THE PROPER THING AND OTHER STORIES - Seanan McGuire


 A collection of short stories (Yay!) from one of the best urban fantasy authors out there? Wonderful!!

I don't read a lot of magazines anymore so I rely on collections and anthologies to get my fix of short fiction. And since I have such a backlog of ARCs, I generally only read books of short stories when I get them as ARCs now. So getting a copy of Seanan McGuire's latest (and only second?!) collection of short works is truly memorable.

There is not a bad story in this bunch. One wouldn't expect there to be, given that McGuire selected the collection, choosing "some of my best stories, and some of my favorite stories, and a few of my weirdest thrown in for good measure. It is the scope of me, and it’ll be a few years before we can do this again."

Not only is there not a weak story here, I can't say that there was anything that stood out above the others - it truly is a marvelous, even collection.

Of course most readers of Seanan McGuire know that she can write in a variety of genres (her writing as Mira Grant is phenomenal) but with these stories we see McGuire spread her literary wings even more. I was particularly fond of the story "Pedestal" in which a superhero, Alice, tries to go about doing an ordinary thing (shopping) when she's accosted. She doesn't want to use her powers but the rude man might be leaving her no choice. I would love to read more in this world.  Really.

One of the best things about a collection like this - a collection by an author whose work you really like - is reading the author's notes about the story; how it was written, when it was written, why it was written, etc. McGuire's notes add to the enjoyment of this collection.

This collection contains the following:

Introduction
"Coafield’s Catalog of Available Apocalypse Events"
"Now Rest, My Dear"
"Mother, Mother, Will You Play With Me?"
"In the Land of Rainbows and Ash"
"Heart of Straw"
"The Levee Was Dry"
"Fresh as the New-Fallen Snow"
"Good Night, Sleep Tight"
"Rise Up, Rise Up, You Children of The Moon"
"Phantoms of the Midway"
"File and Forget"
"Under the Sea of Stars"
"Vegetables and Vaccines"
"Come Marching In"
"Foundational Education"
"Ratting"
"Love in the Last Days of a Doomed World"
"What Everyone Knows"
"Belief"
"So Sharp, So Bright, So Final"
"Sweet as Sugar Candy"
"On the Side"
"Pedestal"
"The Proper Thing"

Looking for a good book? Seanan McGuire's collection of short stories, The Proper Thing and Other Stories, is an outstanding mix of fiction. McGuire fans will definitely want to read this, but this will be enjoyed by any fans of short stories and fantasy readers.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.

4-1/2 stars

* * * * * *

The Proper Thing and Other Stories

author: Seanan McGuire

publisher: Subterranean Press

ISBN: 9781645241928

hardcover, 512 pages

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