Genre: Short
Story Collection/Flash Fiction
Description:
“Beautiful, Complicated Family: Volume 1 is a collection of
five flash fiction stories exploring the connections that can hold people together
or tear them apart. Like most families, the relationships in this uplifting
collection consist of intricate elements. Sometimes things get messy, but it’s
always beautiful. Read each story in about 5 minutes and get Volume 2 of the
collection for free using a link within the book. The stories are perfect for
readers who enjoy contemporary fiction novels as well as those who only have
time for a quick read.”
Author:
“Rosey Lee is a writer whose work has appeared in Necessary Fiction,
Bending Genres, Barren Magazine, Turnpike Magazine, and elsewhere. Her flash
fiction has been nominated for the 2019 Best of the Net anthology. A New
Orleans native who lives in Atlanta, her writing is influenced by the people,
traditions, and food that keep her connected to the South.”
Appraisal:
By most accounts the definition of flash fiction is a fictional short
story of 1,000 words or less. Sometimes a lot less. This collection of 5 flash
fiction stories average just a touch shy of 1,000 words each.
The challenge of writing good flash fiction is getting adequate
character and plot development into a limited number of words. As someone known
in some circles for being extremely wordy, this ability in others is something
I can appreciate. As the best songwriters can say a ton in few words, so can
the best flash fiction writers. Often these words imply a lot and allow the listener
or reader to fill in the gaps.
I found these five stories to be excellent reads. As implied in the
title, each story is looking at the relationships between people, as in a
family. Each of them resonated with me, not only being a good story I could
relate to, but doing an excellent job in helping the reader to quickly know
what was needed about the characters. Even with stories this short the author found
a chance to surprise me, setting me up to expect the story to go one way and
having the plot take an unexpected (at least to me) twist that made perfect
sense once it had happened. A good, short (well duh) read.
Format/Typo
Issues:
No significant issues.
Rating: *****
Five Stars
Reviewed
by: BigAl
Approximate
word count: 4-5,000 words
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