Most of the stories in this collection had a moment of real, crystal-clear coherence, where the thought, feeling and sense of momentum all came together, or where some idea, some image, emerged and was beautiful, but there was something very impermanent about them. Like drops of water sliding off oily feathers, momentary and then gone, swallowed up in the blurry wateriness of the whole. I think I'll read more by Lily King but am underwhelmed by this one.

I had high hopes for this short story collection since I absolutely loved Lily King's "Writers and Lovers". In Five Tuesdays in Winter, the author deftly and insightfully covers many of the same themes, particularly the big topics of love and loss, through the lens of the everyday. That said, don't expect the same satisfying ending as these are short slices of life that leave you wanting more. My favourite stories in the collection were the opener, "Creature", "When in the Dordogne" and "The North Sea". Well worth picking up!

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a free advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

I sadly DNF’d Writers and Lovers by this author but I was open to trying some other books by her.

Recently I’ve been reading more short stories so thought I would request this. But as with other short story collections, there are always some that I seem to love a lot more than others.

Overall this was a very nice short collection. However, no one can like all stories they read which was also the case for me here.
There were some I really liked (Creature; When in the Dordogne; South), some that were just okay (Five Tuesdays in Winter; North Sea), and some I disliked (Hotel Seattle; The Man at the Door).
Nonetheless, I really liked a lot of the darker themes that were explored like grief and sexual abuse. I would recommend this to fans of Clare Chambers!

Lily’s 2020 book ‘Writers & Lovers’ was not only my first of her books, it was also one of my favourite books of the year, and possibly of all time, so I was very happy to receive a copy of her new book.

I am opening my mind to short stories, reading more and more of them, trying to find the collection that turns my head. As much as I love Lily’s writing, and as much as I wanted this collection to be the one, it sadly wasn’t.

There wasn’t anything particularly I disliked, in fact I found each story quite fascinating and interesting to read. But I couldn’t see the connection between the stories - do they have to be linked? I don’t know, but it felt a bit clunky. I felt a connection with her other book, but this fell a bit flat in terms of personal emotion.

I still can’t get my head round a full story being told in 20 odd pages. However fast paced and thrilling they may be, I just can’t get stuck in. They’re easy to jump in and out of, but my concern is, I’ll jump out and won’t want to go back in.

I absolutely adored this set of short stories - it’s my favourite genre and this has been a banner year for collections but this one has come in right at the end and snatched my top spot. There’s quite a range of tones here, which makes the happier stories all the more of a pleasant surprise. I loved every story, which isn’t always the case in a collection as long as this one. Highly recommended and thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

Oh, I had high hopes for this - Writers and Lovers is a beautiful novel with a bad title that makes it sound so much less than what it is.

I opened up this book not sure what to expect but really liked the first story. I was comparing to Sittenfeld after that one and hoping for the best. However, as the book went on I liked the stories less. Something in the tone of voice seemed similar about each character no matter where they were meant to be from or who they were.

I also found them to feel half finished. Not in the way that a great short story makes you feel you've been given a glimpse into a full world but can't trespass there any longer, but in a way that the worlds didn't feel complete at all.

I'm thankful to have been given the chance to read but ultimately this collection wasn't one I'll return to. My thanks to netgalley and the publisher for a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

This superb collection of 10 powerful, memorable and profound short stories introduced me to the talented writer that is Lily King, writing beautifully about the everyday and ordinary intimate personal relationships. She probes the nature of what it is to be human, providing psychological insights into the human heart and soul in her exploration of love, loss, the family, motherhood, friendships, betrayal, the broken, brutal, the discomfiting, disturbing, the haunting, the painful and the heartbreaking. A bookseller with a lifetime of losses has feelings for his assistant, older parents have a relationship with their son that is devoid of love, a son that finds the world and love opening up with house sitters, and a young babysitter develops feelings for a problematic older man.

A 91 year old grandfather is at the bedside of his seriously injured granddaughter in a coma, a father that has been absent from the life of his daughter returns, there is the fallout from a failed marriage and a strange man's judgements of a writer. King writes with incisiveness, tenderness and with a real gift when it comes to dialogue, there are a wide range of characters across the age ranges. This emotionally gripping collection is captivating, highlighting the chaotic messiness of love in all its forms, the complications, the surprising, the unexpected, and the joy. There was a time in the past when my experience of short story collections was that they turned out to be a mixed bag that evoked liking, dislike, and indifference. In more recent times I have been astounded at how good an entire short story collection can be.

