Eight - Fantastical Tales from Here, There & Everywhere

I’ll be honest straight away and say I have a hate/hate relationship with short stories and all my previous reviews will attest to that. No matter how many I read, I just don’t enjoy them. They’re not for me and never seem to grab me or keep me interested. But I think I’ve finally found the one collection that has shown me what a good short story can be.

They’re whimsical and magical and almost fairytale like but steeped in realism with an important life lesson at the end, but by approaching it in this way, they don’t become corny or preachy or over the top.

There were definitely some I enjoyed more than others; some felt forced, some felt they were a bit lost, but most feel like a complete story. They ranged from learning to cope with adversity, deciding what means the most to you in your life, realising what is important, learning how far a bit of kindness goes, and so on.

The penultimate story - which I will not spoil - was inspired by A a Christmas Carol and it was so warming. Everyone that knows me knows how important that story is to me and it is definitely my favourite book of all time, and it was fascinating to see an outlook on it from a different culture, and therefore it is my outright favourite story in this collection.

Short stories have never played a large role in my personal library. I picked this out on a whim and am so happy I did. This book was magical. The writing was beautiful, the stories were funny while somehow also being thought-provoking, and the characters were lovely. I will continue to pick this collection up over and over again.

This was pretty interesting. A variety of different tales brought to you by one author. I really loved this and had lots of fun reading it. It was pretty memorable since I can still recall some of the beautifully written sentences. It really just confirmed for me that manco is an author I will for sure keep an eye out for of course!

This was such a magical book I thoroughly enjoyed every second of reading it. It was well written with such brilliant imagery. A great read

One of the reasons I love Gabriel Garcia Marquez is because of the magic realism.These 8 short stories take place in different countries and while dealing with very serious subjects(disability,addiction,loss, loneliness...)each of them has a touch of magic realism that make it very easy to get immersed in them. It would benefit of some notes to translate/explain certain words,but the absence doesn't stop you following the story.

Delightful light confection that goes around the globe with short fantasy stories. From Argentina to somewhere in the air Hitting Germany, France, Egypt, Korea, China, India in-between. Little quick tastes of a dot of sweet, sour, spicy, hot & cold tidbits to make you smile or think. Most poignant I thought was the German & the rabbit but they were all tasty fare

This book is a collection of eight short stories set in various countries including Germany, India, South Korea, France, etc. I'm blown away by the diverse settings in the stories, as well as the exceptional vocabulary of Poormina Manco. I felt like I was reading a book of modern fairy tales!

There are some stories that I enjoyed more than others, but overall, this book is a delight to read.

I have a slight bias for short stories so I was pretty excited to read another book of short stories. These were indeed fantastic tales from everywhere. Eight stories- fantastic, magical, real, or a combo of all I would say.

1. The Butterfly Effect – For me this was one the of weakest. Story of Mariposa who experiences a devastating accident and what transpires after. I found it dragged a little and I had a hard time trying to connect to Mariposa. While I did greatly sympathize with her I just couldn’t get into the story. 2 stars
2. Osterhase – Osterhase I believe means Easter Bunny in German. The story takes place in Cologne, Germany and follows the whole life of Stefan divided in a few segments. Sort of a “life lessons” type of story with a fairy tale mix. 3 stars
3. The Invisible Suitcase – This was one of my favorites. A special woman and equally special cat arrive in Paris and open a café/bakery just in time for Valentine’s and try to spread love through their baked goods. That’s all I will say without spoiling it. Definitely read this one. 4 stars
4. New Year, New You – A nice spin on a very old Egyptian folk tale. I wish some things were explained better, there were some confusing parts. 2 stars
5. Idol – This story takes place in South Korea. Heejin, is an idol trainee, which is a K-Pop band type of star. She is with a group of similar young teen girls. She’s visited by a ghost who has something she must do and a curious Heejin wants to know what it is. 2 stars
6. The Perfect Wife – A story we’ve heard, read, and seen before but still always good to see or read it. A very rich and powerful man aims to build a perfect wife. Can it be done? Does he succeed? You find out. 3 stars
7. Lala Lakshmi – An Indian take on A Christmas Carol during the Diwali holiday. Since A Christmas Carol is one of my favorite books I really enjoyed this. I won’t lie, I got a little teary-eyed. This was a nice little story and kudos to the author for being able to fit it in a short story. 4 stars
8. A Thank You Would Be Nice – Awesome story. Starts off in on direction then totally surprised me. The most chilling stories are always the ones that can actually be real and this is one of them. 4 stars.

I would like to thank NetGalley and Mango Tree Publications for providing me with with the ebook copy for my honest review.

I like anthologies and thought the stories in this were well written. There was a rather magical quality to them and very easy to get through. Will be looking for the author's future books too.

Eight Fantastical Tales from Here, There and Everywhere is a collection of short stories by Indian author, Poornima Manco. The tales are set in Argentine, Germany, France, Egypt, Korea, Hong Kong, India and USA.

