored different genres. I'd tracked down most of these before, but I am thrilled to have them all in one volume. Plus there are two new short stories. Win, win.