Hi Jeff,
You sent me a nice review for my anniversary last month and I’m here to return the favour. I found this story in the list of "New & Noteworthy Things"  you helpfully provided, and although it’s not a new story, I hope its inclusion in the list means that you’re still happy to receive reviews 
 First Impressions:
I need to start by saying that I had never heard that quote by Carl Sagan, and I took a couple of minutes to think about it. The story that followed did the quote justice. The narrator was very well drawn and it was easy to empathise with him, both because he had to spend a year in the Outer Realm where he might lose his life, and that useless gift he got from his father before he departed.
The narrator’s world or society was interesting. Without any lengthy descriptions, you conveyed the rules every family had to follow, and what precautions they tried to take to guard against losing their house and status. The reasons for this ritual seem a little arbitrary, as the narrator pointed out, but since it was a rule, he had to comply. What mattered was that the book turned out to be the most important gift the narrator had ever received, both for himself and for the others who were there with him, and future generations as well.
 Suggestions:
The story was very polished and I didn’t notice any errors, and I have no suggestions for improvement, so I’m going to use this space to point out a line that I thought was particularly well done:
Still, three of us wouldn't even make it to the keep alive, and I noticed – with more sadness than I had anticipated – that I sincerely hoped Lord Damara's third son would succeed where his brothers had failed.
That was such a clever way of saying what happened, and I read it a couple of times because I thought it was so nicely done.
 Final Thoughts:
It was the short description that made me pick this story from the list, and I'm glad I did because it was exceptional. I used to read your blog when you posted an entry in the newsfeed but I’m not sure I’ve ever read any of your stories before. This one has made me want to remedy that, so I will be back to read a few more.
   My review has been submitted for consideration in "Good Deeds Get CASH!" .
 You responded to this review 02/24/2024 @ 11:53am EST |
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Review #4733358
