Big Flames and Small is the fourth book in the ‘Short North’ series. It stars Oliver Stoll a writer, and David Elliston, the older brother of his best friend. The story is told in third person from both Oliver and David’s povs.



This is a very quick read. It has a bit of tension, but I would call it fluffy. I haven’t read any of the other books in this series, but I didn’t feel like I was missing anything. This book can be read as a stand-alone.

Sometimes it’s hard to review a short story because it’s…short. I don’t want to give anything away, so this won’t be a long review. Oliver and David were distinct characters, although I thought David was a bit selfish especially after Oliver didn’t return his texts/calls. I would’ve thought he would have tried to get his sister, Mia, to tell him what was going on, especially if he cared for Oliver that much. Or he would have returned to see Oliver, but he didn’t. Oliver I can understand why he thought what happened, happened, so he moved on. Did David move on? Especially since it sounded like he was still missing Oliver. It sounds like he did, but no mention was made of any relationships. I did think they got back together too fast, but what do I know. Maybe guys like to jump each other quickly once they meet again.

The story was easy to read, but it used a technique that I’m not a fan of, and this is purely personal taste. I don’t like far distant flashbacks in books. Thankfully, the author kept the flashbacks short. In a way, I can see they were necessary to show why Oliver/David reacted the way he did. The author had the flashbacks go back furthest in time and then gradually catch up to present time. There were a couple instances where in present time the pov would be say in Oliver’s pov, but then it would be followed by a memory from David’s pov. That confused me and pulled me out of the story. I don’t think they should have switched povs during those sequences.

Overall, this was a pleasant read. I’d call it relaxing because I wasn’t really stressed except, I got ruffled because I thought Oliver should have made David wait and suffer more, lol. And he certainly should have confronted the person who told the lie. But again, that’s personal preference. Big Flames and Small is a cute story. If you’re looking for something relaxing and quick to read, this could be the book for you. I give it, 4 Stars.



I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
( )