The Butterfly Effect: Mariposa’s mother Lucia, a tango dancer like Mari’s abuela, Elena, danced out of her life when she was four, causing her to swear off dancing. Raised by her loving abuelo in a little B&B in Puerto Iguazu, Mari lost her leg in a motorbike accident at eighteen. Her prosthetic leg, when it is fitted, seems to have a will of its own about dance. 4/5

Osterhase: the Easter that Stefan turns nine, he encounters a larger-than-life Osterhase – Easter Bunny – in his grandparents’ yard. It has plenty of advice, not just about finding a basket of chocolate eggs, but about life, and it won’t be the last time the Osterhase dispenses wisdom. 4/5

The Invisible Suitcase: when Ottilie and her cat Minou set up their Café L’amour in a dusty Paris street, they have one purpose in mind. Minou selects the recipient of their endeavours on the first day, but a month on, while customers clamour for their pistachio financiers, Elodie Aubert, illustrator of G G Boucher’s delightful children’s books, has not yet found love. 5/5

New Year, New You: a young man travels to Egypt to interview the ghost of the Pharaoh’s slave. But is his motive really just curiosity? 5/5

Idol: K-pop trainee Heejin aspires to K-pop stardom, but on a rooftop one sleepless night she encounters the ghost of her idol, Byeol, once lead singer of Starcrossed. What she learns doesn’t temper her ambition, but gives her a different sense of purpose. 4/5

The Perfect Wife: thrice-divorced fifty-year-old billionaire Alex Wang sets his trusted employee, Joseph Cai to work on building him a tailor-made wife, a HumTech wife who will have all the best qualities of his exes, but none of the flaws. For whom, though, is this perfect wife made-to-order? 4/5

Lala Lakshmi: the late Papat Chand Mithaiwala’s halwai shop is run with an iron hand by his grandson, Lakshmi. A dispute over packaging in the run-up to Diwali shows what a ruthless businessman he is, forcing his manager to stay late despite the man’s worry over his sick daughter. But that night he is visited by ghosts: first his grandfather, then the god always the object of his prayers. An Indian version of the Dickens classic, A Christmas Carol. 4/5

A Thank You Would Be Nice: her diatribe about her invisibility marks Elaine as an angry and embittered woman. This sixty-year-old flight attendant is fed up with unappreciative customers. Elaine is also a serial killer whose victims sicken and die post-flight: best not to be persistently rude, intolerant or obnoxious on her flights. 5/5

These eight tales, often clever and insightful, are enjoyable and entertaining.
This unbiased review is from an uncorrected proof copy provided by NetGalley and Books Go Social.

Another good set of stories. These are pretty diverse, and all well-written, even though they weren't all great. Recommended.

Thanks very much for the free review copy!!

Eight fantastical stories from all around the world - what's not to love? Especially if someone loves short stories?

When I saw the book on Netgalley, I jumped to request it. I had heard great reviews about Poornima Manco's <I>"A Quiet Dissonance"</I>. So, needless to say, I was excited for this book too. (Plus, the cover <3 ).

Here are my ratings based on each story:
1. The Butterfly Effect
Mariposa meets with an unfortunate accident in which she loses her leg. She gets a prosthetic leg. But, to her horror, she begins dancing the tango - the very dance form she had sworn never to perform. How she comes around this new predicament forms the rest of the story. It was the weakest story for me in the book. According to me, it shouldn't have been the first story. I really couldn't identify or empathize with Mariposa.
2 stars.

2. Osterhase
Osterhase means Easter bunny in German. In this story, an Easter bunny appears inexplicably and guides Stefan through his life. The story was good and very touching but no explanation about <I>why</i> the bunny reveals itself at specific intervals or chooses Stefan.
3 stars.

3. The Invisible Suitcase
One of my very favourite stories from the book. Ottilie comes to Paris with her grumpy cat, Minou, to set up a cafe. This is no ordinary cafe and these are no ordinary people. In fact, the cafe has been set up for a very specific purpose. I loved the warmth of the story and the happy ending (I am a sucker for warm, romantic stories, after all, or so it seems). Plus marks for a cute cat.
4.5 stars.

4. New Year, New You
An inquisitive journalist ends up interviewing an old Pharaoh's servant. Though I guessed the ending long before the midpoint, it was still gripping. Dark and macabre, with a dash of humour.
4 stars.

5. Idol
A South Korean group is training to become the next pop sensation. In the world of cutthroat competition and backstabbing, Heejin comes across a friend who wants to help her. Will she listen to this friend and give up her ambition or will she remain to fulfill her dream? A great story using K-pop as a background.
3.5 stars.

6. The Perfect Wife
A multimillionaire wants the perfect wife. So what does he do? He designs one for himself! With lots of twists and turns, this one was a thrilling read. Loved it!
4.5 stars.

7. Lala Lakshmi
This was also one of my favourites not only because it is based in India but also because it is a retelling of one of the most touching tales of all time.
5 stars.

8. A Thank You Would Be Nice
Of course, a thank you would be nice. But especially if you are in the service industry. This is the last story and my absolute favourites because of the way it starts and then takes a very unexpected turn.
10 stars!

Overall, an enjoyable book to be savoured with a cup of coffee (or tea or wine, choose your poison) and wrapped in a blanket.

4.5 stars rounded up to 5.

Thanks to Netgalley, Poornima Manco, and BooksGoSocial for the ARC.

I have never expected that this book could turn out to be such a delightful read!. I am glad that i did give this book a try even though i am not much fan of a short story but wow! this book nailed it in keeping me entertained and engrossed!. It even left me with all sorts of mixed emotions.

I loved the author's level of creativity and imaginations in weaving an assortment and range to the stories. Yes, that's what this author did so well through the stories by giving some interesting 'range' or varieties to the stories set from eight different countries; Argentina, Germany, France, Egypt, Korea, Hong Kong, India and multiple locations.

In all the stories, i noticed the elements of magical realism or supernatural in them like a prosthetic leg that moves on its own, the magical Easter bunny and even a ghost!. There is even some dark, thrilling and suspenseful element in some of the stories like in A Thank You Would Be Nice which is quite dark and mysterious to me about a senior stewardess with sinister and murderous intents of avenging on anyone who ill-treats her and crossed the boundaries.

The author also ingenuously constructed some spin-offs or adaptations from some of the popular classic masterpieces such as Lala Lakhsmi which is an Indian version of The Christmas Carol and The Perfect Wife which is i believed an adaptation from The Frankenstein with a twist which to me was clever and entertaining. Instead of creating one monster, the author created 'two monsters'!.

I just loved how the author reinvented these classic masterpieces by weaving her own interpretations,creativity and imaginations in them which to me are witty. In all these stories, they are some kind of moral values/lessons to be learned as well. The themes of some of the stories somehow interlinked or have some kind of similarity with each other such as some troubled and rebellious teens coming from a broken family or someone who is affected by a sense of loneliness,separation or death.

My only quirk is that some of these stories ended or jumped abruptly without any explanations and one left me confused yet the story is dark and sinister in a conversational style and keeps me guessing and wondering what that 'thing' is? Is it a mummy or a parasite? But it does sound like the author's version of The Mummy from The Mummy film.

In conclusion, this book is suitable for you if you are looking for a nice short escapade and wants to be lost in your own wild imaginations. I'd be delighted to read more books by the author which infact she has already published a number of interesting books prior to this one. Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for giving me the opportunity to read this book. I rated this book a 4.5🌟 for the efforts and creativity of the author.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

First off, I was going to give this book 3 stars, but I loved two of the short stories in this book. Eight - Fantastical Tales from Here, There & Everywhere by Poornima Manco is a collection of eight short stories that blend the real world with the fantastical. According to the description, you can "enter a world where goddesses descend to earth, magical creatures materialise out of thin air, ghosts mean well, and limbs have minds of their own."

Here is an excerpt from "Idol," the 5th story:

"Heejin can I tell you something?
"Yes?"
"I don't want to do this anymore."
"Really?"
"All I ever wanted to do was sing. I don't like the rest of it - the dancing, the performing. I am not like Sun Hee or even you. All the girls here, they like the limelight. I hate it!"
"Then what are you going to do?"
"My training ends in another month. I will decline their contract and return home."

Overall, Eight - Fantastical Tales from Here, There & Everywhere is a collection of short stories, but there were two standouts for me. The first short story that I loved was the 5th one entitled "Idol" which is about the K-pop industry and what happens when the ghost of a former K-pop idol returns to help out a current trainee. It's clear the author knows a lot about the K-pop industry, and as a K-pop fan, I enjoyed this one so much. The 6th story, a sci-fi story set in the future, features a man of Chinese descent and how he attempts to build the perfect robot girlfriend. I enjoyed this story as well. If you're intrigued by the excerpt above, or if you're a fan of fantasy in general, you can check out this book, which is available now!

The title and subtitle tell you exactly what to expect here!

The book contains eight short stories, set in Argentina, Germany, France, Egypt, South Korea, Hong Kong, India and the USA. All of the stories contain elements of mythology, fable or the paranormal and all are superbly written; beautifully evocative of the different settings, cultures and character profiles they are presenting.

My personal favourites were the more overtly magical stories – Mari and her dancing leg in ‘The Butterfly Effect’, Ottilie and Minou with their Café L’amour in ‘The Invisible Suitcase’, and the Diwali take on a classic festive tale in ‘Lala Lakshmi’.

Some of the other stories were a little too slow-paced for me (‘New Year, New You’), or left me wanting more details than we were given (‘Osterhose’ and ‘A Thank You Would Be Nice’).

This is a diverse collection of uncanny stories, giving a fascinating taste of eight different locations, eight different mythologies; ideal for a quick easy read for lovers of the mystical and otherworldly.

Review by Steph Warren of Bookshine and Readbows blog