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Mahyar A. Amouzegar: Hubris of an Empty Hand (2021, University of New Orleans Publishing) 5 stars

Review of 'Hubris of an Empty Hand' on 'Goodreads'

5 stars

Oh My! I do declare this to be a bona fide masterpiece. Amouzegar gives us 8 stories, these stories are unusual, they will blow your mind, they will make you think and they will break your heart…this is a guarantee. Some short story collections can have little moments linking them together, they are almost like finding an easter egg and some collections are based on a theme or location, a little thing tying them all together….this book though is unlike anything else, it has been blended together by a master storyteller, words are beyond my ability to describe how it is.

The first story is strange, a gift has been passed, some kind of knowledge that isn’t shared with the reader, the second story is similar but with a different gift, at this point I was enjoying things, I do like it when the author leaves you in the dark to figure out things on your own. It is the third story where the book literally explodes, just before a major reveal linking everything together I had a thought and said “nah! No way that can be right” but it was and I instantly fell for this book, one moment of genius and we are in masterpiece territory.

The rest of the stories are filled by fantastic reveals, you read about events from different angles and you see more and more links that were there from the beginning. There is no way I can share the contents without spoiling the overall effect but know this, you’ll laugh at the funny bits and you’ll want to blubber at the heart breaking moments and you’ll want to give the author a slap with how characters are treated…if I get a chance I’ll go and do a Misery on Amouzegar.