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The Returned #0.6
The Sparrow
In this short story by Jason Mott, author of The Returned, one determined couple seeks to reunite a young girl with the father who thought he had lost her forever...
When Heather and Matt Campbell find ten-year-old Tatiana Rusesa on the side of the highway, she is thousands of miles away from her village in Sierra Leone. She hasn't seen her family in almost two decades, not since she and her mother were killed by rebel soldiers. Now Tatiana has inexplicably returned, a lost orphan with no place to call home.
As the world dives deeper into uncertainty and chaos, Heather is determined to save Tatiana and help her find her way back to her family. But how much is she willing to lose to protect a girl she doesn't even know?
Learn how the mysterious reappearances begin in The First, and don't miss Jason Mott's unforgettable debut novel, The Returned, from Harlequin MIRA, a moving tale of a family navigating...
When Heather and Matt Campbell find ten-year-old Tatiana Rusesa on the side of the highway, she is thousands of miles away from her village in Sierra Leone. She hasn't seen her family in almost two decades, not since she and her mother were killed by rebel soldiers. Now Tatiana has inexplicably returned, a lost orphan with no place to call home.
As the world dives deeper into uncertainty and chaos, Heather is determined to save Tatiana and help her find her way back to her family. But how much is she willing to lose to protect a girl she doesn't even know?
Learn how the mysterious reappearances begin in The First, and don't miss Jason Mott's unforgettable debut novel, The Returned, from Harlequin MIRA, a moving tale of a family navigating...
25 pages, Kindle Edition
First published July 1, 2013
26 people are currently reading
918 people want to read
About the author
Jason Mott
20 books1,473 followersJason Mott lives in southeastern North Carolina. He has a BFA in Fiction and an MFA in Poetry, both from the University of North Carolina at Wilmington. His poetry and fiction has appeared in various journals such as Prick of the Spindle, The Thomas Wolfe Review, The Kakalak Anthology of Carolina Poets, Measure and Chautauqua. He was nominated for a 2009 Pushcart Prize award and Entertainment Weekly listed him as one of their 10 “New Hollywood: Next Wave” people to watch.
He is the author of two poetry collections: We Call This Thing Between Us Love and “…hide behind me…” The Returned is his first novel.
The Returned has been optioned by Brad Pitt’s production company, Plan B, in association with Brillstein Entertainment and ABC. It will air in March, 2014 on the ABC network under the title “Resurrection.”
He is the author of two poetry collections: We Call This Thing Between Us Love and “…hide behind me…” The Returned is his first novel.
The Returned has been optioned by Brad Pitt’s production company, Plan B, in association with Brillstein Entertainment and ABC. It will air in March, 2014 on the ABC network under the title “Resurrection.”
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 132 reviews
August 3, 2014
I listened to this audio with my mom while we were driving to Pittsburgh to see my nephew/her grandson... which was well over two weeks ago. It's been bugging me that I haven't reviewed it since then because I usually review immediately... but rather than actually get on the ball and do that, I just kept piling additional stuff onto the "finished but haven't reviewed" list.
Yay, consistency!
Anyway. So now I'm recovering from a crazy business trip to Dallas (OMG, Spirit Airlines, you do realize that people come with legs, yes? Would it kill you to offer them a place to store them for the flight since they apparently don't fit between the seats?) and so I'm taking this opportunity to play catch up.
So... The Sparrow. I liked this story more than the first prequel (The First) but not much more. I liked the story and felt like I identified more with the characters, but I do think that it had some of the same issues that The First had. It again felt a bit manipulative, and I felt that we were told rather than shown most things. There was one point where my mother and I both had a "Did we miss something??" moment because the resolution happened literally in the space of a sentence, and after so much build-up, it felt rushed and awkward.
While I was listening, I was enjoying the story, but after I finished and could contemplate the whole, I feel like it was extremely off-balance. There's so much build-up and backstory, so much about Tatiana's history and Heather and Matt's now, that the actual plot got buried, and in order to keep this short-story sized, the end had to be cobbled together quick and dirty. Thisiswhathappenedandhowithappened,theend!
I wanted a little more. I wanted there to be a bit more focus on the movement of the story, not just the characters' histories. I appreciate character-driven stories, but not if it's at the expense of the actual plot.
But, since I'm on the topic, I will mention that the characters in this book kind of made me a little crazy. The husband was definitely one of them. I seriously wanted to slap him. Like every time he was mentioned. Fucking dickbag of a character. It was like his role in the story was "be as callous as possible to show contrast to Heather's compassion." Success! He did that.
But Heather also annoyed me for actually not punching him in the throat every time he started talking. She did eventually grow a damn spine, but I felt that too much of the story was taken up by his dickishness and her trying to reason with him. Fuck him, chick. The world's a-changin'. He can swim or he can drown. You don't need to try to convince him to put on a life vest if he's intent on the latter. Swim away!
Anyway, aside from the character irritation and the plot issues, this was a decent story, so I'm giving it 3 stars, but it didn't do much to reinforce my interest in reading The Returned. I was hoping for a little more understanding of what exactly was going on, but nope. Just another character story. (Spoiler alert: The Choice is more of the same. Just sayin'.)
Yay, consistency!
