Smile Again: A Collection Of Short Stories

by Eunice Nascimento

Smile Again is a collection of 12 heart-warming stories of romance, family and friendship, guaranteed to make you smile no matter your mood.

In Memories of Kessingland Beach, Sarah finally finds the courage to forgive herself and make peace with her Dad while in The Way to Mia’s Heart, it takes a nudge from a friend to make Mia realise the chef at her favourite restaurant might be her Mr Right. Granny Square Afghans brings a new friendship which leads Debbie to confront her fear of water and in Janet’s Dilemma, will Janet find the resolve to tell her husband what’s bothering her?

Put your feet up and enjoy these as well as 8 other stories in Smile Again.

Unknown Binding

About the author

Eunice Nascimento strives to write stories that explore how people’s life experiences affect their relationships. She’s inspired by life, news, the people around her and enjoys writing tangled situations where true love wins out. By taking readers on an emotional roller-coaster, she hopes that they will find a delightful escape from the everyday in her books.

Eunice currently resides in London with her spouse and two children. When she’s not writing or spending quality time with her family, she enjoys reading romance novels, watching K dramas, dancing salsa, bachata, and kizomba. Though she admits that lately she’s more likely to watch YouTube dancing videos than to actually dance herself.


Visit Eunice at www.eunicenascimento.com, www.facebook.com/eunicenascimentowrites, www.instagram.com/eunicenascimento2015 and www.twitter.com/eunicemussage to learn more about her. Make sure to join her monthly newsletters for exclusive short stories about characters in the See Beneath World.

Reviews

[Stjepan Cobets · Rating 4 out of 5]

My rating 4.2

Smile Again: A Collection Of Short Stories by Eunice Nascimento is a very good collection of short love stories through which the bond of love is connected. In the collection, we have many different aspects of love that end up having happy endings. Each story in the collection has its own charm and lovers of romance can find a story that they will like or can remind them of some events from their lives. Love is an inexhaustible theme and in these stories, it shows its charm. I would recommend this collection to all lovers of romance

[Scott Peters · Rating 4 out of 5]

This upbeat collection of 10 short stories provides a great break. The stories are based primarily on turning points in relationships, taking the main character from a down period through a change that brings them to a better place. Each one can be read in a brief sitting as they're composed of a small handful of pages. The characterization is interesting, the characters are kind, and they face a variety of challenges that many people will go through in life at one time or another. While they're told via female MC's, anyone could enjoy these reads.
One caveat is that the stories, being so short, have rather abrupt endings. All could have run longer to develop the situation before the resolution, which might have offered more satisfying wins for the character arcs.
Overall, however, sometimes it's nice to just have a positive read with no jarring surprises!

[Claire · Rating 4 out of 5]

Recap: A collection of heart warming short stories.

Review: The nicest thing about this collection is all the hope and happy endings. A day of sunshine on a gloomy day. All the characters are lifelike, the dialogue realistic and stories that make you smile.

[Grace J Reviewerlady · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a wonderful collection of gentle, heart-warming stories!

This is a variety of twelve stories, all featuring everyday folk with normal lives who find themselves in situations which, whilst not earth-shattering, are the sort of dilemmas we all come up against from time to time.

An excellent collection with every single one of these tales well-written and pleasing - absolutely perfect to enjoy with a cuppa. I imagine every reader will have something in common with at least one or two of them. If I really had to choose favourites, I would plump for 'Granny Square Afghans' and 'Lucy's Ice-Skating Party'. The latter made me smile remembering my own granddaughter's recent roller-skating birthday party, where her mum was so busy putting all the necessary protection on the children that, on her way to put on her own, slipped and broke her wrist!

This is the kind of anthology which will prompt memories for most readers. If you enjoy - even occasionally - a gently amusing story or two which will, indeed, make you smile, then this is the perfect choice. Enjoyable, easy reads which will renew your faith in the good side of life. The title is ideal for such a warm collection of enjoyable tales.

My grateful thanks to the author for alerting me to her work. This is my honest, original and unbiased review.

[Noor Al-Shanti · Rating 5 out of 5]

Smile Again is an excellent collection of short stories that center around family and friendship. They're expertly written and I really enjoyed the fact that they were short and overall cheerful and uplifting.

The author does an excellent job of offering a nice little glimpse into the characters' lives and their current dilemma and sticking to the important stuff with no fluff so that the reader doesn't get bored. At the same time they were so well-written that I felt the characters and the settings were real.

Each little story is totally different and I was pleased to see that they feature people of all ages and from all walks of life and each one has a unique problem or concern.

