The First Prehistoric Serial Killer & Other Stories

 

The First Prehistoric Serial Killer & Other Stories / Teresa Solana
trans. from the Catalan by Peter Bush
London: Bitter Lemon Press, c2018.
210 p.

I have been meaning to read Teresa Solana for a while, and when I saw this collection of short stories available in my library, I knew it was time! How can you resist a title like this?

It was a very entertaining read -- crime fiction with a lot of satire and black humour in it. The title story opens the collection, and it is just as ridiculous as you might imagine; I found it very amusing. The book is divided into two parts: Blood, Guts & Love (5 stories) and then Connections (8 stories). In the second section, each of the stories are connected to another in some small way -- it's kind of fun to recognize the character or event that links a story to another. 

I found many of the stories clever and amusing. Some were frothy and slightly silly in the best ways (especially in the first section) while others had a slightly more bleak conclusion, even amongst the satire. But I really enjoyed the style and the setting, in the seedier parts of Barcelona. I thought this was an engaging read, and one that was a satisfying intro to this crime writer's work. I do like crime writing that's not horrifying and gory, so these kinds of satirical crime stories appeal to me. Last year's reading of An Elderly Lady is Up to No Good had a similar feel, and in fact, two of the stories in this collection especially reminded me of Tursten's work. 

This was great for some light reading this week, and I definitely recommend it. She has a quirky eye for strange situations, and the stories really arise out of the characters, which I liked a lot. Since there are a variety of stories here, you may find a couple at least that you really enjoy! There were two or three real standouts for me, but I did like the collection as a whole, with only one story (I Am a Vampire) that I wasn't as keen on. 

If you are up for some entertaining crime fiction with only a bit of gore involved, this is a good choice, I think. Now I'll have to try one of her novels, too! 

This review was featured on Twinkl as part of their Literary Lovers campaign.