Lily King's stories are in that vein of being wonderful across the board, they are exceptional, with compelling prose, and not to be missed for those of you familiar with her work and for those who have yet to discover her. Amongst my favourites were Creature, Five Tuesdays in Winter, When in the Dordogne, Hotel Seattle and Waiting for Charlie. Highly recommended. Many thanks to the publisher for an ARC.

This is a gorgeous comforting read and will be published this side of the pond in January 2022. I loved Writers and Lovers (a super feel-good tale of love) so I was very keen to read this one.

What struck me most about it is King’s storytelling; how in just a few short pages you become wrapped up these characters’ lives and loves. Most of the stories are about love, in all its forms.

My absolute favourite story was “When in the Dordogne” about a teenage boy who is left in the care of two college students who are housesitting while his parents go to France for six weeks. I loved it so much I read it twice.

I also loved the eponymous story, Five Tuesdays in Winter, about an insecure bookseller who falls for an employee in his used bookstore. The warmth radiates off the page. Hotel Seattle, Creature and North Sea were more hard-hitting but brilliant, and no less moving.

As is almost always the case in a short story collection, there were a couple of stories I wasn’t crazy about (Mansard and South) but the nature of the beast means you move on from them, and the stories you’ve loved are the ones that stay with you.

A perfect cosy winter read, I’d recommend this for people who think they don’t like short stories. Fans of Elizabeth Strout and Anne Tyler will enjoy it I think. 4/5 ⭐️

**I read an advance digital copy courtesy of @netgalley and the publishers @picadorbooks @groveatlantic. Five Tuesdays in Winter by Lily King will be published in the UK and Ireland on 20 January 2022. It’s already available in the US. As always, this is an honest review.**

This was a lovely, medatative and gorgeously written short story collection. They at once felt fresh and also cloaked in nostalgia - like thinking back on a gorgeous and leisurely winter afternoon. Lily King is such a tender and abrasive writer - her writing is so deeply, cut to the quick observations, but her writing can be jarring and sometimes brutal, always honest.

This collection is filled with emotions - grief, love, uncertainty, anger, coming of age. My favourite was the titular story - Five Tuesdays in Winter, about a gruff bookseller falling in love with his employee. I also loved When In Dordogne, about a teenage boy who is looked after by two college students over a summer, who has always thought of himself as an inconvenience and a burden to his parents. Over time, they show him what it's like to be loved and cared for unconditionally, and how to have fun. I also found North Sea, the story of a mother and daughter on holiday, at odds with each other after the death of their husband/father, quite touching.

What a wonderful collection of short stories!! There were a couple I didn't care for, but most of them I really liked. I had read a previous book by Lily King and wasn't that impressed; but I'm glad to say with these stories, I can understand why so many people love her writing.

I was sorry to see the book end!

Firstly if you haven’t read Lily King’s Writers and Lovers add it to your reading list - it’s one of my favourite books of the last few years. This is what brought me to request to review Five Tuesdays in Winter. I’m not usually a big short story reader as I like the chance to spend more time with characters and settings. King’s stories are tinged with nostalgia - a teenager is left in the care of two students in the seventies, a divorced man looks for love in the early noughties. The absence of modern technology is obvious - this is a world where phone calls have vital importance and communication is slower. The majority of her characters are looking for love and encounter varying degrees of success. One of my favourites in this collection ended happily, while others showed a more disturbing side to getting what you think you want - sexual assault appears in two stories. Often the stories left me thinking they would have worked better in a longer format. King is a talented writer and I’m looking forward to reading Euphoria and any future novels. This collection felt a bit like a rushed effort to capitalise on Writers and Lovers by finding some stories at the back of a drawer and bundling them into a book.

Although short, my time with each of the stories were sweet. The author made sure of that with their beautiful writing style which draws you in. There is such intimacy and the character and plot development in such a short space left me satisfied to no ends after each one.

I couldn't tell you which was my favourite because each one captivated me in some way leading me on a journey.

Would highly recommend and can't wait to read more from this author.

This is a truly wonderful collection of ten short stories that focus on the shifts that happen when transitioning from one phase of life to another. King has a great gift when it comes to depicting emotional movements, the slight, subtle vibrations that hum and change when people interact, the certainties and insecrurities that know no logical explanations, but have their own tangible realities. This is a truly wonderful collection of ten short stories that focus on the shifts that happen when transitioning from one phase of life to another. King has a great gift when it comes to depicting emotional movements, the slight, subtle vibrations that hum and change when people interact, the certainties and insecrurities that know no logical explanations, but have their own tangible realities. As in every collection, not all stories are brilliant, but none of these stories are truly weak.