I found myself compelled to try and finish it in one sitting despite real-world interruptions, but since each story stands alone it was easy to find a good place to stop when I did get interrupted. An excellent choice if you're trying to fit your reading around a busy schedule.

[Angela Panayotopulos · Rating 3 out of 5]

“Smile Again” is an anthology of stories that delivers what it promises: it shares stories that make you inevitably smile. They’re sweet, they’re poignant, they’re wise, and they’re built from sometimes painful and harrowing backstories that are easy to relate to with their universal themes and human emotion.



My biggest qualm with this anthology is that the stories feel like the tips of icebergs; I am told many things in instances where I’d much rather be shown these things instead. Lacking deeper character development and nuanced dialogue, as stand-alone stories they feel incomplete and I feel like there’s so much untapped potential lurking beneath them. The vibe and the intentions of these stories is obviously conveyed, and I can easily see them as being premises for longer stories or even novels.



The anthology makes for a swift and pleasant read. The writing is easy to follow and sometimes even conversational, making me wonder if perhaps some of these stories would be better read aloud. They leave you with good vibes, which I really appreciated—I feel that the world needs more of them, including in the literary domain.

[David Fisher · Rating 3 out of 5]

A Good Dosage of Love and Warmth

This collection of short stories is about heart-warming snippets of romance, family and friendship. They are meant to evoke amusement and smiles and are truly light-hearted and chatty. The sort of things a young woman notes in her diary – memories to reread at later times and chuckle about. There is much love, feeling and warmth involved.

With a few reservations for structure and style, the stories are well-written and the author captures the scenes well. However, they tend to make the impression of having been thrown together. Rather like drafts meant for but not used in a book. Even short stories need structure and a resounding ending. Something to move the reader on to the next one.

All told, the idea behind the collection is not bad but it does need some tidying up.

[Alexis Lantgen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a peaceful, cozy book of short stories. While it didn't have a lot of intense drama, the stories were enjoyable, mellow, and well-written. Honestly, I think "Smile Again" would be a good book to read if you're feeling anxious or depressed, because it's very comforting. I also like the fact that while many of the stories included a sweet romance, many other stories were about friendship or family, or just connecting with other people.

An enjoyable read for anyone looking for a cozy book of realistic, sort of women's fiction short stories.

[Willow Thomson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Smile Again is a collection of sweet, optimistic stories. There are setbacks but a positive resolution is most likely in store. These stories have a Hallmark channel feel to them and a certain homogeneity to the people in the stories and the details of the settings and situations. I would have liked more nuance to the characters and depth to the writing. The writing style is smooth and easy and there is no fear of nightmares after reading these stories before bed!

[Veronica · Rating 3 out of 5]

Smile Again is a collection of short stories that are vignettes or slice-of-life moments. With sweet tales of romance and friendship, they are indeed written to make you smile again. While all of the stories could have been improved with more detail (we only get very superficial information about the characters/setting/etc.), they are still quick, enjoyable reads. If you’re looking for some light reading, this collection will leave you feeling a little more upbeat.

[Darrell Nelson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Smile Again:
Sometimes you have to step back and think about the little things that make you happy.
Some of life's fondest memories are about little things. This book is a celebration of those events. No high drama or tension, just some stories to bring a warm filling to the reader. They are comforting like a hug when you have a bad day, or some hot chocolate on a rainy afternoon, or a kitten on your lap pretty much anytime.
These stories did in fact make me smile again.

[Jordan Leger · Rating 4 out of 5]

Smile Again
Beautiful, heartfelt, and well written short stories that I enjoyed very much.
'Trust In Me', was a great one.
I hope to see more from this author.

[Oliver Kent · Rating 5 out of 5]

A refreshing collection of short stories. Rather than having to save the world, the characters face various challenges we're all familiar with. Thankfully, each story ends happily. The book leaves you with a precious gift of hope that things will turn out ok in the end in your own life.

A great little pick-me-up if you're having a rough day.

[Laura Koerber · Rating 3 out of 5]

Light, uplifting, cheerful snippets of life.

Many of the stories are romances, though not the girl-meets-boy-and loses-boy-and regains-boy type. The themes are more interesting and varied than that formula. Many are of these stories not really structured like stories; they flow more in the way of diary entries or memories. The style is casual which matches the realistic--but optimistic!--tone. I think that this book would be good vacation or travel reading; a person could dip in and of it between other activities without ever having a good mood darkened.

[Joan Carney]

Smile Again is one of those books that make you sigh at the end wishing for more. In each of the twelve short stories, I found a character or a topic I could easily relate to. From the young woman reflecting on the happy memories of her childhood at the shore, to the mother struggling with overprotective tendencies with her child, a spark of honesty and truth rang clear.

