Rappler contributor Jerald Uy reviews A Bottle of Storm Clouds:
If there is one thing [Eliza Victoria’s] first collection of short stories, A Bottle of Storm Clouds, has shown, it’s that her sensibility as a news-oriented person can be a factor in weaving stories that feel so relevant and Filipino — characters and settings beyond the American lovestruck vampires and British lightning-scarred wizards Filipino bookworms know.
Don’t expect the usual tales starring your friendly neighborhood aswang and that snake-man who lives under women’s fitting rooms in this book.
Victoria’s characters — though plucked from the stories of our lolo and lola — are refreshing.
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A news-savvy reader can spot the various references in the short stories that make the reading experience more enjoyable: the Guinsaugon landslide, the Oakwood mutiny, the Rizal Day bombing and even the time the President extended the operating hours of the MRT to appease call center agents.
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If you haven’t been introduced to Filipino speculative fiction, I ask you to do yourself a favor and get yourself a copy of “A Bottle of Storm Clouds.”
Read the complete review here. Contains some mild spoilers, so be warned.
Hallelujah for pointing out the news item references, Mr. Uy! The news very much informs some of my stories in this collection.
A Bottle of Storm Clouds, published by Visprint, is still available in all major bookstores, folks! Grab a copy. :)
Eliza Victoria 