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The Best British Short Stories #9
Best British Short Stories 2019
This new series aims to reprint the best short stories published in the previous calendar year by British writers, whether based in the UK or elsewhere. The editor’s brief is wide ranging, covering anthologies, collections, magazines, newspapers and web sites, looking for the best of the bunch to reprint all in one volume.
Featuring stories by: Julia Armfield, Elizabeth Baines, Naomi Booth, Kieran Devaney, Vicky Grut, Nigel Humphreys, Sally Jubb, Lucie McKnight Hardy, Robert Mason, Ann Quin, Sam Thompson, Melissa Wan and Ren Watson.
Featuring stories by: Julia Armfield, Elizabeth Baines, Naomi Booth, Kieran Devaney, Vicky Grut, Nigel Humphreys, Sally Jubb, Lucie McKnight Hardy, Robert Mason, Ann Quin, Sam Thompson, Melissa Wan and Ren Watson.
224 pages, Paperback
First published July 15, 2019
24 people are currently reading
164 people want to read
About the author
Nicholas Royle
179 books57 followersNicholas Royle is an English writer. He is the author of seven novels, two novellas and a short story collection. He has edited sixteen anthologies of short stories. A senior lecturer in creative writing at the Manchester Writing School at Manchester Metropolitan University, he also runs Nightjar Press, publishing original short stories as signed, limited-edition chapbooks. He works as a fiction reviewer for The Independent and the Warwick Review and as an editor for Salt Publishing.
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
December 17, 2019
The short story is an odd thing. Due to the brevity, one cannot go into a lot of detail, yet a well crafted short story can have a punch that will stay with you. Thus, technically speaking publishing an anthology with the word ‘best’ in it, should contain a ton of punchy stories.
Spoiler it does.
The 20 short pieces in this collection are excellent. There’s a great range as well. Ranging from the weird (Paul McQuade’s A Gift of Tongues, Sally Jubb’s The Arrangement) , some ‘slice of life’ stories Lucie McKnight Hardy’s Badgerface and Sally Booth’s Cluster) and eyebrow raising (Ann Quin – Nude and Seascape, Vesna Main’s A hair Clasp). I can guarantee that there isn’t a dull moment.
Did I have favourites? Although the quality is high, there were quite a few I felt stood out. John Lanchester’s reality, which delves into the psyche of reality tv show participants is clever. Melissa Wan’s The Husband and the Wife go to the Seaside is a perfect opener and Adam Welch’s Toxic satirises youth culture and internet fads made me laugh guiltily.
An amazing short story can make one appreciate the amount of craft that goes into creating a tiny contained world. In this anthology you’ll see how it is an art form. 20 times over.
Spoiler it does.
The 20 short pieces in this collection are excellent. There’s a great range as well. Ranging from the weird (Paul McQuade’s A Gift of Tongues, Sally Jubb’s The Arrangement) , some ‘slice of life’ stories Lucie McKnight Hardy’s Badgerface and Sally Booth’s Cluster) and eyebrow raising (Ann Quin – Nude and Seascape, Vesna Main’s A hair Clasp). I can guarantee that there isn’t a dull moment.
Did I have favourites? Although the quality is high, there were quite a few I felt stood out. John Lanchester’s reality, which delves into the psyche of reality tv show participants is clever. Melissa Wan’s The Husband and the Wife go to the Seaside is a perfect opener and Adam Welch’s Toxic satirises youth culture and internet fads made me laugh guiltily.
An amazing short story can make one appreciate the amount of craft that goes into creating a tiny contained world. In this anthology you’ll see how it is an art form. 20 times over.
November 24, 2019
Liked this bunch of punchy stories, always felt like reading the next one (I read randomly), they had an easy readability, how they move you quickly into their worlds. But they're not alike in other ways, a wide range of subject and style. A lot of laptops accidentally turning themselves on and phones going off. Old fashioned horror (A Gift of Tongues; Beyond Dead), and stories of the isolated going slowly 'mad' - depersonalised, obsessive, breaking down (Smack; Cluster), one or two set in the future (On Day 21), and present day realism (Badgerface; Cuts). A good round up of current British (short story) fiction.