But, if I have to pick a favorite, “The Way to Mia’s Heart” wins out. This story relates the beginning of a romance between Mia and the chef at her favorite restaurant, Lucas. It hooked me in like the first chapter of a potentially good romance novel, and I would love to see Ms. Nascimento expand the story as such.

Overall it was a very quick, but satisfying read and a winner all around.

[Hock Tjoa · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is a collection of ten stories. It contains simple and upbeat writing - the light, anecdotal accounts of thirty-something women who learn to smile again. The tone is warm and affectionate. The stories carry the pleasing sensation of approval from neighbors and friends.

Some passages sound predictable and unchallenging. There are the 'irresistible smiles' and 'silly winks' of a man, the 'moral support' of a three-legged dog, the 'melting brown gazes,' the green eyes that locked onto brown, and the child whose obstinacy made her "clam up worse than a dog with a bone." One character accuses another with infidelity - "you kissed my best friend."

Each story has a slight twist, but not enough to be called a plot. This reader hopes the author will write in the same warm tone but will also allow her characters to develop 'texture' and detail. When telling us about the flowers in the garden, some of us wonder - were they lilacs or lavender?

[J.E. Rowney · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a straightforward, short collection of stories, all fitting within the women’s fiction genre. The topics are mainly focused on family and relationships. The author has some reasonable story ideas, but there’s a lot of telling and barely any showing, so the reader is not immersed in the emotion that the plotlines of each story could provoke. A visit to a beach is presented as a de facto remembrance. There’s a very short piece about a missed connection coming back into a woman’s life, which is little more than a telling of you did this – yes I’m sorry – let’s give it another go. That aside, there were glimpses of an engaging storyteller who has a good grasp on human emotion and interpersonal relationships. With some more depth and development I would have enjoyed this collection more.

There was a glaring error in “Living in Hope”. A mother tells her daughter that her body “doesn’t make proper eggs yet”, but only has ovarian tissue, which apparently can be used to cure infertility. As the whole story was about preserving the girl’s fertility I would have thought the author could have done her research. There were also several typos in the book, which could be resolved with a professional edit. It was still easy to read, but the errors did distract me.

I did enjoy the dialogue, which felt realistic and was well-written. I particularly liked the discussion between Karen and Debbie in “Granny Square Afghans”; it was genuine and engaging. That probably helped to make it my favourite of the collection.

[Dee Osah · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don’t normally read slice-of-life, but the slices in this collection were quite impressive and made me smile again and again. From a daughter letting go of guilt as she reminisces about her father to a woman whose encounter with the most amazing pot roast turns into something more than she could have ever imagined, the stories mostly focus on turn-around moments in the characters’ lives.
In “The Stray Letter” a wrongly-delivered letter opens a way for a woman to move from a life of her past dreams to a new world of accepted limitations and unexpected possibilities.
A favorite was “A Second Chance” where a man desperately needs to show his long-time crush what it means to feel again. A simple declaration, an attempted kiss on the cheek, and a slight turn of the head seals the deal and love bursts forth.
At times, I wanted more depth from the characters, but that only took a little away from my enjoyment. If you’re in need of some sweet light-hearted reading right before bed, give Smile Again a try.

[Paula · Rating 5 out of 5]

Short stories are a writing form that has lost its appeal to a lot of writers these days, and I find this a sad thing. I love short stories. You can get through one--or sometimes two--during a lunch break, or enjoy one while waiting to see your doctor...you get the idea.

Smile Again is particularly enjoyable, because it contains stories that are uplifting and hopeful. They are. quite literally, short and sweet.

I would recommend getting a copy to take with you so you have a quick read while waiting to do something else. We all have those times, and it's nice to have something to keep us smiling in the meantime.

[Elissa Matthews · Rating 3 out of 5]

The best part of this book, far in the way, is the open writing style and warm voice. The “stories” were upbeat and heartwarming without being maudlin, friendly and optimistic. The writing was so gentle that it bordered on cliché at times, but not enough to really grate. The problem is, these aren’t stories in the structural sense, with drama, delivery, characters acting on and in their world. They are snippets, anecdotes, journal entries. It’s as if a good friend was telling you about their day.

[Jennifer Rosenberry · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful stories

[Mya · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was executed well. The author did a great job bringing the concepts alive.

[Barbi Funes · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lleno de mensajes esperanzadores que nunca están de más😊

[L.N. Denison · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Nice Collection Of Short Stories!

This book tackles the many different stages of relationships. From heartbreak to heartfelt, you feel the emotion that each story leaves behind. I loved each stage of the process that this book went through, and the writing was solid. I would say it was well written.

If you like a book that covers every stage of life and every emotion, you'll like this quick and easy read.