Synopses & Reviews
Part novel, part fantasy, part social history, this collection of short stories set in the valleys of South Wales follows the lives of two sisters, Grace and Tamar. As these dark, universal stories detail their volatile sibling rivalryon several occasions they almost kill each othertheir disruptive coming of age, and dubious maturity, they express how utterly strange it is to learn to become human. While each story is complete in its own right, together they form a continuous and powerful sequence.
Review
"This stunning collection of short stories is a hot contender for my personal book of the year. Davies writing thrills on all levels, capturing images and emotions with equal intensity . . . Psychologically acute, Davies stories of sisterhood are at once tender, funny and profoundly shocking." The Western Mail
Review
"The emotionally evocative pieces combine to tell the stories of two sisters first-born Grace and young Tamar and often contain hidden stings in their tail, venom to shock and surprise . . . .Beginning with the birth of Tamar, the book intimately charts the sisters crooked paths to adulthood, their competition and betrayals . . . . Imaginative, occasionally fantastical, this is a highly charged and frighteningly charming debut." New Welsh Review
Review
"Deborah Kay Davies has achieved something rare: a collection of short stories wherein each story is complete in its own right (many were competition winners, or radio broadcasts) but which also work together as a novella-length sequence." Independent
About the Author
Deborah Kay Davies is the author of a collection of poetry,
Things You Think I Don't Know, as well as numerous stories in various publications. She is a three-time winner in the Rhys Davies competition and winner of Wales Book of the Year in 2009.