December 15, 2020
This is the 9th edition of the annual anthology of Best British Short Stories edited by Nicholas Royle - no not that Nicholas Royle, but this Nicholas Royle, and indeed the other Nicholas Royle built a highly-inventive novel around the confusion: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... - and published by the wonderful Salt Publishing.
The collection comes with an interesting introduction from Royle, which gives a great overview of the wider short story scene in the UK in 2018. Indeed so wide is his overview that perhaps the one negative is that the stories actually featured here get a little lost in the many mentioned, and some of the most intriguing sounding stories (e.g. Your Neighbour's Packages by Megan Taylor) don't feature.
Date aside, the collection very much passes the Ronseal test: all the stories are of a consistently good quality. It is difficult to pick any particular standouts although I did particularly enjoy John Lanchester's satire of reality shows, Reality (much more than his novel The Wall), the brilliant Vesna Main contributes the shortest (2 pages) story but one of the most powerful, the inclusion of one of Ann Quin's oeuvre is great to see, Sam Thompson's The Height of Sleep was nicely literary, and Robert Mason's Curtilage a satisfyingly disturbing take on house viewing.
3.5 stars - rounded to 3 more because I am not a huge fan of the form, and if there was a gap it was perhaps some of the more cutting-edge innovative short stories (e.g. Eley Williams, David Hayden etc).
The collection comes with an interesting introduction from Royle, which gives a great overview of the wider short story scene in the UK in 2018. Indeed so wide is his overview that perhaps the one negative is that the stories actually featured here get a little lost in the many mentioned, and some of the most intriguing sounding stories (e.g. Your Neighbour's Packages by Megan Taylor) don't feature.
Date aside, the collection very much passes the Ronseal test: all the stories are of a consistently good quality. It is difficult to pick any particular standouts although I did particularly enjoy John Lanchester's satire of reality shows, Reality (much more than his novel The Wall), the brilliant Vesna Main contributes the shortest (2 pages) story but one of the most powerful, the inclusion of one of Ann Quin's oeuvre is great to see, Sam Thompson's The Height of Sleep was nicely literary, and Robert Mason's Curtilage a satisfyingly disturbing take on house viewing.
3.5 stars - rounded to 3 more because I am not a huge fan of the form, and if there was a gap it was perhaps some of the more cutting-edge innovative short stories (e.g. Eley Williams, David Hayden etc).
dipped-in
August 25, 2019I picked this up because I wanted to read Lucie McKnight Hardy’s story, ‘Badgerface’, and I did like that story a lot; it’s believable and unnerving, a queasily accurate portrait of small-town working-class family drama and tragedy. But it was Sam Thompson’s ‘The Heights of Sleep’ that really grabbed my attention. Immediately riveting, masterfully constructed, with a quietly and inexplicably terrifying ending, this is pretty much a perfect short story. It made me ache to read the works of J.S. Gaunt, the imagined novelist with whom the story’s narrator is so obsessed. It made me want to go home and get my copy of
Communion Town
and read it all over again. Thompson is SO GOOD at short-form fiction, and I really hope he publishes a story collection or another novel-in-stories at some point.
October 3, 2019
Who doesn’t like an anthology?
I have a penchant for themed anthologies mostly, as I sometimes find anthologies which collate a load of stories together seem a little disjointed, choking the flow to other stories, jarring and hampering my enjoyment (ever so slightly may I add). But what we have here in the Best British Short Stories 2019 by Salt is something that unifies these many randomly chosen stories; that unifying element is a sense of greatness, of storytellers conjuring breathtaking stories that are timeless and limitless in their scope and reach.
