A Family Affair - Suprina Frazier

So this is really a short story where 21 year old Kendra recieves news that the uncle she grew up knowing is in fact her father. Whilst her mother Reeka and Kenny fell in love as seniors in Florida, their parents fell in love with eachother in New York.

Out of respect for their now smitten parents they kept the romance a secret and throughout the pregnancy Reeka invented a male so Kenny didn't need to out himself.

Everything comes to light as they are visiting Kenny to say goodbye after a bad skiing accident that has left him in a coma that he isn't expected to wake from. In the end he only wanted 2 wishes; to marry Reeka and to hear Kendra call him dad atleast once. So as the first cannot happen, at his bedside Kendra talks of some of the memories she has with him as well as calling him dad/daddy a few times.

In the end Kendra goes on to graduate and in the stands, her parents newly married as Kenny pulls through from his coma and goes on to fulfil both wishes.

The moral of the story was 'Tell your kids the truth about their paternity before it's too late...even if the details of the truth are ugly and painful.'

As a short story it's good, I mean there was enough detail to make interesting and to have the plot twist as the opener really draws your attention in and makes you want to know about it all. It was a good story, full of detail to really help you imagine each scene but what I didn't like was the massive coincidences that their grieving parents so happened to fall in love as they did and that as soon as Kendra calls Kenny dad/daddy he suddenly has the strength to pull through the coma he was in. I mean as far as the moral of the story I guess it's a good one, whether you agree or not is the question.

3/5 just down to the coincidences that happen. Well written and interesting I wish it were longer and an actual novel not a short story.

Caged - Onaiza Khan

Synopsis:

"Keep your mind right, put your body in action and let your spirit guide you.”

These are the words keeping her sane after her husband takes her from India and into isolation in northern Canada. But after three months with only a servant, a television and the screams of another captive keeping her company, she begins to lose touch with reality - even forgetting her own name.
With the help of an unexpected ally, she discovers an inner strength and powers previously unknown; changing her perspective and realigning her past, present and future.

Review:

Our protagonist Noor, is being held by her husband, she hasn't left the house in 3 months, and longs to be free. Her days are consistent, the routine she is used to is suddenly broken when her captor begins to break It in unusual was that seem nice  us but make our character weary which turns my feeling of the actions being nice into being suspicious. After all he has beaten and abused her over her time as his prisoner.

After her routine is broken in small, subtle ways she finds the other human who she has been hearing being tortured and abused. However he is kept differently to her, Noor finds him chained to a chair and in the dark. To anyone normal this is suspicious.
In short they both plot escape, and it works, but she has moments of panic as to whether she can actually trust him, or will she find herself worse of. It turns out that all is not as it seems and it causes Noor to call in toe question the whole 3 months she was held captive in her own home by her husband Daniel.

I felt really odd about this book, at the beginning I was really into it, there was a beautiful and well described dream scene which really had me interested but pretty much everything from there on out wasn't exactly brilliant. The plot itself was actually a very smart and cunning one, you're lead to believe one thing when in fact its something, not entirely but somewhat different. I felt like the story was rushed, that the ending was important and you were needed to get there urgently. The book has potential, it really does, I really thought I'd be absorbed into this book and have emotions and connections to the places and people but I didn't, I felt very little towards each character, I just didn't click with them and I was unable to care for them as much as I usually would.

Its classed as a supernatural thriller, psychological thriller but I'm not really sure I feel comfortable using those genres with this book. I mean it works as s psychological thriller I suppose, but I don't feel like it really emphasised the psychological state of Norah's character.

I really appreciate receiving a copy of this book and that I was asked for an honest review. For those who like fast pace books that you can get through really quickly his is one for you. Though I didn't enjoy it as much as I thought I would I give this book a 3 out of 5 and I wish Onaiza all the best with the success of Caged and all of her projects in the future.

the case of the lower case letter - Jack Delany

Synopsis

The famous lexical semanticist Professor Edgar Nettleston had been found dead, a gunshot wound to the head.

Review 

This short story is based all around the famous lexical semanticist, the police believe that is is suicide so when his wife heads into the office of our nameless main character the whole journey begins by decoding the letter the wife believes is a suicide note.

