Reviews with content warning for Sexual content - Five Tuesdays in Winter

while I am generally a huge Lily King fan, I was disappointed with this short story collection. she is undoubtedly a talented writer, but aside from two standout stories (the titular “five tuesdays in winter” and “when in the dordogne”), the stories did not make an impact on me. I was especially off put by the inclusion of two stories in which the protagonist nurses a crush on another character, only for that crush to later sexually assault them. while the two stories were slightly thematically different, one dealing with a developing teenager and the other themes of queerness and homophobia, that same motif of sexual violence was disturbing to me.

the latter handful of the stories in the collection were quite short, around 10-15 pages each, and left me wanting more. I have the feeling that “Mansard” could’ve been great given a bit more plot to it. But overall, I found many of the stories to be quite forgettable.

However, “five tuesdays in winter” was a lovely tale of found family, as was “when in the Dordogne.” I cried at both, filled with emotion at how King can so carefully craft emotions and settings. I found myself picturing the summer depicted “when in the Dordogne” as my own summer as an adolescent, marveling at the cool older kids who looked after my friends and I. she was able to capture the feeling of summer as a young person so well, and crafted a truly beautiful story about the people who enter our lives for a short period of time but have long lasting effects on who we are.

While I’m overall a bit disappointed by this collection, it was worth a read for those two stories alone.

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eligru's review

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mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

It was nice to read short stories again. They make for entaining short breaks in a busy week.

Although I did not like all 10 of them, I feel like many of the stories will stay with me for a long time. They share some running themes like writing, parenting and getting over a past relationship. My favorites were:

1) Five Tuesdays in Winter
(about second love, fatherhood and bookshops)

2) Waiting for Charlie
(about an old man looking back on life)

3) Timeline
(about a writer, her brother and their neighbours)

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adeliab's review against another edition

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reflective tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.75

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sydapel's review

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emotional relaxing fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

I adore Lily King's writing, especially her ability to capture a character's desires so intimately that you can't help but internalize them. And that's still so wonderfully present in this short story collection, but I felt somewhat jerked from character to character in a way that left me ultimately unsatisfied.

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lucyduller's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

It's a book with stories about love, all the kinds of love, ugly, beautiful and flawed. But gosh, it's so much more. I loved Hotel Seattle the most, I think it was the first one I read and realised the genius of Lily King. Some of them I was left feeling uncomfy and tense, although I think that was the point.
The last story was another favourite, I didn't get it until the very end, I think because I was trying to rush it slightly. But wow, it left me feeling stunned.
So many nuances, love at different ages, my first Lily King read but certainly not my last.
Perfect to read in February, it provides some warmth in these cold months, but also embraces the dready bleakness of this time of year. So well done.

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