This sense of greatness is one of the reasons I always pick up a copy of Salt’s best of collections, but credit should also be given here to the editor Nicholas Royle who has done a great job in leading this series of anthologies, and in the 2019 edition he has created an anthology that is dripping with brilliance, it seems to leak from the page, each story lending itself to the others and adding to the overall brilliance on offer.
Royle’s introduction to the latest instalment of this ongoing series is worth the price of the book alone, it’s insightful and a real joy to read and discover additional stories / authors that didn’t quite make it into the book, many of which I’ve gone on to purchase since reading this fabulous introduction. You see Royle is a fountain of knowledge when it comes to the short story form, surrounding himself in thousands of stories on his quest to bring us the very best, and he has developed a keen eye for what makes a short story, a great short story. His exploration into the short story form over the past nine years is enlightening and his detailing that the tide is turning on the genre which many look down their noses at in this introduction makes for some heartwarming, and much needed celebration about the form we love so much, it is very much alive!
So… on with the review. Best British Short Stories 2019 is like a greatest hits tape, scratch that, it’s like a mixed tape (remember those) – all the best stories complied for our pleasure. So, you must forgive me in passing up the opportunity to talk about all of the stories in this collection, as if I did, this review would be a dissertation, so I’ll be looking at a few of the stories in this stellar collection which blew me away; and from there you can make up your own mind. Even better, grab yourselves a copy and find out for yourselves – as I always find that with collections and anthologies there will be stories that other readers prefer, but also by picking up a copy you’ll also be helping to support independent publishing… but on with the show, that’s why your here isn’t it?
Cuts by Stephen Sharp is a fabulous exploration into the mind of a schizophrenic, the structure of the piece is breathtaking, as is the pace that Sharp brings to his writing. Cuts takes the form of a rambling internal monologue, with no distinct pattern or destination, our protagonist thinks and then says whatever pops into his head, reading more like the crazed ramblings of a madman – including conversations with himself, with the television, visions and thoughts, each mingling into the other and creating a broiling cacophony of noise that is deafening but arresting all at the same time. Sharp’s prose is a delight, in a story that is quite clearly erratic, think unreliable narrator. We are treated to what it must be like to suffer from schizophrenia, the constant, inescapable noise and busyness of it all – but Sharp deals with this topic with great care and compassion, meaning it doesn’t come across ham fisted or forced. Cuts is a fine exploration into a mental health condition which many may not be aware of or have encountered in the flesh – helping shed some light on the condition of those that suffer from such an affliction of the mind.
Cluster by Naomi Booth is a wonderfully detailed story about a mother and her newborn, but it’s not all baby grows and delight as Booth blends dramatic tension and dark undertones to what is one of the standout stories of the collected works on show. In essence it is a story about a mother who is nursing her newborn baby, cluster feeding they call it, when the mother is pretty much guided by the baby in its need for feeding (bunching feeds together so they can go longer without food – enabling sleep… who are they trying to kid!), so the milk bar is open at nighttime and will be closing when baby has had enough. This tool of the cluster feed, helps to give structure to the piece, meaning that each night, in the cold light of the moon, both mother and child are awake, in the dark and alone, albeit her husband is there, he is just absent, in the land of dreams, whilst mother and child engage in their bonding and survival and in turn listen to the telltale signs of the night drawing in around them and in doing so brings out the very things that like the dark, that like to go unseen. Cluster is dark and brooding, and a very brilliant read; Booth has created a tremendously deep, touching and poignant tale, but also I’m enraptured by her ability – in that for such a short piece of fiction, she’s built a real frenetic urgency that drags you kicking and screaming in its undertow. Another masterful outing from Naomi Booth and on this form, I can’t wait to see what her singled authored collection will be like!