Anyway. So now I'm recovering from a crazy business trip to Dallas (OMG, Spirit Airlines, you do realize that people come with legs, yes? Would it kill you to offer them a place to store them for the flight since they apparently don't fit between the seats?) and so I'm taking this opportunity to play catch up.
So... The Sparrow. I liked this story more than the first prequel (The First) but not much more. I liked the story and felt like I identified more with the characters, but I do think that it had some of the same issues that The First had. It again felt a bit manipulative, and I felt that we were told rather than shown most things. There was one point where my mother and I both had a "Did we miss something??" moment because the resolution happened literally in the space of a sentence, and after so much build-up, it felt rushed and awkward.
While I was listening, I was enjoying the story, but after I finished and could contemplate the whole, I feel like it was extremely off-balance. There's so much build-up and backstory, so much about Tatiana's history and Heather and Matt's now, that the actual plot got buried, and in order to keep this short-story sized, the end had to be cobbled together quick and dirty. Thisiswhathappenedandhowithappened,theend!
I wanted a little more. I wanted there to be a bit more focus on the movement of the story, not just the characters' histories. I appreciate character-driven stories, but not if it's at the expense of the actual plot.
But, since I'm on the topic, I will mention that the characters in this book kind of made me a little crazy. The husband was definitely one of them. I seriously wanted to slap him. Like every time he was mentioned. Fucking dickbag of a character. It was like his role in the story was "be as callous as possible to show contrast to Heather's compassion." Success! He did that.
But Heather also annoyed me for actually not punching him in the throat every time he started talking. She did eventually grow a damn spine, but I felt that too much of the story was taken up by his dickishness and her trying to reason with him. Fuck him, chick. The world's a-changin'. He can swim or he can drown. You don't need to try to convince him to put on a life vest if he's intent on the latter. Swim away!
Anyway, aside from the character irritation and the plot issues, this was a decent story, so I'm giving it 3 stars, but it didn't do much to reinforce my interest in reading The Returned. I was hoping for a little more understanding of what exactly was going on, but nope. Just another character story. (Spoiler alert: The Choice is more of the same. Just sayin'.)
August 20, 2013
Definitely read this before you tackle the novel; it'll make you, well, appreciate isn't really the right word, but it'll add more weight to the novel than if you wait to read it after like I did.
Both this and the first novella, The First, are free introductions to this world and you can get them on Amazon. The third short story, The Choice, comes out on August 1st and is also free, but I don't think anything can top Tatiana's story, the one included in this book. I hear this is going to be a TV show and I'm super curious to see how Tatiana's story plays out. It's one of the best side stories of the whole "series."
There's no reason not to check these out: they're free, they're short, and then if you like them enough you can even try to request the full novel from NetGalley like I did, because these novellas will no doubt make you want to find out what happens to all of the Returned and make it difficult to wait until the end of August.
Both this and the first novella, The First, are free introductions to this world and you can get them on Amazon. The third short story, The Choice, comes out on August 1st and is also free, but I don't think anything can top Tatiana's story, the one included in this book. I hear this is going to be a TV show and I'm super curious to see how Tatiana's story plays out. It's one of the best side stories of the whole "series."
There's no reason not to check these out: they're free, they're short, and then if you like them enough you can even try to request the full novel from NetGalley like I did, because these novellas will no doubt make you want to find out what happens to all of the Returned and make it difficult to wait until the end of August.
August 22, 2019
more requested more received
Overall 4 out of 5 stars
Performance 3 out of 5 stars
Story 5 out of 5 stars
This was a great follow up to the introduction to the series (The Returned). This was a demonstration on what was happening around the world from different standpoints. I found it intriguing the differences in the reactions to the returned.
Matt was an ASS with all capital letter all day long. He had not feeling, no thought to the child but only to himself. I could feel that through every word.
Overall 4 out of 5 stars
Performance 3 out of 5 stars
Story 5 out of 5 stars
This was a great follow up to the introduction to the series (The Returned). This was a demonstration on what was happening around the world from different standpoints. I found it intriguing the differences in the reactions to the returned.
Matt was an ASS with all capital letter all day long. He had not feeling, no thought to the child but only to himself. I could feel that through every word.
September 7, 2013
I decided to go back and retread this after finishing the full novel. Something just doesn't ring true. There are discrepancies between this short story and the very short chapter about Tatiana presented in The Returned. At first, I wondered if maybe they were different characters who shared a name. But that doesn't seem to be the case, as both were found in Michigan.
[SPOILERS TO FOLLOW]
In the short story, it is her father who is the primary creator of the bedtime stories, but in the novel, we are told it is the mother. In the short story, she is reunited with her father and, though it is never explicitly stated, it is presumed she never goes to a Bureau facility, as the man who interviewed Heather left when told that detention was unwanted. It is the development that leads to her husband's departure. In the novel, however, it seems that she comes to Arcadia directly from a facility in Michigan, where Cara took care of her. No mention is made of her father, or why she would have been taken from him.
[END SPOILERS]
I am assuming that the prequels were written after the novel and published before the novel's release to drum up interest. Why change the story? Will this character be featured in the television show, so they needed more meat for the story? If so, then why keep the chapter in the novel as it currently is? Or are the discrepancies not really discrepancies but a misreading on my part? I'm willing to live with that ...
