The first is by Elaine Chiew writing in The Short Review opens with, ‘a line-up of the more strait-laced traditional along with stories with a distinctive surreal, dystopian edge make for an eclectic but thoughtful anthology of stories that was interesting to read. It’s not a fast read for me, many of the stories were very densely told, with an atmospheric quality to the prose that suggests entire novelistic worlds, and I had to sieve the sediment and let the liquid run clear to see what’s most memorable.’
She gives a thoughtful and incisive review of the short stories, including this paragraph about my story, ‘in Marc Owen Jones’ The Murder of Crows, the wide scale disappearance of birds causes a chain reaction of effects, ranging from no-time-for-bullshit liaisons to a mother slowly becoming mentally unmoored, and through it all, a sense of apocalypse reigns.’
For the full review: http://thenewshortreview.wordpress.com/2014/05/22/unthology-4-review/
The second is by Nick Murray for Sabotage Reviews. Although he finds the anthology thematically difficult he does state that, ‘the stories contained within are nearly all magnificent.’ He singles out the stories of Rodge Glass, Carys Bray, Joshua Allen and Sarah Evans for particular praise and ends his review, ‘with such an array of stories and in such different styles, Unthology 4 is a book that is better on its second reading. After becoming familiar with which stories are which, the reader can dip back in and enjoy the excellent writing in an order and selection that suits them and the experience is all the richer for it. Who knows how the third reading will go. Unthology 4 certainly deserves it.’
For the full review: http://sabotagereviews.com/2014/05/21/unthology-4/