Tag: short story review

Short Story Reviews: Moon Song (2017) and The Weatherman (2021)

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an above shot of someone eating breakfast, drinking tea and reading a magazine; text says: 'short story review: r. crunden'

Moon Song by Tom Mock

At daybreak, if she was right, the sun would split the ocean from the sky and rush across the water to meet her atop the eastern most dunes as she would be ever after—new. If she was right. If any of us could ever be anything except exactly what we are.

I was really impressed by the prose in this tale. The atmosphere was really well set by the author and maintained throughout. I don’t want to spoil it, as it’s quite short, but definitely a dark, enthralling read.

The Weatherman by Michael Bergman

“You’re not predicting the weather, Tomas. You’re controlling it. You get that from your grandfather.”

What began as a seemingly simple tale of a disgruntled weatherman fresh out of a job morphed into a tale of fatherhood, relationships, growing up, familial complexities, fantasy and mythology all rolled into one!

Short Story Reviews: Battered Heart (2021) & On the Edge of Salt (2020)

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Battered Heart by Maxime Jaz

Home. Tasting that foreign feeling word. Trying to forget that large house filled with sunshine and their love.

Oh, this short story was absolutely heartbreaking! It follows the last moments of an ending relationship and it’s just so shattering. Jaz writes wonderfully evocative characters that you just want to hug and protect. Definitely worth checking out!

On the Edge of Salt (Blood Brute #0.2) by Dixon Reuel

People might climb Holly Hill, might even pass through the ring of holly trees surrounding Owl Court. But nobody crossed that sacred boundary of their red brick wall. To Rise, it was an edge between worlds, marked by the coven with white, ancient salt rubbed deep into the brick foundations. Every dawn, the coven invoked a prayer in the Old Language to reinforce their sacred protection.

I haven’t read this series yet, but I saw the short story on my feed and it looked quite interesting, so I dove in face first like always with absolutely no context, haha. I really liked it!! Reuel’s writing is crisp and polished, and the characters are engaging. Very intrigued about the rest of the series! Definitely worth checking out!

Short Story Review: customer service (2019)

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customer service by C. Vandyke

And, mathematically speaking, nothing less than one-hundred percent was perfect. With its Decision Trees, Fuzzy Logic, and CRMs, the neural network could crunch-data and analyze trends to perfection, but there was still one variable that even its AI could not completely solve for: taste.

What a great line.

I read C. Vandyke’s customer service, which is made up of two short stories! There was ‘Customer satisfaction’ and ‘The Ones Who Walk Away From Amazon Prime’, a twist on The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas. Both were commentaries on modern technology and society and were very well written! I’ll definitely be reading more by this author! 

Short Story Review: Keys (2020)

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Keys by Tim Parks

The past is a dream, Daniel thought. There is no way to make sense of it.

This was quite an interesting short story! The idea of introspection and dreams surrounding old relationships and symbolic keys was a solid premise and the prose was lovely, but I did find myself wishing it was just a little bit longer. Really enjoyed it, though!

Read it for yourself here.

Short Story Review: The Lady or the Tiger? (1882)

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The Lady or the Tiger? by Frank R. Stockton

This was the king’s semi-barbaric method of administering justice. Its perfect fairness is obvious. The criminal could not know out of which door would come the lady; he opened either he pleased, without having the slightest idea whether, in the next instant, he was to be devoured or married. On some occasions the tiger came out of one door, and on some out of the other.

Oh, wow, okay. I absolutely loved the prose. I’ve never even heard of this before it popped up on my feed today, but apparently it’s a classic short story from the 1880s. How groovy! I definitely recommend giving this a read.

The Lady or the Tiger? follows the tale of a barbaric king after he learns his daughter has a secret lover and so subjects him to a trial by chance. If he picks one door, he gets eaten by a tiger; if he picks the other door, he has to marry a woman who is not his daughter. The story is framed in a talking-to-the-reader kind of way, with a philosophical twist (kind of reminds me of The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas, actually). The prose is just so lush that it draws you right in.

Read it online here.

Review Roundup

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Masquerade Season by ‘Pemi Aguda [short story]

This one really made me think and it hit me harder than I anticipated. Actually, Masquerade Season reminded me of The Giving Tree, honestly. One of those stories where the message makes you ache and it leaves you deeply melancholy.

