Parallel Worlds: The Heroes Within Paperback – October 8, 2019

This is a diverse and interesting group of stories from some of my favorite authors and new ones to follow. Well written, of course

A larger than typical anthology this book has a wide variety of tales so most people should find something to their taste. The volume is a great value for just $.99!Reading it I thought it was interesting that so many of the stories mention or take place in Nebraska as we tend to be ignored as a setting like most flyover states.Going over the stories that caught my eye and appealed to my tastes I'd start with the first one which was very good though if the last page was redacted I think it would stand up stronger as the reveal was completely unnecessary in my opinion. Short stories often benefit from less overt revealing.It was wonderful to see Myth again. Honestly just that was enough to pay for the whole book imho.The pied piper story made me think the author played Ars Magica in their youth.Yudhanjaya's story was pretty cool making me think of a certain arthur c clarke quote.I liked the Constantine and Warhammer inspired stories which peaked my interest for more.Magpie's setting with the bondstones sounded like a great rpg setting.And lastly it was nice to see a Dresden story after all these years.Long story short hehe this is a good anthology worth buying with something sure to appeal to most readers. The variety comes at a cost in that you might find a few stories that aren't your cup of tea which is fine if you're used to reading lots of short stories by authors you don't know.

Overall this is a good set of short stories. As with any collection, some are better than others. The ones I think are best night not be the ones you love (and vice versa), but I'm confident most readers will find something to enjoy. My biggest complaint is that Jim Butcher's story is too short, but to be fair I'd feel that way even if he'd written an entire novel. It really is a good story, as always, and it's fun to see the world from Grey's POV. Beyond that, I also particularly enjoyed the stories by Sarah Hoyt (another of my favorite authors), R. R. Virdi, E. A. Copen, and Josh Vogt.

Interesting stories offering a variety of challenges.

I was able to read this anthology for free via Kindle Unlimited. I mostly wanted to read the Jim Butcher story, which in my somewhat biased opinion, was the best of the the bunch. I was pleasantly surprised at the overall quality of the writing. Though I only recognized a few of the other writers from other compilations, I made note of a few authors I may want to check out in the future. Happy reading!

