Customer Reviews

The Secrets of a Fire King: Stories

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I was rummaging through the $5 book bin at Borders a few months ago and I stumbled across this hidden gem. The cover seemed interesting and then I noticed the author, Kim Edwards, the same woman who wrote, "The Memory Keeper's Daughter". I have also purchased that book but still have yet to read it. But I liked how the plot of that book sounded so I figured, why not? It's only $5--let me check this out. I opened it up to reveal soft, thin pages, which, for me, somehow always makes a book more enjoyable to read. I flipped through some of the pages to the middle to read an excerpt. This is my trick to get a quick glimpse of the author's style to determine if it would be something I would be interested in reading. The excerpt that I read seemed delightful. The author had a flair for description and wrote in such a way that when I traipse upon one of these delectable kinds of books, I feel like I am indulging in a guilty pleasure, a kind of expression not often enough incorporated into today's modern works. I was convinced enough to spend the money, so I picked up the book and it was the only thing I purchased that day.

The book spent a few months on my bookshelf as I went through a few other books that I deemed more interesting at the time. Then the time came that I just wanted to clear up some space and read some of the thinner books on my shelf, thereby slowly thinning out my collection. I noticed this book again and said, sure, why not? I sat down with it on my couch and was enraptured. I usually only read the first chapter of a book when I start to get a basic feel for the book. If I can stop then, I know it's nothing too special but if I continue on, I know I have found that rare book that so captures my attention that it will be a quick read and a long memory. I read three stories that first night!

"The Secrets of a Fire King" is a collection of short stories that deal with the human spirit--unknown strengths we never realized we had, or getting in touch with the part of you that you never realized existed and upon discovery, you realize you don't really like. A particularly touching story for me was "Spring Mountain Sea", the second story in the book. In this story, we meet a man who takes a foreigner for a wife and despite wanting to hold on to her traditional values, tries to assimilate into his American culture, only to be betrayed in the end by the people she had come to trust. In the tragic title story, we meet a magician who falls madly in love with a woman whose brother idolizes him and wants to be a magician also. Unfortunately, a betrayal soon occurs which will change the lives of all three of them forever. In "The Way It Felt to Be Falling", we meet a young girl who discovers strength she never knew she had after sky-diving with her boyfriend.

If you are a fan of stories that deviate from the norm to teach a lesson and that are written beautifully in an almost poetic sense, I strongly suggest you pick up this collection by Kim Edwards. One thing is for sure, I will definitely be reading "The Memory Keeper's Daughter" sooner than I expected! Kim Edwards is an excellent story-teller and I can't wait to read more stories from her.

This book had better writing than "Memory Keeper", and I am shocked at the reviews to the contrary. Highly recommended.

I purchased this book after reading The Memory Keeper's Daughter. It wasn't quite what I expected, because each of the individual stories had very different tones - some of which were much darker than I was initially prepared for.
I'd recommend this book for taking with you on a trip, or for anything else where you'll have quite a few interruptions. You don't have to worry about losing threads of the story since they're so short.
Don't buy this collection of stories if you're looking for a feel-good read, but do if you want a thought provoking read.

Not great stories but I have read her novels and wanted to read these earlier stories. No problem with Amazon. Great price and service.

If this book had been shy a few stories I would have given it 5 stars. Edwards writes well. The way she sequences words is often described as "exquisite" or something, but ultimately I got tired of her narrative voice and I think she ran out of material. Does a collection really need two stories featuring the poisonous effects of radium, unexpected at the time of its discovery? I highly recommend these: "Falling", "Spring, Mountain, Sea", "Chain of Being"; also good are "Balance" and "Fire King." "The Invitation" has a clever premise but wound up in the air (according to me). The rest, well... Ho hum. I was lucky enough to spend some time in peninsular Malaysia and Borneo but the stories concerned with that area got repetitive. Pet peeve: I wish these stories featured fewer "shafts of light." BTW, I subsequently found out that the stories I liked all seem to be freely available on [...].

This book is absolutely beautiful. It's quirky and enchanting in it's own right. Though some of the stories have a magical flair to them, the characters feel so real and alive. The author manages to give you enough detail to make a connection in her brief stories (a true gift in my opinion) but not too much to where it overpowers the stories themselves. It's been a while since i've read this book and I lost it in a move so i'm about to buy it again because i find it so haunting. The stories are just so memorable and original, it's like hopping around the globe to take a peek into different lives and cultures.

A wonderful surprise from the sale bin!

Kim Edwards will not disappoint. Beautifully written short stories with odd, poignant twists, this collection is worth your time to read.

I downloaded this audiobook and to be honest when I first started listening to it, I just wasn't sure what I was listening to. I had downloaded it a while back and couldn't remember the basis of the book. I was surprised when I discovered that it was a collection of short stories. Some stories captured my attention immediately, while others didn't seem to speak to me at all, but overall I thoroughly enjoyed the book. I found the character development to be well done considering the brevity of the stories.

As always with audio books, I think a lot of the interpretation and appeal of a book can rest heavily on the reader. So kudos to Bernadette Dunne!

I've also read the Memory Keeper's Daughter and enjoyed that as well, but I think I enjoyed this short story collection even better. I look forward to reading more books by this author.

...this is an exceptional collection.

Ms. Edwards writes with enormous confidence, with grace, with a wonderful command of the language without infringing on the actual reading by going overboard.

Having said that, I have to confess I wasn't often moved by the stories. Maybe this has more to do with my ongoing problems I have with the form.

Regardless, I'm very intrigued about what her novel's like; that's next up.

Kim Edwards is a highly gifted writer with a wonderful grasp of both character and language. While many of her locales are exotic, the characters are very recognizable in their humanity. Some stories made me cry, and others made me want to shake some sense into the characters. This book is an amazing first effort, and I look forward to Ms. Edwards' future works