This is an extremely cool anthology.

It contains a plethora of excellent stories that are sure to captivate the reader.

The variety of tales within its pages offers something for everyone, whether you enjoy mystery, adventure, or drama.

I am the proud owner of this wonderful book, and if there is anyone out there who would like to borrow it, they are more than welcome.

I believe that sharing this anthology with others will allow them to experience the same joy and excitement that I have felt while reading it.

So, don't hesitate to reach out if you are interested in borrowing this cool anthology.

Hang on, stop. This book isn't written by Tamora Pierce? It's a collection compiled by her? Well, hold onto your bookmarks, because you're going to want to read this beauty straight through. Turns out she's got damn good taste.

Mactun is offered The Gift of Rain Mountain by its spirit when he cuts through delivering messages. In this story by Bruce Holland Rogers, Mactun's stuck running them as he's the lowest warrior on the totem pole. So, he takes the direct route through the spirit's territory to at least impress someone with his speed. But the mountain has its dangers and the spirit does its best to tempt him from his path. It's a great sign that there's such an engaging opening story in the collection. Particularly one that sets such an interesting tone where even the purest intentions can turn on you. The best part of this one is how, even though the spirit's final offer was beneficial to everyone, it was Mactun's greed that made him hold out that long.

The mermaid Neesha finds The Magestone (by S.M. & Jan Stirling) in the hands of a human sailor boy and endeavors to steal it back and use it to help win the war against the humans who'd kidnapped their mage. But the stone isn't so keen to part with either her or the boy, and they must learn to work together to rescue the tortured magic user. Another great story; I'm a sucker for mermaids and this one was pretty fantastic and with just the right ratio of fairy tale to kickass.

Eli has refused to marry the girl his parents chose for him, but aside from a few awkward encounters that seemed to be the end of things. Until one day Leah stops acting like herself. In Eli and the Dybbuk by Janis Ian, Eli steps into the role of the white knight he'd always wanted to be and looks to save the poor girl from the evil spirit squatting in her body. An enjoyable story that... you know what? It's getting really hard to say something about these stories because they're all good and I'm starting to sound repetitive. There's just nothing wrong with any of them. I usually go through these short story reviews at a good clip, but I keep stopping to reread them, and it's taking me forever. So, it's a great story, please read it to see why I'm complaining.

Ada is Heartless (by Holly Black). You need to be to do what she does, robbing the enemy dead and worrying along at the heels of the army men. It sucks the life out of you if you let it get to you, so you need to be heartless or you'll wind up dead. But when Ada happens across a badly wounded nobleman she finds herself driven to go against everything she's learned and everything she's done that's managed to keep her alive. She only hopes they'll be something to gain at the end of it. Heartless is a dark story with a bittersweet ending and a heroine who doesn't know why she's being one when no good will come of it for her. It's heart wrenching and touching, and I'm always crying a little at the ending.

Amanitari should have been queen in Lioness by Pamela Service, but she was tucked off to serve at the temple of the God of War while her brother was sent to battle their Roman invaders. But when her brother dies in battle and Tari arrives to lead the troops, she is eager to show the Romans what a girl serving the God of War is capable of. What a ride this was. It's an ancient Egyptian battle royale with a kickass war leader and her lion companion.

Helen of Troy. That is all. Thunderbolt by Esther Friesner was one of the best pieces in the book. It takes a look at the story of Helen through her own eyes while at the same time mocking the record of men changing history to erase women's accomplishments. Woman or not, Helen is a Spartan and she isn't going to take this shit.

The Devil Wind by India Edghill blows up a hellstorm in India when a father takes advantage of an uprising to kill his family and blame it on the locals. But his daughter's nanny escapes the bloodbath and the young woman puts her future in the hands of a witch to get revenge for the innocent child. One of the best stories in the book, easily. I adore things that take place during the English colonization of India, mostly due to the stark contrast between the two cultures, partly because my favorites all involve magic and revenge.

In The Boy Who Cried "Dragon!" by Mike Resnick a boy goes dragon hunting and instead makes a friend. A sweet story of a pair of cute dorks trying to grow up faster so they can prove themselves to their bullies, only to discover qualities in each other that they see as gifts but that the other would love to be rid of.

I'm a fan of Tamora Pierce's work, so I was thrilled to see her story, Student of Ostriches, was the story of a character whose name was dropped in her book Lioness Rampant. When I first heard of the Shang Unicorn I'd thought it was pretty cool. The Shang warriors are badasses, and I had the impression the Unicorn was this pretty-pink-princess badass. But in Student of Ostriches we learn that Kylaia grew up on the Tortall equivalent of the Serengeti, small and fierce. Watching the goat herds gave her plenty of time to observe the local wildlife, and she taught herself to fight by mimicking the techniques they used and practicing through years of hard work and dedication. When her sister is wronged by a suitor, Kylaia steps forward to defend her honor and comes to the attention of the Shang Falcon. It's a really great story and makes the Unicorn even more interesting, though I hope there's still a pretty-pink-princess badass in the ranks somewhere.

Gulpilil's sister's village is attacked by a beast sent by the All-Father in Serpent's Rock by Laura Anne Gilman, and he refuses to be one of those who give her up for dead. He ventures out in secret to slay the beast, or to die trying to do the right thing. There's a heartbeat to this story with the mantra Gulpilil repeats and adds to as he travels to shore up his courage. It's a solid adventure with an ending that leaves you still wondering about what he'll find of his sister and her village.

It is an honor to be called a warrior in Hidden Warriors by Margaret Mahy, better still to be compared to the prophesized Hidden Warrior of legend. But despite what he's called, all the magician Heriot feels is exhausted. Though he is strong in magic he has great faults that are about to be exploited, and blinders about to be violently removed. A lovely story of betrayal, with a hero who goes out of their way to defeat their lot in life.

Kelyn is the clumsy one in her hunting pack and no one will let her forget it, but she's also the best hunter among them, ever clever and observant. When their group is set upon by slavers in Emerging Legacy by Doranna Durgin it's up to Kelyn to lead her friends to freedom. A nice take-charge story of a capable but clumsy character who uses her skills and flaws to the advantage of others, and finds a gift for leadership in the process.

An Axe for Men by Rosemary Edghill gives us an interesting look at an extravagant Egyptian-esque world run by women and their Goddess. When their home is destroyed and the entire city takes to the sands for their new prophesised home, a dissenter among the head priestess's entourage starts getting visions from an unknown God, and learns that the priestess isn't so much guided by the Goddess as she is grasping at strings. It's a world where the Gods/Goddesses are shifting to better care for the people, and that's one of the most intriguing things I've read for a long time, and the story pulls it off really well.

Bridget and Maire are schoolgirls in Ireland, bossed by the nuns and excited for the day they can escape the boarding school. But when they adopt the new girl Miriam into their group in Acts of Faith by Lesley McBain, they learn of a world where blackout curtains are the least of the changes going on, and where girls like their new friend are hunted for matters beyond their control. This is a cute story of three girls during the days of Hitler's rein, with plenty of Irish magic and religious conflict to go around.

Swords That Talk by Brent Hartinger gives us Brinn, who is past the age of proving his mettle (what's the world coming to when you run out of wars?) and gets the idea to steal some treasure from a famous guardian troll. While the idea of a talking sword that doesn't know when to shut up tickles me every time I see it, the sword isn't really the focus in this story. It's more about Brinn's crisis of faith as he's being talked around and out of stealing the treasure he'd come for.

THE VERDICT? When I first read Young Warriors I couldn't believe what I was seeing. A book filled with stories of young, often teenage, fighters who battled for a wide variety of reasons and who possessed a range of capabilities, and in some cases even lost or came out the worse for it. No love triangles, no characters talking down to the reader's intelligence, just good, solid people I'd be proud to spread the exploits of. Suffice it to say that I went out and bought the book before I'd even returned it to the library. I was in the middle of a major weeding, but there are some books that just need to be nearby, and this is one of them.

I was truly overjoyed for a compilation of short stories that centered around myths sourced from Africa, India, Australia, and across the globe. One more narrative about Middle Earth or an adventure through Dark Age Europe and I might just have snapped. And although there were original accounts from certain European legends such as Chulchun, even those offered novel perspectives on familiar tales. Moreover, these were not mere fairy tales with moral lessons embedded within the stories; rather, they were mini epics. I firmly believe that people of all ages can better appreciate a story brimming with high stakes and thrilling action compared to a daily moral lesson.

Nevertheless, I was left feeling bored by the majority of the stale and unmemorable characterizations. Since there are different authors for each story, some fared better than others. My personal favorites were "The Gift of Rain Mountain", "Eli and the Dybbuk", "Heartless", "The Boy who Cried 'Dragon!'", and "Swords That Talk".

I mostly liked the stories. However, there was one that had just too many inventive fantasy names, which made it a little boring.

I must address the stories with Jews, though. The first one is as weird as anything. A dybbuk possesses a girl and a boy rescues her through a sly trick. The last line is something like, "The Jewish girl didn't need to be clever or brave because the boy would always be there to rescue her." HUH??? Is this some sort of dumb racist joke? Excuse me, *I* rescue *my* husband!!

The other story was about how a group of three girls, a Jew, a Christian, and a pagan, rescue themselves from the Holocaust with magic. Okaaay. The ending doesn't really make sense, either, because they don't seem to have any way to support themselves in the future. It's as if the author just stopped writing without thinking about the practical consequences.

Overall, while some of the stories had interesting concepts, these two particular ones left a lot to be desired.

I gave the book an overall rating of 3.5 Stars.

Out of the 15 stories in the book, I awarded only 1 story with 4 stars, and that was TP's story titled "Student of Ostriches".

I also liked 6 other stories. These particular stories received a 3.5 rating from me.

The main reason why I purchased this book was because TP is my favorite author.

Moreover, I was fortunate enough to get this book autographed by her.

TP's writing style always manages to engage me and draw me into the world of her stories.

The characters she creates are vivid and the plots are interesting.

Although not every story in the book was a complete masterpiece for me, there were definitely enough亮点 to make it a worthwhile read.