[SPOILERS TO FOLLOW]
In the short story, it is her father who is the primary creator of the bedtime stories, but in the novel, we are told it is the mother. In the short story, she is reunited with her father and, though it is never explicitly stated, it is presumed she never goes to a Bureau facility, as the man who interviewed Heather left when told that detention was unwanted. It is the development that leads to her husband's departure. In the novel, however, it seems that she comes to Arcadia directly from a facility in Michigan, where Cara took care of her. No mention is made of her father, or why she would have been taken from him.
[END SPOILERS]
I am assuming that the prequels were written after the novel and published before the novel's release to drum up interest. Why change the story? Will this character be featured in the television show, so they needed more meat for the story? If so, then why keep the chapter in the novel as it currently is? Or are the discrepancies not really discrepancies but a misreading on my part? I'm willing to live with that ...
January 7, 2016
Read all my reviews on http://urlphantomhive.booklikes.com
This was another short story released to interest people in The Returned, and focusses on the story of a little girl. Apparently she's also mentioned in the novel, but I didn't remember that.
Of all the three short stories (there's also The First & The Choice, this one stayed with me most. Even though it is also very short and this is very obvious in the ending, which feel more than just a little bit rushed, I quite liked it. I only wish there would have been a bit more explanation as to where the returned are coming from and how does it work, since this isn't really addressed in the novel either.
This was another short story released to interest people in The Returned, and focusses on the story of a little girl. Apparently she's also mentioned in the novel, but I didn't remember that.
Of all the three short stories (there's also The First & The Choice, this one stayed with me most. Even though it is also very short and this is very obvious in the ending, which feel more than just a little bit rushed, I quite liked it. I only wish there would have been a bit more explanation as to where the returned are coming from and how does it work, since this isn't really addressed in the novel either.
May 30, 2017
Secondo prequel di The returned: continua ad incuriosirmi,anche se inizio a vederci un po' la trama del telefilm "4400",anche se lì non erano persone morte a ritonare,ma scomparse misteriosamente da molti anni.
December 8, 2022
Haunting
November 10, 2013
*Cross-posted on BookLikes and Wordpress.
The Sparrow is a huge improvement over its predecessor The First. Whereas The First serves as an introduction to a world where the dead suddenly return alive, The Sparrow delves into the moral issues that arise from it. Are the Returned human? Are they still the people they were when they died? How is this possible: Is it magic or can science explain it? And do we sacrifice our humanity in seeking the answers to these questions?
Married couple Heather and Matt face these questions when they discover Returned little girl Tatiana. Heather embraces the child, accepting and caring for her while husband Matt treats the Returnee as a thing to be exploited:
Heather is appalled at his reaction but replies with compassion, hoping to change his mind:
Fear and uncertainty in the face of this bizarre phenomenon is to be expected, but the actions taken driven by these feelings have shown to be, in some cases, unaccountably violent and homicidal. In an attempt to understand Matt's rejection of Tatiana, Heather believes that since he's never experienced loss, he's unable to reconcile what the Returned can mean to those left behind in their grief:
The object of contention, Tatiana, is shown to be a normal human child and nothing indicates that she is otherwise. She possesses memories of her former life with loving parents, who took it in turns to make up bedtime stories to entertain her. Unfortunately her short life, and that of her mother's, was cut short when violence came to her home in what I assumed to be the Rwandan genocide in 1994, leaving her father bereft and alone (who was away at the time, helping those in need).
I'm definitely looking forward to the next installments of this series.
The Sparrow is a huge improvement over its predecessor The First. Whereas The First serves as an introduction to a world where the dead suddenly return alive, The Sparrow delves into the moral issues that arise from it. Are the Returned human? Are they still the people they were when they died? How is this possible: Is it magic or can science explain it? And do we sacrifice our humanity in seeking the answers to these questions?
Married couple Heather and Matt face these questions when they discover Returned little girl Tatiana. Heather embraces the child, accepting and caring for her while husband Matt treats the Returnee as a thing to be exploited:
"These things aren't people. They're something else. And if there's a way for us to capitalize on this, then I'm all for that."
Heather is appalled at his reaction but replies with compassion, hoping to change his mind:
"If I could see my mother again... If my mother somehow shows up in all of this, if I get a call that she's been found in some far-off part of the world, I'd pray to God that the person who finds her would take care of her, that they would get her back to me, that they would have the decency to let me decide whether or not she was real, whether or not I could love her again."
Fear and uncertainty in the face of this bizarre phenomenon is to be expected, but the actions taken driven by these feelings have shown to be, in some cases, unaccountably violent and homicidal. In an attempt to understand Matt's rejection of Tatiana, Heather believes that since he's never experienced loss, he's unable to reconcile what the Returned can mean to those left behind in their grief:
'Heather was certain that Matt's problem with Tatiana stemmed from the fact that he had never lost anyone. Both of his parents were still alive. His brothers and sisters, even his grandparents, were all still alive. He had never known the loneliness of waking in the middle of the night from a dream of spending time with a mother who had been dead nearly a decade.'
The object of contention, Tatiana, is shown to be a normal human child and nothing indicates that she is otherwise. She possesses memories of her former life with loving parents, who took it in turns to make up bedtime stories to entertain her. Unfortunately her short life, and that of her mother's, was cut short when violence came to her home in what I assumed to be the Rwandan genocide in 1994, leaving her father bereft and alone (who was away at the time, helping those in need).
