Two Novellas

<p>Both novellas feature two distinct heroines and whilst <em>BYBROOK IMAGES</em> is my literary tragedy it does contain moments of typical Forest of Dean humour and dialect. It contains strong characterization and is mostly set on the fringes of the Forest and portrays a picture of Gloucester docks as it was. A nascent love affair develops and a misguided Chinese physician has an unfortunate presence throughout the narrative. Eastdean is a small town many will recognize and apart from the heroine a Thai girl called Bhuppa two figures Dan a willing native of all-works and Sir Crispen a benign aristocrat are prominent.</p><p><em>RUTH </em>exposes the intolerance of religious bigotry. Extreme religious fundamentalism can breed almost paradoxical evil and this novella illustrates what can happen when the restrictions of it induce a young girl to rebel. A love affair also transpires and the restrictions imposed result in an inflammatory situation developing and a couple of deaths. The culmination may come as a complete surprise and shows what can happen when the role of women in the Western world is subjected by paternalistic dominance as it still is in some religious sects.</p>