Smack by Julia Armfield is a very delightfully crafted piece of fiction, it’s set by the coast, and focuses on our protagonist as she comes to terms with her divorce. She’s come for one last time, but how long she intends to stay is anyones guess, she’s barricaded herself into the beach house, her food supply is running out and the solicitor keeps returning to the door – demanding her to leave at once. Smack is a very insular story, focusing on the fallout and breakdown of a marriage – the personal moments of packing away of items and memories, all of which reveal a life shared but not entwined in a love for one another. It’s a life that has now been reduced to items, things, and trinkets. The prose that Armfield deploys has an intrinsic beauty, arrestingly pure and at points its lyricism seemed to sing from the page, her carefully and considered words lending themselves brilliantly to the drama, location and powerful emotions that are broiling beneath the surface of this masterful story.
‘The jellyfish come with the morning – a great beaching, bodies black on sand. The ocean empties, a thousand dead and dying invertebrates, jungled tentacles and fine, fragile membranes blanketing the shore two miles in each direction. They are translucent, almost spectral, as though the sea has exorcised its ghosts. Drowned in air, they break apart and bleed their interiors. A saturation, leeching down into the earth.’
Badgerface by Lucie McKnight Hardy is another deeply moving and commanding story from a truly exceptional and gifted raconteur. I’m discovering that Hardy has a skill for drawing the reader in, regaling them, teasing them with her exquisite prose, and clever sleight of hand – and once she’s enchanted you, pulled you in like a siren, she wrecks you, leaving you shattered and bruised. To divulge too much about Badgerface will cheapen its effect on the reader, so I will only say that the story builds to a deftly crafted conclusion that is subtly conveyed, giving even greater power to a stunningly crafted masterpiece! In my opinion we are witnessing a true auteur in the making – Hardy’s short story writing has a certain signature to it, where we as a reader feel the full impact of the story within the closing lines – and I for one will never tire of it, or the gift she offers the literary world with her words.
Best British Short Stories 2019 is a dazzling and captivating collection that needs to be read. There are stories that are moving, real, bold and brilliantly ambitious, it is a collection of writers that need to be savoured and celebrated!
I have a penchant for themed anthologies mostly, as I sometimes find anthologies which collate a load of stories together seem a little disjointed, choking the flow to other stories, jarring and hampering my enjoyment (ever so slightly may I add). But what we have here in the Best British Short Stories 2019 by Salt is something that unifies these many randomly chosen stories; that unifying element is a sense of greatness, of storytellers conjuring breathtaking stories that are timeless and limitless in their scope and reach.
This sense of greatness is one of the reasons I always pick up a copy of Salt’s best of collections, but credit should also be given here to the editor Nicholas Royle who has done a great job in leading this series of anthologies, and in the 2019 edition he has created an anthology that is dripping with brilliance, it seems to leak from the page, each story lending itself to the others and adding to the overall brilliance on offer.
Royle’s introduction to the latest instalment of this ongoing series is worth the price of the book alone, it’s insightful and a real joy to read and discover additional stories / authors that didn’t quite make it into the book, many of which I’ve gone on to purchase since reading this fabulous introduction. You see Royle is a fountain of knowledge when it comes to the short story form, surrounding himself in thousands of stories on his quest to bring us the very best, and he has developed a keen eye for what makes a short story, a great short story. His exploration into the short story form over the past nine years is enlightening and his detailing that the tide is turning on the genre which many look down their noses at in this introduction makes for some heartwarming, and much needed celebration about the form we love so much, it is very much alive!
So… on with the review. Best British Short Stories 2019 is like a greatest hits tape, scratch that, it’s like a mixed tape (remember those) – all the best stories complied for our pleasure. So, you must forgive me in passing up the opportunity to talk about all of the stories in this collection, as if I did, this review would be a dissertation, so I’ll be looking at a few of the stories in this stellar collection which blew me away; and from there you can make up your own mind. Even better, grab yourselves a copy and find out for yourselves – as I always find that with collections and anthologies there will be stories that other readers prefer, but also by picking up a copy you’ll also be helping to support independent publishing… but on with the show, that’s why your here isn’t it?
