Reading an excerpt of a short story collection is different, since you can read a couple short stories to the point of completion. In that sense, I actually feel like I can speak to the author’s writing a bit better than I can when I just read a chapter or two of a full book’s preview. The author’s writing is skilled and captures your attention; I liked the writing style. Short stories are not my preferred reads, though, hence the 3 stars — this reflects my personal preference more than the author’s skill.