How Long 'til Black Future Month?

N.K. Jemisin is a master storyteller, and there is a lot to love in this collection. The worldbuilding is vivid even in short glimpses and some of the food descriptions in particular left me hungry. There are definitely worlds I would have loved to see more of; I know “The City Born Great” and “The Narcomancer”  both take place in or are forerunners to two of her duologies (which I am now definitely interested in checking out). And 22 stories is a lot — there were a couple I bounced off of, which is not unexpected with that much variety, and some with more experimental forms.

A few standouts for me personally, not counting the two I've already mentioned:

• “Red Dirt Witch” - One of a couple of historical fantasy tales, that read like an old folktale with choices, belief, and eldritch deals at its center.
• “The Effluent Engine” - Steampunk and intelligence agents, with a world I was super invested in.
• “On the Banks of the River Lex” - Probably my favorite, featuring Death and post apocalyptic gods getting by and The beginnings of something new.
• “Too Many Yesterdays, Not Enough Tomorrows” — A time loop of an apocalypse, and musings on connection and disconnection that really worked for me.
• “Saints, Sinners, Dragons, and Haints in the City Beneath Still Waters” -  Just a great endcap to the collection. Modern urban fantasy with a lot of commentary.