I wish there had been more detail in the book's description. I will give a short blurb and try to avoid spoilers. If you don't want more information, skip to the next review.Dead End Rhodes by Sarah Hoyt - 5 stars, science fictionThis is a bittersweet story. A former socialite, Stella, travels with Nick, a cyborg detective, and they solve cases from their spaceship. Creating Borgs is very illegal and just being in the proximity of a Borg is punishable by death. Borgs are made by encasing a brain in a mechanical body. Most don’t survive. They are hired to find the missing son of the man who runs a series of mines.Look Me in the Stars by Christopher Husberg - 2 starsThis is a series of blog posts by an apocalypse survivor that doesn’t go anywhere.The Dead Who Care by DJ Butler - 3 stories, paranormalA turn of the century story about Mormons. Hiram makes a promise to care for another soldier’s family after his death.Myth Deeds by Jody Lynn Nye - 1 starDNF. Cute titleThe Shadow of Markham by RR Virdi - 5 starsA dark elf patrols the Markham rooftops trying to save kidnapped children.Davy Crockett vs the Saucer Men by David Afsharirad - 3 stars, coming of age story, science fictionDavy and his friends spot a spaceship and investigate around having to go home for lunch.Dead Run by Aaron Michael Ritchey - 3 stars, science fictionA boy fights to save his sister from a mysterious disease.Unnamed by Gama Ray Martinez - 4 stars, fantasyParanormal creatures are invading the city and the Unnamed fight them in secret.Prisoner 141 by LJ Hachmeister - 3 stars, science fictionRaza was convicted of a crime so heinous, they wiped her memory. She’s chosen to disarm a planet-killing weapon.Valentine Blues by James A Hunter - 3 stars, fantasyYancy Lazarus is a mage. He drives through a town that reneged on a deal with the Pied Piper.The Tragedy of John Metcalf by Yudhanjaya Wijeratne - 2 starsJohn lives in two parallel worlds. In one he’s a magician assassin, the other he’s a scientist. There is a hard ending.Effigies in Bronze by Colten Hehr - 1 starWritten in a heavy period style. DNFDaily Bread by EA Copen - 4 stars, fantasyJosiah Quinn apprentices under an evil man. This is from the Hellbent Halo series.The Demons of Arae by Christopher Ruocchio The Mouth of Hell - 3.5 stars, science fictionLord Marlowe investigated the loss of a legion of 26,000 men and their 4 ships. It was determined they were taken by space pirates. The Roman angle was an odd choice and some more detail on his backstory would have been nice. The story felt like a prequel or a story between books.A Tale of Red Riding: Seduction of the Werepire by Neo Edmund - 3 stars, paranormalA YA story about Red Riding Hood and the Wolfman hunting a vampire/werewolf hybrid. There is a lot of missing detail. I suspect it's part of a larger story arc.Threshold by Todd Fahnestock - 1 starDNF. Lots of odd made-up names.The Last Death of Oscar Hernandez by Russell Nohelty - 2 stars, science fictionA man keeps getting reincarnated and in this version, he rescues a little girl's kite.The Magpie and the Mosquito by Josh Vogt - 2 stars, fantasyA Magpie takes on a young thief and saves her bonded mate. I skimmed most of the story.Monsters by Jim Butcher - 4 stars, fantasy, paranormalGoodman Grey is a professional monster and shapeshifter. Viti is his secretary. Gentleman John Marcone comes into his office and hires him to save kidnapped children from being forced to work in a brothel. The story needed more detail to get 5 stars. Why the silver dollar? What was the secretary? I enjoy John Marcone from the Harry Dresden series but this one had too many unanswered questions. I became curious and did some Googling. Goodman Grey was in Skin Game but I didn't remember him. I confess; I wish the Dresden Series would have ended before Butcher grievously wounded Michael and changed the direction for the series.

The vast majority of these stories are excellent. The remaining few are very good. While I did purchase this book for the Jim Butcher's story, I found myself reading the whole thing. I told myself if the first 2 pages of a story didn't grab me, I'd move on. And here I am having read the entire thing. Standouts for me personally were (of course) Jim Butcher, Jody Lynn Nye, and Todd Fahnestock. All of these will be seeing purchases from me shortly.

Parallel Worlds lives up to its promos of villains who are also the heroes. The first two stories were not pleasant to read, then most of the short stories after them drew you into the characters very well. It is always great to read a new to me Jim Butcher story, making the end of the book.much better than the begining.

Honestly, I bought this book because I knew there was a new, never seen before story set in The Dresden Files universe. The only spoiler I'll give is to say this one isn't told from Harry Dresden's perspective. And it is so, so good.

Most of the short stories really hooked me, and made me want to know what happens after the final cliffhanger!

Purchased this bookset to, primarily, get another fix of EA Copen's 'wizard with attitude', Josiah Quinn; & to also read Jim Butcher's contribution to this brilliant sci-fi/magical compendium! Great to have more revealed in the back story of the gritty Aussie nephilim's past; what's helped to shape his character & what makes him tick. Brilliant tale from JB which I also very much enjoyed. Look forward to reading more treats in this fabulous collection. Who would've thought stop overs in Nebraska could be this exciting - glad they are!

I purchased this book to read the Jim Butcher story (big fan of the Dresden files). After finishing it, I decided I might as well look at what else is written and so I ended up reading everything. This book contains a rather delightful mix of science fiction and fantasy from various authors, each with its own individual style and universe. Overall I ended up purchasing 4 or 5 books from the authors i liked best. I found this book an excellent method to discover new series and authors though it in itself was thoroughly entertaining. Highly recommend.

Some really good stories and some good attempts. The religious barracking in some of the stories was a bit off-putting.