Cuts by Stephen Sharp is a fabulous exploration into the mind of a schizophrenic, the structure of the piece is breathtaking, as is the pace that Sharp brings to his writing. Cuts takes the form of a rambling internal monologue, with no distinct pattern or destination, our protagonist thinks and then says whatever pops into his head, reading more like the crazed ramblings of a madman – including conversations with himself, with the television, visions and thoughts, each mingling into the other and creating a broiling cacophony of noise that is deafening but arresting all at the same time. Sharp’s prose is a delight, in a story that is quite clearly erratic, think unreliable narrator. We are treated to what it must be like to suffer from schizophrenia, the constant, inescapable noise and busyness of it all – but Sharp deals with this topic with great care and compassion, meaning it doesn’t come across ham fisted or forced. Cuts is a fine exploration into a mental health condition which many may not be aware of or have encountered in the flesh – helping shed some light on the condition of those that suffer from such an affliction of the mind.
Cluster by Naomi Booth is a wonderfully detailed story about a mother and her newborn, but it’s not all baby grows and delight as Booth blends dramatic tension and dark undertones to what is one of the standout stories of the collected works on show. In essence it is a story about a mother who is nursing her newborn baby, cluster feeding they call it, when the mother is pretty much guided by the baby in its need for feeding (bunching feeds together so they can go longer without food – enabling sleep… who are they trying to kid!), so the milk bar is open at nighttime and will be closing when baby has had enough. This tool of the cluster feed, helps to give structure to the piece, meaning that each night, in the cold light of the moon, both mother and child are awake, in the dark and alone, albeit her husband is there, he is just absent, in the land of dreams, whilst mother and child engage in their bonding and survival and in turn listen to the telltale signs of the night drawing in around them and in doing so brings out the very things that like the dark, that like to go unseen. Cluster is dark and brooding, and a very brilliant read; Booth has created a tremendously deep, touching and poignant tale, but also I’m enraptured by her ability – in that for such a short piece of fiction, she’s built a real frenetic urgency that drags you kicking and screaming in its undertow. Another masterful outing from Naomi Booth and on this form, I can’t wait to see what her singled authored collection will be like!
Smack by Julia Armfield is a very delightfully crafted piece of fiction, it’s set by the coast, and focuses on our protagonist as she comes to terms with her divorce. She’s come for one last time, but how long she intends to stay is anyones guess, she’s barricaded herself into the beach house, her food supply is running out and the solicitor keeps returning to the door – demanding her to leave at once. Smack is a very insular story, focusing on the fallout and breakdown of a marriage – the personal moments of packing away of items and memories, all of which reveal a life shared but not entwined in a love for one another. It’s a life that has now been reduced to items, things, and trinkets. The prose that Armfield deploys has an intrinsic beauty, arrestingly pure and at points its lyricism seemed to sing from the page, her carefully and considered words lending themselves brilliantly to the drama, location and powerful emotions that are broiling beneath the surface of this masterful story.
‘The jellyfish come with the morning – a great beaching, bodies black on sand. The ocean empties, a thousand dead and dying invertebrates, jungled tentacles and fine, fragile membranes blanketing the shore two miles in each direction. They are translucent, almost spectral, as though the sea has exorcised its ghosts. Drowned in air, they break apart and bleed their interiors. A saturation, leeching down into the earth.’
Badgerface by Lucie McKnight Hardy is another deeply moving and commanding story from a truly exceptional and gifted raconteur. I’m discovering that Hardy has a skill for drawing the reader in, regaling them, teasing them with her exquisite prose, and clever sleight of hand – and once she’s enchanted you, pulled you in like a siren, she wrecks you, leaving you shattered and bruised. To divulge too much about Badgerface will cheapen its effect on the reader, so I will only say that the story builds to a deftly crafted conclusion that is subtly conveyed, giving even greater power to a stunningly crafted masterpiece! In my opinion we are witnessing a true auteur in the making – Hardy’s short story writing has a certain signature to it, where we as a reader feel the full impact of the story within the closing lines – and I for one will never tire of it, or the gift she offers the literary world with her words.