I'm definitely looking forward to the next installments of this series.
July 16, 2013
This short story is the second of three prequels to the upcoming novel The Returned. I downloaded this for free from the Kindle bookstore. This review is based on the short story only and not the excerpt.
In The Returned, this story and the other prequels, and the upcoming television series, people are mysteriously returning from the dead as if nothing has happened. However, life has gone on for their family and friends, and no one knows what to make of the returned.
In this story, a couple finds one of the returned, a little girl named Tatiana, and takes her home until they can figure out what to do. This story had so much more to it than The First. There was a sufficient amount of compelling backstory for Tatiana to make the reader care for her. The reader not only had the opportunity to connect with Tatiana, but also with the couple that found her, Heather and Matt, and the tension that rises between them as a result of Tatiana being in their home. It was nice to get a perspective from people who did not know the one who had returned in the story beforehand.
To me, this story gave a much better set up for the novel than The First did. The story here was much more engaging and interesting. There was just the right amount of backstory, emotions, relationships, and tension to keep the reader interested and wanting more, which I assume is the purpose of these stories.
Before I read this story, I had already read The First and then watched the preview for the series. This story sparked my interest the most of the three activities. I am now looking forward to the third preview, The Choice and the full novel.
In The Returned, this story and the other prequels, and the upcoming television series, people are mysteriously returning from the dead as if nothing has happened. However, life has gone on for their family and friends, and no one knows what to make of the returned.
In this story, a couple finds one of the returned, a little girl named Tatiana, and takes her home until they can figure out what to do. This story had so much more to it than The First. There was a sufficient amount of compelling backstory for Tatiana to make the reader care for her. The reader not only had the opportunity to connect with Tatiana, but also with the couple that found her, Heather and Matt, and the tension that rises between them as a result of Tatiana being in their home. It was nice to get a perspective from people who did not know the one who had returned in the story beforehand.
To me, this story gave a much better set up for the novel than The First did. The story here was much more engaging and interesting. There was just the right amount of backstory, emotions, relationships, and tension to keep the reader interested and wanting more, which I assume is the purpose of these stories.
Before I read this story, I had already read The First and then watched the preview for the series. This story sparked my interest the most of the three activities. I am now looking forward to the third preview, The Choice and the full novel.
February 13, 2016
The second book in this prequel series and another one that I truly loved.
I absolutely adored the little girl, and I was really sad about her past and what eventually happened that led to her and her mom's death. Sooo sad. :(
And then she returns, finding herself in the middle of nowhere, kilometres away from home or any place that she recognizes. Luckily there are 2 people who drive past and take her in.
I absolutely loved the woman, she was sweet and albeit a bit selfish, she had good intentions, unlike her boyfriend, who was, sorry for my language, just a prick. God, that guy was just so annoying, only seeing the little girl as an it, as a way to make money. I am so happy that the woman made her decision, and what a great decision it was.
The end of the book, and the reunion between the girl and a certain person, was really touching and wonderful. So happy that she found someone she loves.
I would really recommend this book to everyone! Read it if you need a short story that is just absolutely lovely.
I absolutely adored the little girl, and I was really sad about her past and what eventually happened that led to her and her mom's death. Sooo sad. :(
And then she returns, finding herself in the middle of nowhere, kilometres away from home or any place that she recognizes. Luckily there are 2 people who drive past and take her in.
I absolutely loved the woman, she was sweet and albeit a bit selfish, she had good intentions, unlike her boyfriend, who was, sorry for my language, just a prick. God, that guy was just so annoying, only seeing the little girl as an it, as a way to make money. I am so happy that the woman made her decision, and what a great decision it was.
The end of the book, and the reunion between the girl and a certain person, was really touching and wonderful. So happy that she found someone she loves.
I would really recommend this book to everyone! Read it if you need a short story that is just absolutely lovely.
August 13, 2013
Everything I said about The First applies to The Sparrow as well. Written in third, telling rather than showing, there's a distance to the characters—-which actually works better here than in The First.
This is a story about a couple who finds a Returned, a little girl, and takes her home. Again the issues of a dead person coming back to life and others' reactions to it are barely touched upon. There's simply no time for it at all.
This is a story about a couple who finds a Returned, a little girl, and takes her home. Again the issues of a dead person coming back to life and others' reactions to it are barely touched upon. There's simply no time for it at all.
October 10, 2020
Motts first book ironically called "The First" was good but The Sparrow was a literary masterpiece.
Every page contained so many deep thoughts and feelings. Throughout I am unsure as where I want the story to lead. Each character you have strong empathy for:
Tatianna- A gentle soul with a heart if gold. A mere ten years old but an imagination bigger than life itself. I love that she relies on the unity of her family to tell the stories she knows and loves.
Tatianna's Mother- The glue of her family that she sees fall apart before her. The emotion and how she went about protecting her daughter was captivating.
Tatianna's Father- A loving man who's heart only grows for his wife and daughter by the day. He feels so torn by their loss that the wrinkles on his face portray that of a man double his age grieving. His happiness relies on the health and safety of his family.
Heather- A woman who finds her husbands lack of family orientation a boundary especially when finding Tatianna in her life she is overwhelmed by maternal feelings. Upon returning Tatianna to her father she feels the loss of what could only be a biological child.
