Book Description:

Winner of ‘Best Short Story Collection’ in the 2014 eFestival of Words, “Nine Lives” comprises nine short dramas in the vein of Terry Tyler’s well-loved novels, some funny, some sad, with her usual unpredictable twists. The first chapter of full-length novel and tale of sibling rivalry, WHAT IT TAKES, is to be found at the end.

The stories:

Angel – The perfect wife of the perfect husband is tempted by the fruit of another.
Shut Up And Dance – Paul says he will love Laura whatever size she is. But will he?
Mia – The threat of ‘the other woman’…
Kiss Your Past Goodbye – Zoe finds out what happened to her first love, who broke her heart.
We All Fall Down – Two old friends meet for a drink – just a swift one, of course!
Bright Light Fright – A tale of vengeance, a burglary, and a nasty shock.
Mama Kin – Emma and Melanie have very different approaches to childcare – oh dear!
Don’t Get Mad – Get Even – Kevin and Marcus have been best friends

My Review:

At the moment I’m finding it difficult to concentrate on reading ( well on anything actually). But, having been a fan of Terry Tyler’s writing for a long time I was pleased to come across this collection of short stories. Not a clue why I haven’t found it before!

The one thing (well, not only the one thing – I could expound on this for ages) that I love about this author’s work is her ability to get inside each character’s head, whoever they are, whether a protagonist or the antagonist … or even a minor character. She brings them alive instantly – and draws the reader into the story.

Each of these stories are short, but they pack a punch and made me think. There is always something beyond the words, the characters, the plot. I think it’s life – and the general affliction of humanity; whether it’s pride, or greed, or revenge- or whatever else that lies beneath the facade of what is called ‘real life’.

They may be short, they may be easy reads on the surface – but they dig dip and I loved them.

And the book was the winner of ‘Best Short Story Collection’ in the 2014 Festival of Words, which says everything.

So … highly recommended … to any reader.