Art of War: Anthology for Charity by

How do you get forty fantasy authors to contribute short stories for a war-themed anthology without paying them? It sounds as if there should be a good punchline to that, but all Petros Triantafyllou did was twist the moral thumbscrews and tell them all the profits would go to Doctors Without Borders, a charity that works tirelessly across the world to alleviate the effects of conflict, sickness and poverty. So, with clear consciences, several busloads of excellent and acclaimed fantasy authors have applied themselves to the task of penning a veritable mountain of words on the subject of The Art of War, expect bloodshed, gore, pathos, insight, passion, and laughs. Maybe even a wombat. Who knows. Anyway, as the original blurb said: "It's good. Buy it." -Mark Lawrence Featuring: Mark Lawrence, Ed Greenwood, Brian Staveley, Miles Cameron, John Gwynne, Sebastien De Castell, Mitchell Hogan, Stan Nicholls, Andrew Rowe, C.T. Phipps, Rob J. Hayes, Nicholas Eames, Mazarkis Williams, Ben Galley, Michael R. Fletcher, Graham Austin-King, Ed McDonald, Anna Stephens, Anna Smith Spark, RJ Barker, Michael R. Miller, Benedict Patrick, Sue Tingey, Dyrk Ashton, Steven Kelliher, Timandra Whitecastle, Laura M Hughes, J.P. Ashman, M.L. Spencer, Steven Poore, Brandon Draga, D. Thourson Palmer, D.M. Murray, Anne Nicholls, R.B. Watkinson, Charles F Bond, Ulff Lehmann, Thomas R. Gaskin, Zachary Barnes & Nathan Boyce. With a Foreword by Brian D. Anderson. Print version includes 40 black & white interior art pieces.

Short story anthologies are almost always a great way to get a good introduction to a lot of different authors and this one here is an absolute cracker! 40 stories on the theme of war by a who's who of the best fantasy authors out there today. Added to that this is all for a fantastic cause as all money raised is going to MSF.

The short stories themselves are on the whole extremely good - probably one of the best quality collections I have read. They all provide a great bite sized chunk of story (I found them the perfect length to read on my 20 minute bus ride to work). As with any collection there are some variability in quality (and peoples taste may vary) but I found there were very few stories I actively disliked compared to the ones I enjoyed. Generally I found the ones by the authors I knew already to be easier to read, but this often because I am already familiar with their writing style/worlds.

The theme of war can be a bit bleak, but the way you digest the collection can help here - again a short story collection is great for just taking one story at a time.

Buy this for the good charity cause if nothing else, but the stories themselves are excellent too!

Instead of writing a single review for the anthology or writing a short review of all 40 stories, I'll leave you with my thoughts on my ten favorites from the anthology:

Sacred Semantics by Nicholas Eames

If I could take everything I loved about Kings of the Wyld and distill it into a single short story, this would be it. The world is unapologetically over-the-top in all the best ways. There's a massive civil war going on between different factions who worship a spider goddess over how many legs she has: six or eight.

The Fox and the Bowman by Sebastian de Castell

Thomas swears revenge on the knight that took his family's land. He climbs a hill, takes aim with his longbow, and....meets a wizard. The wizard offers to help him take revenge on the knight, and Thomas accepts.

This was simply excellent. The author makes great use of a couple tricks that really drew me in and complemented the story.

The Hero of Aral Pass by Mark Lawrence

I adored the Red Queen's War trilogy, and this brings back the lovable, cowardly rouge Jalan Kendeth. Years after the events of the main series, Jalan decides to tell the true story of what actually happened at Aral Pass. As expected, the truth of the matter is far more interesting (and hilarious) than the story the rest of the Broken Empire knows.

The Undying Lands by Michael R. Fletcher

In the Undying Lands, widespread necromantic power has put an end to the finality of death. Every that dies continues living as an undead. This story is a bit of dark comedy following a woman who is condemned to fight in a gladiatorial arena for “accidentally” stabbing a man.

Why does this matter in a world where death is not the end? Well, the losers of the arena fights have their heads stacked on shelves throughout the arena as grotesque decorations. Those who fare particularly poorly in the arena get to spend an eternity decorating the walls of the community shitters.

This War of Ours by Timandra Whitecastle

Something about this story was incredibly compelling. A girl is on the run with her family, and their survival depends on utter silence. There's a lot more going on in the world, but the author slowly reveals the mysteries surrounding the setting.

The prose kept things moving quickly and there was an air of mystery throughout the story as the author slowly revealed more about the world. In a short span of words, there was a complete story, full character arc, and a world that I would happily read a full-length novel about.

Misplaced Heroism by Andrew Rowe

It's rare to find a short story that places fun above all else. This was a ton of fun.

The story begins with our hero being summoned through a magical ritual to help defend a fantasy realm from an army of demons. However, he's just some random college kid.

The story doesn't take itself too seriously. My favorite quote: