Unfettered: Tales By Masters of Fantasy

I generally do not like short stories, but had to read Unfettered as it contained some of my favorite writers. In general the stories were quite good, thought there were a couple that I had to skip as I could just not get through them. If your a fantasy fan this is worth a read as it shows you a different side of the authors. I discovered one or two new writers that I will be purchasing.

Wonderful authors (and pretty awesome people, too, for contributing). The only problem with this book is that it has already led to the purchase of at least five others - and several are just the beginning of their series...so more to come.

Some stories were great, but others were a bit too strange for my tastes. Still, the title forewarned that just about anything goes with regards to the stories that were submitted, so if anything, this anthology lived up to its name.

The Basic problem is that there is no editorial control. Thus some authors put in stories from the beginning of their careers that are not up to their most recent standards. I have to admit that the Robert Jordan and Terry Brooks stories seemed without any fire. The Sanderson and Brett stories were really good and the Speakman story was excellent.

Nice collection of fantasy short stories. As with most collections some of these are great and some just not to my taste. I bought it mainly for the Sanderson/Jordan and the Rothfuss story but I ended up likeing many of the other stories better which was a nice surprise. My personal favorite out of the collection was The Old Scale Game by Tad Williams.

I originally bought this book because of the awesome authors. Then I read why it was published. Mr. Speakmans story is tragic and also filled with hope. My father-in-law has stage four liver cancer, so we know the costs of treatment. I hope my purchase will help with your bills.
The book itself is great. With great authors for a great cause!!

Unfettered has stories by absolute legends of the fantasy genre, and even their long-time fans might be surprised by some entries in this short-story collection. Fans of this genre should certainly purchase and read it, and I'm sure that they will be pleasantly surprised by some of the stories included. (R.A. Salvatore for one really left his norm in his included short story.) I highly recommend this book for people looking for great quick read, and the fact that the proceeds are going to help a cancer survivor makes this a must purchase, and a highly satisfying read to boot.

My first experience with short stories. By the time you associated with the character the story ended. Most of them were good and held my attention but I will be going back to full length and perhaps reading some of the authors in this book.

Kevin Hearne's story is worth getting this book if you haven't already read it. I purchased it as a single short story a while back and its a great read! I bought this book as I'm a fan of many of these authors, but after reading the first three in the collection I'm folding. All three were a disappointment. And, given the authors, should not have been.

Unfettered

When I first heard of the book, and saw the author list, I immediately put it in my 'must buy' list. What intrigued me was the whole concept behind the book- that the writers would be able to contribute stories that have no specific theme, which isn't very common in an anthology. I think that it led to some more quality work than might have otherwise been submitted. I especially like the brief intro supplied by each author explaining the story's origins, because I like the behind-the-scenes feel that it gives to the book.

The stories are very well written, and many of them serve as an introduction to some of the other worlds that these authors have created. I will be purchasing more books by these authors soon, and will be happily filling my Kindle to bursting.

One story in particular stands out to me- How Old Holly Came To Be by Patrick Rothfuss. It's set in the same world as his Kingkiller Chronicles, but without any of the characters from that series. It would work well as a song or poem (perhaps sung by Kvothe?) within one of the books; it has a very nice rhythm to it. But I think that people who are looking for a more traditional story to help fill the void between the books might be disappointed. So Rothfuss fans should be aware that this story is not one of his usual pieces, but it's a good read nonetheless.

By far the best thing about the this book is the reason behind its publication. When the editor/contributor Shawn Speakman was diagnosed with lymphoma, he had no medical insurance. What started as just a simple request from Shawn to his friend Terry Brooks, for a short story to donate to help offset his staggering medical bills, turned into Unfettered. The proceeds from the novel all go towards Shawn's medical bills.

Fighting cancer is a very personal thing for me; I have lost too many people I love to this horrible disease. And even when someone survives their ordeal, they are faced with mountains of debt as a result. The fact that Unfettered represents a gathering of writers to help a friend in need was enough to make me purchase the book. Adding in the fact that this particular gathering represents some of the best minds in fantasy today made buying the book a no-brainer.

This review is solely for the story "River of Souls" by Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson.

It caught me by surprise to learn that there was an entirely new The Wheel of Time story in this anthology, so I immediately went to get the book from the library.

A word to the wise: this story will make almost zero sense, at least in terms of it being part of a larger whole, unless you've finished the entire Wheel of Time series, which ended with A Memory of Light.

So, if you're still with me, I'm happy to report that, while it takes a few pages to figure out what's going on, this is a worthy little tale which fills in a bit of the gaps in the overall epic narrative. Saying anything at all would qualify as a spoiler, so I'll leave it at that.

I can only hope that the incredibly productive Brandon Sanderson decides to revisit this world again sometime, since he clearly loves it as much as the rest of us.

Highly recommended.

If you're actively involved in the fantasy community, chances are you've run across Shawn Speakman at some point. He's the webmaster for Terry Brooks and Naomi Novik, runs The Signed Page, writes articles for Suvudu, and does all kinds of other assorted work. This has led to him being relatively well-connected in the speculative fiction genre.

