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How I discovered this book: I've read the three books in Judith Barrow's Howarth family saga, so was interested to read this offshoot collection of short stories. **Only 99p**
I read the whole collection this afternoon, and really enjoyed them. Each story deals with a character who has a secret; the first few are quite short, the longer, more involved ones nearer the end. I recognised some of the names from the series, but it wouldn't matter if I had or not; they're all terrific stories in their own right. The best ones are, I think, Alun Thomas and Stan Green's secrets, both of which are heartrending and take place during the First World War; I imagine I will meet these two when I read the prequel to the trilogy, which is out this summer.
What the characters have in common is their social class, and the book is a great illustration of how some situations caused great trauma for the subject, yet wouldn't matter at all today, or even occur; a boy of fourteen lies about his age and signs up to fight in the war, a girl survives a mother and baby home where the children are taken away for adoption, a battered wife has no choice but to stay with her husband. The characterisation is spot on, all the way through.
Judith Barrow has done a great job of ending some stories with dangling threads, leaving you dying to know what happens next ~ thus, the outtake short story collection for a series. It certainly worked for me! But they stand up perfectly well on their own. I definitely recommend them for a great couple of hour's reading.
Ooh, didn’t know about this! Thanks, Terry, it’s added to my list. Sounds good!
ReplyDeleteYou'll love it, Cathy, and it's great for when you just want a little something, not a whole book :)
DeleteThank you, Cathy. Wasn't sure how the stories would be received. Thrilled that Terry liked them.
DeleteTerry,thank you so much. I missed this complete;y.So chuffed you enjoyed the stories.:)
ReplyDelete