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Nine Women: Short Stories
This book has nine lives. Nine female lives. Nine women at various stages of their lives, facing various problems of varying descriptions and magnitudes
See what sisterhood really means to a hopefully optimistic ten-year-old in The Girl Who Would Be King. Learn just how many times the course of true love fails to run smoothly in Together, Apart, before discovering what Stephen King has to do with one young woman's passionate summer fling in Locked-Up Lovers. In Balloons you can lie on a beach with a heavily pregnant woman who is thinking about the men she has loved and lost, and in That's What I Want to Say you hear all the things one woman wants to say but rightly or wrongly, she doesn't. It's Just a Smile is about one activity many women enjoy, people watching, and Leaving Rotterdam takes you back over 130 years to a time when women were seen and not heard... at least not in public. And finally you will discover how age truly strengthens a woman as a widow's heart tries to heal in The Pink Flowers, and when another woman revisits both good and bad memories in Tell Me a Story.
Nine Women: Short Stories is a collection of moving stories which takes a long, slow look at what it means to be born a woman, to grow up as a woman and to live a variety of lives as a woman.
See what sisterhood really means to a hopefully optimistic ten-year-old in The Girl Who Would Be King. Learn just how many times the course of true love fails to run smoothly in Together, Apart, before discovering what Stephen King has to do with one young woman's passionate summer fling in Locked-Up Lovers. In Balloons you can lie on a beach with a heavily pregnant woman who is thinking about the men she has loved and lost, and in That's What I Want to Say you hear all the things one woman wants to say but rightly or wrongly, she doesn't. It's Just a Smile is about one activity many women enjoy, people watching, and Leaving Rotterdam takes you back over 130 years to a time when women were seen and not heard... at least not in public. And finally you will discover how age truly strengthens a woman as a widow's heart tries to heal in The Pink Flowers, and when another woman revisits both good and bad memories in Tell Me a Story.
Nine Women: Short Stories is a collection of moving stories which takes a long, slow look at what it means to be born a woman, to grow up as a woman and to live a variety of lives as a woman.
273 pages, Kindle Edition
Published March 10, 2016
17 people want to read
About the author
Frances M. Thompson
33 books230 followersFrances M. Thompson writes stories about bisexual disaster heroes usually getting the HEAs they deserve in her spicy contemporary romance... but sometimes getting into a lot of trouble in her suspense thrillers.
Frances loves chatting with her readers and the best places to do so is in her Facebook Readers' Group or on Instagram.
Originally from London, UK, but now based in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, Frances is the author of the contemporary (and steamy!) romances, Five Sunsets, The Moon Also Rises, and Let Love Rule, sapphic romances Hummingbird and Butterflies, three short story collections (Shy Feet Short Stories Inspired by Travel, London Eyes Short Stories, and Nine Women: Short Stories), a collection of poetry called Lover Mother Other, and the London Killing series of fast-paced urban thrillers, including The Wait and The Weaker Sex.
To find out about Frances' upcoming books first, sign up to her newsletter.
You can find copies of her books (and more!) in her shop.
Frances also works as a freelance writer and blogger. You can read her (oft-neglected) blog, As the Bird flies. She is also the creator of WriteNOW Cards, positive affirmations cards designed to help writers build and enjoy a writing practice they love.
Follow Frances on href="https://www.instagram.com/FrancesMTho... or on TikTok @francesmthompson.
Frances loves chatting with her readers and the best places to do so is in her Facebook Readers' Group or on Instagram.
Originally from London, UK, but now based in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, Frances is the author of the contemporary (and steamy!) romances, Five Sunsets, The Moon Also Rises, and Let Love Rule, sapphic romances Hummingbird and Butterflies, three short story collections (Shy Feet Short Stories Inspired by Travel, London Eyes Short Stories, and Nine Women: Short Stories), a collection of poetry called Lover Mother Other, and the London Killing series of fast-paced urban thrillers, including The Wait and The Weaker Sex.
To find out about Frances' upcoming books first, sign up to her newsletter.
You can find copies of her books (and more!) in her shop.
Frances also works as a freelance writer and blogger. You can read her (oft-neglected) blog, As the Bird flies. She is also the creator of WriteNOW Cards, positive affirmations cards designed to help writers build and enjoy a writing practice they love.
Follow Frances on href="https://www.instagram.com/FrancesMTho... or on TikTok @francesmthompson.
