Dot Dash

Dot Dash by Jonathon Pinnock

This is a collection of award-winning short and very short stories. By very short I mean just that - some are only about 20-30 words long. Most are surreal, imaginative, clever or just plain silly. Some make you reconsider what you thought was true; others bring a smile to your face.

All of these have won or been placed highly in competitions so if that's your market it's a good book to buy and study. The link above is to the paperback from Salt but you can get it as a Kindle book too.

In one or two cases I felt the stories ended a tiny bit abruptly - you know that feeling when you just need one more sentence, to let the ending fully sink in? Otherwise they are beautifully written and I thoroughly enjoyed reading them.

My Future Husband

My Future Husband by Karen Clarke

Karen's a writing buddy and when she sold this novel in Germany but not in the UK I was disappointed not to get the chance to buy it, so I was delighted when she made it available for Kindle. This is a brilliantly lively chick-lit novel with a time-travel element, making it highly unusual.

Sasha is engaged to Pete who she is due to marry in a couple of weeks. Then Elliot turns up from the future, insists that she ought to be marrying the present-day version of himself, and that she must ditch Pete and also stop present-day Elliot from marrying his current fiancee. But when Sasha meets present-day Elliot she doesn't exactly hit it off with him immediately. Besides, she loves Pete, doesn't she?

This novel romps along with pace and wit, and keeps you turning the pages. I found I liked all the main characters immensely and was intrigued to find out how the messy situation would be resolved. Very much looking forward to reading Karen's next novel.