Twelve Days And Twelve Books Of Christmas - Day 7

Day 7 - July Book - A Single Drop Of Perfect & Other Stories by Jessikah Hope Stenson

A Single Drop Of Perfect 
Carla’s on the cusp of adulthood. As her final weeks in the family home draw to a close she struggles to keep a grip on her true self. With her boyfriend hundreds of miles away, Carla battles with loneliness, finding comfort in unexpected places and experiencing moments of perfection that can never be replicated. 
What Isla Did 
Isla was young, brave and creative. She is remembered as a golden girl and their beloved daughter, but no one can be perfect. 
The Lemon And The Lake 
June and Max are exploring the gorgeous countryside of Granada. However, where there’s perfection, there’s horror. 
Wounds 
Helen’s new husband Steven brings his dog Wilf into the family home. When Helen’s eight year old daughter Maisie finds herself in hospital, suffering from a vicious dog attack, Steven has a lot to answer for. Moral and ethical questions arise when Helen is determined to have Wilf put down in spite of Steven’s desire to keep is beloved pet alive. 
The Edge Of A Smile 
Walking home at night, university student Heidi is accompanied by a stranger named Bryony. Both of them have secrets which will destroy the other.

My Thoughts

I had read very few (if any) short story collections before reading A Single Drop Of Perfect as honestly they'd never really appealed to me. When I had the chance to read A Single Drop Of Perfect I read the synopsis and it really caught my interest and I knew I wanted to read it. I'm so very glad I did. as I stated in my review (here), "A Single Drop Of Perfect is a collection of five short stories and I think each one is definitely its own drop of perfect."

I really think that each story is as strong as it's predecessor and I really related to a lot of the characters. The two stand out stories for me at the time, Wounds and What Isla Did, are still my two stand out stories now. Though I remember all of the stories very clearly considering how many months ago (and how many books I have read since) that I read them. Both of the stories involve children, so it may be that I'm a mum that they took hold of me more than the others. 

Even though this was Jessikah's debut book, you genuinely can't tell with the quality and maturity of the writing. I said at the time I was looking forward to what came next from Jessikah and I have since enjoyed her debut thriller which I absolutely loved! (My review for Trace This Scar is here).

This book encouraged me to start reading short stories and short story collections meaning I have discovered some new authors and have really enjoyed reading some shorter, quicker reads. It feel very satisfying to read something so interesting but finish it so quickly. 

Tomorrow I'll be back with day 8 and my stand out book from August. Do you enjoy short stories? Have you got a favourite collection that you'd recommend?


About The Author

Jessikah Hope Stenson is a 20 year old author, book blogger and journalist. She currently studies English at the University of Exeter where she is also the Editor-In-Chief of PearShaped Music Magazine. In her spare time, she enjoys slam poetry, listening to Paramore and curling up with a good book.

Trace This Scar by Jessikah Hope Stenson - Blog Tour Review

Today is my stop on the Trace This Scar by Jessikah Hope Stenson blog tour and I'm excited to be sharing my review of the book. Jessikah is the author of A Single Drop Of Perfect, which I reviewed earlier this year (here) and when I heard that she was releasing her debut thriller, I jumped at the chance to read it! 

Blurb

A Lie. A Betrayal. A Murder. 

Daphne has everything she's been dreaming of since the day her parents died when she was a teenager. A husband, a home and a job. The only problem is her beloved Rich's ex girlfriend Gina who won't leave them alone. Filled with jealousy, Gina's interference soon escalates into harassment. But one day, Gina disappears. When Rich is sentenced to sixteen years in prison for murdering Gina, Daphne refuses to believe he is guilty. But what else could explain his mysterious disappearances? And if Rich didn't kill Gina... ... Then who did?

Review

Trace This Scar had me pretty much hooked from the beginning. Following Daphne's story of meeting the man of her dreams and it slowly deteriorating over time and with her husbands ex causing issues. This all worsens when Gina (the ex) goes missing and Rich gets arrested and charged with her murder leaving Daphne alone, harassed and almost penniless, living in squalor and having no money for food. Daphne believes her husband is innocent but no one will listen to someone like her. 

The other side of the story is Jamie, a spoilt 26 year old "boy" who has just been asked by his mum and dad to move out after he has managed to loose another job after an extremely short period. He sofa hops until he comes across a book store looking for a helper and he meets Daphne who offers him a job and somewhere to live. 

Both characters are extremely unlikeable and I really didn't warm to either of them. Jamie does show growth of personality throughout the book, but not enough for me to change my opinion of him. This is not a bad thing, the characters are written so well that even though I didn't like them as people, I still really wanted to know what happened to them and was they were going to do next. This is definitely the sign of a great author in my opinion. 

The peripheral characters are all well fleshed out too and I particularly liked Jamie's mum and dad as I really just felt they were trying to do their best for their son. They just weren't sure what the best for him was. Rich is another unlikeable but very interesting character, who had a lot more going on than what we saw. 

The story is very well thought out and takes you on a journey that you're not entirely sure where it will end or what you're going to find when you get there. Though a few times I thought I knew what was going on, something else would happen and it'd throw me off and I'd think something else. I really couldn't put this down as I just needed to find out what happened next. The alternating POVs between Daphne and Jamie also kept me reading as I always tell myself I'll just get to the end of this characters chapter then I'll put the book down, but then I always need to see what the other character is up to. 

Overall an excellent book and I'm extremely excited to see what Jessikah will come up with next. 

I gave this book 5 stars

To purchase your own copy of Trace This Scar, click HERE

Don't forget to check out the rest of the blog tour

A Single Drop Of Perfect Blog Tour - Jessikah Hope Stenson

A Single Drop Of Perfect is a collection of five short stories and I think each one is definitely its own drop of perfect.

This is Jessikah's debut collection of stories but you would never tell with the maturity and quality of her writing. Each story is crafted wonderfully and there is so much detail that you don't feel lacking in anything even though the story is short. Sometimes in collections of stories, there are maybe one or two that you don't feel hold up with the rest, but that is certainly not the case with this collection.

Each story has characters that you can relate to on some level and you can certainly imagine yourself in their places in some of the stories at least. The characters are very human and you feel like you know them as you follow their story.

I think the stand out story for me was Wounds in which an eight year old girl suffers a dog attack, but there is so much more to it than that. As a mum myself I really empathised with Helen the main character and would have probably acted in the exact same way in the same situation. In fact I may not have acted as calmly!

I also really think What Isla Did stood out as well, the story unravels around you and as you're reading you realise more and more about what has happened, It really gets it's hooks into you.

A Single Drop of Perfect is wonderfully written quick read that will surprise you with each story. This is a definite recommendation from me.

I gave this book 5 stars on Goodreads.

Don't forget to check out the rest of the blog tour!

As part of the blog tour I received an e-book copy of A Single Drop of Perfect directly from the author.

Photo Credit https://www.facebook.com/JamesAlexanderHallPhotography/