This should be the happiest moment in her life but already we see what makes them different: the all-important fault line. In “Prima Noctis,” we are uninvited guests at Alina’s wedding. It is at the resort where she meets Liviu and we witness the beginning of their relationship. And she must not only sell her country to visiting foreigners, but also her happiness as a citizen. Although under communist rule, her job as a tourist guide allows her experiences she’d never have had otherwise, like setting eyes on the sea. A clear line divides the haves and have-nots, with Alina firmly placed in the latter category. The opening is normal enough-the characters are on their way to a loved one’s funeral-and it is easy to get lulled into the banality of the journey yet by the end, when her aunt tells her about her grandfather, who the communists were after and whose friends, were “killed, beaten, tortured,” I was left feeling uneasy but wanting more.Ī better glimpse of Alina is revealed in the second piece, “Glazed Apples,” where she works in the midst of luxury at a Romanian resort but is confined to its underbelly. In this story, we meet members of Alina’s family, one in passing. It’s a fascinating watch, a slow descent like a series of coins going down a spiral wishing well.įrom the title of the first story, “The Low People in Our Family,” I knew I was in for an interesting tale. Bottled Goods not only describes the toll taken on Alina and Liviu’s relationship but also other members of her family. Alina weds Liviu, yet their promising future is soon upended when Alina’s brother in law decides to defect to the West. Sophie Van Llewyn’s debut flash novella, Bottled Goods, (Fairlight Books, July 2018) is the perfect place to start whether you are a longtime fan of flash fiction or new to this still evolving and exciting genre.īottled Goods, a collection of 51 stories, some as brief as a thought, others going for several pages, follows the life of Alina, native of communist Romania in the 1970s.
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