Review: Because You Love to Hate Me, edited by Ameriie

Because You Love to Hate Me, edited by Ameriie

Publisher: Bloomsbury

Publication Date: July 11, 2017

Rating: 4 stars

Source: eARC from NetGalley

Summary (from Goodreads):

In this unique YA anthology, thirteen acclaimed, bestselling authors team up with thirteen influential BookTubers to reimagine fairy tales from the oft-misunderstood villains' points of view.

These fractured, unconventional spins on classics like "Medusa," Sherlock Holmes, and "Jack and the Beanstalk" provide a behind-the-curtain look at villains' acts of vengeance, defiance, and rage--and the pain, heartbreak, and sorrow that spurned them on. No fairy tale will ever seem quite the same again!

Featuring writing from . . .

Authors: Renée Ahdieh, Ameriie, Soman Chainani, Susan Dennard, Sarah Enni, Marissa Meyer, Cindy Pon, Victoria Schwab, Samantha Shannon, Adam Silvera, Andrew Smith, April Genevieve Tucholke, and Nicola Yoon

BookTubers: Benjamin Alderson (Benjaminoftomes), Sasha Alsberg (abookutopia), Whitney Atkinson (WhittyNovels), Tina Burke (ChristinaReadsYA blog and TheLushables), Catriona Feeney (LittleBookOwl), Jesse George (JessetheReader), Zoë Herdt (readbyzoe), Samantha Lane (Thoughts on Tomes), Sophia Lee (thebookbasement), Raeleen Lemay (padfootandprongs07), Regan Perusse (PeruseProject), Christine Riccio (polandbananasBOOKS), and Steph Sinclair & Kat Kennedy (Cuddlebuggery blog and channel).

What I Liked:

I'm not usually one to read anthologies - short stories make me want more, but there is no more, because that's the point of a short story. Why bother getting worked up about it, when you can just not read short stories (or an anthology). Because when I saw this anthology, with so many of my favorite authors contributing, I threw out my usual logic regarding anthologies and jumped at the chance to take a peek in advance. 

These tales of villainy are masterful and incredible. In thirty or so pages, each author has created an intriguing and captivating story that (you guessed it) left me wanting more. But at the same time, when I got to the end of each story, most of the time I was like "no waaaaaay" or "holy guacamole" or simply "OMG!". Each story tended to have a sneakily surprising ending, and the ending was always satisfying (in a twisted way). These are tales of villainy, centered around the villain, and none of the tales end in a cute happily-ever-after. Which made the stories all the more incredible! 

In general, every story was a fantastic short story, well-written and captivating. Some started a little slowly, but it only took a page or two for me to become hooked. These stories are twisted and strange, and I enjoyed them all. I'm going to talk about some of my favorite ones. No disrespect to the other authors/stories that I don't mention! The following ones were simply too good not to talk about.

The Blood of Imuriv by Renée Ahdieh: honestly, half the reason why I decided to read this anthology was to read Renée Ahdieh's story. This story is on the shorter side, but it is dense and the ending is shocking (sort of). It is classic Ahdieh, with rich storytelling and immersive writing. 

Jack by Ameriie: woah, I did not see that ending coming! Though I probably should have. This story is sort of based on Jack and the Beanstalk, but it is darker than what we know of that story (the mainstream version, anyway). I was so caught up in the story unfolding that the ending really took me by surprise! In a good way. 

Gwen and Art and Lance by Soman Chainani: on paper, I hated this story. I never really liked the story of King Arthur, Guinevere, and Lancelot - I mean, I hate love triangles. But this short story was fascinating. It is told entirely in texting format (which was so cool!), and it gets dramatic very quickly. Gwen wants to go to prom with Art, but Lance wants to go with her, but Gwen doesn't want to go with him, nor does she want Art (Lance's best friend) to know that she and Lance have been sleeping together... yeah, it's a mess. And I really don't like Gwen. But I was so amused by the story, and definitely by how it was written. It's an interesting retelling.

