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Showing posts with label Short Stories. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Short Stories. Show all posts
ISBN-13: 9781474603041
Publisher: Orion Publishing Group
Publication Date: November 2015
Format: Paperback, 80 pgs
Source: Purchased
This short story by Gillian Flynn first appeared in George R. R. Martin’s Rogues anthology and it won the Edgar Award for Best Short Story in 2015. With an old Victorian mansion setting, one could easily classified this as a creepy read but there is something more than that - it contains an interesting view of characters and behavioural studies and most of all, I was very intrigued with the author's different take from her other well-known works and I plunged into this book with anticipation.
The unnamed character is a young woman who frauds for a living. To be exact, she gives hand jobs to men and act as a psychic to clients, who are mostly women, to offer them some "guidance" in life and offer solutions. Then one day a woman called Susan Burke came to her, telling her her life is troubled and she suspects there is something in her house. She believes some malevolent spirit is inhabiting their home and her 15-year-old stepson, Miles, is behaving strangely and it scares her.
The narrator doesn't believe in the supernatural; she is sure the old house has Susan's imagination running wild and that Miles, being an adolescent, has his issues and nothing more. However, when the narrator steps into the mansion she does feel something weird about the house, and Miles seems to be watching her every move and yes, behaving strangely. Soon the narrator finds herself locked in a chilling battle between Susan and Miles and it is up to her to discover the evil lurking within the old mansion.
Honestly speaking, The Grownup is not something I have expected but I have to say the author has done a terrific job in building up the intrigue and one couldn't help but to get suck into the story. However, since this is a short story there isn't enough characters development but the author has vividly described the characteristic of the narrator and her thoughts so this allows readers to get to know the person as who she is. I wouldn't want to say too much about the story but that the ending bothered me. I suppose that leaves to each reader's interpretation but personally I wished the ending was anything but. Nevertheless, Gillian Flynn's writing style is brilliant and I hope she has a new release out soon.
Tricks by Laura Lippman (The Dark End of the Street: New Stories of Sex and Crime)Tricks by Laura Lippman will be my last read for Carl's R.I.P. V Challenge, considering this challenge will end on October 31st and I don't think I will be able to finish reading the rest of the short stories of this anthology over the weekend. Nonetheless, I want to say I had fun participating in this challenge (as always! Plus, Carl is a wonderful host) and this has given me the opportunity to read more short stories since I rarely read them these days.
As the title indicates, Tricks by Laura Lippman is a story of a con man who not only cheat vulnerable women into marrying him but also stealing money from them during the process. We never get to know his name right from the beginning since there is no point in it considering he moves on and changes his name after getting what he wants from the victims.
Tricks tells the story of his perspective and his moves on his latest victim. I wish I could say something more aside from these but I am afraid that would spoil the fun for you. Laura Lippman writes great mysteries so expect a twist and a good ending to this story.
I decided to do a wrap up post here for the R.I.P. V Challenge since October 31st marks the last day of the challenge and I don't think I will be able to read and review a few more short stories over the weekend. I am committed to read The Penguin Book of Ghost Stories for the Short Story Peril but instead I got sidetracked by other books and by the time I wanted to get into that anthology again, the interest is no longer there. Thus I picked up The Dark End of the Street with a new expectation since they are two different genres altogether.
Due to time constraint, I am not able to finish reading the whole anthology but I would get to the rest of the stories at some point. Below is a list of short stories I read for the R.I.P. V Challenge (in chronological order):
- Tricks by Laura Lippman (The Dark End of the Street)
- Me & Mr. Rafferty by Lee Child (The Dark End of the Street)
- What Was It? by Fitz-James O'Brien (The Penguin Book of Ghost Stories)
- The Old Nurse's Story by Elizabeth Gaskell (The Penguin Book of Ghost Stories)
Among these four titles, I have to say my favourites are Me & Mr. Rafferty and The Old Nurse's Story. I was wowed by the former and the latter simply creeps me out.
Before I end this post, I would like to thank Carl for hosting this fun challenge! Carl's R.I.P. Challenge is one of my favourites reading challenges and I always look forward to it this time of the year.
Did you participate and what books did you read for this challenge?
ISBN-13: 9781408807583Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
Published: September 2010
Source: Personal Library
Me & Mr. Rafferty by Lee Child (The Dark End of the Street: New Stories of Sex and Crime)
When I saw the list of authors' names printed on this anthology, I just knew I have to get it. Well how could you possibly say no to big authors like Lee Child, Laura Lippman, Joyce Carol Oates and Francine Prose (just to name a few)? I know I couldn't, so there you go.
Me & Mr. Rafferty is actually the fourth story in this volume, and Lee Child is the main reason why I jumped into this story instead of starting from the first because I enjoyed reading Killing Floor, which is the first book of his Jack Reacher's series.