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
February 19, 2018
Frances' stories are tremendously engaging and emotional, entangling you in the stories long before you realize it. There is always an element of surprise, disguised as a new form/ writing style or as a plot twist which catches you (mentally and emotionally) unprepared.
This collection of stories shows a beautiful diversity of strong and amazing women so it would be a shame if you wouldn't invite your mother, sister and friends to read along with you.
This collection of stories shows a beautiful diversity of strong and amazing women so it would be a shame if you wouldn't invite your mother, sister and friends to read along with you.
March 14, 2016
Overall, a great collection of stories and I really like the author's note at the end. I think it provides a better understanding of each individual story and the collection as a whole. The characters in the stories, as well as the stories themselves were often very relatable, especially if you've loved and lost, or recently had a child.
As with any book of short stories, I certainly had my favorites among these nine stories. 'The Pink Flowers,' a story of a woman's recently loss of her husband was, in many ways, both a beautiful love story and a story about grieving. I loved learning about what the husband left behind for her and his forethought to prepare little surprises. The story also had a happy ending (sort of)! 'Tell Me A Story' was another favorite from the collection, this time with a sad ending. I enjoyed hearing about the couple reminisce on both happy and sad memories, and the banter back and forth made them seem like a much younger couple. Another highlight for me was 'Leaving Rotterdam'. This story acted like a teaser for me and I want more! I'd love to read what made Lodewijk and his family have to flea Rotterdam, and I'd like to know what happens when (if?) they finally reach New York. When I first read 'Locked Up Lovers', I liked the story, but since moving on from it, I've been thinking about it constantly. I wonder about what happens to the main characters in the end, and am curious if what I think happened in the end actually happened.
This collection of nine stories has relatable characters and situations (many of them at least), and is an enjoyable, quick read. I'd highly suggest it. As with Thompson's other work, there are always little (or big) surprises in the stories, which make them a pleasure to read. I also find that many of the characters stay with you long after you've read the story.
As with any book of short stories, I certainly had my favorites among these nine stories. 'The Pink Flowers,' a story of a woman's recently loss of her husband was, in many ways, both a beautiful love story and a story about grieving. I loved learning about what the husband left behind for her and his forethought to prepare little surprises. The story also had a happy ending (sort of)! 'Tell Me A Story' was another favorite from the collection, this time with a sad ending. I enjoyed hearing about the couple reminisce on both happy and sad memories, and the banter back and forth made them seem like a much younger couple. Another highlight for me was 'Leaving Rotterdam'. This story acted like a teaser for me and I want more! I'd love to read what made Lodewijk and his family have to flea Rotterdam, and I'd like to know what happens when (if?) they finally reach New York. When I first read 'Locked Up Lovers', I liked the story, but since moving on from it, I've been thinking about it constantly. I wonder about what happens to the main characters in the end, and am curious if what I think happened in the end actually happened.
This collection of nine stories has relatable characters and situations (many of them at least), and is an enjoyable, quick read. I'd highly suggest it. As with Thompson's other work, there are always little (or big) surprises in the stories, which make them a pleasure to read. I also find that many of the characters stay with you long after you've read the story.
October 11, 2017
My motivation to keep reading in the given order and all the short stories of a volume of short stories is the chance of a journey through different characters and encounters, while discovering a bit about the author' style in each and every one of them. Nine Women by Frances M. Thompson is such an unique adventure.
You can read each and every one of the stories at your own pace, start in your desired order, read it again and again, or just keep the author's choice. Any of those choices are a guarantee of the pleasure of reading.
The pleasure of reading does not have to do with swimming within your comfort zone. The women and men of those short stories do have doubts, emotional breakdowns or deeply hidden truths, are looking for emotional identity and are fighting hard with confusion and despair. The writing often takes a poetic turn, inviting the reader to float together with the charaters through ambiguity and incertainty. It is where the pleasure of reading can lead you without acknowledging it, but once there, a true reader will confirm that it is the best place to be. The writing of Frances M. Thompson makes you float between worlds in a realm shaped by words. I praised the intellectual adventure and the emotional topsy-turvy. There is so much to guess about ourselves only at the borderline.
Disclaimer: Book offered by the author in exchange for an honest review
You can read each and every one of the stories at your own pace, start in your desired order, read it again and again, or just keep the author's choice. Any of those choices are a guarantee of the pleasure of reading.
