Short stories are good for in-between, when you don't want to read a full-blown novel, or don't know which novel to read next, or just want something quick. To ease your mind, for example.

I had acquired the other two books last months, and for reasons of completion, I recently bought the first one, too. One never knows if there are new/unknown authors whose works will be pleasant to read.

[a:Gardner R. Dozois|12052|Gardner R. Dozois|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1247758142p2/12052.jpg] and [a:George R.R. Martin|346732|George R.R. Martin|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1351944410p2/346732.jpg] combined their efforts to compile this anthology (and the other two). Of the seven stories, most of the respective authors are unknown to me, in that I've never heard of them (Carrie Vaughn, Lawrence Block, Megan Abbott, Joe R. Lansdale) or never read anything by them (Nancy Kress) or both.

The stories:

George R.R. Martin - The Princess and the Queen, or, the Blacks and the Greens: 1/5
As it says on the cover, this story reveals the origins of the civil war in Westeros (before the events in A Game of Thrones), which is known as the Dance of the Dragons, pitting Targaryen against Targaryen and dragon against dragon. I haven't read the books yet, but figured this prequel could be a nice foretaste perhaps. Well... no. It's a dry read,albeit well-versed, but too many names, too chaotic. The king is dead, who takes the Iron Throne? Brother or sister, each from separate marriages? Bitch fight, clan fight, ... *sigh*. Obviously, I didn't finish it and won't be reading the books either. Too many other stuff to read. For fans of the series, I guess this prequel is a must-read.

Carrie Vaughn - Raisa Stepanova: 2/5
This one's about two Russian yak pilots in WW2 against Germany. It's a story about determination, perseverance, fighting for your country, for what you believe in. Even in the most dire circumstances. An ok story, though not super, I'd say.

Nancy Kress - Second Arabesque, Very Slowly: 3/5
A short story about beauty in art, even if the world is blow to pieces and everyone struggles to survive. It's the kids that add some light to the darkness, by appreciating the art of ballet, despite severe circumstances and leadership of their pack. However, the old nurse in the group decides then to stand up for those kids, yet has to pay for it, with her life, if need be. The kids can't enjoy their hobby very much, are brought back in line real quick when the pack leader finds out. The kids also serve - well, the girls, at least - as breeding machines. As circumstances are so dire that you don't know who's fertile, men have to take turns with each girl to find out if offspring is possible. Didn't the Swedish band In Flames have a song in that vein? Morphing into Primal?
All in all, not a bad story.

Lawrence Block - I Knew How to Pick 'Em: 1/5
This is exactly why I don't read contemporary novels, or stories about real life. This one takes place somewhere in the US, in a bar or something. A woman steps up to a man, they go to her motel, have (graphic) sex, ... He suddenly understands she wanted him to murder her husband, who did provide her with everything she wanted. But afterwards, it would be HIM who would be dumped, as she would be seeking a new victim to f*** with. So he decided to end it before it happened. Lame story, a waste of ink and reading time.

Megan Abbott - My Heart is Either Broken: 1/5
Another contemporary story, this time about a child being lost. The mother, who also seemed to play games with men (housewife gone hooker?), and the father were interrogated by the police. In the end, all's well that ends well. Or sort of. Totally not my kind of story. It was also a bit too fragmented to properly follow the events.

Joe R. Lansdale - Wrestling Jesus: 4/5
Great story! Seriously. A kid gets bullied, manages to be trained by an 80-year old ex-wrestler. As our kid doesn't have a proper family any more (almost your typical marginal family, parents; no offence, just trying to describe the context), was forced to move into a lousy neighbourhood (dangerous when you're a kid who can't defend him/herself), ... He leaves the house (as there's nothing to gain there any longer) and stays with the old man, who has a fantastic way of speaking (of course, with the occasional 'bitch' and alike). But there's also a woman who dominates two men's minds: his and his former opponent, with whom he fights every five years. He who wins, gets the woman. But our X-Man (the old guy) knows he's better off without her, even if he would fight to have her back. And our kid will play a decisive role to break the spell.

Brandon Sanderson - Shadow for Silence in the Forests of Hell: 4/5
Another good story by Mr. Sanderson. The young child Sebruki being brought up by her aunt Silence (who's an innkeeper), as the child's parents (and other people) were killed not too long ago. But they're still not safe, because of the Shades (don't anger them; move slowly, as if you're just taking a walk), because of Chesterton's gang. Silence and William Ann (her daughter) are bounty hunters, Forescouts. This meant a welcome income, as the inn wasn't so profitable. But luck isn't always on their side. All very mysterious at first, as Sanderson doesn't lay all of his cards on the table, but a nice story, after all.


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As you can see, not really worth the money I spent on it. Only a few likeable stories. Dangerous women? Where? They lived (!) dangerously or were dangerous in a psychological manner, but not as our two authors (Dozois and Martin) led us to believe.

I hope [b:Dangerous Women 2|23435891|Dangerous Women 2|George R.R. Martin|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1413999406s/23435891.jpg|43000941] and [b:Dangerous Women Part 3|24806902|Dangerous Women Part 3|George R.R. Martin|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1422904252s/24806902.jpg|43000942] will have a better balance. To be read... later. ( )

The first subdivision of the Dangerous Women anthology edited by George R.R. Martin and Gardner Dozois is a mix bag of both story quality and the interpretation of the phrase ‘dangerous women’. In seven stories across genres around the central theme of women who are dangerous, a reader is treated to see women in various ways only but is also forced to figure out if the women presented or alluded to are actually dangerous.

Of the seven stories featured in Dangerous Women 1 the three best at presenting both a very good story and dangerous women were Carrie Vaugh’s “Raisa Stepanova”, Megan Abbott’s “My Heart Is Either Broken”, and George R.R. Martin’s “The Princess and the Queen”. Just outside these three was Cecelia Holland’s “Nora’s Song” which had a very good story but was seen from the perspective of a little girl finding out how dangerous her mother is. These four stories were at the very beginning and the last three stories of the collection giving the anthology a strong start and finish.

However, the three stories in the middle suffered from a failure of either not being very good or not having a dangerous woman. Both Megan Lindholm’s “Neighbors” and Joe R. Lansdale’s “Wrestling Jesus” were very good stories, but the danger posed by the women either featured or more mentioned then seen was hard to detect. But the weakest story of the entire collection was Lawrence Block’s “I Know How to Pick’em” which went from having potential to falling flat by the end.

Overall Dangerous Women 1 is a mixed bag of very good stories with strong female characters, just very good stories with no danger attached to any female character, and just plain bad all around. The best that could be said is in the end the reader is the ultimate judge.

Individual Story Ratings
Raisa Stepanova by Carrie Vaughn (4/5)
I Know How to Pick’em by Lawrence Block (1/5)
Neighbors by Megan Lindholm (2.5/5)
Wrestling Jesus by Joe R. Lansdale (2/5)
My Heart Is Either Broken by Megan Abbott (4/5)
Nora’s Song by Cecelia Holland (3.5/5)
The Princess and the Queen by George R.R. Martin (4/5) ( )

I am really very disappointed. I expected that the stories would have women as interesting main characters. Instead many of the stories are about the men that interact with each other because of the women. I assume the novella could be interesting if you know the series it is a prequel to. ( )