Best British Short Stories 2019 is a dazzling and captivating collection that needs to be read. There are stories that are moving, real, bold and brilliantly ambitious, it is a collection of writers that need to be savoured and celebrated!
January 13, 2021
A frightening, even shocking story. One that stands out as a violator of its own literary soul. Well, I genuinely found it so. Possibly because I live in such a bungalow as the one in this story, the bungalow whose curtilage is violated. The story has nailed the nature of such bungalows, many of which surround my bungalow, and the nature of the people in them. Yeti with zimmers. I came here relatively early, but I am becoming like those described denizens, as is the wife. And I bet you anything this bungalow in the story is a seaside one, although it does not say so explicitly, but the ‘jelly’ above reminded me of the earlier jellyfish — and ‘bird shit’ is also mentioned. I hope I never have to sell our bungalow, but when I do, I will search out this story again before inviting estate agents to invite interested viewers of it. My spirit level still has its print intact, by the way. And, oh yes, I also moved here from the Croydon area!
The detailed review of this book posted elsewhere under my name is too long or impractical to post here.
Above is one of its observations at the time of the review.
The detailed review of this book posted elsewhere under my name is too long or impractical to post here.
Above is one of its observations at the time of the review.
September 23, 2020
I finally managed to read Best British Short Stories 2019 due to the fine late September weather. I’m glad I did, Nicholas Royle did another great job to point us to interesting short story writers published in 2019. He even seemed to have found some sort of a theme: dealing with disappointments or misadventures. Quite a feat for an anthology. Actually, reading this volume made me appreciate even more what a special form a short story collection can be when the stories are interlinked and share a common theme emphasised by an author’s distinct writing style, when at the same time covering a range of different subjects.
November 29, 2020
I'm on a run of great books at the moment.
Best British Short Stories 2019 is an excellent collection of imaginative short stories, shining a light on the darker side of everyday life. The stories which stand out as my favourites are 'Smack' by Julia Armfield, and 'Reality' by John Lanchester. While there were obviously some stories I enjoyed more than others (my least favourites being slightly too cryptic), there were none I didn't enjoy. I liked that there was only really one story written in an unconventional style, but that there were more than a few stories whose writing style I admired.
This one comes highly recommended.
Best British Short Stories 2019 is an excellent collection of imaginative short stories, shining a light on the darker side of everyday life. The stories which stand out as my favourites are 'Smack' by Julia Armfield, and 'Reality' by John Lanchester. While there were obviously some stories I enjoyed more than others (my least favourites being slightly too cryptic), there were none I didn't enjoy. I liked that there was only really one story written in an unconventional style, but that there were more than a few stories whose writing style I admired.
This one comes highly recommended.
August 5, 2021
Utterly agree with Robert below. Such a well-crafted collection. Adult. Eclectic. All brilliantly written. Lucy McKnight's 'Badgerface' is wonderful.
October 28, 2023
I think this collection was typical of the other annual collection of short stories I have read, as selected by Nicholas Royle. He started in 2011, and I’ve read every collection since, except for the year 2022. I’ve been saving it because once I am finished with that one, I’ll have read all the collections up to this point in time. I’ll probably continue to buy these collections until I die or until the collections are no longer gathered and published. I’ll do this because there’s always several really good stories in the bunch.
1. The Husband and The Wife Go to the Seaside — Melissa Wan — 3 stars
2. Cuts — Stephen Sharp — 3 stars
3. The Arrangement — Sally Jubb — 1.5 stars
4. The Heights of Sleep — Sam Thompson — X stars
5. Nude and Seascape — Ann Quin — 3 stars []
6. Beyond Dead — Nigel Humphreys — 3 stars
7. Toxic — Adam Welch — 4.5 stars {Funny. Two people in their 20s are ingesting an unknown drug and they get the most godawful side effects.