Matt- A man too intrigued by a girl from the returned to take on board any of Heather's feelings. He seeks knowledge of where Tatianna came from and the life she once lead. He speaks of the child as though she is from a foreign planet referring to Tatianna as "it"
Perfection.
Every page contained so many deep thoughts and feelings. Throughout I am unsure as where I want the story to lead. Each character you have strong empathy for:
Tatianna- A gentle soul with a heart if gold. A mere ten years old but an imagination bigger than life itself. I love that she relies on the unity of her family to tell the stories she knows and loves.
Tatianna's Mother- The glue of her family that she sees fall apart before her. The emotion and how she went about protecting her daughter was captivating.
Tatianna's Father- A loving man who's heart only grows for his wife and daughter by the day. He feels so torn by their loss that the wrinkles on his face portray that of a man double his age grieving. His happiness relies on the health and safety of his family.
Heather- A woman who finds her husbands lack of family orientation a boundary especially when finding Tatianna in her life she is overwhelmed by maternal feelings. Upon returning Tatianna to her father she feels the loss of what could only be a biological child.
Matt- A man too intrigued by a girl from the returned to take on board any of Heather's feelings. He seeks knowledge of where Tatianna came from and the life she once lead. He speaks of the child as though she is from a foreign planet referring to Tatianna as "it"
Perfection.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 17, 2018
The second in the trilogy of prequels leading up to The Returned. It's fun to go back and read these since I'm picking up an audio of The Returned from the library in the next few days. This short takes place about 6 weeks after the return of Edmund, the first returnee. A young couple, Matt and Heather, find Tatiana standing on the edge of a busy highway. She's only ten and they believe she may be from Africa. Heather is immediately taken with Tatiana and wants to help her find her family...Matt, not so much.
May 12, 2024
( Format : Audiobook )
"It will be all right."
A short story, apparently a prequel to The Return, and is the story of a ten years old girl, alone and afraid, found by a couple and taken home by them. Moving smoothly between past and present it was set and m, and beautifully read by Therese Plummer
"It will be all right."
A short story, apparently a prequel to The Return, and is the story of a ten years old girl, alone and afraid, found by a couple and taken home by them. Moving smoothly between past and present it was set and m, and beautifully read by Therese Plummer
December 23, 2017
Such a sad little story. I felt so sorry for the mom - to be left out of everything. And the dad should feel guilty, things wouldn't have ended the way they did if he'd taken care of them!! Good story.
July 5, 2021
2.5 stars. Free from Audible, the prequels have been made available to encourage interest in the book The Returned. When times are difficult you find out what you are made of. You also find out what other people are made of.
May 7, 2024
Quick read, awesome prequel
If you've already read the Returned or considering it, I'd recommend this quick prequel. It gives you a detailed glimpse into one story of the many returned.
If you've already read the Returned or considering it, I'd recommend this quick prequel. It gives you a detailed glimpse into one story of the many returned.
July 23, 2017
Good short read
Love the show, after starting to read the book I realized that it was from the show. Good short read.
Love the show, after starting to read the book I realized that it was from the show. Good short read.
March 5, 2018
Love it
Love the story idea and can't wait to read the returned. It's a brilliant story line and can't wait to find out where its going.
Love the story idea and can't wait to read the returned. It's a brilliant story line and can't wait to find out where its going.
June 5, 2018
Just a novella. Short story more like to prepare us for "the Returned".
Read
March 17, 202207/26/16
August 30, 2024
Boring and....Added nothing to the story after reading "The Returned"
August 3, 2025
Another interesting little story to show the different implications of the returned!
January 9, 2026
I love all the characters in this series. I am so reminded of The 4400. So much sense after reading The Returned.
April 12, 2015
https://anaslair.wordpress.com/2015/0...
Rating: 4/5
Premise:
In this second prequel to The Returned, we are told the story of Tatiana, a 10 year old girl from Sierra Leone, who is found near a highway by Heather and Matt Campbell. As Heather struggles to find Tatiana's family, we can see that her husband has a very different idea about the girl and all the other Returned.
Review:
I enjoyed this prequel to The Returned more than the first one, The First. It is not action driven at all - you know this couple has found the girl and is trying to reunite her with her family, and that's it. Instead, it focuses on the characters and their backstories, and it was just what I needed. I felt very moved and enthralled by it.
In this short story, we alternate between the present day, when Heather and Matt find Tatiana, and Tati's life in Sierra Leone just before she and her mother were murdered. If there is one criticism I have to make about the book is that I could not clearly tell when the timeframe would switch. Maybe the narrator could have paused a bit more, I am not sure what exactly failed there.
I also wish I had known a bit more about the relationship Heather and Tatiana formed. It seemed like they grew fond of each other, at least that's what we are told, but we never really got shown much instead of just told. While I really loved the Tatiana of the past, I could not really tell who she was in the present, even though I could tell she felt comfortable with Heather.
The story itself was lovely, in both time periods. We find that Tatiana loved her parents dearly and that she particularly revelled in creating stories with her father. The one they were creating before he left featured sparrows, hence the title of the story. In present day, we can see that Heather is a warm woman who has lost people very dear to her and therefore can understand what Tatiana and her parents must be going through, which is not the case with her husband. That guy sure brought conflict and tension to the story. He comes across as someone who is very selfish, just wants to make a profit with the situation if possible, and refuses to see the returned as people. So this short story succeeds very well as a prequel to the novel, bringing to light the different ways people reacted to the returned. We already see glimpses of how the world is dealing with situation, through the media reports. Some folks gather in churches and the government has started creating facilities to process the returned, but it all seems very voluntary, people are not forced to do anything.
