Title: Private Words
Author: Mark W. Tiedemann
In: Sirens and Other Daemon Lovers (Ellen Datlow & Terri Windling)
Rating Out of 5: 4 (Really good read!)
My Bookshelves: Contemporary, Lust, Twisted romance
Dates read: 12th May 2020
Pace: Medium
Format: Short story
Publisher: EOS
Year: 1998
5th sentence, 74th page: He seemed to think about it.

Conny and William have been happily married for years. But there’s a catch… Geoffrey. And the power of the pen.

I knew that this story was going to be a little different – it’s in a collection of daemon, lustful stories after all. What I didn’t expect was that it would be far more contemporary than all of the other stories in this collection. That although there was a bit of a fantastical element to the story, it wasn’t a strong one like the other stories. Rather, it was a great little commentary about the ways in which we love and experience love.

This is not a situation in which I ever hope to find myself. In love with one man, but involved with another. Because of the man that I’m in love with. It’s not exactly healthy. And this story definitely made me constantly wonder who it was that Conny loved more. But it was also a tale of love. Not the love that I imagine for myself, but one that I’m sure does actually work for others.

I think that my favourite aspect of this short story is the fact that all of the weirdness occurs through the act of writing. The confusion, the intricacy and the constant questioning of what each character actually feels is all completely driven by the fact that William (Conny’s husband) is writing… and it makes things feel even more confusing and trippy. Which is brilliant. The pen is definitely mightier than the sword.

<- The Light That Passes Through You

The House of Nine Doors ->

Image source: Goodreads