And there are true gems, like one about a teenage boy who befriends two older housesitters, and their outlook on life changes him forever, or the story about a young girl from a poor family who is hired as a babysitter for the rich and falls for a far too old, far too jaded man. The writing, although highly accessible, is addictive, it captivates the reader and demands full attention as these mostly quiet tales still manage to become intense.

Many texts carry a beautiful melancholy, sometimes there is also a deep sadness running through the pages - but to read the stories is a true pleasure.

Lily King is such a fail safe writer for me. I adore everything she puts out and I think she deserves so much more hype. I loved my reading experience and this is another new fave of mine. I will say though, the covers are just rubbish. I think they make the novel seem like chick lit or airport lit (no shame) but it totally misrepresents her work and I think a lot of people will skip for that reason. Otherwise an easy 5 star read

I loved Writers and Lovers and enjoy short stories so this was a perfect read for me. I sometimes find short stories disappointing, especially the endings and it requires a skilful writer to encompass all the different aspects in a shorter form. Lily King does this so well and this book got me out of a minor reading slump. Her prose is gorgeous and effortless, her characters beautifully drawn and I was not disappointed by the endings of any of these short stories! Highly recommended.
Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this digital ARC.

A collection of short stories, Five Tuesdays in Winter by Lily King elegantly and exquisitely shines a light on moments of love, loss, rage and more.

Stories range from the upsetting to the heart warming, surreal to the unsettling. King creates relatable voices sharing intimate moments of their lives, from the single parent bookseller who falls in love with his employee, to a young boy blossoming under the gentle guidance of two college-age house-sitters, to an old man raging helplessly in his granddaughter’s hospital room.

Raw, emotional and truthful, each story and it’s characters leaves it’s mark on the reader. Despite their short length, King manages to express a whole lifetime of back story within these characters. The appear almost fully formed on the page, real, flawed, human.

Lily King is a excellent writer. Being able to craft such emotion and engage the reader in a shorter format is evidence of her skill. The words flow effortlessly, yet each story feels fully formed; it never feels like anything is missing.

Five Tuesdays In Winter is not my usual go-to genre, and yet I found so much enjoyment within its pages.

All of these stories will grab you, move you and won’t easily be forgotten.

I love a new collection of short stories and Lily King's 'Five Tuesdays in Winter' didn't disappoint. Here, there is a beautifully-written collection, set in the near past and present day. We find the upper echelons of American society enjoying summer. with sinister undertones, in 'Creature', a suitably-titled tale; 'When in the Dordogne', my personal favourite, has touches of 'Home Alone', although it is quite different - a story which starts off making the reader feel an element of fear, but this soon dissipates. The final story in the collection is fantastical and disturbing, clever in its approach and content.
Despite really enjoying King's short prose, the stand-out stories for me were the ones which centred on fewer characters - the intimacy and intensity of such pieces work well in the short form. Others, particularly ones which are 'heavy' with characters, work less well - mainly due to have to 'juggle' so much information in a short amount of time. I like how King sets her stories in very different locations - Long Island, a hotel in Seattle, the German North Sea coast - all in all, a global trip without having to travel far.
If you enjoy short stories, this is a great collection.

I read Lily King’s Writers and Lovers at the beginning of this year and loved it , now after reading her first short story anthology, she’s gone onto my list of must read authors and I’m looking forward to reading some of earlier books.

Five Tuesdays in Winter is a collection of ten short stories. Each one is as entertaining, warm , beautiful as the next. I’d read full novels of every one. A bookshop owner falls in love with an employee. An elderly grandfather sits beside his granddaughters hospital bed. A teenage boy finds care, friendship and nurturing from his college student babysitters. A divorced mother and her children take a road trip. Each story is very different, some are each story has love in some form at is core.
There were several points in this collection where whole passages of the text made me stop and reread. Moving, unsettling, heartwarming, Lily King captures emotions in exquisite detail and writes memorable characters with great skill. Every story made me want to read more. Exceptionally well written.

I’ve read several short story collections this year, this is one I will return to and buy for people. Wholeheartedly recommend.

4.5- 5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I loved Lily King's last book, Writers and Lovers, and this collection has all of the same charm, readability and comic incisiveness. A joy to read.