I look forward to reading more of TP's work in the future.

I found this book to be rather good. The writing style was beautiful, which really engaged me at the beginning. However, as I delved deeper into the stories, I couldn't help but feel that the ones chosen weren't the most ideal. The endings of the stories left a lot to be desired. They seemed rushed or incomplete, and it really took away from the overall enjoyment of the book. Because of this, I simply couldn't bring myself to finish the whole thing. I managed to read the first five stories or so, but after that, my interest started to wane. It's a shame really, as the potential was there, but the execution of the endings just didn't quite hit the mark for me.

Generally, stories of men and women warriors are truly captivating.

These tales often unfold in the most exciting and heroic ways. The warriors, whether male or female, possess extraordinary courage, strength, and skills.

They embark on dangerous quests, face formidable enemies, and overcome numerous obstacles. Their actions inspire awe and admiration.

Their stories are filled with thrilling battles, strategic maneuvers, and moments of great sacrifice. We can envision them charging into the fray, their weapons raised high, ready to defend what they hold dear.

These stories not only entertain us but also teach us valuable lessons about bravery, determination, and the power of the human spirit. They remind us that anyone, regardless of gender, can be a hero and make a difference in the world.

Whether it's a male warrior leading his troops to victory or a female warrior defying the odds, their stories will always be an important part of our cultural heritage.

This series of short stories centered around the theme of overcoming

seemed to hold more promise in theory than it actually delivered.

While it had the potential to be truly captivating, in reality, it fell a bit short.

If you have a penchant for high fantasy, there's a good chance you might find more enjoyment in it than I did.

The stories likely had elements of adventure, magic, and heroic feats that could appeal to fans of the genre.

However, for me, something was lacking in the execution.

Perhaps it was the pacing, or maybe the characters didn't fully engage me.

Nonetheless, it's important to note that everyone's taste in literature is different.

What one person may not enjoy, another might find to be a thrilling and engaging read.

So, if you're a fan of high fantasy and the idea of stories about overcoming challenges interests you, it might be worth giving this series a try.

You just might discover a new favorite among these short stories.

Heartless by Holly Black is a story that takes readers on a darker journey than one might initially anticipate. It is well-written, with a plot that keeps you engaged from start to finish. The characters are complex and the world-building is detailed. However, it may not be for everyone due to its darker themes. Overall, I give it 3 stars.

Lioness by Pamela F. Service is an excellent story that showcases a great deal of research. The author has done a remarkable job of bringing to life the queen who expelled the Romans from Kush. As someone who wrote an essay on this topic, I was able to recognize many of the details and historical references. The story is engaging and the characters are well-developed. I highly recommend it and give it 5 stars.

Student of Ostriches by Tamora Pierce is exactly what I have come to love and expect from this author. The story follows the adventures of the Shang Warriors, and I found myself completely immersed in their world. The characters are likable and the plot is full of action and excitement. It's a great read for fans of Pierce's work and I give it 5 stars.

An Axe for Men by Rosemary Edghill is a really neat story that explores the idea of a society forced to change and how religion evolves with that change. The author does a great job of presenting different perspectives and making the reader think about the impact of change on individuals and communities. The story is well-written and engaging, although it may not be as fast-paced as some other books. I give it 4 stars.

A couple of stand out stories emerge mid way through this collection. These particular tales manage to capture the reader's attention with their unique plots and engaging characters. However, for the most part, the fare is rather average. It features some heroic young teens who find themselves in various challenging situations. They display courage and determination as they strive to overcome obstacles and make a difference. While the stories may not be overly complex or groundbreaking, they do offer an enjoyable read for young adult audiences. The focus on the experiences and growth of the teenage characters allows readers to connect with them on a personal level. Overall, it's a collection that has its moments but doesn't quite reach the heights of truly exceptional YA literature.

I don't usually have a penchant for short stories. However, this book and all the short stories within it truly appealed to me.

Specifically, "Hidden Warriors" by Margaret Mahy was a standout. What I really liked about it was the way the suspense was maintained throughout the entire narrative.

From the very start, it was captivating and kept me on the edge of my seat, constantly guessing. You never really had a clear idea of what was going to unfold next.

The story had a unique charm that drew me in and made me eager to see how it would conclude. It was filled with unexpected twists and turns that added to its allure.

I found myself completely engrossed in the world that Margaret Mahy had created, and I'm glad I gave this book and its short stories a chance.

Overall, it was a pleasant surprise and a great read that I would highly recommend to others, even those who, like me, don't typically enjoy short stories.

A collection of stories that are written in completely different styles - but are definitely entertaining.

These stories take you on a journey through various worlds and experiences. Each one is unique, with its own set of characters, plotlines, and themes.

Some may make you laugh out loud, while others may tug at your heartstrings. The diversity within this collection ensures that there is something for everyone to enjoy.

Whether you prefer light-hearted comedies or thought-provoking dramas, you are sure to find a story that will capture your attention and keep you engaged from start to finish.

So sit back, relax, and let these completely different stories transport you to new and exciting places.