Not What You Thought? And Other Surprises by P.A. Ruddock

One of my favourite books are collections of shorts. It is a great way of discovering new authors, and I certainly discovered a few in this book. It is a combined effort by Mr Ruddock and five guest writers (Lesley Hayes, Tom Benson, Matthew Williams, John M.W. Smith, Peter Nena.) to raise money for the 'Forget-Me-Not' charity. Some of the stories were better than others, but a well deserved four star.

Not What You Thought? And Other Surprises by P.A. Ruddock

I love short stories, there is nothing better than to have a good short to entertain you during a commute or lunch break. No need to remember what was going on, or missing your stop as you were just so engrossed in a thriller. This book certainly entertained me. I can see mister Ruddock took great glee in what is an inspiration to many writers; fictionally murder the people that have gotten on your bad side. There are some excellent contributions from the five guest writers and the overall standard of writing is high. A variety of styles and subjects are used and the changes in pace work well. With such a mix of themes it was obvious that I would like some stories better than others. There is a common thread with many of the stories having a twist at the end. This mostly works well, but sometimes it is a twist too far. Life behind bars was for me a highlight and a low point at the same time. It is a powerful tale about arriving at prison after sentencing and I don’t think the twist was appropriate. I would recommend this book as it is a fine collection of shorts and the proceeds are going to the ‘Forget-Me-Not’ charity for homeless ex-servicemen and those affected by PTSD. Do good and have a great read at the same time; what more do you want!