Last weekend, as an Easter Treat, Rosemary Gemmell made her Flowers for Lydia short story collection free for Kindle. I snapped up a copy and am pleased to share my thoughts on the collection today. Rosemary took part in my #TenThings feature a while back and you can read that here.
About the book
Fourteen short stories about love, relationships and making choices from a prize-winning writer.
Featuring romance, temptation, married love, adventure and enduring friendships. Some of the stories have been previously published in magazines, or broadcast, while a few of them had formed a very short previous collection of Romantic Encounters.
My Thoughts
I very much enjoyed this collection of short stories. At the heart of each one is love to a greater or smaller extent. We see love blossoming unexpectedly, new beginnings and second chances, women wondering if their relationship is still right for them, a few other-worldly experiences, even some danger and drama. There are a few gentle twists that will make you smile.
Short stories are a good way to sample an author’s writing style and I have to say that I rather enjoyed Rosemary’s writing so would definitely give one of her novels a try in future. I notice that one of her novellas, The Aphrodite Touch, features Carla and Jamie from Highland Hogmanay (one of my favourites in this collection) so I might need to check that one out.
Rosemary Gemmell has a natural skill for story-telling and I think that everyone will be able to identify with some of the characters and situations she creates. For such short stories, she really builds up believable characters and packs a lot into each tale.
Flowers for Lydia is independently published and available in digital
and paperback formats. You can order a copy here: Flowers for Lydia
About the Author – in her own words
I live in beautiful Scotland where I write contemporary and historical novels, short stories, articles, tween fiction and poetry. Several of my short stories have won awards, many of which are now published in three collections.
I’m a member of the Romantic Novelists’ Association, the Society of Authors and the Scottish Association of Writers. My degrees in European literature and history and a post-graduate Masters in Humanities have been useful in my fiction. Scotland inspires much of my writing and I love to dance!
You can sign up to my blog updates on my website: http://www.rosemarygemmell.co.uk
Portobello Book Blog 