nice collection of nifty short stories... I took some time getting to writing this review, but eventually the collection got to me!

All in all, a surprisingly little package, and while the stories don't allow to venture deep, they certainly go far and wide, as wide as the glorious state of Colorado!

I'll admit it, I haven't finished this book as yet, but will savor it over a few months time as I enjoy reading short stories and am savoring this one! So far the stories I've read were just the right length for my commute and entertaining enough to want to read more tomorrow! Well written and intriguing.

Short stories often get short thrift when it comes to critical and readerly attention, even though their short form means it is much harder to paint a convincing narrative. Heather Mateus Sappenfield manages it with Lyrics for Rock Stars, however. I read this collection of seventeen stories with high expectations, as I was aware of the author’s monumental dedication to the cause: the stories have been written over a period of two decades and have been polished so much that they resemble the glorious Colorado backdrop. Without wishing to give too much away, each story features a memorable Rocky mountains character who wrestles with a personal challenge. Some stories have a historical theme, some have contemporary settings, and their character are so diverse that I found it almost impossible to narrow the collection down to a favourite story. If forced to choose, my favourite would either be the story of the eight-year-old girl who supports her mother when her father leaves the family; or the title story in which a female opportunist meets an ageing singer and is encouraged to reinvent herself as a more honest version.

That Heather Mateus Sappenfield can write in so many registers, represent the thoughts of solid Colorado ranchers or capricious tourists, of wise centenarians or frightened eight-year-olds, is a testament to her enormous capabilities as an author. I know she has published in other genres, too, but after devouring Lyrics for Rock Stars, I am hoping she will publish further short stories, too! I am grateful to NetGalley and the publishers, V Press LC, for letting me have an advance copy of Lyrics for Rock Stars in exchange for this honest and unbiased review.

This collection of short stories introduces a varied range of characters from across time and around the world. There is little to connect them, but they are well drawn and engage the reader from the first few sentences. The title led me to believe that music might play a role in several of the stories, which is not the case. I would happily have spent longer in almost all of the worlds that the author introduces.

3/5

#LyricsforRockStars #NetGalley

The words fly off the page as art. But for me, stories fell real flat and the words didn’t mean too much to me. Some of the stories in this collection I enjoyed; not enough to give a higher star though. From a writing standpoint, beautiful. I just couldn’t get interested in most of the stories.