Smoke and Mirrors

"This is a collection of short stories and poems by Neil Gaiman. I like his writing so I enjoyed the different stories. Some are creepy, others are thought provoking. "

"3.5 star<br/><br/>Sorry for the lower rating. I am apologizing because I really am thick in the head sometimes and never get the undertones of stories. Politics or society.... nothing. It all goes over my head while I focus on the fantasy aspect of life so I don't go to sleep crying every night. But this is Neil Gaimen and I love his work.<br/><br/>I will honestly never get over Neil narrating his own audiobooks. They are beyond amazing and fun. Though my favorite part of this tale was the talk about his writing process. It almost seems magical in and of itself. I had to write things down like he thought of this because of that or this took him many years and so on. It gave the stories more life and I enjoyed them even better because of it.<br/><br/>(Troll Bridge )<br/>Absolutely loved this one. So much atmosphere creepy but utterly depressing in a way.<br/><br/>(The Goldfish Pool)<br/>Written in pieces then put together. Some of this story is true Neil stated. That's why I enjoyed it so much it felt ridiculously real. Even excitingly magical somehow. Definitely my favorite of them all.<br/><br/>(Queen of Knives)<br/>Neil also said that this particular tale was so close to the truth he had to explain to people that it didn't happen, well not like that anyway. Knowing that this was possibly true made it the more eerie. Now I shall forever wonder which parts were reality.<br/><br/>(Looking for the girl)<br/>Neil was commisoned by penthouse for this one. It did open my eyes to the fact that if you could touch a dream it would disappear. <br/><br/>(We can get them for you for wholesale)<br/>Came from listening to the radio about buying in bulk when Neil woke up they were talking about hired killers. This amused me because it was so close to the world we are living in today.<br/><br/>(The Sweeper of Dreams)<br/>Inspired by a Lisa Snellings statue. Probably the most unsettling to me out of all of them. Still throughly enjoyed it."

"Great short story collection"

"Before I read this book, I was under the impression that I just wasn't really a fan of short stories. This book made me realize that I like short stories just fine, I just have to be a fan of who is writing them. I find Neil Gaiman's style to be dark, gritty and masterful. <i>Smoke and Mirrors</i> is an eclectic collection of stories and poetry about everything from the holy grail to trolls. I think there's a little something for just about anyone that likes fiction. If you like short stories, Neil Gaiman, fantasy, or just want something a little different, you should take a look."

"A very good collection of short stories. It's even worth reading the intro/preface."

"An anthology like this one is always going to have some stories you like more than others, but overall, this is a very good selection of short fiction from a master of the format."