I am a Kate Atkinson superfan and, my goodness, was I disappointed by this mess. It has been my experience that "connected short stories" is publicist-speak for "novel that didn't quite happen, plus some extra stuff to pad it this thing out to book-length" and that certainly seems to be the case here. There are occasional glimpses of what makes Atkinson great, but not only does this not cohere as a single work, but also each story feels unfinished. I look forward to her next novel.