From Library Journal
Short stories are usually resolved in a few pages, but the editors of this anthology set out to do something new and contradictory with the form: have established writers create stories that leave readers on the edge of their seats?until the next volume comes out. Some writers manage to pull off both a complete narrative and a dangling tidbit. Lucy Jane Bledsoe describes three weddings in the life of a lesbian?none of them her own. Jess Wells's "To the Flames" takes us back to the mass burnings of witches in medieval Europe. Elisabeth Nonas's "Shadow Line" provides a tantalizing glimpse into the life and work of a shrink-to-the-stars who volunteers at a Hollywood AIDS clinic. The premise is intriguing, but the question remains whether readers will be able to sustain interest over the year or so till the publication of Volume 2.?Ina Rimpau, Newark P.L., NJ
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From Booklist
Karlsberg and Tulchinsky's story anthology takes aim at readers who love a good cliff-hanger. The stories in it, all by lesbian writers, strive to leave readers wanting more, since they promise . . . to be continued. Among the most notable is "Three Weddings" by Lucy Jane Bledsoe, which is a leap forward in subtle character development from the stories in her Sweat (1995) and Working Parts. Jewelle Gomez provides creepy suspense aplenty in a vampiric entry, "Joe Louis Was a Heck of a Fighter." From Randye Lordon comes "Fear," a witty, ironic, and scary piece about a woman trying to purge her fears by means of confrontations that include explosions. Judith Katz's story, set in a time when Russian Cossacks terrorized Jews, proves the most delicately haunting entry; in it, a princess pleads to learn Hebrew from a teahouse owner in Cracow, and the tutoring program they embark on ignites more than spiritual ideals. When will the second installments appear? Soon, please. Whitney Scott
