Isabel Allende - I’ve been in love with her work since I first encountered her “House of Spirits” decades ago. I still feel its echoes in my soul.

At a mere 5414 words, this is the shortest story of hers I’ve read but it is quintessential Allende: Charming, magical, life-affirming, and just plain fun!

Go on and read it - if you’re an Amazon Prime subscriber, you get it for free. Everyone else gets it for a fair EUR 1,99.

Five stars out of five.

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Ceterum censeo Putin esse delendam ( )

Allende is a good writer, but given her fame I did expect more from this short story which is slightly forgettable

Funny though ( )

Lovers at the Museum is a very short story beautifully written by Isabel Allende. Two people, a woman in a wedding gown and a naked man are found asleep on the floor of Guggenheim Museum in Balboa Spain shortly before the morning opening. Now, a no-nonsense, blustery detective must find out how they got into the locked museum or spent the night without showing up on any of the numerous security cameras.

This is a story of love, or perhaps, lust at first sight imbued with a touch of magical realism, whimsy, and humour. The detective’s brash and somewhat frustrated talk provides a fitting contrast with the lyrical prose of the lovers’ speech. The story provides a satisfactory and happy ending for everyone including the detective..

I received a copy of this story from Netgalley and Amazon Short Stories in exchange for an honest review ( )

Eh - glad it was short

I did not find this short story very enjoyable. The writing was alright, and there was an element of entertainment, but not enough to warm me up to the characters. The most enjoyable thing about it was the description of the museum in all its glorious, magical splendour. The two lovers are miysteriously found within it after a wild night of sex. The woman is, or was, intoxicated. We eventually learn she is a runaway bride and met her lover at a bar. Neither of them even knows the name of their lover. What is a mystery is how they got into the museum and managed to stay there all night with all the high tech security in place. Ultimately, we are left to believe that only magic, and perhaps characters from mythology, are responsible. ( )