Wednesday 24 June 2015

Different voices, all worth listening to

A disclaimer to begin with. One of the stories in this collection was written by me but that shouldn't stop me expressing my appreciation of the other 28.

Anthologies are often linked, either thematically or through some parallel obsessions or ideologies shared by the contributors, but the main binding element here is that each story is by a writer who is passionate about writing. I almost wrote ‘good writing’ but ‘good’ means such different things to different people that, in this case, it’s inadequate.

With so many stories to choose from, it would be wrong to single out any specific contributions. The collection is eclectic, covering many styles and genres, with a range of subjects, moods, characters and stylistic variations that will cater for almost all tastes. Horror, tears, laughter, tenderness, fantasy, satire, crime, love, the supernatural – they’re all here and more, handled with skill and passion, slipping irresistibly into the reader’s mind, demonstrating what a flexible form the short story is and why it’s enjoying a long overdue resurgence.

Whatever your favourite genre or literary preferences are, this collection will satisfy them.

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