Thirteen Stops by Sandra Harris – Blog Tour

Thank you to Rachel at Rachel’s Random Resources for organising this tour and to Sandra Harris for a copy of this novel in exchange for a honest and unbiased review.

Synopsis

There are thirteen Luas stops between Sandyford and St. Stephen’s Green in Dublin and vice versa. The passengers all hunker down, folded tightly into themselves, eyes fixed on their phones, interminably scrolling, terrified of connecting with each other. Except . . . Except, who’s that good-looking guy in the long dark coat who’s eyeing up selfie queen Laura? Could he end up as one of her terrible choices? Hang on, isn’t he the same guy who was ogling glamorous working-mum-with-a-secret Maroon before? And why is Jamie over there telling his life story to a complete stranger? What’s Fauve hiding in her handbag? It must be the crown jewels or an unexploded bomb at the very least, the way she’s hugging it so tightly to herself. And why does Becks from two seats down look out the window so anxiously? Is she worried that Barry could be straying? Alight here for the inside track . . .

Purchase Links

UK – https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/1781997489

US – https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1781997489

My Thoughts

I had such fun reading Thirteen stops for a variety of reasons.  Firstly, the stories are short and work as little standalone stories too which meant I could complete one in about 15 minutes.  Secondly, the stories did have links in them which I enjoyed trying to figure out but most of all, this novel gave me the vibes of The Lilac Bus by Maeve Binchy but more modern and a little more realistic in today’s society so easier to identify with.

Each chapter is a short vignette about a different character travelling on the Luas daily.  Some of the chapters are linked, some not as much but each one gives the reader a glimpse into the lives of a passenger on the bus.  I loved how it was cleverly written to give me enough information to understand the character and their situation but kept some things back, leaving me to work things out for themselves.  Occasionally some situations were resolved within another character’s tale.  I really enjoyed imagining how the lives of the passengers panned out after their story and how they may have dealt with their dilemma/problem. 

I enjoyed that it was set in Ireland – it’s been a while since I have read a gentle novel set there and I love the dialogue, little phrases we don’t use in England and could vividly hear the accent coming through as I was reading.

This is the perfect novel to enjoy over your lunch /coffee break or to dip in and out of on the way to work etc.  It’s gentle and light but each character and their story is intriguing and different. 

Author Bio – Sandra Harris

Sandra Harris is a Dublin-based novelist, poet, short story writer and film and book blogger. She has studied Creative Writing and Vampirology. She has published a number of e-books on the following topics: horror film reviews, multi-genre film reviews, women’s fiction, erotic fiction, erotic horror fiction and erotic poetry. Several new books are currently in the pipeline. You can browse or buy any of Sandra’s books by following the link below straight to her Amazon Author Page:

http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B015GDE5RO

Her debut romantic fiction novel, ‘THIRTEEN STOPS,’ is out now from Poolbeg Books:

The sequel, ‘THIRTEEN STOPS LATER,’ is out now from Poolbeg Books:

Social Media Links –

https://www.facebook.com/SandraHarrisPureFilthPoetry

http://sandrafirstruleoffilmclubharris.wordpress.com

https://sandraharriswrites.blogspot.com

https://twitter.com/SandraAuthorhttps://www.writing.ie/member-authors/sandra-harris-author