Reviewed by Jess
TITLE: Fool for You
AUTHOR: Daria Defore, L.J. Hamlin, Asta Idonea, Ava Kelly, Laurin Kelly, Helena Maeve, Kashmira Majumdar, and Melissa Snowdon; edited by Samantha M. Derr
PUBLISHER: Less Than Three Press
LENGTH: 311 pages
RELEASE DATE: March 28, 2018
BLURB:
“Wagered & Won” by Helena Maeve – Nearly caught picking pockets at a casino in Silvergarde, Kathra owes her closest getaway yet to the mysterious Cecily, a bewitching gambler with a lethal secret. Over the course of a single night and a high-stakes card game, Kathra is drawn into a web from which she may not wish to escape.
“Toils & Tricks” by Asta Idonea – Centuries ago, the gods grew tired of being forever on call, and so they hired counterparts to be their representatives. When Sverrir, Loki’s representative, is called on to foil a blackmail scheme, he think it will be a simple task…
“Whiskey & Pixie Dust” by L.J. Hamlin – Shane loves and hates his best friend, a mischief demon, in equal measure. But when the demon takes it upon himself to play matchmaker, Shane thinks the hate might just win out.
“Sussicran: A Love Story” by Melissa Snowdon – Eager to escape an otherworldly bet, mirror demon Llednew determines to steal the life of a lonely young man. But executing his brilliant idea proves to be more difficult than anticpated.
“A Spell for Luck” by Daria Defore – When he’s forced to spend the summer studying magic at his aunt’s house, a bored Tom promptly starts looking for any way to escape. He probably shouldn’t resort to making a deal with an extremely friendly demon, but he’s too curious to say no…
“Kneadful Things” by Laurin Kelly – When Adam answers an ad for work at a local bakery, he has no idea what he’s in for. Despite the storefront’s dilapidated condition and isolated location, a steady stream of customers come through hoping to find what they’re looking for from Jin, the mysterious owner.
“How to Trick a Trickster” by Ava Kelly – Eric is a trickster working for the Corps of Undercover Passion Instigators and Distributors. His latest assignment takes him to a bookstore where he has to bring together Ivo Newton and Tom Euler. What he’s not supposed to do is fall in love with both his targets.
“The Great Coke Robbery” by Kashmira Majumdar – Charlie and Jack used to be the best in the business in the heist business. And then Charlie fell in love and settled down. Ten years later, Jack is debt-ridden and down on his luck, and in walks Charlie, proposing to pull off the most outrageous job of their lives.
REVIEW:
Since this is a book with stories by all different authors, I like to review them as separate works first and then see how they all tie together with a common theme at the end.
“Wagered & Won” by Helena Maeve
I was happy to find that the first story in the anthology was F/F. While I liked the general theme of two awesome-in-different-ways ladies getting stuff done and setting off on a life of misdeeds together, there was a lot going on in this story, and it became a little jumbled around the halfway mark. It is steampunk mixed with urban thriller mixed with historical fiction mixed with a little romance, but the story never gained enough traction to be really awesome at any of those.
This story is decent if you like ladies getting their revenge and smooching each other while doing it, but I ended up longing for more characterization and less world-building.
Story Rating: 3.5 Hearts
“Toils & Tricks” by Asta Idonea
You can’t have a trick-themed anthology without Loki making at least one appearance, and he definitely didn’t disappoint in this story. It’s a fresh take on Norse mythology in a modern world that holds off on explaining key plot points until you’ve gotten to know the characters and become invested in them.
The questions of mortality and giving up eternal life for love might not be new, but the way Sverrir’s connection with his Icelandic sweetie goes from conniving plot to true love and affection is incredibly romantic.
Story Rating: 4 Hearts
“Whiskey & Pixie Dust” by L.J. Hamlin
Even in short, sweet stories, there needs to be a conflict—but this story sorely lacked one. The “trick” ended up being something very simple and harmless, making it less of a trick and more of a…wingman move? Friendship quirk? Either way, it didn’t do much for story progression.
I’ve read L.J. Hamlin’s works before, and they are very good about characters communicating and consenting, but there was too much stiff dialogue between Shane and Lot rather than the fun mishaps that could have come from the truth-serum pixie dust. I think they played it too safe with this story. The sweetness and romantic fluff was there, it just needed a boost.
