Heather’s Bookshelf: Old Wounds
Author: Tom Batt
Released: 08/24/21
Genre: Crime short stories
“I removed her hands from me and pushed her back. She didn’t try and fight me, she just let it happen. I got into my Chevy, started the engine and drove off. I couldn’t resist one last look at her in the rear-view mirror and caught her give a subtle saddening wave, but it meant nothing to me. The rollercoaster of emotions had finished its ride and I was ready to get off and throw up in the nearest trashcan.”
“Old Wounds” is a compilation of 15 short stories all involving murder and various other crime stories. The stories within the book are stand-alone and can be read together or in any order desired.
The title story introduces Nick Shelby, an ex-detective with the LAPD turned private investigator. He gets hired for things like finding girls who’ve run away from home to live with their older boyfriends. He’s also heartbroken with his ex-fiancé, Louise, having abruptly left him. But when the sister of Louise informs Nick that she’s dead, he seeks to find out what happened.
The rest of the stories follow various types of characters and crimes. Certain themes emerge including the jilted lover, pregnancy and relationships, and crimes of passion.
Trigger Warning: murder, prostitution, assault, adult language, discussion of rape/sexual assault, sexual situations
Overall, I found this a challenging review as some of the short stories were inventive and interesting while others felt less inspired and repetitive. The title short story was one of the better ones with a little mystery wrapped in and well-developed characters. My other favorites included An Unexpected Encounter in Spitalfields- a take on The Ripper case. Most of the people in the tales were not especially likable, but the women were especially challenging. A good majority were prostitutes, pregnant ex-lovers, or just kind of inept. Exceptions to that included Birth Control and Past Crimes which were two of the more thought-provoking titles. I wish there had been a common thread, character, or something else connecting all these stories. I found the organization a little haphazard and abrupt when transitioning between them as well. Maybe a little blurb about the year, setting, main character, or theme could have helped with this. If you like little snippets of crime stories or have a little time and want to check out a quick tale, this might be the book for you!
I received a copy of this story in exchange of a fair and honest review.
OVERALL REVIEW:
A compilation of 15 crime tales without a common thread. Some were intriguing and others a little repetitive.
Want to learn more about the author?
Check out my interview with Tom Batt
Interested in checking out the book for yourself?
Find it for purchase here or Kindle Unlimited
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