Snapshots is a collection of short stories with enough variety of genre/characterisation that there should be at least something for everyone.

It is a nice little collection to dip into now and again. The stories were engaging and interesting for the most part. Some I'd definitely read again and again, others, I felt I didn't really get (and therefore perhaps require a reread!). Not so keen on the horror, but enough for everyone.

Merci d’avoir accepté pour le livre. Bonne lecture, sympa. Mais pas un coup de coeur pour ma part. Une prochaine fois peut-être.

I loved the description, it was interesting but I didn't liked it when I read it so I just quit it after the two first stories, it was simply something that I didn't liked.

One of the best reasons to read a book of short stories is to see the breadth of an author's writing skills. The ability to communicate a complete story in just a few pages and give the reader's an "experience" with each tale is a difficult skill. Eliot Parker has taken a moment in time....a SNAPSHOT if you will...and built a human experience around the character's before and after that one moment. He utilizes settings across many genre, you'll experience love, hate, misery, grief, mystery and more. Each story is a gem on it's own merit. Together, they gave me lots to think about.

I've fell in love with the cover, but found the book uninteresting, so I quit reading after three stories.

I have always been an avid fan of short story collections and this was honestly one of the best ones that I have read. There is something lyrical, dynamic, and moving in the writing style that really draws you in. I liked the way that these stories were not related, but just seemed to fit together. I would love to read more in the future from this author and will be recommending to others. Thanks for the ARC, NetGalley.

A series of likeable short stories that left me wanting more. More depth, angst, emotion, endings something that would make sad, happy, thoughtful, blown away.
An independent review thanks to NetGalley / Morgan James Fiction.

This collection of short stories came to me via a NetGalley ARC. I hope that once these stories are published there will have been some hefty rewriting and editing first, because they need it.

Dialogue is often manipulated to move the story along rather than using description, so that the characters in these stories feel not so much like snapshots as like marionettes for the plot. In one story, the outside scene takes place under a full moon yet a few paragraphs later it is pitch black.

Characters have odd emotional responses, one minute being swamped by emotions which have resolved in the next into something else. One character simultaneously stumbles while she is sauntering. It just all feels a little mechanical. I didn't feel like I cared at all about these characters or the worlds they inhabited.

It's obvious that this writer can write, but these stories are still only half baked, and need further cooking time to satisfyingly come together.

A strong collection of stories in multiple genres, mostly set in the Midwest. These are engaging and interesting. Recommended for anthology and short story fans.

I really appreciate the review copy!

This was a very good assortment of short stories. Something for everyone. I really enjoyed this book. Thanks to Netgalley, the author and the publisher for the arc of this book in return for my honest review. Receiving the book in this manner had no bearing on this review.

Snapshots is a collection of ten short stories concerned with the human condition and those moments where things can irrevocably change; either by a forcing incident or an awakening within the person themselves. Short stories can be notoriously difficult to write and get right. So many are one-dimensional mini-novels, poorly structured and peter out with no definable narrative. Thankfully, Snapshots does not fall into that category. Mr Parker is very good at utilising clear, sharp language in a concise manner to quickly portray character, setting and drive the narrative on within the format of a short story. In each of the ten, you are very quickly immersed exactly where you need to be and you want to read more. On the whole, each of the stories works well as a short.

However, the subject matter ranges from the very interesting and absorbing to the merely satisfactory. Personally, I believe (with additions) that there could be two collections of shorts here or they could have been separated into two sections. The paranormal creepy thrillers and the those commenting on human behaviour; affairs, loss, longing. The mix of the two genres can be a bit jarring. For example, ‘Hands’ the first story is disturbing from the opening few lines – I could really feel the chill sanitation of the morgue and all that entails, it was nicely done. I assumed that all the stories would follow this pattern but then you have ‘Snapshots’ and ‘The Trip’ which although have a great sense of underlying tension are not paranormal. Yet, certain themes and occupations do reoccur. I thought ‘Snapshots’ was strong and, to me, there is a definite novel in there. It worked as a short story and also left me wanting more. ‘The Trip’ I found a little odd, it needed a bit more fleshing out and it concluded abruptly and obviously. ‘Ten Pin’ was good, the tension was growing from the first couple of lines and was conveyed incredibly well towards the end. ‘Sexting’ was enjoyable but a bit of a stretch; if she was sitting next to her husband would he not notice anything on her phone? And, for the screen to be seen in such detail from someone sitting behind? But, it was good – Parker had certainly conveyed the unpleasant nature of the sexting character successfully enough in a few paragraphs that you were rather pleased at the ending. ‘Old Lady’ was, to me, the strongest, I could really identify with the emotion building in the story and each paragraph revealed another layer to the characters involved. I thought it was a really good story to end the collection with even if the conclusion slightly let it down by being a bit saccharine – it might have been better had she not picked up the phone.

Eliot Parker is a very good writer, his work has a deceptively easy reading style which, like all seemingly easy things, is not straightforward to execute successfully. Technically, there were a couple of formatting issues and one typo but I was reading a .pdf version through NetGalley so these may well have been addressed in the final version. I would definitely recommend this collection and would read more from this Author.

A huge thanks to NetGalley and BooksGoSocial for the ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

It's a wonderful collection of short stories with different genres. The first ones creep me out though sensitive scenes were not graphic. Some stories made me ask questions like, "Is this it?" and made me look for the next page which does not exist. I think, the best one was the last story. It talks about healing from losing someone special. It greatly touched me and I hope to read more from this writer.

Those started out so beautifully creepy. So much so I almost couldn’t continue reading. And then it super tamed out. Which was super disappointing. But overall super well written almost to the levels of Stephen king for the first couple ones. . I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

This was such a wonderful read. I thoroughly enjoyed each and every story.

Disclaimer: Received an ARC from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. I voluntarily read and reviewed this book.

I love short stories. And this book was such a wonderful read. Every story was just long enough but making you want just a little more.
First for me from this author however I will looking to see what other books he has out.

Thank you to the publisher and Net Galley for an early release of this book.