Published: 30th June 2015
Publisher: Prairie Sky Publishing
Pages: 60
Format: ebook
Genre: Short stories
★ ★ ★ ★ – 4 Stars
Ah, summer. Long days full of warm sunshine and one of the most popular times to travel. But what happens when something throws your travel plans off course?
This June meet brand new characters in Two for the Road!
The First Story, “Excess Baggage”: Allison has just come home from a grueling business trip. All she wants to do is spend a quiet weekend at home parked in front of the TV or maybe curled up with a blanket. When a friend calls to ask her for a favor, though, all of Allison’s plans hit rough air.
The Second Story, “Wrong Way”: With one daughter married and another in college, Rachel and Jim should be enjoying their time as a couple again. But Jim’s worries about his widowed mother force Rachel into a spur-of-the-moment road trip to check on the old bat. When Jim catches Rachel complaining to a friend, tension will ride with them in the car. Can Rachel make an apology stick?
Note: I was provided with a copy of this book from the author for review.
With these two new additions to the Stories in Pairs series it is clear Garg’s imagination and creativity isn’t waning anytime soon. I love these paired stories, there is such a simple pleasure derived from two stories, connected by theme, characters, anything at all. I love Garg’s concept and execution and with this being the third set of stories I am just as delighted as I was the first time.
With Two For The Road the common theme is travel, more specifically travel plans gone awry. The first story is Excess Baggage and follows Allison, a woman who is planning to spend the weekend home relaxing after a business trip yet ends up playing host to friends of a friend who are heading out on a trip in the next couple of days.
From page one Garg captures Allison’s exhaustion and her frantic life, through Allison’s expression and actions you understand who she is and the kind of life she leads and you want her to have the relaxing weekend she longs for.
What is interesting in Garg’s approach is that it’s not Allison who is going on a trip, she is just coming home. But her involvement with others is what makes this story work so well. There are many twists and turns, if one can call them that. Changed plans, chaotic schedules, and the pressures of work and little sleep are all part of what makes this story so enjoyable.
The second story takes a more direct approach in the travel concept and has a different tone completely to the first. Wrong Way is a great expression of the issues that come up in marriage and the compromises and sacrifices that are made. The marriage between Jim and Rachel is played out on their car trip to visit Jim’s mother, during which their relationship is tested.
With Rachel as narrator only one perspective is given, but Garg uses thoughts, arguments, and debate between the pair to gain additional understanding and see Jim’s point of view. With every argument and comment that the pair throws at one another, a deeper understanding of both characters and their lives together is understood, highlighting the repeated arguments and frustration felt by both.
I like that while there are conclusions to these stories, there are no real resolutions provided. As readers we are allowed to work out what happened next while still being given an ending deserving of the story and one that is unexpected and suitable. Once again Garg has created two unique and enjoyable stories that retain the coupling concept she’s had since the first Stories in Pairs, and she has done so with the same creativity and style that made them so wonderful in the first place.
You can purchase Two For the Road via the following
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