Published by Cervena Barva Press Genres: Fiction, Flash Fiction, Novella
Format: eBook
Flash fiction which effectively draws you in to the two characters’ lives and tells their stories in 68 pages. The two character are Stela, the daughter of a ship’s captain and Brandy, a Chippewa orphan who is haunted by ghost wolves and spirits. Each author tells a story – James Claffey brings Stela to life, while Tara Lynn Masih, breathes life into Brandy. Their stories are told in alternating chapters/sections. Each character comes from the individual writer’s past works, and both will meet in this novelette.
Both characters are fully realized and drawn. Each has a distinct voice. Each has a diverse history and life experiences. Neither has had an easy life, both are survivors, and both are doing their best to make their way in life. Both have stories which pack a punch. Both evoke emotion from the reader.
What is truly special about this book is that I feel as if I knew both characters, so much information was given about each. There are no wasted words, no drawn out passages. The attention to detail, landscape, and fleshed out characters add to the richness of this story. I love books where the landscape feels like a character as well. This has vivid imagery, and you can almost feel the land breathing and exhaling throughout the story.
This is a story about two people who know loss, who know loneliness, who are haunted in their own ways, who are survivors and who endure.
How were Stela and Brandy’s stories told so eloquently in 68 pages? It is a testament to the skill of these two writers/authors who can tell such a captivating tale in less than a hundred pages.
Thought provoking, evoking emotion, and riveting. The Bitter Kind will haunt you.
Thank you to Tara Lynn Masih who provided me with a copy of this book. All the thoughts and opinions are my own.