Book Review: And Thereby Hangs a Tale

When I recently reviewed Jeffrey Archer's collection of short stories called Tell Tale, I wrongly attributed it as his sixth collection of short stories. It was his seventh. Moreover, I discovered a collection I had not yet read, And Thereby Hangs a Tale. My interest was piqued even more because I recently attempted to break out of my novel-writing mold and write my own short story. After reading that Michael Chabon benefited from imitating Arthur Conan Doyle's style in his early attempts to mimic a Sherlock Holmes story, I decided I would attempt to mimic my favorite short story writer, Jeffrey Archer. While I'm certain my story will not rival any of Archer's, I did my very best to present a story that brings the reader to a whole new level of understanding once they reach the final sentences.

And Thereby Hangs a Tale, once again holds stories gleaned from Archer's wide experiences with people and from his vivid imagination (the ten stories based upon truth are indicated with an asterisk). Some were more predictable than others. I guessed the ending of "Stuck on You," long before I read the final sentence, yet still enjoyed reading the tale. I was quite taken by surprise by the endings of "The Queen's Birthday Telegram," "High Heels," and "Politically Correct." All of the stories are well-written and fully-engaging. I will continue to admire (and hopefully emulate) Archer's expertise in crafting a fine story with interesting characters and unexpected plot twists.