The Secrets of a Fire King
by Kim Edwards
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other reviews (showing 1-20 of 448)
I was excited to get three stories into the book and still be looking forward to what came next. Usually books of short stories start off well and then morph into mediocre disappointments for me. I loved and appreciated every story but one (only because I have a personal hatred for stories about couples who see the significant other cheating and say nothing-I can't even begin to relate to that). My very favorite was "Thirst", which reminds me of The Little Mermaid. I'm not sure if ...more
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Read in August, 2008
recommends it for:
quiet readers
The stories here are elemental, drawing on themes of loss, exile, grief, marginalization. Edwards has taken the themes she explored in The Memory Keeper's Daughter and used them to create vignettes. There is still room for power here, but I was more caught in the first 2-3 stories than in the remainder. By the time I got to the title story, I was pretty much done. Sure, the themes are compelling; but the same ideas p...more
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The Secrets of a Fire King is a lovely book. This book is written in third-person perspective with the introduction and stories of several women, who all have ordeals about love and their identity. The Secrets of a Fire King is a great collection of stories about women struggling with the love in their lives and women embracing that love. I really like books that are well-written with details and poise, and the author manages to bring this factor into her writing. The over...more
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Read in January, 2008
recommended to Diane by:
Harry Schwartz Reader's Retreatrecommends it for: Lovers of good writing
Kim Edwards has given short stories a whole new appeal. I started Secrets of a Fire King because I was between books and did not want to start something too engrossing over the weekend. I thought a short story a day would be the way to go. Needless to say, I read them all and am so disappointed there are no more. Each one is unique, crisp and beautifully written. Each one could spark (no pun intended) a great discussion among friends or book club members. There are "Ah, ha!" momen...more
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Read in July, 2008
I wanted to like this book. But I really didn't. I picked it up because I had read The Memory Keeper's Daughter and wanted to read something else by the same author. The first few stories in the collection were okay, not great, but then I started to notice a pattern in the author's writing: the men were all villains and the women were all victims, which is not a flattering portrayal for either sex. I read about half of the stories and then finally gave up.
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Read in October, 2008
recommended to Lex by:
Mom
I have always had mixed feelings about short stories… I am never sure I like the disconnection between them and I tend to feel like there should be more. I found this group to be a mix of enjoyable and “not for me” stories. Oddly enough there is more than one story revolving around Marie Curie and Radium. The few stories that stuck out were Spring, Mountain, Sea, Thirst, and The Story of My Life… however, this is only 3 of 14. You make the call.
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Read in February, 2008
This is one the best collection of shorts stories by one author that I've ever read. She makes me want to write like her. The imagery and emotion she evokes with her word/word choice are so real, I had to pause and think a while after reading each story. She packs so much life into so few pages, it's amazing. I highly recommend this collection to anyone who wants to read good fiction in short spurts.
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Read in August, 2007
Like a moonbeam chasing the sky she really gives Richard Brautigan a run for his money in the crappy metaphor department. Simile, too. Some of the stories in this collection are quite beautiful and stirring. But then she starts trying too hard and it all gets mucked up with these phrases that are so forced it's painful to read them. Regardless, it's worth reading for the good parts.
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Read in March, 2008
recommended to Sarah by:
My friend Amyrecommends it for: Fiction lovers, surrealists
Short story collection with beautiful prose, characters who are somehow on the margins, and a sometimes tedious voice that shifts impressively among the collection's protagonists. "Thirst," a bit of magical realism with its sad, mermaid mother (whose yearning to return to the ocean mimics many mothers' loss of self upon having children) proved resoundingly memorable for my book club.
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Read in February, 2008
I thought this book was much better than Edwards' Memory Keeper's Daughter. She manages to write engaging developed stories in just a few pages without making you feel like something is left out when it ends. That, and the short story makes it easier to find good places to put it down and pay attention to your kids. You know how books can make those things a bit difficult.
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Read in March, 2008
These stories were OK. I found her language to be more subtle and beautiful than in "The Memory Keeper's Daughter", but the stories were not as well crafted. About half of them I enjoyed and the other half I just didn't get. I would get to the end of the story and just not care about the characters-they didn't connect with me. Not highly recommended, it was just OK.
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Read in June, 2007
I picked this book up at an airport because it was one of the only books available in English. I loved it! All of the stories are written about marginalized people living on the fringe of society. A terrific collection of short stories that provoke thought.
I didn't love The Memory Keepers Daughter but I highly recommend this collection.
I didn't love The Memory Keepers Daughter but I highly recommend this collection.
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A series of short stories that keep you reading and turning the pages... So much so, that you may actually choose to put down the required reading of Mansfield Park and spend an afternoon curled under the covers, reading Edwards' book. Highly recommended stories: "The Great Chain of Being," "The Way it Felt to be Falling," "Sky Juice."
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Read in December, 2007
Sometimes I like to break up my reading with books that are collections of short stories. This was one of those books.
Each story deals with love, in some way or another. I really enjoyed all of the stories. I read Kim Edwards' other book, The Memory Keeper's Daughter, and loved that one so I figured this one was worth a shot.
Each story deals with love, in some way or another. I really enjoyed all of the stories. I read Kim Edwards' other book, The Memory Keeper's Daughter, and loved that one so I figured this one was worth a shot.
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Read in January, 2008
Compilation of great short stories, I haven't read them all yet. Although the book isn't very long, so far I really liked The Secrets Of A Fire King...which is probably why the author chose it as the title of the entire book. I definitely recommend it if you like short stories...I love to read it on my commute to work.
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Read in July, 2007
recommends it for:
anyone!
Fabulous! Every story sucked me in so quickly and spit me back out again just before I'd had enough. Well written and imaginative, I found this a bit of a whirlwind to read. It was so great I desperately wanted more of each story, and starting another one left you feeling a bit worn out.
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Read in August, 2008
I normally hate books that are collections of short stories, but I really liked this one. Most of the stories were great and I would have liked to see them as full length novels. Almost all of them were about different cultures or immagrants - my two favorite topics.
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Read in January, 2008
I really enjoyed the short stories in this book, although some of them were better than others. The author really has some very neat characters and the stories were very well written. Sometimes I was wishing I could read a whole book about certain storylines.
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Read in February, 2008
A collection of short stories - some were a little disappointing (especially the one about the circus performers - worst ending ever), while some were amazing (especially the one about the ex-pat in Indonesia). All were very easy to read and entertaining.
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