What an enjoyable collection of weird little short stories. The first three had an unsettling but not quite uncanny vibe, before ‘Total’, the longest story of the bunch, moves into science fiction territory with a tale of children made ill (and triangular) by a faulty phone system. With women and their relationships generally the focus for Miller, Total reminded me a little of Danielle Pender’s recent collection Watching Women & Girls. An interesting set of short stories, but a bit inconsistent in genre.

Beautiful. Poignant. Phenomenal.
This was a beautiful read and I learnt so much. I cried and I smiled and there was nothing more that I wanted from this book. Truly a gem.

The first two chapters/stories made me want to DNF, however, once you get past those, this is a great piece of work and worth sticking with, This is a first for me by the author and one I enjoyed and would read more of their work. The book cover is eye-catching and appealing and would spark my interest if in a bookshop. Thank you very much to the author, publisher and Netgalley for this ARC.

3.5/5.

Read the sentences ‘I am totally non-homophobic— except of course when it comes to my sons, where it does make me mildly nervous, the idea of them being queers’ and ‘But you know how some people are so disgusted with the idea of certain gay men and how they used to have sex with strangers before AIDS; who knows, maybe they still do.’

thought it would be satire… it was not.

Also didn’t appreciate the vivid description of masturbating a dog…

Intrigued by the sound of this collection of seven short stories, this was my first foray into Miller's work. I had mixed feelings, there were some stories in this collection that I got on with better than others. Aside from 'Total', I'd struggle to remember most of the others. That said, the writing itself was fantastic and as a result I think I'll pick up another of Miller's titles and give it a go.

If it weren’t for the writing, I would have stopped reading after the first two stories - but I’m glad I stuck with it! The first two stories “Mrs. Covet” and “I Want You To Know” really let this collection down. There were elements in each story that I felt didn’t have any place in the stories.. the “g” slur was also used, which was incredibly disappointing. Also.. the dog scene?!

However, the titular story “Total” was fantastic. It was gripping and emotive. I enjoyed the sci-fi elements to the story and the dystopian feel. Reminiscent of an Atwood story.

The stand-out stories were definitely “Total”, “Receipts” and “The Chekhovians”.

This collection of short stories was a mixed bag. I would have rated the collection higher if it didn’t include the first two stories.

I really enjoyed this collection of 7 short stories, mostly about women and their relationships with men and within their families. It’s such good writing that it drew me into the stories and kept my interest often without fully explaining everything, there’s things left unsaid which makes them stick in my mind. My favourites(hard to choose actually) included the first story ‘Mrs Covet’ about a mother pregnant with her third child and not coping maintaining her household and organised housekeeper, Nat arrives to put things in order; and ‘Receipts’ with references to Erica Jong’s Fear of Flying, about a working woman’s relationship with her boyfriend and colleagues. An interesting read.

thank you to netgalley and canongate for providing me with a free copy of this collection in exchange for an unbiased review.
this collection was a mixed bag to say the least. my initial impressions with the first few stories was not entirely favourable: i feel like they were trying to have the plot and forward motion of a novel as well as the cinematically detailed vignettes of a short story, eventually succeeding in creating neither. the second story, for example, feels like it wanted to launch into a long-form mystery by the second half, but by that point had already set up the slow pace and evocative setting of a short story: though many short stories end abruptly (and often to great effect): this just read like a half-baked novella. in the third story, too, we are introduced to about six characters in the space of a page, which makes me wonder whether this too was ever conceived as, or indeed could be sensibly conceived as, a short story rather than a novel or novella.
however, perhaps as a direct result of my initial underwhelmed reaction to the first few stories, the eponymous story of the collection really took my breath away with how great it was: a sort of dystopian sci-fi story that reminded me of ishiguro's never let me go in its subject matter and margaret atwood in its tone. masterfully written and truly haunting.
the remaining few short stories also really worked. they created carver-esque vignettes of the character's lives that felt self-contained and impressively emotionally resonant for their lack of length. getting to the end of these remaining few stories and realising that miller has such talent in story-weaving and prose made me reflect on whether perhaps i just found the characters in the first few stories too annoying. perhaps. in any case, i'm glad i did keep going with this past the first half, because it was worth it.

I liked this. I did at times feel like a lot was going on. The stories fluctuated and I felt like some were amazingggg but then some were less enthralling. Which derailed me a little bit. All-in-all it was a very creative read.

Perhaps better known as a filmmaker, Rebecca Miller adapted both her first short story collection, Personal Velocity, and her equally enjoyable novel, The Private Lives of Pippa Lee, for the screen. Comprising seven stories her second collection, Total explores similar themes to Personal Velocity, and does it just as strikingly.

From the opening story in which Daphne's mother-in-law sends her pregnant daughter-in-law help but Nat becomes a little too fond of this appealing family with dramatic results to the closing piece which cleverly contrasts two neighbouring families, this collection explores motherhood, love, ageing and sexuality. All but one are written from the perspective of women, several at crucial junctures in their lives. Miller's characters are compelling, sometimes a little eccentric, their worlds drawn in vivid colours. There’s a pleasing sly wit running through many of the stories which are peppered with striking, occasionally provocative images and sometimes end a little disconcertingly leaving the reader with much to think about. Altogether an enjoyable collection, written with filmmaker’s eye.

This collection of stories and essays were beautifully written. Some captured my attention more than others but I really enjoyed 'Total'. Rebecca Miller is an excellent write and this collection proves that.

Miller gives a blistering and forensic account, through several short stories, on the discomfort and disaffection that is often a symptom of our modern age, especially for women,
It is hard to define TOTAL or explain it, but, put simply, the yearning and longing felt by each protagonist (mostly female), speaks to a deeper curiosity many of us have about the good life, the price of success and progress.
Set across several locations and with no clear interlocking character or motif, the only thread that holds TOTAL together is alienation. The separation we, as people, feel from our true selves and how our past, society and the powers that be get in the way of realising who we truly want to be.

A good collection of short stories that were well written and engaging with well developed characters. Some were better than others but overall they were all enjoyable.

My favourites in this collection of short stories by Rebecca Miller were the first one and the last one. Interesting characters and scenarios.