Shawn had been diagnosed with cancer and beaten it before. When it struck a second time, he had no medical insurance and accumulated a seemingly insurmountable amount of debt. At the same time, his manuscript The Dark Thorn had been passed up by just about every major agent. This would have been enough to crush most people (I honestly can't say I would have been able to handle it) but Shawn took adversity and turned it into opportunity.

He had the resources that defined "self-publishing" differently for him than it did most people. He launched his own imprint, Grim Oak Press, and self-published The Dark Thorn. Flying in the face of rejection, the book has sold and reviewed well. Terry Brooks then suggested that Shawn call upon his friends and create an anthology to help pay down his debt. And Shawn's friends answered the call in resounding fashion!

The background should be enough to inspire you to purchase this anthology. I have never been prouder to be an SFF nerd than when I saw so many people in the genre rush to Shawn's aid. The authors by contributing stories, various websites by promoting the book, and the readers through purchasing it. Shawn now has successfully paid back his medical bills, and I believe intends to donate the remaining profits to charity.

But if you need an additional reason to purchase this anthology, how about this - it's really good! Look at the line-up of authors! I enjoyed the entries from some of my favorites, even if some of them were atypical (Rothfuss and Salvatore, in particular, do not submit the type of stories you might expect from them). But what made this even more worthwhile was the ability it gave me to sample authors I'd never read before. Peter Orullian is a name that kept popping up in various places, and his story (rather long for a "short" story!) allowed me to finally read one of his works. The music-as-magic element really appealed to me, and now I feel it would be a worthwhile investment to check out one of his novels.

Good cause, good reads. You can check out new stories from authors you love, or sample authors you might be interested in. This anthology is a complete package, and earns from me a very well-deserved five stars.

Shawn Speakman sought the help of friends, both unknown and the kings of the science fiction and fantasy genres, and asked for help. The book was created with the idea of helping with his medical bills. It is an anthology of short stories.

But that is where UNFETTERED gets interesting. See, unlike most short story collections, this book has one major difference - no theme. The authors were free to write what they wanted. The end result couldn't have been better.

Every turn of the page brought something new. Each author contributed greatness, be it stories that led to a series (Terry Brooks), another random short staring their series characters (Michael Sullivan, Naomi Novik, Robert Jordan/Brandon Sanderson), the first attempts at a story from a talented artist (Todd Lockwood), to completely random shorts that, while odd, flowed incredibly. Every story clocked in around 30 pages or less...but the passion and the skill of each author echoed through the pages. I found myself stopping after each story and thinking about what I had just read.

The stories are all about anything the author desired, and that caused me to slow down my reading. Beautiful as each story was, the next page was going to be something completely different, and that took me out of my normal speed of reading. But that isn't a criticism. These pauses and the length of time I used to read this just made me appreciate it all the more.

UNFETTERED left me happy, sad, angry, and hungry for more, a LOT more, from a lot of authors. It increased the size of my to-read list by a considerable amount, and lead to a few books I've already purchased and hope to dive into very soon. It was a book for a great cause, and beyond that, it will stand on my shelf as the book I will loan or recommend to anyone who wants to dip their toe into the world of science fiction and fantasy. This book is a gateway drug, and if I wasn't already an addict, I'd be hooked now.

Possibly the first anthology I read all of them. I personally enjoyed the stories. Many of the authors were new to me. Terry Brooks short stories add dimension to his other work, if that is possible. Shawn Speakman is a great new author who is so lucky to know so many people to help him in his pre Obama era of debt. I believe that anyone can benefit from the respite from reality offered by these short stories. Easy to read a little before bed.

Some heavy hitters in this collection and since it was "unfettered" the stories ranged wildly. It was very enjoyable to have no idea what the next story might be about. The forewords from each author were very interesting too. I have read most of these authors before so I was not worried about not having a background for the stories, but even without that history, I am sure most sci-fi readers would find the stories enjoyable as stand alones. It doesn't hurt that this book is doing good work too.

A lot of anthologies have a specific theme that all the authors adhere to -- P. N. Elrod is a master at these literary concept albums, and they're always fun.

What Shawn Speakman and Grim Oak Press have created is just a little different. Instead of enforcing a strict thematic code, the anthology is unfettered. The only requirement was quality, and the authors were allowed to showcase their talents.

You gotta read it!

The collection of fantasy authors in this anthology is fantastic. I read some of my favorites (Terry Brooks, Patrick Rothfuss) and introduced me to others I was unaware of (Eldon Thompson). The only story I didn't read was one by Robert Jordan/Brian Sanderson that was tied into the Wheel of Time, which I had gotten tired of back around Vol 6. This anthology should be read by all lovers of fantasy, and it is for a good cause, namely helping pay some huge medical bills of the editor.

This beautiful book of short stories is truly incredible.I am about halfway through the book and each and every story has made me laugh, cry, cringe, get angry..the stories are so personal, near and dear to each author. It's just one of the best short story books I think I've ever read and I can in no way possible reccommend it highly enough. Treat yourself to this amazing book and in doing so help Mr Speakman out with those damn evil medica bills.

I picked up this book because it contained a short story by Kevin Hearne I was looking for and was pleased to find a number of authors I hadn't heard off and have now bought books on foot of the stories in this collection. An interesting and eclectic gathering of tales, well worth a look.