The narrative had a sense of closure for Tatiana and an open future for Heather in a sort of a bittersweet way, while everyone is still struggling to come to terms with these people returning from the dead. While so short, the story sure can be thought provoking. What would you do in their place? If you found a child you knew came back from the dead, would you take them in? Are these really people? Could a loved one be amongst them? How would you deal with such a reality?
At the end of the day, it's a short story. Considering its size, I had a very good time listening to it and recommend it. Also, it's free! Get it from audible by clicking here.
Rating: 4/5
Premise:
In this second prequel to The Returned, we are told the story of Tatiana, a 10 year old girl from Sierra Leone, who is found near a highway by Heather and Matt Campbell. As Heather struggles to find Tatiana's family, we can see that her husband has a very different idea about the girl and all the other Returned.
Review:
I enjoyed this prequel to The Returned more than the first one, The First. It is not action driven at all - you know this couple has found the girl and is trying to reunite her with her family, and that's it. Instead, it focuses on the characters and their backstories, and it was just what I needed. I felt very moved and enthralled by it.
In this short story, we alternate between the present day, when Heather and Matt find Tatiana, and Tati's life in Sierra Leone just before she and her mother were murdered. If there is one criticism I have to make about the book is that I could not clearly tell when the timeframe would switch. Maybe the narrator could have paused a bit more, I am not sure what exactly failed there.
I also wish I had known a bit more about the relationship Heather and Tatiana formed. It seemed like they grew fond of each other, at least that's what we are told, but we never really got shown much instead of just told. While I really loved the Tatiana of the past, I could not really tell who she was in the present, even though I could tell she felt comfortable with Heather.
The story itself was lovely, in both time periods. We find that Tatiana loved her parents dearly and that she particularly revelled in creating stories with her father. The one they were creating before he left featured sparrows, hence the title of the story. In present day, we can see that Heather is a warm woman who has lost people very dear to her and therefore can understand what Tatiana and her parents must be going through, which is not the case with her husband. That guy sure brought conflict and tension to the story. He comes across as someone who is very selfish, just wants to make a profit with the situation if possible, and refuses to see the returned as people. So this short story succeeds very well as a prequel to the novel, bringing to light the different ways people reacted to the returned. We already see glimpses of how the world is dealing with situation, through the media reports. Some folks gather in churches and the government has started creating facilities to process the returned, but it all seems very voluntary, people are not forced to do anything.
The narrative had a sense of closure for Tatiana and an open future for Heather in a sort of a bittersweet way, while everyone is still struggling to come to terms with these people returning from the dead. While so short, the story sure can be thought provoking. What would you do in their place? If you found a child you knew came back from the dead, would you take them in? Are these really people? Could a loved one be amongst them? How would you deal with such a reality?
At the end of the day, it's a short story. Considering its size, I had a very good time listening to it and recommend it. Also, it's free! Get it from audible by clicking here.
July 29, 2016
The Returned was a lyrical novel of past and present, life and death, and pain and remembrance. It wasn't a particularly great novel, but it told a pleasant story about death while maintaining a very positive outlook. It's a book about people suddenly returning from the dead -- no zombies or rot here; the people just show up alive like no time has passed, without much of an understanding of what's happened to them -- and just before its release, the author and publisher released a series of e-short-stories that looked at a few of the Returned.
What makes the stories intriguing is that they give us part of the story told from the points of view of the Returned. The novel didn't give us that perspective, so it's interesting to see how certain theories are either confirmed or denied through these stories. There's still not much in the way of answers -- thankfully, I should add -- but they do add a bit more to the world where the dead can return to life like nothing ever happened. I'm just not sure that it's necessary to see the world from the Returned's perspective.
Mott captured the reaction to the Returned well over the course of these stories. In "The First," he shows the reactions to people reacting to the very first person to Return, from the perspective of he who Returned. To him, all was normal; to everyone else, it was something terrible and horrifying. In "The Sparrow," Mott shows us how people view the Returned. Most people tend to look at them as people, but enough people also view them as things, as something not human. The couple featured in this story represent those viewpoints. In "The Choice," Mott shows us how the return of old, lost loves can disrupt lives.
Overall, though, the stories are about grief and regret. They're gentle stories, ones that give a touch of hope to those missed moments, and offer us a glimpse of what it would be like to get them back. They're touching, moving, and poignant, but what they add to the world of the Returned is small. The points that Mott makes through the themes of these stories are covered in The Returned, and save for one final summation at the end of the last story that wraps up the point of this brief series, there's not a lot new here.
I can't recall if any of these three Returned feature in the novel, but parts of the novel feature in the stories. As such, it makes me wonder if these stories are meant to be read before the novel, or after. I'm fine with having read them out of chronological order, and think that might be the intent.
Ultimately, people who read The Returned will probably get the most out of these books, but I don't consider them necessary. If you want to return to the world of The Returned, though, this is your best way to get there.
