Changeling, and Other Stories

Donn Byrne gathered several short pieces here, led by the title story, in which Anna Janssen, a chorus girl, stands trial for the murder of a former lover named Alastair de Vries. The courtroom scenes carry the weight of public judgment while Byrne keeps his eye on the private feeling underneath. Across the collection he moves between different moods and settings, and his prose has the lyrical, storytelling quality that made his Irish tales popular in his day. Byrne was drawn to romance, honor, and the pull of the past, and those concerns shape these stories as much as their plots. It suits anyone who likes short fiction with a strong emotional current. A free PDF and EPUB edition is available to download.