The Social Potato Reviews

Can also be read on The Social Potato.
Dark retellings of Mother Goose rhymes? Well, sign me up, s'il vous plaît! Thank you NetGalley for the copy :)

There are a lot of stories in this anthology written by many talented authors who I applaud for successfully adapting nursery rhymes into dark stories that would keep the readers at the edges of their seats. Not all of them five-star stories, but most are solid four-stars whose elements range from dystopian, horror, and paranormal, among many others. This is definitely a book to read if you're tired of the usual Young Adult novels out there :p

Here are some individual reviews:

1.) As Blue as the Sky and Just as Old by Nina Berry (** / 2 out of 5)
- Short story but it was kinda weird and scattered. I didn't like it very much, despite references of supposed Welsh mythology (not familiar with them, unfortunately...), because the characters were just too queer for me to appreciate. I mean, I like queer people (most of the time?) but the characters here were just too bizarre. A "tracker" who only has a few lines, a girl who can sing mournfully who follows a guy to a motel after a minute of talking to him, the guy the girl followed who tried to rape her later, and a king from hell that transformed into ice... um... okay... o.o I expected the anthology to start strong, but the first story was disappointing and all over the place. Hopefully the next one will deliver :/

2.) Sing a Song of Six-Pence by Sarwat Chadda (**** / 4 out of 5)
- A better story than the previous one. The world portrayed here reeked of despair and anguish, but even with such formidable elements, a mother finds a way to be with her son. A story of love that goes beyond death. Very beautiful =)

3.) Clockwork by Leah Cypess (***** / 5 out of 5)
- Another great story, involving a witch, a king bent on conspiracies, and a princess who had to make a difficult in the end. It was a simple story with quite predictable twists, and a conclusion that may be both sweet and depressing. Despite all that, it was a quick, pleasant read. It would have made a good first story in this anthology.