Jackie Cassada
Last Updated on June 7, 2022, by eNotes Editorial. Word Count: 142
[A Quiver Full of Arrows] relies more on ironic twists and carefully constructed surprises for its overall effect than on plot or character development. In the single standout. "Old Love"—in which a married couple's intense rivalry continues up to the very moment of their deaths—Archer's desultory, almost impersonal style is displayed to greatest advantage, brilliantly understating the strength of the bonds of love; the other stories have the vaguely unsatisfying feel of anecdotes embellished to story length. Taken together, they make for a passably entertaining unit, though separately they more resemble flimsy darts instead of the "arrows" of the collection's title. (pp. 2107-08)
Jackie Cassada, in a review of "A Quiver Full of Arrows," in Library Journal (reprinted from Library Journal, November 1, 1982; published by R. R. Bowker Co. (a Xerox company); copyright © 1982 by Xerox Corporation), Vol. 107, No. 19, November 1, 1982, pp. 2107-08.
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