A review by frogsarelovely
Trigger Warning: Short Fictions and Disturbances by Neil Gaiman

5.0

Another incredible short story collection from Gaiman. I love the diversity of the stories, from Doctor Who to David Bowie. It's really amazing just how successfully diverse a writer Gaiman is. His writing truly makes you think, and I'm inspired to write my own short stories. I enjoyed this as much as Smoke and Mirrors, and I can't wait to read Fragile Things at some point!

Here are some unprofessional sounding notes on my favourite stories from the anthology (I made them as I was going along):

The Case of Death and Honey – Sherlock Holmes story, so awesome. I loved the ending.

The Man Who Forgot Ray Bradbury – Very sad and I love all the references to Bradbury's stories.

Click-Clack the Rattlebag – Really creepy and I loved the twist. (I actually had a dream about this the night after reading it... it was pretty gross and scary).

An Invocation of Incuriosity – Really interesting time travel story, I love the worlds created in such a short story. Very magical.

Nothing O’ Clock – A Doctor Who short story, yaaaaaaaaaassssssss! I want to read more Doctor Who books. I really enjoyed that. It really embodied the feel of Doctor Who (I wouldn’t expect any less from Gaiman). It was a great story and fit well together.

The Return of the Thin White Duke – A short fantasy story about David Bowie?! – I loved it before I even realised the MC was Bowie/Stardust?, so its freaking awesome.

The Sleeper and the Spindle – Very cute, good strong fem characters, the queen is totally badass. Plus I liked the cross-over of fairy tales between Sleeping Beauty and Snow White.

In Relig Odhrain – This was reeeally cool, well written with gorgeous and grim imagery. Tells the story of St Columba and St Oran of Ireland. Really enjoyed.

Black Dog – Love that it’s set in English countryside, Gaiman has really captured the feel well. I loved this story. It was great to get back with Shadow Moon, it had the same great feel as American Gods. I loved the extra beliefs and settings we were introduced to, and it was a great mini story with an intriguing plot. I definitely want to read the other American Gods short stories! This might have been my favourite story in the anthology.

Also the end interview suggests another American gods novel!