I have to say that Me & Mr. Rafferty is somewhat slow paced as compared to Killing Floor, and I don't meant it as a bad thing considering that the tone and the writing style is totally different. Killing Floor is intense, explosive and very action-oriented, whereas I find Me & Mr. Rafferty is more focused on the build up, as if Lee Child wanted us to take the time in exploring the narrator's thoughts and getting to understand him better. And in my opinion I think this approach is simply fantastic because you absolutely have no idea who the nameless narrator is except that he kills and his victims are often associated with prostitution. And he loves playing hide and seek games with a detective named Mr. Rafferty.
Source: Personal Library
Me & Mr. Rafferty by Lee Child (The Dark End of the Street: New Stories of Sex and Crime)
When I saw the list of authors' names printed on this anthology, I just knew I have to get it. Well how could you possibly say no to big authors like Lee Child, Laura Lippman, Joyce Carol Oates and Francine Prose (just to name a few)? I know I couldn't, so there you go.
Me & Mr. Rafferty is actually the fourth story in this volume, and Lee Child is the main reason why I jumped into this story instead of starting from the first because I enjoyed reading Killing Floor, which is the first book of his Jack Reacher's series.
I have to say that Me & Mr. Rafferty is somewhat slow paced as compared to Killing Floor, and I don't meant it as a bad thing considering that the tone and the writing style is totally different. Killing Floor is intense, explosive and very action-oriented, whereas I find Me & Mr. Rafferty is more focused on the build up, as if Lee Child wanted us to take the time in exploring the narrator's thoughts and getting to understand him better. And in my opinion I think this approach is simply fantastic because you absolutely have no idea who the nameless narrator is except that he kills and his victims are often associated with prostitution. And he loves playing hide and seek games with a detective named Mr. Rafferty.
And I confess: It is about more than just equilibrium and partnership. It is about the contest. Me and Mr. Rafferty. Him against me. Who will win? (Pg 61)
As much as this is a mystery, what made this story such a delightful read is Lee Child's writing style and the satire behind it. In the end it was the overall reading experience that overrides the feelings of finding out who won eventually and to me, that is the real satisfying treat.
ISBN-13: 9781587367335
Publisher: Wheatmark
Published: November 2007
134pp
I first came across this book after reading Wendy's wonderful review. I remember I commented on her post that I will have to add this book to my wishlist, and thereafter when the author contacted me and asked if I would like to receive a reviewer copy, I grabbed the offer. Perhaps he has read my comment. Nonetheless, I would like to thank him for sending the book to me.
Down to a Sunless Sea consists of fifteen short stories; each story allowing the readers to glimpse into the characters' world and their troubled inner thoughts under various dark and difficult situations. Each story is a different reading experience for me, for some are filled with a wry sense of humor, there are others which are considered thought provoking; and then there are some that leaves me cold. Nonetheless, Mr. Freese has portrayed each character very well and have captured their thoughts through his descriptions perfectly.
In Down to a Sunless Sea, it is a story about a boy called Adam. He has phobias and is feeling very insecured throughout his childhood life, and how it affects and changes his life after the death of his mother.
I'll Make It, I Think is somewhat a sad story about a young man dealing with his physical deformities. He gives names to some of his body parts, and I think in a way of his doing so, he is separating them from himself.
I'll Make It, I Think is somewhat a sad story about a young man dealing with his physical deformities. He gives names to some of his body parts, and I think in a way of his doing so, he is separating them from himself.
The Chatham Bear portrays the "wilderness" in today's society in a dark humor way. In Herbie, I sympathized Herbie, the boy for having an aggressive father for he is always taking charge of his life. Herbie craves for love and hoping to be accepted by his father through his skills in polishing shoes.
Alabaster is about a boy's meeting with an old woman, a survivor of the Holocaust. She confided in him how she wished she was at his age, for she had lost her youth and confidence but in her heart she is always a little girl even though her days are numbered. This is one story that touches me greatly.
In Juan Peron's Hands, the narrator gets his revenge by severing the dead Juan Peron's hands because he sees his hands the cause of the deeds he had done to other people. Little Errands is about a man suffering from Obsessive Compulsive Disorder and how he is always checking things to make sure he has done them correctly and in order. Arnold Schwartzenegger's Father Was a Nazi portrays a humorous side of how Arnie is raised by his father.
Echo and Young Man focus more on the psychological and philosophy issues respectively, and Nicholas is a boy’s perspective on today’s educational system. Billy’s Mirrored Wall touches on the differences we see between a child and an adult, and Unanswerable is about a father teaches his son to swim by throwing him into the water and leaving him there, in a way forcing him to learn but how this little ‘harmless’ intention will cause confusion to the boy as he grows up.
These short stories collections sums up the various emotions and the difficult situations the narrators faced and though some are not happy tales, Mathias B. Freese has penned each story beautifully and I find his writing style refreshing. He shares with his readers the different perspectives from a child/human's mind, which some of them have lead me pondering.
These short stories collections sums up the various emotions and the difficult situations the narrators faced and though some are not happy tales, Mathias B. Freese has penned each story beautifully and I find his writing style refreshing. He shares with his readers the different perspectives from a child/human's mind, which some of them have lead me pondering.
Mr. Freese has spent twenty-five years as a clinical social worker and psychotherapist caring for the deviant and damaged; he has also written a novel titled I Tetralogy.
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