Review: Encore by Margaret Lynette Sharp

Title: Encore

Published: CreateSpace February 2013

Status: Read on May 26, 2014

My Thoughts:

Encore is a lovely book of 25 short stories by Margaret Lynn Sharp, her sixth self published collection.

Sharp’s characters are a mix of ages and genders, whose stories are told in the first and third person. This results in an interesting variety of perspectives on humanity, relationships and romance.

I particularly liked Dear David, written in an epistolary format, about a rekindled romance, Just the Shot, about a grandfathers gift to his grandson, and The Locket, the story of a secret love.

Despite the brevity of each contribution, Sharp is able to inspire emotion in the reader and communicate the action succinctly. More often than not, the stories hold a twist that veers away from the expected. The prose and dialogue is well-crafted, if sometimes a touch too formal.

Like Sharp’s previous collections, Encore is a pleasant and easy read.