Sex & Death: Stories - Tapa dura

The stories in Sex & Death often show death at a remove . . . But if many characters remain largely oblivious to death until it forces its way into their lives, they are only too conscious of sex and the having of it . . . the division between life and death is at all times thinner and more fragile than we willingly admit. (Chris Power Guardian)

These 20 stories grapple with the meaning of life in myriad heartfelt ways, combining to create a challenging yet life-affirming read. Curl up on the sofa and indulge yourself.' (Imogen Lycett Green Daily Mail)

It could be argued that all tales are, somehow, about sex or death, but in this collection of 20 short stories written by authors around the world, these tantalising themes are thrust into the spotlight. Some are laugh-out-loud funny, such as Alan Warner's Porto Baso Scale Modellers, when an attractive woman tries to join a group of elderly model plane enthusiasts. Some are creepy, for example In The Reactor, by Peter Hobbs, about two dummy nuclear plant workers. And some are overtly sexual, but it's not a collection of soft porn stories. Instead, there's plenty to provoke longer thought - Fin by Lynn Coady and Reversible by Courttia Newland throw up difficult subjects that are hard to forget - with a couple of light-hearted one-shots to balance it all out.' (Graeme Smith The Herald)

snap this one up because it is a treat. (Bookmunch)

Sarah Hall was born in Cumbria in 1974. She is the prize-winning author of five novels - Haweswater, The Electric Michelangelo, The Carhullan Army, How to Paint a Dead Man and The Wolf Border - as well as The Beautiful Indifference, a collection of short stories. The first story in the collection, 'Butchers Perfume', was shortlisted for the BBC National Short Story Award, a prize she won in 2013 with 'Mrs Fox'. Peter Hobbs grew up in Cornwall and Yorkshire, and lives in London. His debut novel, The Short Day Dying, was published by Faber in 2005. It was shortlisted for the Whitbread First Novel Award, the John Llewellyn Rhys Prize and won a Betty Trask Prize. It was also shortlisted for the 2007 International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award. A collection of stories, I Could Ride All Day In My Cool Blue Train, was published in 2006.