‘Manipulated Lives’ by H.A. Leuschel is a collection of five Novellas. Each story tells a different tale about manipulation. The five stories are; Tess and Tattoos, The Spell, Runaway Girl, The Narcissist and My Perfect Child. Every story highlights a different journey that the characters have been through.

I don’t usually enjoy Novellas but there have been a few lately that I enjoyed and although enjoy is not the correct word for this collection, I was hooked. Manipulation is almost a dirty word even today and I feel it is brushed under the carpet. These stories show us a realistic and painful picture of the effects of manipulation in its different forms and how it affects the manipulated.

Out of all the five stories I really enjoyed The Spell as it had twists that I didn’t expect. The author has even managed to create her characters with a realistic feel to them, this did surprise me as I didn’t expect much character development with short stories.

I have read books by H.A. Leuschel previously and always enjoyed them and this collection intrigued me with having a personal experience with a narcissist or two during my lifetime. One thing these stories show; manipulators are not all bad, they do have qualities that draw you in.

Thanks to Emma at Damp Pebbles Blog Tours and H.A. Leuschel for the copy of the book.