Shards & Ashes by Various Authors

This is my TBR review for Shards & Ashes by Various Authors. Since it is a short story anthology, I will post my Goodreads update reviews and maybe a little more, as well as a rating here for each individual story. Then I will average the ratings for an overall book rating. Enjoy! :)

Hearken by Veronica Roth

**** */* (four and a half stars)

I loved this story! I really wish it was longer, because it was so enjoyable, and also because I wanted much more information about the world and the bombings. That said, I was captivated by the story and the idea. I could sympathize with the main character and the choices she had to make. I really want this story to be expanded into a novel!

Branded by Kelley Armstrong

**** (four stars)

I really enjoyed this story! I found it very entertaining, though found it difficult to see any development in Priscilla's character. The world was more developed than the previous one (Hearken), but I still wanted to know why our world (the "Old World" as they refer to it) was destroyed. Good story though!

Necklace of Raindrops by Margaret Stohl

** (two stars)

The premise and idea was awesome, with the thought that your life could be "spent". That said, the format and writing style was very weird. I didn't like the three random perspectives... It kept switching between third and first person. The writing style was choppy and therefore made it hard to read as a coherent piece. I didn't feel like anything really happened. 

Dogsbody by Rachel Caine

*** (three stars)

I liked it! I actually would've liked to see the concept spanned out over the length of a real book though-- There was just so much more I wanted to know and discover. The ending felt very rushed, as if it was trying to wrap everything up and end on a resolution without leaving anyone hanging-- but couldn't waste pages doing so. Overall I did really like the story itself and characters for the most part though. 

Pale Rider by Nancy Holder

* (one star)

This story was very... odd. To be honest I really couldn't get into or connect to the story at all. I still am very confused at many things and felt like everything happening was just so random. At the end, new information is thrown at you which was very overwhelming as well.

Corpse Eaters by Melissa Marr

**** (four stars)

This story was good too! The idea was really creepy and cool, and I loved the action and backstory. However, there was one thing that I found very shocking in a strange way-- Spoiler! When she stabs her dad. How could she just do that. Wow. Just... no. Spoilers over. I also would've liked more background on how the Nidos took over.

Burn 3 by Kami Garcia

**** */* (four and a half stars)

Burn 3 was awesome! I really liked the idea and I was thoroughly entertained, though I wanted more background on how the Burn happened. I really liked Phoenix, and understood how she felt having to carry so much weight on her shoulders. The most important part of this story was that I could imagine the world and felt enraptured in the story-- I cared. 

Love Is a Choice by Beth Revis

**** (four stars)

I really enjoyed this story, though felt a little confused having not read Across the Universe. It was kind of cheating in a way, since it was set on the spaceship Godspeed, rather than a different world like the eight other authors. That being said, Revis is a very talented author and I could tell that from this story. It was very entertaining. One character was very contradictory though-- It describes her as being innocent, but later the narrator says that she has always had that fire in her eyes, while before he describes her eyes as big and innocent. Overall though, very good. 

Miasma by Carrie Ryan

* */* (one and a half stars)

Mrahhhhh. What do I say about this story. Insta-love? I personally didn't enjoy this story too much. The idea behind it (plague/illness) is very popular right now so I didn't find it extremely original or interesting. The main character annoyed me greatly

Overall, I was disappointed greatly by three of the stories, but enjoyed the others and even loved a few. According to my calculator, it results in about a 3.1 star rating, so averaged out, a 3 on Goodreads. However, I did really enjoy a lot of the stories and feel my thoughts on the book are closer to a 4-star rating.

Hope you enjoyed this review! Thanks for reading. :)