“A simple cover, which I hoped belied the intensity of the contents, arrived in my kindle. The secret to short stories for me is intensity. I want them to fit in the details and the emotional response of a two-hour film or an immersing anthology.
“Entitled A Blessing in Disguise, Mixed Blessing and Grace, the trio highlight various challenges people face in their journey of life, but which later end in joy.
“Starting with A Blessing in Disguise, this story tells about pupils in Nigeria who take on the challenge to help their community out of it problems. It tells of braveness, passion and of eagerness to succeed. One thing I will say is that it reads like a retelling of an actual experience or true story. It seems very factual and the people feel authentic. The setting of the book increase the rustic-ness of the story, as the paragraph run into each other, and you find yourself reading quickly without pause. For me, that is fine but others may find it a little off putting.
“In Mixed Blessings, a lady without children seeks out God to help her. He answers her prayers and in the main her family is delight, apart from an issue with her mother-in-law. It’s a swirl of emotions, packed with tiny detail, and well worth a read as a study on relationships.
“Grace draws deep into Nigerian issues. The tale tells of a sickle cell carrier, Dorcas, who loses her job, and ends up alone – the trauma’s don’t end there as she battles on to find love and a new life. It is a heartening story that reminds us that we always need to believe and just keep going.
“A quick read, all of the stories could have been further embellished and been longer. But in their current make-up they hold a quaintness that is endearing.”
Remilekun Jaiyeola is a poet, life coach and master storyteller, an art he developed growing up as a voracious reader. He is passionate about telling stories to people of all ages, steering up change in the hearts of his readers.
He believes “stories leave us with memories” when we teach children, coach teens, train adults or sell products and services
He studied Biochemistry at the University of Ilorin and worked with a tier 1 commercial bank for about 14 years before proceeding to study Digital and Strategic Marketing at the University of Bradford, UK. He is also an alumnus of emLyon Business school France where he studied Advanced Strategy and Branding.
He is husband to Dayo and father to 3 excellent children. He loves to relax by listening to music, especially Jazz.
The Silver Lining in the Dark Cloud is available on Amazon.