four and a half stars. enter this fantasy world of kings, peasants, and monsters, but step carefully, it's a dangerous and complex landscape the author calls Sourdough, maybe because she keeps kneading her dough into something different, rich and strange. her work may be hard to find, but Slatter is the very best at creating new fairy tales in this area of dark fantasy and well worth seeking out. the characters in these short stories here can be read as standalones, but they also eventually come together to form a kind of loose novel that adds new layers and new light to their stories. there's a very insightful intro too by Rob Shearman. ( )

This fantasy book full of short stories has got to be some of the most beautiful that I've ever read, and it's not merely because of the richness of the characters, or of how much thought and careful effort was spent in the crafting of so many different women. Indeed, I don't even love it because so many classic fairy tales were taken by the scruff and were scolded and were transformed as if by magic into things utterly different than their original beginnings, or so altered that we are now living in the boots of the witches, the changelings, the trolls, or even just the women who are normally relegated to the sidelines, but who are now wonderful agents of change and wisdom or even revenge and regret.

I love it because of the language, the brush strokes that got the story out there quick and dirty, how effortless it was to fall into the tales and forget where I was or even the fact that I'm a man, that I'm not truly trying to piece these individual stories together into a much larger tapestry that beckons me closer, asking me to slice open my neck and let it drain the last of my magic so as to step out and breathe in the air of my reality, instead.

Yeah, this fantasy is just that good.

I debated going through each story and pinpointing the legends that Slatter makes her own, quickly, deftly, with no chaff, but Althea Ann has already made a wonderful review doing just that, and she included most of the tie-ins, the sequel-ish stories, and some recurring themes. I could add to it, I suppose, but there's something I should add here: This book deserves to be read, to be experienced for yourself.

I worried, at first, that I was going to be speechless and dumb after reading it. It was just that immersive and wonderful and scary and delightful and haunting.

That being said, I do want to mention a few of my absolute favorites. "Little Radish" was pretty much perfect from conception to first breath. "Ash" was delightfully dark. "A Porcelain Soul" was tragic and beautiful.

And "Sister, Sister" was delightful in every way, turning most tropes on their head and also managing to slip in so many of the MC's of the other stories, so much as to make my eyes shine.

What really makes me upset is the fact that this book is so damn hard to find in print, now, except by kindle.

That's a real shame because the stories are plainly superior to almost all that I've read in the fantasy field. :) ( )

Sourdough and Other Stories by Angela Slatter is a collection of linked short stories — or a mosaic novel — similar to The Bitterwood Bible and Other Recountings, but written earlier and set later in the same world.

As always with Slatter's work, the writing in this book is gorgeous and the stories women-centric. I have to admit, I read it over the course of a several weeks so I lost some sense of continuity. As a result, towards the end I found myself flicking back to earlier stories trying to remember who that character with the familiar name was. I suspect this is partly to blame for my feeling that the stories are a bit less deliberately linked than those in The Bitterwood Bible and Other Recountings. That said, I also think Slatter's writing has improved in the interim.

Nevertheless, Sourdough and Other Stories was a wonderful read. I loved... too many of the stories to list them all. There were only one or two that I didn't absolutely love and, looking over the list now, only one I don't immediately recall from what I wrote about it straight after reading. Overall, a memorable collection that I highly recommend to all fantasy fans. As always, some brief thoughts on each story are below.

~

The Shadow Tree — A woman with a secret and knowledge of herbs punishes bratty royal children, tempting them with fairytales.

Gallowberries — A young witch dealing with losing her mother and finding a substitute. Took me until the end to realise the familiarity of the characters was from a link with the novella Of Sorrow and Such.

Little Radish — An unexpected Repunzel retelling. Really, there was no part of this story that I saw coming.

Dibblespin — Told from the point of view of the daughter of a troll-woman, partly about her half sister and mostly about the strange goings on in their forest and the nearby town.

The Navigator — A different kind of story to those preceding it. Set at sea, featuring a siren who has lost his wings and the one who loves him. A different take on sirens than others I've read.

The Angel Wood — A teenage girl meets her family legacy in a story that put me in mind of the Green Man (but on a smaller scale, maybe).

Ash — A short story of a witch and her revenge. I like how prone to vengeance so many of Slatter's characters turn out to be.

The Story of Ink — A story of a precocious eleven year old and the questionable task she's been set by her master. An unexpected ending which I'm sure is significant but which I don't immediately know what to make of. More part of a whole than a standalone story.

Lost Things — Surprisingly a kind of direct sequel to the previous story. I don't think the two stories should be read separately.

A Good Husband — A story about a water sprite and a woman who sort her help. A story of cleverness and domestic violence, and the jaded sprite's response.

A Porcelain Soul — The story of a girl about to graduate from a doll-making academy. But they don't make ordinary dolls, but rather infuse them with their souls to animate them. Things go wrong when the girls are working on their final projects. Definitely one of my favourite stories in this collection.

The Bones Remember Everything — I saw echoes of a few different fairytales in this one, but none that it was particularly based on (as far as my limited knowledge goes). Not sure what to make of it overall. A bit dire, in a good way as far as story telling goes. A familiar name makes an appearance in the historical backstory section.

Sourdough — A story about a young bread maker. Once I started reading, I was reminded of another story (by a different author) which turned out quite differently. That coloured my reading somewhat but this was still a good, solid, Slatter yarn.

