Like a Charm: A Novel in Voices

This was a book of short stories that I picked up on the strength of writing contributions by Karin Slaughter and Kelley Armstrong (amoung a multitude of others). It was a unique concept for a book of short stories as each author was given a premise for the story ... to involve a specific charm bracelet and a murder. Each author wrote a story, and when combined into the book, the short stories told a progressive tale. Each story could very well stand alone, but Ms. Slaughter contributes both the first and last story in the book, which ties everything together wonderfully.

Like a Charm is a collection of short stories based on a common premise; a charm bracelet that brings something terrible on its possessor. They stories follow chronologically, with the bracelet passing on to the next unfortunate owner at the start of each new story/author. There's a solid collection of authors participating, from Karin Slaughter, Laura Lippman and Lee Child to Denise Mina and Emma Donoghue, but the result is uneven. In general, the stories are best read on their own, with a good pause before the next, as there is a feeling of sameness to many of the chapters. Still, it was fun to read something new by a few favorite authors and get a chance to sample a few writers I'd never encountered before.

I didn't like this one as much as I'd hoped. I loved the first story to kick it off and I loved the arching theme of the charm bracelet. But most of the stories had an odd violent sexual element to the story - which stuck out to me and caught me off guard every time. I loved a lot of the woven stories that seamlessly pulled the charm bracelet as center story and I loved that the stories were short and easy to listen to.

Short stories written by several well-known crime writers follow a cursed charm bracelet throughout the years of its existence. This is a compelling collection that manages to be slightly supernatural and also terrifyingly realistic. It's creative and entertaining. On the other hand, there are a few too many battered women in its pages for my tastes. Almost everyone is either accident-prone or murderous. And more than one story was uncomfortably disgusting. Still, it's a well-written collection with a lot of great stories and they read well together.

The novel appealed to me simply because it was a story written in 16 parts by 15 different authors. It tells the story of a charm bracelet. Each charm has a story. I liked the set up. I liked the feel. I liked some stories better than others. I liked some writing styles better than others. Overall though, I enjoyed it. Plus it was a hardcover that cost me $3 new. So really…win/win for me.

Karin Slaughter is the absolute best crime/mystery writer I have come across in this day and age. Her novels will simply astound you with their heart-racing moments and intrigue. Every time I pick one of her novels up I cannot stop reading until I'm done and I still find myself begging for more. She's a writer with no fear! She wields her instruments like a knife ready to dig in deep and take you by surprise at every turn!

I hated it. I read the first 3 or so stories, then skipped ahead to Kelley Armstrong's contribution, since she's the only reason I picked up the book.If you like dark stories, almost horror but no gore, this book is for you. Otherwise, steer clear. I like the idea of interconnected stories, but I don't need so much of the bleak.