Vestiges:
A Collection of Short Fiction
From the author of The Trigger and The Crippler comes a provocative and poignant book of short stories that explores how emotional legacies shape our actions, attitudes, and aspirations.
… A palace guard faces her mortality when she becomes an unwitting participant in a coup... A Tucson-based migrant trafficker reflects on life as he makes his final run... A German boy treks across Medieval Europe in search of salvation…
The diverse narratives in Vestiges by Daniel J. Patinkin bring to the fore the visceral angst, excitement, heartbreak, and joy that are precipitated by profound and intimate human experiences. Deftly investigating themes of love and loss, isolation and connection, trust and betrayal, hope and despair, this rich examination of life in disconnected times takes readers around the world and through the ages to reveal our shared humanity.
Praise for
Vestiges
"Interesting situations with relatable and diverse characters make this collection of stories stand out... Patinkin's knack for variety appears boundless... a volume of interesting stories and impactful characters."
- Reedsy
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​"Each story... is a masterful interplay of emotional growth and transformation offering readers hard-hitting scenarios and realistic characters.​
Libraries and readers interested in short story collections that soundly rest on a blend of psychological enlightenment and responses to life will find Vestiges compelling, diverse, and worthy of reading group discussion. It allows readers to link their own turning points to characters who find their lives and objectives shifting in unexpected ways."
- Midwest Book Review