Snow White, Blood Red

Rating:
Summary: You Will See Red if You Waste Your Money on This
Review: Retelling fairy tales we all grew up with is a sensational idea which has been done extremely well. Just not here! In other books yes, but here unfortunately no. The stories in this book do have one thing in common with the original motive of fairy tales. They will put you to sleep. These are some of the most boring low quality stories ever written. Also avoid the books A Wolf at the Door also edited by Ellen Datlow and Fractured Fairy tales by A.J. Jacobs as they are no better than this.

If you do want really good retelling of classic tales rewritten in sensational format buy Once Upon A Crime or Politically Correct Fairy Tales. You will find what you're after in those books. The fairy tale is over success was not achieved here.

Rating:
Summary: Fairy Tales for Grown Ups
Review: The Fairy Tales that we know and love today are a far cry from the original dark tales of twisted love and magical horror. This compilation (and the others in the series) is a look back at how Fairy Tales used to be. Written by modern authors, these tales lack the handsome princes and the innocent princesses. Instead you find infidelity, betrayal, greed, and the lesson learned is as painful as death itself. A reflection upon our darkest times and human weaknesses, these stories will amaze you with their macabre tone. No cartoon characters here, my friends. Only blood and tears.

Rating:
Summary: Fairy tales go a little wrong in _Snow White_.
Review: The first time I read this book, I was quite taken aback by the eroticism that threads thru nearly every story. I later returned to it, prepared, and discovered the treasure between the covers. The adaptions of the fairy tales give you real, flesh and blood characters, surprising twists, and a thoroughly satisfying read!

Rating:
Summary: Wished I stuck to good old fairy tales
Review: The idea of fairy tales for adults sounded interesting to me. I had always loved fairy tales and I've read other renditions of it, including Robin McKinley's "Beauty" and the collection of politically correct fairy tales. If I were to compare, even the latter farce is more entertaining and delightful to read than Snow White, Blood Red.

There are some dark and edgy touches in the collection. Occassionally they work, e.g. in Little Red, the portrayal of the dark thoughts of the "wolf" which is in this case a man, but in others, it fails. I guess their creativity could have been hampered in terms of plot, for it is a re-working of the good old fairy tales that we are so familiar with, but the characters are flat. Absolutely, totally, 2-dimensionally flat. There seem to be little or no development in the stories and it gives me the impression that to these writers, "adult" purely means sex and violence.

I think there could have been more than that, as seen in "Beauty" and "The Outlaws of Sherwood" by Robin McKinley. For anyone interested in an adult rendition of familiar fairy tales and legends that is more than blatant violence and sex, that has plot development, full-fletched 3-dimensional characters, I would recommend McKinley anytime but not "Snow White, Blood Red".

Rating:
Summary: A wonderful collection
Review: The retellings of fairy tales presented here are rich, dark, and adult, inspired by the times when fairy tale princes didn't wake the sleeping beauty with a kiss. Haunting, atmospheric, unforgettable... I cannot recommend this volume too highly

Rating:
Summary: WOW!!!!!!
Review: This book is different from anything else I've read. When I was younger than I am now, I often wondered about how the fairy tale characters had such great adventures but happily ending lives. This book gives you a more satisfying look at some not so happily ending fairy tales. Some of the stories I didn't understand parts of but all around, this book is so fine. Sometimes while reading it, I would pull my face out of the book for a moment and think, "I can't believe someone actually wrote that!!" This book is TFTD!!!! (Too Fine To Define) My friend read this book also and thinks it is sooooooo good!

Rating:
Summary: Wonderful Fairy Tales for Adults
Review: This is not the first book that Datlow and Windling have edited that I have read. The first book of theirs that I bought was "Black Swan, White Raven." I expected this book to live up to the standards set by the first book I read and I was not disappointed. It's a wonderful collection of fairy tales for adults, ranging from dark to poignant to humorous, and were frequently erotic. These fairy tales are much more satifying than the "once-upon-a-time-happily-ever-after" fairy tales that most of us were accustomed to hearing as children. It has a wide range of brilliant authors, each offering a unique perspective to different tales. It is a wonderful, well-rounded book that I was loathe to put down. If you like fairy tales, then this is a *must* for you.

Rating:
Summary: Wonderful Fairy Tales for Adults
Review: This is not the first book that Datlow and Windling have edited that I have read. The first book of theirs that I bought was "Black Swan, White Raven." I expected this book to live up to the standards set by the first book I read and I was not disappointed. It's a wonderful collection of fairy tales for adults, ranging from dark to poignant to humorous, and were frequently erotic. These fairy tales are much more satifying than the "once-upon-a-time-happily-ever-after" fairy tales that most of us were accustomed to hearing as children. It has a wide range of brilliant authors, each offering a unique perspective to different tales. It is a wonderful, well-rounded book that I was loathe to put down. If you like fairy tales, then this is a *must* for you.

Rating:
Summary: the authors try way too hard to be edgy
Review: When I first started reading this book, I thought the premise of giving new twists to old fairy tale was such an awesome idea. But the more I read, the more the stories felt contrived. It was if the authors were trying to come up with something really edgy and hip, and they didn't quite make it. After you read a few stories, you begin to see that all of the authors use sex and violence as a way of "re-telling" the tale. Consequently, all of the stories begin to feel the same. The book is supposed to be new and innovative, but after a few stories it just the same old thing over and over again. I suggest you skip this book.

Rating:
Summary: the authors try way too hard to be edgy
Review: When I first started reading this book, I thought the premise of giving new twists to old fairy tale was such an awesome idea. But the more I read, the more the stories felt contrived. It was if the authors were trying to come up with something really edgy and hip, and they didn't quite make it. After you read a few stories, you begin to see that all of the authors use sex and violence as a way of "re-telling" the tale. Consequently, all of the stories begin to feel the same. The book is supposed to be new and innovative, but after a few stories it just the same old thing over and over again. I suggest you skip this book.