Sister, Sister — A little bit of what happens after the fairytale, when things aren't quite just happily ever after and another fairytale intrudes. Featuring a fallen princess, a troll-wife and chosen family. I quite enjoyed this story as well.

Lavender and Lychgates — A story directly linked with "Sourdough", telling a later part of the same family's story. I was surprised at how many connections there were in this one... One of my favourite stories in this collection.

Under the Mountain — Another sequel, this time to "Sister, Sister", following the daughter's story. I'm not sure I can say more about it without spoilers. An unsettling note to end the collection on.

4.5 / 5 stars

You can read more of my reviews on my blog. ( )

***** The Shadow Tree
An amazing opening to the book... familiar fairytale elements combine in unexpected ways, creating a haunting, eerie and poignant tale.
This cinder-dark Ella, servant in a great castle, sees to the needs of both the king and the queen, and tells strange stories to their two horrible children. But that's not all she'll do...

**** Gallow-berries
This is a 'prequel' to 'And Sorrow And Such' - here we meet the main character of that novella as a young woman who's just lost her mother. Lest you feel too, too, sorry for her, her mother was a witch, so is she, and she's already quite capable of taking care of herself.

***** Little Radish
A retelling of Rapunzel. What if she wasn't forcibly imprisoned in that tower, but was actually there by choice? It can be difficult to come out of your isolation and form connections with other people. It's not a process that can necessarily happen without pain and damage. A story with a strong message of forgiveness and wisdom.

**** Dibblespin
A half-troll girl has a strained relationship with her fully-human sister. Strange magic has been affecting the forest where they live, and things will come to a head when her sister's mother re-enters the picture.

***** The Navigator
A dark and tragic tale: Slaves deprived of their wings, an illicit love affair marred by guilt and inequity. Betrayal and sacrifice. It is both horrible and beautiful.

**** The Angel Wood
When a girl is taken to the home her mother fled before she was born, she must take up the fate that her mother ran away from, and fulfill the responsibilities of the bargain her family made long ago. Here, a destiny that could be horrific is instead bittersweet.

**** Ash
When a woman demands the return of a child that she gave to a witch as payment for her services, she learns that although a bargain can be broken, and a witch can as vulnerable as any other woman, there is a price for her reneging on the agreement.

**** The Story of Ink
A sequel, of sorts, to 'Ash.' A young serving girl obeys her master when he instructs her to find and retrieve his runaway ward. His plans for the runaway involve dark and sinister magics, but the servant is more concerned with her promised reward.

***** Lost Things
Also a sequel to 'Ash' and 'The Story of Ink.' We follow a character who has joined a gang of bandits as cook's boy. However, an accident reveals not only that she is a girl, but that her skin bears a legendary and magical map which is key to retrieving all lost things - perhaps, even the dead.

**** A Good Husband
Bargains that don't work out quite as expected are a recurring theme in this collection. Here a woman violently disfigured by her husband asks a boon. Will the inhabitant of the local lake, a mermaid-like, magical being reputed to grant wishes, make her husband love her?

***** A Porcelain Soul
Wow. This story is strikingly original in so many details - it has to be read, not described. A young woman's greatest ambition is to become a dollmaker. (She studies at a center where the dolls and toys created are infused with the souls of the makers, creating wonderful, almost-living toys.) Her biggest competition for the place she seeks is talented - but has no desire for the career. Unfortunately, she's connected by blood to the head of the studio, and may not be given a choice about what path she is allowed to pursue. Trying to restrict peoples' choices leads to desperate measures - and desperate measures, too often, lead to tragedy.

*****The Bones Remember Everything
A strange voice calling leads a woman to a tower encircled my thorns, untouched for years. Within sits a spinning wheel... and yes, a woman who has 'slept' for years.
You might think this sounds familiar, but the story that is told, and the story that unfolds, will not match your expectations.
Very nicely done, and the details that tie this piece in with others in the collections are an added bonus.

***** Sourdough
When a baker is called upon to demonstrate her wares for a big wedding catering order, the last thing she expects is to fall in love with the groom. But things happen as they will. Although it's an arranged marriage, it's unsurprising (except to the baker) that the fiancee is none too pleased with their affair. The events that transpire will involve curses and revenge. In these stories, there tends to be no 'innocent' party.

**** Sister, Sister
Once a queen, a woman is now reduced to life in a brothel. (A brothel where a remarkable number of characters from earlier stories seem to have ended up.) It's actually not the worst place to live; the woman who runs the place is fair and considerate. But that's not to say that the woman doesn't have plans to leave, or that she doesn't hold serious resentment against her sister, whose lies caused her husband to throw her over and make that sister his mistress.
However, there's more to this story that she realizes... rumors are going around of children disappearing, and this betrayal may have deeper roots.

**** Lavender & Lychgates
Malicious magic has raised a boy from the dead. Reanimated, he believes that the daughter his mother bore after his stillbirth has usurped his place, and that he will somehow regain the love that should have been his if he can only eliminate her.
A sequel, of sorts, to 'Sourdough.'

**** Under the Mountain
This final tale, again, incorporates many of the characters we met in earlier stories. The main character here is the daughter of the once-queen in 'Sister, Sister.' On a quest to rescue a loved one from the troll kingdom, she must face hard truths.
( )