The Sea Is Salt and So Am I by Cassandra Hartt [fiction]

I got a chapter sampler version, so I’m only reviewing the couple of chapters I read, but I really, really like the prose in this one. There’s a very distinct voice, which is so nice to find. The set up is very intriguing, and I’m really curious to see how it’s going to wrap up.

Thank you Netgalley for the ARC-excerpt. Excited to read the full book!

Dust Bowl Venus by Stella Beratlis [poetry collection]

Woe be unto us: We thought dancing did not matter.

I really do have, like, a thing for poetry. I truly do. Poems are so fly, and these ones are awesome.

Thank you Netgalley for the ARC.

A Peek at Beaks: Tools Birds Use by Sara Levine [children’s books]

This is such an informative and awesome kid’s book! It’s interactive, which is great for teaching kids and getting them engaged with the material, and there are so many different birds that are described herein. It also delves briefly into how evolution and Darwinism work. A lovely, colourful book for young readers!

Thank you Netgalley for the ARC.

Winter Soldier Vol. 1: The Longest Winter by Ed Brubaker [graphic novel/comic books]

I’m gonna admit, I picked this up because of the show. It’s awesome to finally have the focus on Bucky’s character, who I’ve always found interesting. This comic was quite compelling and I really liked the artwork. I was a bit confused? I feel like there was backstory I didn’t have, but maybe it’s just because I’m so used to the show/films universe. Like, I wasn’t expecting Bucky and Natasha to be so close! I liked them together, I was just a bit thrown. That said, I liked it overall. Definitely going to read a few more Winter Soldier tales. 

Mika and the Dragonfly by Ellen Delange [children’s books]

Do you need a spoiler warning for a kid’s book? It’s only 17 pages, so I have no idea! But, uh, spoilers? Haha. The artwork in this is absolutely lovely, and there’s a good message about being kind to insects and making friends. I’m a little unsure about the method of resolution, though: the dragonfly’s wing fell off and the kid ends up gluing it back on.

Adults don’t take kid’s books literally, of course, but I’d just be sure to tell the kid you’re reading this to not to attempt gluing a dragonfly’s wing back on. I really worry about the dragonflies, okay?! That’s my only nitpick, though. Overall it’s a very sweet little book and definitely worth picking up.

Thank you Netgalley for the ARC.

Short Story Review: Termites by Neha De Alwis

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I love discovering new literary magazines and new authors in one fell swoop! Totally delightful! I stumbled across Kill Your Darlings (no, not the Daniel Radcliffe movie) this morning after seeing the name in a Goodreads sidebar. (Hey, recs work!) It’s an Australian based literary magazine that offers short stories and essays and more. I clicked on a story at random and was blown away.

Termites (2020) by Neha De Alwis won the 2020 KYD School Writing Prize and I must say, the story is well worth reading!

You are a thief of many things, and about half of those things you keep in your pocket. The rest, the things you can’t hold, you keep in a constantly growing mental inventory.

The story focuses on OCD and was very well written! I’m looking forward to more by this author.

Short Story Review: Blood Brothers by Josie Jaffrey (2021)

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Blood Brothers by Josie Jaffrey

This short story is tied into Jaffrey’s Sovereign and Seekers vampire series. Be sure to check them out!

I really liked this one! Adewale and Alastair are great characters and I’m really curious to learn more about them after this. I think I should probably have read more of the books in the series first (I’ve only read The Gilded King so far, but the rest are on my list!), as I was a little confused by some things, but overall a great read! Definitely got me in the mood for more vampire books. I’m really looking forward to the rest of this series!

I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Short Story Review: The Kingdom That Failed by Haruki Murakami, Translated by Jay Rubin (2020)

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The Kingdom That Failed by Haruki Murakami

“To see a splendid kingdom fade away,” it said, “is far sadder than seeing a second-rate republic collapse.”

I’ve never read anything by Murakami and this was definitely a great introduction. I’m not really sure how to describe this one: a man sees someone he used to know and watches the man while remembering how he used to be. It’s quite short, yet engaging and with great prose!

It’s published in The New Yorker if you want to check it out. I definitely recommend giving it a go!