This is the ultimate (most cruel) test. Given that I’ve started reading this collection of short stories at the very end of August and finished it over a month ago, would I still remember them (all)? Or did they not stand the test of memory, eclipsed by fresher books? I love reading short stories but I detest writing about them, and in this case I procrastinated way too long…

The result is… yes, most of them are still fresh in my memory! (A little problem is that I don’t feel they have very memorable titles, but that’s editing, not writing: Gale Massey’s style is effective and evocative). I remember the story of the girl whose father has left during her early childhood because he was gay. She counted the time she was under her deeply religious father-in-law’s roof until she could get out of town. She enlists, finds some freedom but her stint in Iraq is cut short… I remember the story of the girl who lives in foster care where she somehow takes care of the younger girls. She thinks it’s a good idea to apply to a hostess job to get out of there but the place she gets to is a terrifying trap. I remember the title story, where a middle-aged woman, a depressed empty-nester, decides to fly solo to Peru. She wants to see a puma, an elusive and mythical animal, as if only the puma could give sense to her life. In the first story, a young daughter witnesses the rift between her father, a veteran whose best friend is a black man, and her racist mother who doesn’t see this friendship with a kind eye. I wondered when the story was supposed to take place, but I couldn’t get any clue if it was supposed to be present time or in the past. I remember many more stories, probably most of the 13 in the collection.

I’ve never been in the American Southeast, or in Florida where many stories are located. Still I feel that Gale Massey gave me a good impression of the land, especially the importance of water (sea or river) which is present even on the cover of the book. Many stories are dramatic, with young women confronted to tough choices or life-altering events. Most found a way to survive (but not all). I haven’t read anything else by Gale Massey, but I would gladly read more stories of hers.

A nice variety of well-written stories. I'd put this in the literary fiction category, and is largely focused on women. I look forward to her future work. Recommended.

Thanks very much for the free review copy!!

I haven’t read short stories in quite a while. This collection is simply stunning.

The themes of the stories are varying. They include loss, identity, family and self-discovery. They all take the structure of a decision that changed the course of the protagonist’s life. The MCs are mainly young women in different circumstances.

There are stories that are quite haunting. There is one about a female soldier that will stay with me. Rising, which was the final story in the collection,took my breathe away. Glass, which gives a young girl’s first experience with racism is such a short but powerful read.

I was captivated by each of the stories. Some of the decisions made by the MCs were so shocking that I had to go back and reread them. All in all, this is a wonderful read. Highly recommended

Such an unusual set of stories, but full of warmth and animation. I felt like I knew the characters personally and was sorry to leave them.

Rising and Other Stories by Gale Massey

📓Genre: General Fiction | Women's Fiction
Star: 🌟🌟🌟🌟

🔖 A collection of thirteen shorts, this book narrates stories based on everyday life events – which although may seem insignificant to others, in fact hold precious life changing moments for the ones experiencing them.
🔖Each story is different, with a different set of characters. Although each tale was unique in its own way, not all were full of sunshine. Some portrayed dark, lonely and sad themes as well. Still, they each provided an insight into the varied emotions of the human heart.
🔖In all honesty, more than the stories themselves, I loved the lucid style of writing. The prose flowed so effortlessly that it made the book all the more enjoyable.
🔖Overall, I would surely recommend this book.

🔸Final Verdict: Good
🔸Book Cover: I personally think, the cover could've been better.
🔸Writing Style: Lucid
🔸Character Development: Good

✨Many thanks to Bronzeville Books (Publisher) and Netgalley for sending me the ARC in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.

#Rising #NetGalley #arc #bookreview

In story after story in this diverse new collection, Gale Massey illustrates the moments that shape and alter destiny. Bringing each to life through interconnected themes of moving water and transience, Massey shares with us an unvarnished narrative of a world that objectifies women and the strength and resourcefulness required to attempt to overcome those limitations.

From the panicked mother in Racine who escapes to the ocean and a young girl’s discovery of her parents’ differing takes on racial equality in Glass to the inevitable end in Marked and the gamble in Not So Fast, these stories show how simple twists of fate can change a person forever. Ivy Waters and Long Time Coming both explore the loss of a father in very different ways, and how the identities of the daughters are rooted in those losses. And Elise’s life in Rising is told in contrasts as she develops the use of her volition to pull her toward the life she deserves.

