My apologies to Catherine
MacKenzie for the late review. I thought
I would have it done before now, but I fell behind on my schedule. The biggest event that slowed me down was the
FBI Green Dot Moneypak Virus (mentioned in my last blog).
Between These Pages has been one of the best books that I’ve read
by an independent artist, and I want to give it a proper review. To do the book justice, I plan to give it a
two-part review. I’ll try to avoid
spoilers, but I’m going to give my synopses of the individual stories within
the book.
1. Collecting Knocks: The story is somewhat vague, but sometimes
that’s a good thing. Some of my favorite
stories are the ones that leave a little to the imagination.
2. Doorbells
and December: The story is told at a
slow pace, meant to bring the reader into the world of a woman who must take
care of her grandson, after the disappearance of her daughter.
3. Away
with the Fairies: A boy is coping with
the divorce of his parents, and has a new life that includes three new
sisters. The boy doesn’t quite fit in,
but with some help he learns how to cope with his new situation.
4. Night
Candy: This story is full of innocence
lost. A little girl sees many things
that she doesn’t quite understand. I
read the story thinking, how far is Cathy
willing to go? I wasn’t
disappointed.
5. Island
Lovers: This one stood out the most to
me. The story involves the strange
rituals of an island tribe, and how those rituals affect two people who are in
love. I won’t give away the ending.
6. The
Party: A birth mark results in a woman’s
negative self-image. Despite her
feelings about her appearance, a masquerade party allows her to enjoy herself,
and gives her a new sense of confidence.
7. Balloons,
Chocolate and Flowers: This is a story
that takes readers on an emotional journey that many people have been on
before. A young woman thinks about
giving her boyfriend another chance after he has cheated on her.
8. Rear
View Mirror: Very cool flash fiction
story about a woman who has just committed murder. The body is stashed away in the car, but...
you’ll have to read it for yourself.
9. Hourglass: A story about twin brothers that ends with a
twist. One brother is constantly
cleaning up after the other, and he’s had enough.
I’m straying a bit from my normal
format, but I would like to say… Who
would like this book? I think the
majority of the stories in this book were written with women in mind. The first half (this half), is especially geared toward women. However, there were a lot of thrills and
horror in this half of Between These
Pages, making it enjoyable to a wide variety of tastes.
Personally, I think the book is well
rounded, but the second half actually contains the majority of my favorite
stories. I think this book is worth buying,
and hope that the readers of my blog will support this author. Cathy MacKenzie is one of my favorite
personalities when it comes to writers.
I’ve always thought she had a crazy side, but she’s managed to put her
insanity into a bottle, and pour it into a book for us to read.
Which story is my favorite in this
half of the book? Rear View Mirror. Although it’s probably the shortest story in
the book, it’s full of cool imagery. It
comes in fast and hard, and delivers everything a good short story should.
Keep watching for the second half
of my review for Between These Pages. Until then, check it out for yourself…
Email Catherine MacKenzie at writingwicket@gmail.com
Joshua Hicks recently released
Flashlight Stories, an anthology of short stories that are meant to terrify. The book is only 99 cents until after
Halloween. Get the first story free
(plus a flash fiction introduction) with any sample download. Enjoy!
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