British Flash by Josephine Myles
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
British Flash is a collection of flash fiction stories – just a few pages each – that center on being gay and British. There are 21 stories with 16 m/m, 3 f/f, 1 m/m/f, and one gender bending story. So there truly is a wide range of stories for everyone but the collection will still appeal most to m/m fans. This is an especially good collection if you’re looking to taste various authors you haven’t tried before. I found those authors I usually quite like to shine very well here while a few surprised me and I’ll definitely be looking at their backlists.
Of the 21 stories, several easily stood out while the others are enjoyable. There are no real missteps or bad stories in the collection and each is enjoyable in its own way. Some aren’t to my taste but reader desires do vary so be sure to check it out on your own first. Plus it’s free, so there’s no real reason not to get this delightful and fun collection.
Those stories that stood out for me are “Commission and Omission” for the depth of emotion Charlie Cochrane can pull out of a reader in just a few pages. It’s amazing and shows why she’s such a good historical author. The story is bittersweet and sad but it packs an emotional punch. On the flip side is Mara Ismine’s utterly adorable wererook story “Thoughts in Spring” which easily stands out as my favorite in a group of well written, entertaining stories. This is one story that starts very cute and ends just as strongly.
Others that I’d easily recommend are “Nessie” by Caroline Stephens about the Loch Ness monster legend and “Last Client” by Jay Rookwood, a moving story about a young man that’s matured and understands need, death, and love. Also not to be missed are the final three stories of the collection, ending very strongly with “Yesterday Upon the Stair” by Erastes, “Benefits of Peace” by Alex Beecroft, and “They Who Came After the Stories End” by Sophia Deri-Bowen. The last three are historical while the former two are contemporary but they all combine to offer touching and affecting snippets of love and affection.
While those are arguably my favorites the collection remains strong with entertaining offerings with great humor by the delightful JL Merrow and Josephine Myles. There are also a number of new authors that show very well with quick glimpses into romance. The majority of the collection is mild as far as erotica but the non-m/m stories are mostly explicit for those that want some sex with their love. The uniquely British settings and accents create a cohesive form for the stories and one of the more enjoyable elements.
Overall this is an impressive collection and an incredibly easy one to recommend. Especially as it’s free, there is no reason why you shouldn’t have gotten this already. You won’t regret it.
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I loved the rook shifter story too :). Great review, Kassa. You are right in saying that the stories were all really good.
I really quite liked the rook shifter story and wish there was more of that one but the stories as a whole are pretty good (I hate to sound like a broken record but usually you don’t find this quality in anthologies you pay for let alone free ones!)
Yes, they were all great stories and seriously, the price is right. 🙂 But it was fun to have a taste of so many authors, some I’ve not heard of before so that’s a treat. Great variety as well.
Oh absolutely and it reminded me of authors too that I keep meaning to read or get back to and have thus forgotten. Great little anthology.
I have this on my TBR Kassa and I’m looking forward to reading the M/M stories in this anthology, especially after your review. 🙂 Great job!
Thanks! It’s super quick to read too so it won’t take up much time in your TBR when you get around to it. I’m curious and excited to see what other people pick as favorites. So far the wererook has gotten a lot of votes.
Thanks, Kassa. I was part of the acquisitions team and we were amazed at the quality of stories we were sent. (I love the wererook, too!)
I just commented that the quality is really quite high considering it’s a free anthology (you don’t see this quality in for pay collections!) so it’s really an outstanding deal. I truly adore and love the wererook story (untapped market!) but thank you for your addition as well.