8. A Hair Clasp — Vesna Main — 2.5 stars
9. Reality— John Lanchester — 3 stars
10. On the Way to the Church— Vicky Grut — 5 stars [I was sitting in my seat on an airplane on my way home from visiting relatives. I nearly burst out crying near the end of this story. The best of the bunch.]
11. Cluster — Naomi Booth — 2 stars
12. Smack— Julia Armfield — 3 stars
13. Curtilage — Robert Mason — 3 stars
14. Kiss — Elizabeth Baines — 5 stars [This story reminded of Jon McGregor’s work, ‘If Nobody Speaks of Remarkable Things’.]
15. Badgerface — Lucie McKnight Hardy — 2.5 stars
16. On Day 21 — Ruby Cowling — 2.5 stars
17. Optics — Ren Watson — 3.5 stars
18. A Gift of Tongues — Paul McQuade — 2.5 stars
19. Sitcom — Kieran Devaney — 2.5 stars
20. New Dawn Fades — Sophie Mackintosh — 3 stars
P.S.: I just finished my review and looked up the name of the collection and the 2023 collection is available! Yippee!!! https://www.saltpublishing.com/produc...
Reviews:
• https://dflewisreviews.wordpress.com/...
• https://thebobsphere.wordpress.com/20...
1. The Husband and The Wife Go to the Seaside — Melissa Wan — 3 stars
2. Cuts — Stephen Sharp — 3 stars
3. The Arrangement — Sally Jubb — 1.5 stars
4. The Heights of Sleep — Sam Thompson — X stars
5. Nude and Seascape — Ann Quin — 3 stars []
6. Beyond Dead — Nigel Humphreys — 3 stars
7. Toxic — Adam Welch — 4.5 stars {Funny. Two people in their 20s are ingesting an unknown drug and they get the most godawful side effects.
8. A Hair Clasp — Vesna Main — 2.5 stars
9. Reality— John Lanchester — 3 stars
10. On the Way to the Church— Vicky Grut — 5 stars [I was sitting in my seat on an airplane on my way home from visiting relatives. I nearly burst out crying near the end of this story. The best of the bunch.]
11. Cluster — Naomi Booth — 2 stars
12. Smack— Julia Armfield — 3 stars
13. Curtilage — Robert Mason — 3 stars
14. Kiss — Elizabeth Baines — 5 stars [This story reminded of Jon McGregor’s work, ‘If Nobody Speaks of Remarkable Things’.]
15. Badgerface — Lucie McKnight Hardy — 2.5 stars
16. On Day 21 — Ruby Cowling — 2.5 stars
17. Optics — Ren Watson — 3.5 stars
18. A Gift of Tongues — Paul McQuade — 2.5 stars
19. Sitcom — Kieran Devaney — 2.5 stars
20. New Dawn Fades — Sophie Mackintosh — 3 stars
P.S.: I just finished my review and looked up the name of the collection and the 2023 collection is available! Yippee!!! https://www.saltpublishing.com/produc...
Reviews:
• https://dflewisreviews.wordpress.com/...
• https://thebobsphere.wordpress.com/20...
June 15, 2025
A bit hit and miss, but a couple of absolutely amazing stories in here.
February 18, 2020
As with the 2018 edition, again I came across some short stories that seem to somehow stick. I am slowly becoming a great admirer of the genre. Nicola Royle does a good job making these selections! He mentioned in the preface the 2020 edition will be the last one with him as the editor. I secretly hope he’ll change his mind.
February 6, 2020
Some stories I liked some I did not some I didn't understand and others were just weird without being clever. I still think Murakami writes the best short stories. Seems Britain 2019 as a long way to go .
August 9, 2019
One of the most consistently good editions of this always interesting collection, now apparently in its penultimate year. If you want a recently rediscovered little gem of hideousness from the long-departed Ann Quin, a mash-up of 'Huis Clos' and 'Year of the Sex Olympics' and quite a few other very good, often excellent contemporary stories, try this.
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews