The Mistake - Douglas Kennedy

"We all see only that which we want to see."

Such true words! The Mistake is a new short story by Douglas Kennedy, whose books I enjoy but usually read with a dictionary on hand. It's a free Kindle download from Amazon and, at only 60 pages, a real page tapper (remember, this is the Kindle version). Thankfully, I didn't need to use the Kindle dictionary while I finished the whole story on the bus to the airport last week.

The story is too short to risk plot spoilers but it's a tale to get you thinking. Basically, it is about alarm bells in life and what people do when they hear them. I'm guessing many people do what I'm great at doing: ignoring or dismissing them, even if the train has practically arrived and left again with you underneath it. They were ringing loud and clear throughout this story and I was willing the protagonist to sit up and listen ... don't worry, I'm not going to spoil the ending, but I'm sure you'll find yourself nodding, equally entranced and horrified by some of Gitte's behaviour as the femme fetale antagonist.

This tale of inevitability is a really enjoyable read and a delicious, if tiny, taste of Kennedy's clever writing style.