Story Rating: 2.5 Hearts
“Sussicran: A Love Story” by Melissa Snowdon
Read the first word in that title backwards and you’ll get an idea of the kind of unique, off-the-walls story this turned out to be. I was no expecting it at all! There’s a quirky, Douglas Adams-like tone to the entire thing, and we’re expected to pick up fast on whatever wackiness is going down with Wendell and his mirror-friend, Llednew.
Though there’s a sweet, PG romance going on, some readers might not take to the weirdness of the whole thing. It definitely sets itself apart from the rest, but it won’t be for everyone.
Story Rating: 4 Hearts
“A Spell for Luck” by Daria Defore
Now this is when the collection gets really steamy, and it totally pays off. I love the idea of a young witch character who only wants to use his lazy teenage-boy magic to make himself look cuter, and I love that he’s shipped off to the country to learn about his roots. It’s a classic coming-of-age setup with a fresh twist.
But the real awesomeness in this story comes from Tom’s encounters with the “house demon” who wants to experience a real taste of human sexuality. That, combined with Tom’s desire to be totally dominated, turns this fun paranormal story into a scorching kinkfest with genuine romantic discovery. Highly recommended!
Story Rating: 5 Hearts
“Kneadful Things” by Laurin Kelly
This is such a nice take on a classic myth. It has a lovely HEA ending that makes you fall for these characters as much as they fall for one another. It reads smoothly and has a decent plot. It kept me invested the whole way through—invested in Adam’s loneliness, it Jin’s quiet contemplation. It’s an excellent feat for such a short story!
The only thing that prevented this from being perfect was the actual lack of fooling or tricking. I kept expecting Jin’s previous “customers” to come back because their wishes went awry, but that never happened. Jin was never anything less than genuine with everyone, including Adam, so it was hard to fit this story within the anthology.
Story Rating: 4.5 Hearts
“How to Trick a Trickster” by Ava Kelly
This is one of those short stories that would’ve really benefited from being made into a longer work. It’s very hard to write a poly romance with such short perimeters, especially when none of the characters know each other to begin with. Those bonds and relationships need time to be established. I just didn’t fall for Ivo, Tom, and Eric’s relationship as much as I wanted to because I needed to get to know them a little more.
There were some really nice aspects of this story, though, including an awesome GNC character whose identity fit very well into the fantasy elements of the story. I also loved the double-crossing trickery—it definitely delivered on the theme. This isn’t a bad story at all, just one that deserved a longer form.
Story Rating: 3.5 Hearts
“The Great Coke Robbery” by Kashmira Majumdar
If the previous story needed a longer form, this one needed a whole novel. Wow, there was a lot going on here! Tons of characters with complicated relationships, a complex heist plot, a reunited romance with lots of history and backstory. Double-crossing and double-agents. Not knowing who to trust. In a novel-length work, I’d love this, but it was just way too much to digest in a short story, and I just couldn’t get invested in the plot.
The romance between Charlie and Jack could be one for the books, but we’re only given slivers of their past and their chemistry together. Majumdar has a gift for characters, that’s for sure—we just deserve more of them in a more condensed plot. The format was really working against this story.
Story Rating: 3.5 Hearts
I was excited to dig into this anthology because I love the theme of tricking/fooling, especially in romance. It’s a topic ripe for romantic intrigue, sexual tension, and good storytelling. For the most part, the stories really delivered. The plots in “Toils and Tricks” and “How to Trick a Trickster” kept me guessing, wondering what the characters’ motives were. The twist in “A Spell for Luck” provided excellent erotic material. And even though they became jumbled in the short format, the complex heist and thieving plots in “Wagered & Won” and “The Great Coke Robbery” gave us some good queer thriller stories, which is an often-overlooked genre.
As a whole, I think this is a well-done anthology that really inspired the writers to work with a complex theme. The only limitation came from that complexity, through—when dealing with characters who may not be all that they appear to be, we need time and room to get a feel for them, and sometimes, that intrigue just wasn’t there with the short story format.
Despite these limitations, I really enjoyed the majority of these stories, and I think there will be something here for everyone.
RATING: 
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