Monday, January 7, 2019

Reprise Review: Music Speaks by Various



Genre: Short Story Anthology

Description:

In these pages are eleven short stories from nine independent authors. These stories cover a wide range of genres—from romance to dystopia—but they all share a single theme: the power of music.

Titles include:

Gone Too Soon by Christopher T. Grace

The Heart Never Forgets by Ann Cathey

Solo by David Antrobus

Heavy Metal Lovesong by Pam Bainbridge-Cowan

Save Me by Erin McGowan

Playlist by James Clark

Music Heals All Hearts by Laurie Sorensen

Punk Rock 101 by JD Mader

and three Jukebox Heroes Vignettes by LB Clark

100% of profits from the sale of this short story collection will be donated to the MusiCares Foundation—a non-profit organization that helps musicians in times of need.

Author:

See author list in description.

Appraisal:

Anyone who has read many of my reviews knows I’m a sucker for stories that have a tie-in to music. Stories that share the common thread of the “power of music” to lift our mood, inspire, entertain, and even change our lives are a perfect fit. I’d use the cliché that they’re preaching to the choir in my case, if only I could sing. The fact that the profit from sales of this book go to an organization that has provided a safety net for musicians who have experienced financial setbacks such as crushing medical bills is just an added benefit.

Short story anthologies sometimes suffer from unevenness. That wasn’t what I found here. Although you might have favorites based on genre preference and taste, there isn’t a single clunker in this collection. I tried to pick a favorite and, if forced, would choose the lead story, Gone Too Soon, by Christopher T. Grace. But every story was a contender.

Buy now from:    Amazon US        Amazon UK

FYI:

A small amount of adult language.

Added for Reprise Review: Music Speaks was a nominee in the Short Story Collections and Anthologies category for B&P 2013 Readers' Choice Awards. Original review ran August 13, 2012

Format/Typo Issues:

No significant issues

Rating: ***** Five Stars

Reviewed by: BigAl

Approximate word count: 35-40,000 words

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