Smorgsbord Blog Magazine Podcast – Flights of Fancy – #Romance, #WWII – Curtains by Sally Cronin

This week a little break from the Tales from the Irish Garden as I didn’t get a chance to record the next story.. However, I am sharing another story from my Flights of Fancy audio disc that I recorded at the same time as the collection was published 15 years ago.

Sarah is now an elderly woman and her thoughts keep returning to the fateful meeting at a railway station during the war when she met the love of her life.

Curtains

Sally Cronin – Smorgasbord Blog Magazine · Short story – Wartime – Romance – Curtains by Sally Cronin

 

About the collection

Ghosts, romance, friendship of all kinds and revenge form the basis of this collection of short stories. Ghosts hint at a chance of coming back to say goodbye, exact a little payback, or simply to help someone else carry on living. Romance is not just for the young and nor are second chances. As for revenge, well… Never underestimate a group of elderly ladies with contacts from the past.

One of the recent reviews for the collection

Pete Springer 5.0 out of 5 stars Fun Collection of Short Stories Capped with a Delightful Novella  Reviewed in the United States on March 29, 2022

Flights of Fancy is a marvelous collection of short stories, mainly focused on stories of romance, justice, ghosts, special friendships, and a good dose of humor.

The first section in Sally Cronin’s various pieces includes ten short quick reads. One of the ones I enjoyed the most was The Other Side of Heaven, as Meg and her dog, Jack, prepared their dream cottage for when Meg’s beloved Sam could join them in heaven.

Another delightful tale was Father Christmas, as little Sophie spends her first Christmas without her father Jack after he passed while on the operating table. Sophie’s mother, Jenny, and the neighbors try to compensate by buying Sophie lots of presents. Sophie gets the best gift when her father comes to visit in the form of a spirit on Christmas Eve.

Flights of Fancy is also one of Cronin’s short stories and is a humorous tale of revenge as dashing Robert Brown falls for Helen Jett when he meets her several years out of high school. He thinks she is the beautiful Helen he knew in high school named Helen Graham. Unbeknownst to Robert, the two Helen’s lives have flip-flopped, and Rober falls for the Helen (Jumbo Jett) everybody used to make fun of in school.

The second half of Flights of Fancy features a novella called The Sewing Circle. Readers will delight in rooting for these old friends, all 80 years of age or older, as they plan their revenge on the evil Jackson family. I enjoyed the story the most because I did not expect these friends to develop a plan to outwit their nemesis. I had a delightful evening reading this whole collection. 

You can find out more about my books and reviews: Sally’s Books and Reviews

Thanks for dropping in today and I hope you enjoyed the story.