What happens when gods wane, retire, or just decide they need a change of employment? 13 writers took up the challenge and let their imaginations run wild in this anthology that is nearly-always amusing, somewhat insightful, and completely irreverent as we imagine the gods of yore in retirement:Pan by Vanessa Wells: Gwen Henson is a witch trainee with a nose for trouble; when she gets into … she gets into something deeper than she and her mentor can deal with, they are forced to contact a cantankerous former god for assistance, only to find that his help comes at a price…but doesn’t everything?
A Low Key Game Night by Elizabeth Shaffer: Family Game night is always a risky situation when a former god of mischief is involved; add in a son bringing a new mortal girlfriend to meet the godly household and the stakes get a bit more interesting than anyone intended.
For Want of a Feather by Andrew Dunlop: When the God in charge of afterlife management goes AWOL, two intrepid (if somewhat dead) souls and a talking cat set off to find him. What they find isn’t exactly what they anticipated.
Out of Luck by Vanessa Finaighty: Loki, God of Mischief has a history of going too far: when one of his pranks goes wrong, he and the rest of the Gods are out of luck…literally.
Rule 34 by Avery Vanderlyle: When the Primal Terror goes AWOL, Demeter is forced to chase him down in order to keep humanity from destroying themselves; unfortunately, he has a new hobby, and it’s for mature audiences only.
Immanent Domain by Wendy Smyer Yu: When Cara accidentally invokes Coyote after a terrible date, the young woman has to channel her inner trickster so that the bored deity doesn’t wreck her life.
God of Morning by Elizabeth McCleary: When Morrow, god of morning is informed he is in danger of losing his position to Chaos god of well…chaos, he has to pull himself out of his recent funk and find joy in the morning once more.
Zeus Really Needs To Go by Shawn Klimek: Lactose intolerance and a distinct lack of a statute of limitations combine to give the former King of Olympus one very bad day.
Breaking the Habit by Ronel Janse von Vuuren: Odin finds that escaping his throne to make mischief at a rest home might be exactly what the doctor ordered.
The New Chief Medical Officer by Tom Vetter: Controlled chaos reigns in the Elysian Fields Retirement facility. The new chief medical officer arrives to take charge; but when retired gods are involved, nothing is ever as easy as it seems at first glance.
Playing Hooky by Juneta Key: Death’s FA is having a heck of day.
Harbinger of Doom by Katharina Gerlach: A mortal with a distasteful job finds that he can be more than he ever dreamed, if he simply has the courage to reach out and take what he wants.
Whither Athena by Marshall J. Moore: In which Althea Stagg has a client she can’t refuse and a missing Goddess who has no intention of returning: caught between two primal beings, what’s a demi-goddess detective to do?
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Here is yet another series I’m reading out of order, but an anthology series can really be read in any order. For me, this first installment in the Grumpy Old Gods series was very entertaining, but it didn’t blow my mind the way the first one I read (which I think was the 3rd installment).
Near the start of my reading experience, I wondered if this installment had the specific theme of “trickster god” because many of the stories include some form of a trickster god. By the time I got near the end of the collection, I felt there was more variety and edge to the stories and I was hooked once again. If I had read this one first, it definitely would have me interested in reading more of the series.
Honestly, there wasn’t one story I wouldn’t give an individual rating of at least 4-stars. Still, here are my standout favorites (5-stars) from the collection: Zeus Really Needs to Go by Shawn Klimek, The New Chief Medical Executive by Tom Vetter, and Wither Athena? by Marshall J. Moore.
Highly recommended to fans of humor, short stories, and mythology.
The first book in the Grumpy Old Gods series a great set of very short stories. I enjoyed reading this set. I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
1. Pan by Vanessa Wells
Gwen Henson is a witch trainee with a nose for trouble; when she gets into something deeper than she and her mentor can deal with, they are forced to contact a cantankerous former god for assistance, only to find that his help comes at a price…but doesn’t everything?
2. A Low Key Game Night by Elizabeth Shaffer
Family Game night is always a risky situation when a former god of mischief is involved; add in a son bringing a new mortal girlfriend to meet the godly household and the stakes get a bit more interesting than anyone intended.
3. For Want of a Feather by Andrew Dunlop
When the God in charge of afterlife management goes AWOL, two intrepid (if somewhat dead) souls and a talking cat set off to find him. What they find isn’t exactly what they anticipated.
4. Out of Luck by Vanessa Finaighty
Loki, God of Mischief has a history of going too far: when one of his pranks goes wrong, he and the rest of the Gods are out of luck…literally.
When Loki put what was suppose to be a temporary curse on his daughter Sygana, goddess of good luck and truth it has devastating consequences. It will take the actions of Tivlor, god of bad luck, to inadvertently bring about the answers needed. I love the tales of the Gods through mythology and of course, who doesn’t know who Loki is? So when Vanessa Finaighty puts human emotions and personalities to these gods it brought them to life. I’m old enough to remember Aesop’s Fables and this is what it put me in the mind of. I just loved it.
5. Rule 34 by Avery Vanderlyle
When the Primal Terror goes AWOL, Demeter is forced to chase him down in order to keep humanity from destroying themselves; unfortunately, he has a new hobby, and it’s for mature audiences only.
6. Immanent Domain by Wendy Smyer Yu
When Cara accidentally invokes Coyote after a terrible date, the young woman has to channel her inner trickster so that the bored deity doesn’t wreck her life.
7. God of Morning by Elizabeth McCleary
When Morrow, god of morning is informed he is in danger of losing his position to Chaos god of well…chaos, he has to pull himself out of his recent funk and find joy in the morning once more.
8. Zeus Really Needs To Go by Shawn Klimek
Lactose intolerance and a distinct lack of a statute of limitations combine to give the former King of Olympus one very bad day.
9. Breaking the Habit by Ronel Janse von Vuuren
Odin finds that escaping his throne to make mischief at a rest home might be exactly what the doctor ordered.
10. The New Chief Medical Officer by Tom Vetter
Controlled chaos reigns in the Elysian Fields Retirement facility. The new chief medical officer arrives to take charge; but when retired gods are involved, nothing is ever as easy as it seems at first glance.
11. Playing Hooky by Juneta Key
Death’s FA is having a heck of day.
What happens when Death places an ad in the employment section of the paper stating he’s retiring? Complete chaos, that’s what. How do you replace Death when that’s what he was born to do? Azrael had created impending anarchy and left Alister with the mess. What was he suppose to do when Death was not around for a consultation?
The storyline is entertaining. Juneta Key has taken the characteristics of the gods, as we know them, and expanded them to fit into a scenerio that is perhaps so far fetched it made me wonder, what if? A great read that kept me entertained.
12. Harbinger of Doom by Katharina Gerlach
A mortal with a distasteful job finds that he can be more than he ever dreamed, if he simply has the courage to reach out and take what he wants.
13. Whither Athena by Marshall J. Moore
In which Althea Stagg has a client she can’t refuse and a missing Goddess who has no intention of returning: caught between two primal beings, what’s a demi-goddess detective to do?
Each of these authors in Grumpy Old Gods Volume 1 are new to me, but I have to say, after reading “Out of Luck” by Vanessa Finaighty and “Playing Hooky” by Juneta Key I’m intrigued. These stories were quick, easy reads with all the personality quirks I’ve grown up knowing about the gods and yet they’ve been given human characteristics as well. These really were fun reads to me but then I love the old mythology.