Three Dimensions: Lizzies Scaries

Three Dimensions, by Elizabeth Reinach, is a collection of short stories with themes ranging from crime mysteries to family secrets and greed. In The Trio, you will meet an elderly couple terrorized by three creepy adolescents; Grandma introduces Johnny, who is entangled in a family drama that arises from his wealthy family matriarch’s revelations on her 80th birthday; a Christmas night’s sketchy deal goes awry in White Witness; an unusually close relationship of love and jealousy among siblings is explored in The Tennis Party 1885 by Sir John Lavery; The Seànce reveals the tragic fate of a recently deceased man to his acquaintances; an old multiple homicide case resurfaces in William?, and a deathbed confession from a ill woman sparks her daughter’s search for the truth in the final tale, Margaret Donald Was Only a Typist. The anthology begins with relatively mild and seemingly unrelated topics. This choice of pace might seem tone-deaf at the first glance – which might be the book’s main caveat -, but the approach soon spikes the reader’s interest and the temptation to skip through the pages to satisfy their curiosity. As the tales grow increasingly more eerie and uncomfortable, sometimes even prompting external research for plot twists and “Easter eggs”, this edge-of-your-seat book grapples with the reader’s sense of familiarity: the stories consistently present daily-life topics with an obscure twist that gives off the stomach-churning sensation of accessing a forbidden something you should not have been. Three Dimensions, by Elizabeth Reinach showcases vastly different characters that range from the gullible that struggles with her fashion choices in Aladdin’s Cave to acclaimed 20th-century European psychoanalysts from Oedipus in Furs and the overtly polite staff that hides a rotten cynicism in Beneath the Surface. Illustrated by Salvador Capuyan with comical and satirical artwork, this collection of short stories will appeal to readers who enjoy an unique style of casual entertainment.