PARANORMAL PAYBACK - Jim Butcher and Kerrie L. Hughes, editors

Like a lot of urban fantasy readers, I consider myself a fan of Jim Butcher's Dresden Files series. Anything with Jim Butcher's name on it is going to get my attention in the form of reading the book. This is, though, only the second time I've read a collection edited by Butcher and Kerrie L. Hughes (and the last time I did so was nine years ago!), and I was really looking forward to it. Sadly, it didn't quite live up to my expectations, which is doubly surprising not only because the hands of Butcher and Hughes are over everything, but because there are some big names included here.

For my tastes, three stories stood out above the rest.  Two of those were from our two editors, Jim Butcher's "Mister Petty" (a Dresden Files story featuring Goodman Gray ... a monster P.I.) and Kerrie L. Hughes' "The Broom" (which was easily my favorite piece in the book - it's a bit darker, which I really liked).  Probably my second favorite was "A Clean Break" by R. L. King - in which a magician spends the night in a run-down motel the night before Comicon and learns of an old murder in the hotel that has gone undiscovered for a long time.

While I wouldn't classify any of these stories as 'bad' I was surprised that I wasn't excited by more of them.  Authors included here who are known to me include Kevin Hearne, Holly Black, Kim Harrison, and Tanya Huff.

The anthology concept is that our story heroes get what they're due.  Payback. And because of their worlds and situations, that payback is paranormal.  Hence the title. But that also means that many (most?) of these stories feature regular characters created by the authors.  I understand that Harrison's story is connected to the popular 'Hollows' series - a series I haven't read but which should appeal to fans.  But I'd note that even not being familiar with the series, I enjoyed the story ("Dog-Eared" about a demon who's ticked that a magician doesn't take good care of his borrowed spellbooks - most of us can relate, right?).  Yes, I enjoyed the story, it just didn't strike me as outstanding.

A collection like this is good to pass some time, but it isn't something that we are eagerly waiting for.  If you need a physical book to read on the beach or during a commute, this is great. Then leave it for someone else to discover.

This book contains the following:

Introduction by Jim Butcher
Foreword: Move in the Shadows by Kerrie L. Hughes 
"Mister Petty" by Jim Butcher
"The Underground Goddess" by Kevin Hearne
"Dying Isn't Just for the Young" by Holly Black
"A Midsummer Night's Scheming" by Delilah S. Dawson writing as Isla Jewell
"Contained" by Tanya Huff
"Dirt" by Jennifer Blackstream
"Black Bond" by Maurice Broaddus
"Dog-Eared" by Kim Harrison
"Razors and Revenge" by Faith Hunter
"A Clean Break" by R. L. King
"Grave Payback" by R. R. Virdi
"The Broom" by Kerrie L. Hughes

Looking for a good book? Paranormal Payback is a collection of fantasy stories in which our paranormal heroes get what they deserve, edited by Jim Butcher and Kerrie L. Hughes. It is a good but not outstanding collection of fantasy fiction.

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

3-1/2 stars

* * * * * *

Paranormal Payback

editors: Jim Butcher and Kerrie L. Hughes

series:  The Dresden Files (#Mister Petty ), The Hollows, The Iron Druid Chronicles, Jane Yellowrock, Henry Fitzroy (#10.5), Smoke Trilogy (#4.5)

publisher: Ace

ISBN:  9780593816080

paperback, 352 pages 

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