With quick realisation and a smart main character in near to no time, the case is solved and the story wraps up nicely.

I love how there isn't a name to the main character so it becomes alot easier to put yourself in their shoes and see yourself playing that part. Although I love how the story unfolds it seems really easy to figure it all out. 

Its a 3 out of 5 for me just down to how easy it was to figure out and it's actually length. Id have preferred more detail and more information but what we get is good. 

Corpse In The Kitchen - D.J.Reid

 

 

 

 

Synopsis:

 

Off-duty police officer Danny Sullivan comes home from shopping to find a corpse lying on his kitchen floor.

 

 

Review:

 

So what can I really say its like a 20 page short story which was really something I read just because it seemed like it could have been funny and just because I was intrigued by the one line synopsis as it allowed me to start thinking about what happened etc. before I even read it.

 

It kicks off automatically as it should when only being a short story and in honestly I cant understand why I was really thinking so deep into the story but I was anyway. First off Danny reacts kind of too casually to a dead person lying in his kitchen yet alone the fact when the police actually arrive followed by the 'lab guys' Danny is just treated like he was a cop who had been called to a dead body in a kitchen it was just so weird for me to read that he wasn't technically treated like anyone should be when in those circumstances but hey ho I watch too much crime related TV shows its my fault I expected it to be those standards.

 

After following a trail of blood they find where the victim worked and was staying where they find further evidence and also gain information on how could have done it. Turns out in this neighbourhood you can run into a cops house when you're in trouble, in some stories that's really not something a character would do unless they were family or really trusted which Danny must have been. In the end they find who does it literally sat on ice which to me was something I laughed at, it was a funny ending for me I suppose.

 

What really did my nut in though is the fact the questions and theories the officer and Danny put together always seemed to go too nicely together and to plan and all questions they both had were answered exactly how they wanted them to be which I just started to ignore in all honesty.

 

Altogether I have to give it a 3 out of 5, it was well written and the plot had substance I just wish it wasn't a short story and then it could have been padded out more and possibly altered so everything could have been done how it really would have been done. I recommend it if you want a quick read to pass the time or fill in a short break its bound to work for you in those circumstances.

Something Like Happy - John Burnside

Well I couldn't find the synopsis or any sort of descritption for the short story I read. I'm pretty confused by it all right now. I downloaded this free book that was only 36 or so pages long which is great for a short story. I downloaded it and begun reading it in the first hour of my 4 hour flight but then I forgot I had begun reading it and instead continued reading Let There Be Linda. After returning home I found this short story on my phone and got right back into reading it. It sounds silly but somehow I didn't forget what I had read, as soon as I loaded up the story i was able to remember what had happened in the previous 12 pages so i didn't have to go back and beging reading from the start.

From what I know John is a poet and writer, he has several short stories out that are based around lonliness of men and women trapped in certain situations. From what i read in this, Authur McKechnie who's brother (Stan McKechnie) was dating Marie who is Fiona (our main characters sister)

The sisters argue a little over how stan isn't exactly the best Marie could do but she loves him and wants to marry him. near the middle end of the story, Authur begins to change, he begins taking clothes from his brother who has told him he cannot do so. Marie tells Fiona that Stan is looking for his brother so when Fiona later spots Authur she tells him but he doesn't seem to care at all and soon leaves.

The damamge ends up getting done and Stan ends up behind bards and Authur in the hospital but once hes healed he withdraws all of his money from the bank where Fiona walks, obviously avoiding her before disappearing for good. It seems like all along Authur just wanted a reason to leave town and never look back so when Stan finally gives him the reason he doesn't let it go to waste.

this leaves Fiona picking up the pieces of her sister who is depressed over the fact her boyfriend is behind bars Fiona is left feeling like she has nothing, fading into the snow she sits watching fall. It seems like now just like Authur all she wants to do is to get out.

I must say i am pretty confused about the whole thing but i think that's down to the fact ive only read one short story by John and that it may make sense if i read more? I'm not sure but ill possibly give it a go. What i read wasn't bad, and its clear John has a skill when it comes to writing short stories and can really make you connect with the characters he focuses on. For my lack of understanding but the greateness of what i read i give the book an overall 3 out of 5 but if i manage to understsnd this more after reading more short stories that rating would proabably go up.