Massey’s protagonists are everyday folk depicted in stories that explore the scars of redemption (Lucky Girl), despair (Differences), daring (The Train Runner) and longing (Swimaway and Freedom’s Just Another Word), a visceral sense of fate (Low Tide), and, most of all, each character’s desires and their will to live. Recommend

I loved this collection of short, dark stories.

There was definitely a real theme running through them - girls, loneliness, death, sadness, water, darkness - and at times some of them flowed together so well I sometimes forgot I was onto a new story.

I particularly love the shortest of short stories, and these definitely hit you with a jolt. I found myself feeling moved and unsettled by the end up also strangely hopeful at the end of the last story.

A fantastic collection. 4 stars

This book was a disturbing group of short stories. Each story seems to be about death, murder and dysfunction.
The only reason I keep reading is because the writing is so good and the stories have such interesting endings. I give it 4 stars for the writing but 1 star for the content.

This is a very well written book. I hate myself for putting it off as long as I did. The characters are very different to anything I’ve ever read before but Massey does such a fantastic job of showing us just how flawed they are and making it not only plausible but so interesting.

Many thanks to Bronzeville books and Netgalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Massey's potent collection explodes with powerful emotions not meant to comfort but instead challenge your perceptions of family, growth, choices, and consequences. The stories will draw you back to reveal more with each reading.

Thank you very much to NetGalley and Bronzeville Books for the advanced review copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Everything you've heard is true: Gale Massey's characters are filled with desires, ambitions, misgivings, and the whole range of human emotions. They are people whose fates you need to know.

Massey's figurative language is often stunning and powerful, contributing to each story's plot, characterization, and emotional tone. The opening of "Racine," for example, describes the inevitability of the story's conflict and its stoic emotional tone with "The minutes gather at her feet, pooling there like water seeping through a crack below a door."

This collection illuminates many of the dark corners of what it means to be a woman in a time and place where women are [still] at the mercy of woman-hating policies, whether those are governmental, individual, or family policies.

In artistic terms and in terms of human relevance, Massey's stories deliver. The short form gives her characters and themes the right amount of space to entice and then surprise. Most of all, these intense short stories succeed as literary page-turners readers will find irresistible.

Thanks to NetGalley for an advance review copy of this short story collection.

A beautifully written and powerful collection of short stories. I enjoyed the themes of managing through grief/loss, the effects of mental health issues, trusting intuition; and the symbolism of fish, birds, and nature. Some of these stories did not have happy endings, but I appreciated the realistic outcomes. Rising, Not So Fast, Ivy Waters, and Long Time Coming were some of my favorites.

Thank you very much to NetGalley and Bronzeville Books for the advanced reader’s copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Rising and Other Stories is a collection of short stories from Gale Massey.

These are stories of characters, mostly young women, who are struggling with their circumstances, their decisions, the people around them. These are characters that may be deeply flawed (a few believe that killing is the best option) The reader stands beside them hoping that things will get better but knowing it won't. Massey does a wonderful job with just a few pages of getting us invested in the characters, no matter how flawed and messed-up they are.

Great pick if you're looking for a change of pace with some short stories

This is a collection of short stories that deals with a variety of themes: some stories are about grief, others deal with family connections and dynamics and others take a look at the intricasies of growing up. What I felt binds these stories together is the theme of loss. Characters lose their parents, they lose their innocence, their freedom or themselves.

What I enjoyed the most in this collection was the ambiguous, untidy endings of the tales. Gale Massey is a brave writer who can steer away from the temptation of a perfect ending. For that reason, and despite dealing with difficult issues, the stories do not feel pedantic. There is real strength in a writer who knows when and how to end a short story.

A couple of short stories stood out for me: Lucky Girl and the darkness of its character, Ivy Waters and its portrayal of death and grief, as well as Racine to which I plan to return at some point as I feel there is much to unpick.

This is an extraordinarily well written collection of powerful short stories. Themes include loss and grief, coming of age, the meaning of family, and questioning of roles and purposes in life. The stories were very well written and often either breath taking or haunting. My only caution would be that this is NOT a feel good book although it does have a powerful and life affirming final line. Thank you to Net Galley and Bronzeville Books for the ARC.