Member Article

Releasing The Unexpected

A new collection of short stories, penned by Daniel Ayodele Agbaje, is now available to enjoy and here Jessie Clifford reviews the book, The Unexpected.

“The Unexpected is a collection of stories from Agbaje, that includes characters encountering unplanned events and how they react to them. He says that writing a story is a way to explore the infinite possibilities of human behaviour.

“And boy, does he explore them in this book. Each story looks closely at what it means to be human, carrying an overriding message that we could understand others and ourselves by exploring and appreciating that as human we often do or experience the unexpected.

“In Crescendo, a young girl is exposed to city life for the first time having left the safety of her home village. The writer brings the fear out perfectly as she is introduced to the worst of dangers from a new boss, and you can taste the tension as the words draw you further into her predicament.

“The depiction of her Aunty and Uncle is colourful and the use of different languages and cultures is fascinating. And the use of all of the senses from sight, sound and smells enables the reader to picture the situations graphically.

“Boomerang however takes the unexpected in another guise as carefully thought-out plot against an employer goes terribly wrong. A husband behaving out of character triggers his wife’s concern…little does she know what is happening at work. A fast paced read, with dark twists, kidnapping, death and punishment.

“Finally, Kaboom tells the journey of a person who innocently turns their life upside down by getting into trouble with the government. A roller coaster of a read.

“All three stories are well written, fast paced and whilst carrying an inter tying theme, they each have totally different tones, characters and outcomes. A fascinating study of the human reaction, differences and similarities.

“As a reader it made me think about situations I have been in personally and how I reacted at the time – there is lots to learn in these words that become strong takeaways for us all.

“I recommend this book as both an entertaining read and as a learning curve for life. It’s a sweet investment of time and worth adding to the book shelf.”

The Unexpected is available to purchase on Amazon.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Anna Toms .