The Lover by Silvia Moreno Garcia

I continue to be jealous of Silvia Moreno-Garcia.  She's firmly a go-to author for me, because I love everything she writes  This short story is no exception.  I read it straight through.

The Lover is a Grimm's fairy tale-type short story, with a modern or updated feel.

What I appreciate most about Moreno-Garcia is that her stories are nuanced.   She's an excellent writer, and moves from one genre to another with accomplishment. The relationships between the characters have layers to them.  She doesn't dally with overdescribing people and things. But she gives you enough information about the themes and the things that matter.  Just ::mwah::

The Lovers is about a scapegoated girl, Judith, who lives with her widowed sister, Alice.  The family dynamic, where one sister is valued and given everything, and the other is treated like her servant, was very recognizable for me personally.

But that situation -- which would be more than enough to fill a short story on its own -- is only the backdrop for the core conflict, which is a love triangle in the form of Nathan, a handsome hunter who comes to their village one day and marries Alice.

I don't like to do spoiler-y book reviews.  So I will simply add that this is another slam dunk from a favorite author.  If you liked The Beautiful Ones you will surely like this one.  Suspenseful, well-written, interesting, and with a satisfying ending.