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17 stories of difficult love, broken hearts, lost hope, and discarded truths. Love brings pain, vulnerability, and demands of revenge. Hardened Hearts spills the sum of darkness and light concerning the measures of love; including works from Meg Elison, author of The Book of the Unnamed Midwife (Winner of the Philip K. Dick Award), Tom Deady, author of Haven (Winner of the Bram Stoker award for Superior Achievement in a First Novel), Gwendolyn Kiste, author of And Her Smile Will Untether the Universe and Pretty Marys All in a Row, and many more.
Hardened Hearts dips from speculative, horror, science fiction, fantasy, into literary and then out of the classifiable and into the waters of unpinned genres, but pure entertainment nonetheless.
4 out of 5 (very good)
Independent Reviewer for Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
Most of the books I read these days have romance of some description in them. And inevitably, there will be a Happy Ever After. So, it makes to change to read a collection of books that, while following the romance theme, there ain't no hearts and flowers, there ain't no Happy Ever After either. Because, just as much as falling in love can be the best thing that happens to you, it can also be the worst. I didn't read all the stories here, about half I read. The ones I did read were very well written, in various ways from first and third person, and in past and present tense. Some about normal everyday people, some paranormal, some scary, and some were just plain weird. There was one book, that I could not read, that is written in the second person, as in YOU. Very odd. But the one that stuck with me is possibly the shortest one here. Its only maybe 4 pages, but it proper had me bawling my eyes out! It Breaks My Heart To Watch You Rot, by Somer Canon, 4 pages but 5 full stars! It tells the story of a woman whose husband (partner, lover, it matters not) has clearly lost his mind but she still visits, still tells him the car is his, that SHE is his. She takes him out, every Saturday, as he used to do himself. And then she gets the call he is gone. No names are mentioned, just he/she and him/her, but it gets the point across. "Love didn't provide the real happy ending. There is no such thing between two lovers such as them." If you want something a little (and a LOT) different, this one will be for you. If you are feeling very anti-Valentine's, again, one for you. Just don't expect Cupid's Bow to be anywhere around. For the ten books that I read, 4 stars overall, with 5 Stars for the book mentioned.
**same worded review will appear elsewhere**
* A copy of this book was provided to me with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book, and the comments here are my honest opinion. *