Just Finished Reading: Femme Fatale by Guy de Maupassant [56pp] 

This booklet contained four tales by the father of the modern short story. The longest (titled) concerned the struggle of an unsure young man, the son of a senator, who is struggling to cope with his relationship with his girlfriend. Although he's obsessed with her he also, at times, really doesn't like her very much especially when she has a mind of her own. The final straw comes when she insists on spending the evening in the company of some lesbian friends that he disapproves of. I thought this was very well written (and VERY French!) and very modern in its portrayal of various sexualities (again this was 19th century FRANCE so...). Strong characterisation and plotting, very 'cinematic' without being melodramatic. Nicely done. 

The other solid story – despite being pretty predictable from the start – was Hautot & Son where a farmer's son finds out from his father as he's dying that he has been having a relationship with a woman in a nearby town since his wife died. After getting over the shock the son decides to hand over an inheritance only to discover he has a half-brother. Again, this was very nicely done with pathos and humanity. It was a very obvious plot but no less readable or enjoyable because of that. 

The other two stories, Cockcrow and Laid to Rest were much shorter and although well written didn't have the same impact/punch as the larger tales. Overall though I enjoyed the introduction to this author (which I had only heard of previously) and will be looking for something more substantial from him in the future. 

Translated from the French by Sian Miles