What makes the stories intriguing is that they give us part of the story told from the points of view of the Returned. The novel didn't give us that perspective, so it's interesting to see how certain theories are either confirmed or denied through these stories. There's still not much in the way of answers -- thankfully, I should add -- but they do add a bit more to the world where the dead can return to life like nothing ever happened. I'm just not sure that it's necessary to see the world from the Returned's perspective.
Mott captured the reaction to the Returned well over the course of these stories. In "The First," he shows the reactions to people reacting to the very first person to Return, from the perspective of he who Returned. To him, all was normal; to everyone else, it was something terrible and horrifying. In "The Sparrow," Mott shows us how people view the Returned. Most people tend to look at them as people, but enough people also view them as things, as something not human. The couple featured in this story represent those viewpoints. In "The Choice," Mott shows us how the return of old, lost loves can disrupt lives.
Overall, though, the stories are about grief and regret. They're gentle stories, ones that give a touch of hope to those missed moments, and offer us a glimpse of what it would be like to get them back. They're touching, moving, and poignant, but what they add to the world of the Returned is small. The points that Mott makes through the themes of these stories are covered in The Returned, and save for one final summation at the end of the last story that wraps up the point of this brief series, there's not a lot new here.
I can't recall if any of these three Returned feature in the novel, but parts of the novel feature in the stories. As such, it makes me wonder if these stories are meant to be read before the novel, or after. I'm fine with having read them out of chronological order, and think that might be the intent.
Ultimately, people who read The Returned will probably get the most out of these books, but I don't consider them necessary. If you want to return to the world of The Returned, though, this is your best way to get there.
October 5, 2013
The Sparrow is the second of three short story prequels to Jason Mott's debut novel The Returned, these stories are currently all available for free on Amazon and other ebook stores (I don't know if this will change in the future) and are a nice introduction to the world that the author has created. The novel already has a lot of hype surrounding it and has even been picked up by Brad Pitt's production company to be turned into a TV series so I was very curious to try these prequels.
When Heather and Matt find a young returned child at the side of the road they have very different ideas about what to do with her. Tatiana has appeared a long way from her home in Sierra Leone and it has been almost 20 years since she died so everything comes as quite a shock for her. Heather is determined to track down Tatiana's family and reunite her with them but it could end up costing her everything.
I think this was probably my favourite of the three prequels, we get to see a lot more about how the general public are reacting to the thousands of people who have started returning from the dead, from joy over finding their loved ones, to anger and disappointment that people they love haven't returned through to fear over the whole phenomenon and what is causing it. Heather and Matt don't have children of their own but Heather has strong maternal instincts towards Tatiana and she becomes like a surrogate mother to her while she searches for her family. Matt is more wary and suspicious, he would rather hand Tatiana over to the authorities and let them deal with her. It was interesting to see the differences in Heather and Matt's reactions but I think the flashbacks to Tatiana's life before she died were the part I enjoyed most. I just wish the story had been longer because I wanted to know more about what happened to her.
When Heather and Matt find a young returned child at the side of the road they have very different ideas about what to do with her. Tatiana has appeared a long way from her home in Sierra Leone and it has been almost 20 years since she died so everything comes as quite a shock for her. Heather is determined to track down Tatiana's family and reunite her with them but it could end up costing her everything.
I think this was probably my favourite of the three prequels, we get to see a lot more about how the general public are reacting to the thousands of people who have started returning from the dead, from joy over finding their loved ones, to anger and disappointment that people they love haven't returned through to fear over the whole phenomenon and what is causing it. Heather and Matt don't have children of their own but Heather has strong maternal instincts towards Tatiana and she becomes like a surrogate mother to her while she searches for her family. Matt is more wary and suspicious, he would rather hand Tatiana over to the authorities and let them deal with her. It was interesting to see the differences in Heather and Matt's reactions but I think the flashbacks to Tatiana's life before she died were the part I enjoyed most. I just wish the story had been longer because I wanted to know more about what happened to her.
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December 1, 2013* Attention contains minor spoilers *
I don’t feel I can give a justified rating here, as these are not really short-stories in a classic sense, they are merely longer vignettes, focusing on stories of love and loss, set around the events in Jason Mott’s The Returned, a novel in which the deceased suddenly, inexplicably return.
“The First” is the tale of Edmund Blithe, the first person to return one year after having died from a tragic accident, shortly after having proposed to his girlfriend.
This one feels the most uneven of the three prequel vignettes, it splinters up into little elements showing various aspects of how his return affects the world, and his fiancée.
I really does little more than adding backdrop to book excerpt following it.
“The Sparrow”, the tale of a little girl who was killed with her mother in uprisings in Sierra Leone only to return a decade later in the midst of America. This one works in my opinion best out of the three on its own. Here the author manages to make the most of the short amount of space, weaving together the stories of the couple that find the girl and take her in, the story of the girl and her mother, and a tale spun by the girl and her father.
“The Choice”, the bitter sweet tale of a man who learns that the girl he grew up with and fell in love with, the girl who vanished at seventeen without a trace, has returned now some twenty years later, forcing him to re-evaluate his since new found love, and the little family they started. Out of the three “The Choice” felt the most disturbing to me as it leaves us with so many unanswered questions about what happened to the girl twenty years ago, and we never get to learn how she deals with returning from the dead as if never a day had passed, still deeply in love with a man who had to come to terms with his grief and move on.
