Stone Mattress

With death tapping at her characters’ doors in more ways than one, Atwood shows herself, through these exquisitely inhabited inner lives and darkly funny stories, to be pulsing with more imaginative vivacity than ever

Literary Review

Here it is again, the sharp-clawed, gimlet-eyed, takes-no-prisoners Atwood whose humour is wickedly enjoyable … But there is beauty in this writing as well as harsh observational gems, and Atwood creates atmosphere with loving care, from the first sentence of the first story

Herald

Atwood’s trademark dark humour and withering social commentary are pervasive throughout and the stories are so stealthily plotted that I gasped at one particular denouement despite it having been clearly signposted in the story’s title … Her skill enables the reader to stomach ambiguous endings that in the hands of a less accomplished writer might feel accidental, uncrafted. “Will she or won’t she (pull it off)?” wonders the narrator towards the end of one of the tales. With this collection, we are never in any doubt *****

Sunday Express

Nine darkly funny tales had me truly engrossed … The characters are sharply observed and the plots imaginative. Atwood deploys words with the precision of a Swiss watchmaker. Pithy, powerful sentences evoke intense emotion or add more background detail than you’d think possible in so few characters. Hers is the work of a true wordsmith. Atwood’s fast-paced tales had me gripped from the off … Stone Mattress is a delight to read – engaging, entertaining and wickedly witty. If you’ve yet to dip your toe into the world of short stories, you could do a lot worse than starting with either of these collections. Though for sheer originality, I’d recommend Stone Mattress in a heartbeat

Stylist

After more than 50 books and decades in the literary limelight, Atwood can still surprise with the explosive originality of her ideas; her writing always fresh and alive … A darkly irresistible read

Lady

Nine Tales, the subtitle of this collection of short stories, references that dreaded implement of torture, the cat o’ nine tails, which lacerates the skin with its cotton cords. Metaphorically, that is exactly how Stone Mattress works – each tale, told with Atwood’s exquisite economy of style, cuts deep

Vogue

Realism and ridiculousness, play and deadly seriousness, are held in fine balance throughout … This long view throughout the collection is entirely unsparing, both of the vanished past and the vanishing present, but Atwood’s prose is so sharp and sly that the effect is bracing rather than bleak

Guardian

Atwood’s take on subjects such as old age, disappointment and revenge are particularly engaging. These stories are often dark, funny and deadly serious … Atwood is at her best writing about death, a subject that comes and goes throughout these stories

Daily Mail

Typically compelling. Full to brimming with a dust-dry wit and thrilling, punchline sentences, eclectic in its plots but enriched by overarching themes … With their crackling dialogue and skilful time-tumbles, these “tales” of cruelty and regret at beautifully rendered, funny and alive, unflinching in their portrayals of the ageing process and unexpectedly poignant

Irish Examiner

Rich in sly humour and pulpy thrills

Daily Telegraph