Darling?

`If you've had your fill of wispy, insubstantial, girly short stories, pleasant enough to read and all too easy to forget, take heart. A sharp yet lusciously written collection - the literary equivalent of a slice of gooseberry tart. Full of shocks, beautiful images and new ways of seeing things.' Harriet Lane, Observer

`It's Schmidt's ability to inject sharp, scathing humour that makes these stories so seductive and thought-provoking.' Time Out

`This is that rare and welcome book about love that's less concerned with how we find love than what we do with it, a book that deals not in moments of passion, but in moments of grace, a book about the frustrating, hilarious, embarrassing, transcendental business of living with love. Schmidt's stories are filled with delightful wit, spell-binding feeling and an emotional intelligence.' Peter Ho Davies

`In spite of their missteps and misgivings, Heidi Jon Schmidt's characters continue to search for love and understanding. These stories, like the human condition they expose, are poignant, profound, and, very, very funny.' Hester Kaplan

`Sad and painfully realistic but also poetic, uplifting and filled with bitter wit.' New Woman

`Although all misfits of the American dream, the characters are painted with such warmth and complexity that you will them to work out their lives. A perceptive, witty and assured collection, its tragi-comic edge makes it an engaging, if not entirely comfortable read.' Good Housekeeping

`Stories so good that I was tempted to dip into them when the traffic lights turned red.' Evening Herald

` Sex and the City by Dorothy Parker - bittersweet and brave.' Dubliner

`Intelligent, crystaline prose that gets straight to the point. The stories clackety clack with metropolitan savvy and have the delicious intimacy of an eavesdropped conversation. Like the best short stories, these are actually big stories written small.' Daily Mail

Heidi Jon Schmidt lives in Provincetown, Massachusetts, where she teaches at Provincetown Arts Centre.