I don’t feel I can give a justified rating here, as these are not really short-stories in a classic sense, they are merely longer vignettes, focusing on stories of love and loss, set around the events in Jason Mott’s The Returned, a novel in which the deceased suddenly, inexplicably return.
“The First” is the tale of Edmund Blithe, the first person to return one year after having died from a tragic accident, shortly after having proposed to his girlfriend.
This one feels the most uneven of the three prequel vignettes, it splinters up into little elements showing various aspects of how his return affects the world, and his fiancée.
I really does little more than adding backdrop to book excerpt following it.
“The Sparrow”, the tale of a little girl who was killed with her mother in uprisings in Sierra Leone only to return a decade later in the midst of America. This one works in my opinion best out of the three on its own. Here the author manages to make the most of the short amount of space, weaving together the stories of the couple that find the girl and take her in, the story of the girl and her mother, and a tale spun by the girl and her father.
“The Choice”, the bitter sweet tale of a man who learns that the girl he grew up with and fell in love with, the girl who vanished at seventeen without a trace, has returned now some twenty years later, forcing him to re-evaluate his since new found love, and the little family they started. Out of the three “The Choice” felt the most disturbing to me as it leaves us with so many unanswered questions about what happened to the girl twenty years ago, and we never get to learn how she deals with returning from the dead as if never a day had passed, still deeply in love with a man who had to come to terms with his grief and move on.
July 9, 2013
I don't know if I enjoyed The Sparrow as much as The First - I think it deals with weightier issues, and in such a short book, it feels disjointed and stilted. Whereas The First is about the very first person who comes back from the dead, The Sparrow deals with the darker side of the phenomenon.
When Heather and Matt find a little girl who's been Returned, Matt is more interested in studying her - hoping to be the first person to crack their mysteries, than taking care of her. Heather just wants to reunite the girl with her parents, and the couple clash repeatedly. There are large gaps in time throughout the novella - a technique the author has obviously had to apply in order to tell the whole story in such a short space. However, this means that we don't get to see the relationship between Tatiana and Heather grow, we just have to accept the author's word that it happened.
Matt is such a jerk, and he infuriated me a lot! Which I think is great, because it can be difficult for authors to ensure their characters in their short stories make an impact. I think it's safe to say that Jason Mott is a talented author! I'm really looking forward to reading the full length novel set in this world.
This novella, alongside The First, forms a gentle introduction into the world of The Returned, and is just enough to whet one's appetite for the highly anticipated release. I know I can't wait!
You can read more of my reviews at Speculating on SpecFic .
When Heather and Matt find a little girl who's been Returned, Matt is more interested in studying her - hoping to be the first person to crack their mysteries, than taking care of her. Heather just wants to reunite the girl with her parents, and the couple clash repeatedly. There are large gaps in time throughout the novella - a technique the author has obviously had to apply in order to tell the whole story in such a short space. However, this means that we don't get to see the relationship between Tatiana and Heather grow, we just have to accept the author's word that it happened.
Matt is such a jerk, and he infuriated me a lot! Which I think is great, because it can be difficult for authors to ensure their characters in their short stories make an impact. I think it's safe to say that Jason Mott is a talented author! I'm really looking forward to reading the full length novel set in this world.
This novella, alongside The First, forms a gentle introduction into the world of The Returned, and is just enough to whet one's appetite for the highly anticipated release. I know I can't wait!
You can read more of my reviews at Speculating on SpecFic .
September 10, 2013
Imagine a world in which the dead start coming back to life. They have no memories from when they were gone; they simply start appearing all over the globe. This is the premise of Jason Mott's novel, The Returned. In this second prequel to the novel, another of the returned is introduced. Ten-year-old Tatiana Rusesa, who has returned almost 20 years after she and her mother were killed by soldiers in Sierra Leone, was found on the side of the highway by Matt and Heather Campbell.
Tatiana's story occurs about six weeks after The First (the first prequel to The Returned). By this time, thousands of people have returned from the dead all over the world. Matt and Heather have often wondered what would happen if they encountered one of the returned, and now they have. Unfortunately, they do not always agree about the best course of action for the young girl.
The title of this prequel comes from a story that is told by the young Tatiana. It provides an interesting backstory that makes her tale that much more interesting. Even so, I didn't enjoy this story quite as much as I enjoyed The First. The character of Matt was not entirely pleasant, while his wife was a bit too pleasant. They didn't seem like a very good match. Their interactions with Tatiana also seem to be unusual. Nevertheless, the story is still compelling enough for me to want to read The Returned when it is released.
Tatiana's story occurs about six weeks after The First (the first prequel to The Returned). By this time, thousands of people have returned from the dead all over the world. Matt and Heather have often wondered what would happen if they encountered one of the returned, and now they have. Unfortunately, they do not always agree about the best course of action for the young girl.
The title of this prequel comes from a story that is told by the young Tatiana. It provides an interesting backstory that makes her tale that much more interesting. Even so, I didn't enjoy this story quite as much as I enjoyed The First. The character of Matt was not entirely pleasant, while his wife was a bit too pleasant. They didn't seem like a very good match. Their interactions with Tatiana also seem to be unusual. Nevertheless, the story is still compelling enough for me to want to read The Returned when it is released.
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