Feeling fortunate and blessed to have received a review as stunning as this one by British reviewer Ellie Hawkes. Back in 2021 she reviewed my novel Sybelia Drive in such a clear and beautiful way, and now she’s written a truly gorgeous and comprehensive review of my story collection The Geography of First Kisses. I’m beyond grateful for this gift of a reader and reviewer who understands and connects with my books.
A few of her thoughts on TGFK:
“The fourteen stories that make up The Geography of First Kisses hit the short story collection sweet spot of being tonally similar enough to form a cohesive whole, but individually full of variation and surprises. Like an album, there are repeated themes and strands, refrains that run throughout the book, but each story is its own song.
… she presents moments that contain within them hundreds of other moments. The prose flicks seamlessly between present and past, and there’s such wisdom in the understanding of how time works, how those defining moments of our childhood live with us and yet are so hard to recapture …
It is hard to describe Karin Cecile Davidson’s style, except by saying that her stories remind me of almost all of my favourite short story writers, from classics such as Raymond Carver, Angela Carter and Alice Munro to contemporary favourites of mine like Lauren Groff and Carmen Maria Machado. These stories are at that level – they’re so layered and intricate, and just beautiful to read. I honestly feel quite evangelical about this writer – with her first novel and now this collection of stories, her talent is so awe-inspiring, and her words are such a rich pleasure to read.”
