Book Review: "Roads of Destiny" ed. by Alasdair Richmond

Full Title = Roads of Destiny: And Other Tales of Alternative Histories and Parallel Realms edited by Alasdair Richmond

“It is dull enough to confuse the eye in following, pronounced enough to constantly irritate, and provoke study, and when you follow the lame, uncertain curves for a little distance they suddenly commit suicide—plunge off at outrageous angles, destroy themselves in unheard-of contradictions.”

The British Library Tales of the Weird has many different books to read and to my surprise, many that are available on Kindle Unlimited. I am dedicated to making sure I don't miss any out even if I don't think too much of them in writing or the way they have been curated. Not all of them can be perfect, but there is a definite ranking (which I may do soon) of what is best and what is not so good.

Roads of Destiny is a book that deals with alternative realities, histories and times. Something I am greatly interested in as I have written stories on this theme almost constantly. I am fascinated by this butterfly effect of history - what would happen if we changed a single decision? What would happen if Queen Marie of France wasn't executed? What would happen if Hitler never existed or Napoleon was never Emperor of France or even if Nero hadn't burnt Rome to the ground? There are so many possibilities for time and I think this book goes through them very well, offering us realities far from our own yet, only details have been changed to create an alternative universe where we may, or may not exist.

One of the stories I have enjoyed ever since I was a teenager (and it only grows better with age) was The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman. About a woman who delves deeper and deeper into her own psyche, this book offers us a whole new and claustrophobic look at the reality of madness. It is a brilliant short story with some really timeless quotations about how we see but then again, we may not see everything. I think that including this in the anthology really brings some difference to it when it comes to the main themes and ideas.

Another story I thought was a pretty good take on the overall theme was The Rose Wall by Joyce Carol Oates. A very almost visceral experience of otherworldliness, this is about a young and privileged girl who climbs over a rose-covered wall and then realises that she cannot return. In classic Joyce Carol Oates style, this story is tense and thought-provoking, making us think about how fragile our own realities and our own positions in them really are. Much like her other short stories, Joyce Carol Oates forces us to confront the most uncomfortable parts of human existence and, in perspective, ourselves.

Other stories in the anthology were just as strong including a work entitled Roads of Destiny by O. Henry, author of the beautiful Christmas story, The Gift of the Magi. I believe that this was probably the strongest after the two I have just mentioned for its diversity upon the main theme. However, other stories such as The Death Voyage by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle were also just as good because how on earth could you have an anthology about mixed up realities and introspection without including a story or two by the man who created Sherlock Holmes? Patricia Miles also features with the story Exit and Amelia B. Edwards has the story The Discovery of the Treasure Isles makes for a great adventure to counteract the Charlotte Perkins Gilman introspection.

All in all, I thought that this book was very cleverly curated and had some really good variations upon the theme. The title itself is not as obvious as some of the other anthologies in this series and I think it provided a great service to have something with so many different stories. The compilation choices themselves were brilliant and provides the reader with a great reading experience were no two things are ever the same. It is a brilliant testament to what The British Library Tales of the Weird is really about: great storytelling, great curation and great editing.