This is the second of Lesley Hayes’ books I’ve read,  having already reviewed ‘A Field Beyond Time’.  I first discovered this author’s books by way of Twitter (who says Twitter doesn’t work?), and after some initial chat, emails, and taking a look at her blog I added ‘A Filed Beyond Time’ to my read & review list. This is however the first short story collection of hers that I have read and reviewed.. again, it won’t be the last….

Lesley Hayes has been writing ever since she was a child. Since then she has been published in several woman’s and literary magazines, read her stories on BBC radio, and in 1986 had her first novel, ‘Keeping Secrets,’ published. In addition to that and ‘A Field Beyond Time,’ Lesley Hayes is the author of several more successful and well received novels. Further information and links to her writing can be found at:  

http://www.lesleyhayes.co.uk

http://blog.lesleyhayes.co.uk

https://twitter.com/hayes_lesley

Not Like Other People, By Lesley Hayes

(Available in eBook format from Amazon)

A truly fascinating and poignant anthology of ten short character driven stories that centre on the lives, loves, and emotions of its characters; just as in real life, not every character here is one we sympathise with, and nor does every story end with a ‘happy ever after’ conclusion – stories that are sometimes funny, sometimes sad, occasionally heart warming, but which never fail to captivate the reader’s full attention.

In addition to the stories, there is an informative preface outlining the author’s approach to writing these tales, and how they differ from writing from that of a novel, giving the reader a real insight into them right from the start.

Although each story is entirely different in its theme, scenarios, and characters, the writing style remains consistent, characterised by crisp sharp sentences and dialogue, with just the right balance of description and dialogue to drive each story forward and keep the reader intrigued and entertained throughout. What was especially impressive about the dialogue was that despite there being ten different stories, and many more characters to contend with, each character still possessed their own unique voice, personality and attributes, and the imagery and descriptive prose of each never fell into any sort of predictable pattern.

Many of the stories don’t follow the usual short story format of a clever plot-line followed by the customary twist in the tale ending, instead concentrating on the subtle interactions between the characters, and whereas many short stories rely on the reader’s imagination to ponder on the ‘before and after’ of the story, here the reader is treated to brief yet fascinating self-contained interludes of the character’s lives, which allow you to really enjoy and immerse yourself ‘in the moment’ so to speak. Yes, each story ends in such a way as to either enlighten or surprise the reader, but the endings are mostly of the more subtle or gentle ‘aha’ moment.

Anyone who likes their reading to challenge their perceptions as well as entertaining them will not be disappointed: Intelligent and well written, highly entertaining and thought provoking, I cannot recommend this anthology more highly!

Other Short Story collections by Lesley Hayes: