I really liked the first story and hoped the others would follow the same vibe…but they didn’t.
There weren’t any awful stories per se, but they just all felt unfinished.

- [ ] The Wings That Follow Fear
- [ ] ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
- [ ] This was very well written! Would have loved to continue reading about Lou!

- [ ] The Numbers Man
- [ ] ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
- [ ] This gave me Twilight Zone vibes✨ I feel The Numbers Man could be interpreted many ways, I loved it!

- [ ] Bird Girl
- [ ] ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
- [ ] Wow. This story was so moving and that last line gave me chills!! Many women can relate to Bird/Bridgett.

- [ ] Black Dog
- [ ] ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
- [ ] This one threw me for a loop! I wish I knew more!! 🤯

- [ ] Bunny Man Bridge
- [ ] ⭐️⭐️⭐️
- [ ] Not my favorite of the book but that’s okay!

- [ ] Dating Silky Maxwell
- [ ] ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
- [ ] I loved the ending! Ella knew who she was and found what she needed 🫶🏻

- [ ] A Flame On The Ocean
- [ ] ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
- [ ] I liked this one, a quick(er) read for me! Great meaning to the story.

- [ ] The Geography Of Flight
- [ ] ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
- [ ] I really enjoyed this heartfelt story 😌

- [ ] The Box
- [ ] ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
- [ ] I think so many people can relate to this story and the main character Jessie.

- [ ] Truck Stop
- [ ] ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
- [ ] I felt bad for Caro in the beginning but she done what was best for her in the end! I loved this story. So many women have dealt with losing themselves, especially for someone else.

- [ ] South Of The Border
- [ ] ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
- [ ] A sad yet thought provoking story.

Overall ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
I really enjoyed the authors work! This is her first collection?! She really made the stories and characters very relatable.
It’s fiction but feels like it isn’t because women have been living like this for ages.

I can’t wait to follow TJ Butler along on her journey 😊

A collection of short stories mainly following women as their lives change, often abruptly, often violently. Two of the stories follow men after they have lost important women in their lives. Many of the stories explore dark topics, such as dangerous men, death and violence, but also more common tragedies such as a breakup or loneliness. The stories are mostly in depth character studies of how one might react, diving deep into the internal lives of the characters and painting a very vivid picture. Some of the stories gave me a bit of a Stephen King feeling (haunting and very descriptive, but without drifting off too far into the lyrical) and if you enjoy his writing, I can just recommend you check this short story collection out. All in all this is a really interesting collection and I’m very glad I got to pick up a copy.

The Wings That Follow Fear: A woman waiting for her husband to return gets an unexpected visit from a delinquent she knew in her youth, short and tense and with many flashbacks to other moments of violence, I enjoyed it, the end was also really good, tw: rape, murder, domestic abuse, 4/5
The Numbers Man: A town caught up in a gambling fever, ready to spend their savings for the hope of making it big and a waitress with a decision to make, interesting and I liked the ending, tw: animal death, 4/5
Bird Girl: A date that ends with a statue stolen soon develops into a smothering relationship that the woman really does not want to leave, really unsettling and messy, I enjoyed it and the end especially made me want to scream, but it was really good, tw: abusive relationship, isolation, controlling behavior, stalking, 4/5
Black Girl: A woman is left to take care of her home alone after her husband is sentenced to prison, when two years in her solitude a man shows interest in the land next to hers and develops a dangerous fixation on her dog, really interesting and tense, tw: animal cruelty, murder, 5/5
Bunny Man Bridge: A brother trying to understand his sister’s death has to deal with their childhood and grapple with guilt, heartbreaking, but with a hopeful ending, tw: child abuse, domestic abuse, suicide 4/5
Dating Silky Maxwell: A woman with a secret influencer persona and her struggles when it comes to her love life (or rather the lack thereof), it was interesting and heartbreaking, but not my favorite story, 3/5
A Flame on the Ocean: A barmaid waits for a sailor to appear at the beginning of the fishing season, nostalgic and an intriguing character study with a great ending, tw: past death 5/5
The Geography of Flight: A young woman raised by a mother, who relied on her beauty to survive, attempted to live the same way until a violent attack took her good looks from her, a heartbreaking character study of coming into yourself, really well written and with an interesting ending, tw: domestic abuse, sexual assault, murder 5/5
The Box: A young woman receives unexpected mail from her sister, who has been taking care of their dying father. Once more this story manages to build a lot of character in just a few pages, examining grief and childhood trauma in a beautiful and heartbreaking way, tw: past csa, domestic abuse, death, grief 5/5
Truck Stop: A woman has to make the most of her honeymoon after being left only days before the wedding and finds herself stopping at a truck stop unsure of where to go next, really interesting examination of class and heartbreak, tw: childhood poverty, 4/5
South of the Border: A heartbreaking story following a man trying to deal with guilt over an attack that left his wife in the hospital by blaming all the things that led to the violent event, heartbreaking and a fascinating deep dive into grief and the feelings that accompany losing a loved one, there is also another darker secret for why he feels to blame for her death and reading that part made me feel sick, really well written and really heartbreaking, but UFFF, I am not entirely sure how I feel about the ending, but this story shows how far a parent can be willing to go to protect their kid after they’ve experienced trauma, tw: murder, grief, rape, 4/5
Eight Story Ideas That Didn’t Make It Into This Collection: A few short story ideas seemingly exploring the authorial reality behind them a little bit, interesting and heartbreaking and with a really interesting narrative voice included, tw: death 5/5