The pleasure of reading does not have to do with swimming within your comfort zone. The women and men of those short stories do have doubts, emotional breakdowns or deeply hidden truths, are looking for emotional identity and are fighting hard with confusion and despair. The writing often takes a poetic turn, inviting the reader to float together with the charaters through ambiguity and incertainty. It is where the pleasure of reading can lead you without acknowledging it, but once there, a true reader will confirm that it is the best place to be. The writing of Frances M. Thompson makes you float between worlds in a realm shaped by words. I praised the intellectual adventure and the emotional topsy-turvy. There is so much to guess about ourselves only at the borderline.
Disclaimer: Book offered by the author in exchange for an honest review
March 8, 2016
Nine Women is a true treasure chest. The first story, The Girl Who Would Be King, is a beautiful tale of sisterhood, sibling rivalry, acceptance and love in the younger generation, whilst Together, Apart is a story of a romantic relationship that spans the years. Locked Up Lovers explores sensitive issues in childhood whilst simultaneously being a simple tale of youthful desire. Balloons takes an honest look at how life can be, how it isn’t always clean cut and tidily laid out, whilst That’s What I Want To Say shows what can happen when pushed and how we sometimes unwittingly collude in our own downfalls. It’s Just A Smile takes a good look at depression and post-natal depression. A very different story to the others in style, yet Leaving Rotterdam retains all the same depth as we walk alongside the main character in the path of her husband. The Pink Flowers is a really special story that, for me, re-confirms Frankie's ability to convey unspoken emotion. And, finally, in Tell Me A Story, we are taken on a sweet journey of love and acceptance in the lives of two elderly, but beautifully young at heart, sweethearts. Nine Women is another success by the author and will not disappoint.
July 8, 2016
{5* 273 pages}
Such a beautiful book.
I highly recommend this book to people of all ages and walks of life, especially someone in need of an uplifting read. This heartfelt collection of short stories offers an honest insight into the varying lives of women, the joys of friendship, the complexities of those relationships, the strengths found during times of loss and the harsh truths facing us all, at one point or another in our own lives.
This sweet book is divided into nine individual tales, offering a perfect way to enjoy many stories within a few pages. Wonderfully written, with a gentle yet no holds barred hand. I can't wait to read more from this author. A perfect one to consume whilst travelling, whilst enjoying a coffee in a busy cafe or whilst curled up in bed.
Such a beautiful book.
I highly recommend this book to people of all ages and walks of life, especially someone in need of an uplifting read. This heartfelt collection of short stories offers an honest insight into the varying lives of women, the joys of friendship, the complexities of those relationships, the strengths found during times of loss and the harsh truths facing us all, at one point or another in our own lives.
This sweet book is divided into nine individual tales, offering a perfect way to enjoy many stories within a few pages. Wonderfully written, with a gentle yet no holds barred hand. I can't wait to read more from this author. A perfect one to consume whilst travelling, whilst enjoying a coffee in a busy cafe or whilst curled up in bed.
August 6, 2017
I discovered Frankie’s work via her blog http://www.asthebirdfliesblog.com/. I loved her generosity in sharing detailed advice for nomad workers and the poetic approach she has on life ('buy yourself flowers’ she’d write).
International Women's Day 2017 felt like a good time to read her '9 women short stories’. The novels were not about feminism, but they were powerful in a different way. The style is exquisitely precise and elegant (It’s actually the first feedback I get from friends to whom I gift this book). Also, the characters description is intimate enough for me to wish to grow old in the same way of most of these women.
International Women's Day 2017 felt like a good time to read her '9 women short stories’. The novels were not about feminism, but they were powerful in a different way. The style is exquisitely precise and elegant (It’s actually the first feedback I get from friends to whom I gift this book). Also, the characters description is intimate enough for me to wish to grow old in the same way of most of these women.
April 10, 2025
Third of the 'easy' books I decided to read to get over my reading block was Nine Women by Frances M Thompson. It's a book of short stories by an author I became a fan of when I read Shady Feet, her book of short stories based on a travel theme. In Nine Women each story is the tale of a particular woman and her life. It didn't disappoint and I finished it quickly. I think I'm now ready to try reading something a bit longer and/or more challenging now. I usually prefer longer stories, but sometimes short stories just hit the spot.
December 28, 2019
A tender and gorgeous collection of stories that keep you engaged with its nuanced twists and turns within each story. Loved it!
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews