23 February 2012

"Winter's Chill" by Lauren Barkley

Lauren Barkley's "Winter Chill" is about a man leaving to attend to his job as a funeral home director and the wife he is suddenly made to believe is cheating on him. The conflict is very brief - the text message that drives Mr. Smart to the conclusion of infidelity is only received and read two hours before he leaves to drive in the icy night to retrieve a body. It seems that Mr. Smart only wants to distance himself from the wife he doesn't really understand, and Mrs Smart wants to resolve the issue of her non-explicitly accused infidelity.

I thought the conflict was very interestingly presented. We've read a few stories about cheating husbands or wives, but there was no doubt at all that the party in question was cheating. We as readers were made certain that there is another man/woman. In Barkley's story, the third person limited POV lets us see the struggle in Mr. Smart to come to terms with what this text message might mean - his wife could be telling the truth, but he doubts that. At the same time, the reader also gets to see that Mrs. Smart isn't a terrible, hateful woman. She wants her husband to come back safe, or not go out at all, so that they can discuss and work out their issues.

There are a few times when the dialogue between Mr. and Mrs. Smart doesn't flow as well as it could, so reviewing and rewriting some sections would probably enhance the story. Also, I think expanding on characters with more back story would make them more relatable, believable, and likable. I don't really have a real connection to the characters.

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