Shirley & Jim by Susan Dennard: this one is one of my favorite favorites! At first I was like, ewww, a young man named "Jim"?! I love how Shirley calls him James though. That was adorable. Anyway, this story is told in letter format (Shirley is writing a letter to her friend Jean), and it is so cool. I love how the story is told and how it progresses. By the time you get to the ending, you know what's coming, and yet it still surprises you a little. I loved falling in love with Shirley and James (James! Not Jim!), and I loved seeing how it ended.

The Sea Witch by Marissa Meyer: this story is a sort-of retelling of The Little Mermaid. Wow it was trippy. I loved it so much. Nerit wants to make a love spell to make the prince fall in love with her, but things go awry. I liked how long this story felt, despite it being only twenty-two pages in length. Meyer does an amazing job of passing time and making it feel like a full story.

Beautiful Venom by Cindy Pon: this story made me happy and then sad and then mad. I love how Pon made me go through a roller coaster of emotions. This story has everything dark and curious - seduction, betrayal, curses, death. This story is based a little on the story of Medusa. 

Death Knell by Victoria Schwab: of course I loved this story. I love how Schwab tells stories. Pieces are revealed bit by bit, so you are wondering what is going on but at the same time you are caught up in the story, so you're not totally anxious to know everything. Death and a girl named Grace - an unlikely pair. I liked the ending of this one!

Indigo and Shade by April Genevieve Tucholke: I loved this story, because it comes very close to having a happily-ever-after. The love story within this one is beautiful, and the author does it justice. I liked the arrogant, god-like hero who knows how good-looking and good-at-everything he is. He has a good heart, for a villain.

I didn't talk about every story, but I still recommend them. The Blessing of Little Wants by Sarah Enni, Marigold by Samantha Shannon, You, You, It's All About You by Adam Silvera, Julian Breaks Every Rule by Andrew Smith, and Sera by Nicola Yoon are the remaining stories and believe me, they are worth the read in addition to the ones I already discussed. No story in this anthology was boring or bad!

What I Did Not Like:

I really hope this doesn't come across as too offensive buuuuuuut... I didn't really care for the booktubers' contributions to this anthology. I know, I know, that's part of the appeal of this anthology. Hear me out. There are thirteen short stories, written by thirteen authors. After each short story, there is a one- to two-page commentary written by a booktuber. Thirteen stories, thirteen "commentaries". Each commentary is in a different style, and some aren't specifically commentaries. Some are lists, some are in the form of Instagram posts, a forum. All good stuff. I thought this was going to be an anthology of stories written by authors AND booktubers - like, an author writes one story, a booktuber writes one story, and so on. Twenty-six stories, if you will. Or maybe one author and one booktuber co-wrote a story. That is not the case - the booktubers do not write stories. 

If I'm being honest, after the first booktuber contribution (Christine Riccio's signs that you're a villain - really fun list, by the way), I skipped the rest of them. I didn't read any of the other contributions. I liked Christine's just fine, and I'm sure the other ones were interesting, but I wanted to read stories, and so I moved on to each author's story when I came to the booktuber's part. The booktubers' contributions didn't seem essential to the anthology; therefore, I didn't bother.

Does that make sense? I didn't feel the need to read these one- to two-page contributions, and so I didn't. The idea is neat and maybe if I reread this book, I'll read the booktubers' contributions, but I was more interested in reading the stories, and that's what I did.

Would I Recommend It:

In terms of the short stories, this anthology was phenomenal. I don't even like anthologies and yet I highly recommend this one. These stories were so highly creative, diverse, engrossing, and occasionally bizarre. All of the authors really hit the mark with the theme of this anthology. I wouldn't read this anthology if you're looking for happily-ever-afters and cute romances. Most stories don't have romances and none of them have traditional HEAs. But that's part of the appeal!

Rating:

4 stars. I enjoyed this anthology and I'm glad I broke out of my "no anthologies!" mindset for this one. The contributing authors are so talented and their work is quality. Don't miss out!

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