By John RC Potter

Readers of this new collection of 16 stories by Krin Van Tatenhove will discover that the title and subtitle offer clues to the fictional prose contained within, as is the case with many books. The collection is entitled, The Sanctuary, which is the eponymous title of the eleventh story, which points to the importance the author attached to it. The subtitle, Tales of Hope and Redemption, similarly illustrates the underlying themes contained within the collection. The emphasis on the power of positive thinking, maintaining hope despite challenges, and the redemptive nature of forgiveness, lay the foundation for the sixteen stories. There are references to religions and religious beliefs, but the overarching motif or message is the transforming nature of spirituality. In case potential readers reading this review think the collection has the instructive ring of religiosity, that is not the case. The stories are uniformly well written, with vivid characterizations, solid plots, and colourful settings. These are interesting tales of hope and redemption by a born storyteller. Van Tatenhove chose a quote from Tahir Shah at the outset: “Stories are a communal currency of humanity,” which gives the reader a signpost for what is to come. This review will focus on four of the sixteen stories – one quarter of the collection – that particularly resonated with the reviewer.

The collection opens with “Leaving New Orleans,” which sets the tone for the stories that come thereafter. The story highlights a journey from San Antonio to New Orleans – one that is both external and internal in nature. A man is taking an elderly friend, Alberto, a widower, to visit his estranged son, Arturo. Originally from Cuba, Alberto has lived in the USA for decades, but is now dying of pancreatic cancer. It is Alberto’s last chance to see his son and mend familial fences. The story somewhat reminded me of The Trip to Bountiful, which is also partially set in Texas. It is the portal into the collection, and the author obviously chose its placement as the entrypoint with care and intention.

“The Buddy System” opens with this sentence: “Always hike with a buddy, especially in remote areas.” This rather unassuming statement is the catalyst for a story that has hidden depths which contrast vertiginously with the high peaks where the main character is hiking. What should have been a mere athletic and routine activity for the protagonist, soon darkens in tone when he is pitted against Mother Nature. He hears thunder and then sees lightning, and knows at that elevation he is in danger. In an instance, he is reminded of another statement: “During a lightning storm, shelter as low as possible, perhaps behind a boulder.” However, fear overrides any sense of common sense, and he starts to run down the mountain. As luck would have it, the protagonist is struck by lightning. To his amazement, he later awakens to see a man trying to help him. The protagonist notices that “A chain with two old-fashioned keys hung from his neck.” He feels an overwhelming sense of relief that he has survived the lightning strike and is being given assistance by the kind stranger. However, the reader discovers, all is not what it seems. As the story concludes on an eerie note, it is revealed that a park ranger has found the protagonist’s truck where he had parked it. The park ranger “noticed something dangling from the rearview mirror—a chain with two old-fashioned keys. For just a second, it looked like they were glowing.” This story, with its atmospheric, supernatural ending, reminded this reader of the 1960s television series, The Twilight Zone. For this reason, and others, it stood out as one of the strongest stories in the collection, a speculative cautionary tale. 

A quite different type of story, but one that resonated with this reviewer, is “The Wedding Night Tape.” Like the previous story, however, it too has a plot twist. The setting is Pomona, California, in the 1980s. The protagonist sells cable agreements to homes that do not yet have cable hook-ups, and it is usually in low-income neighbourhoods that are known for street crime and gang violence. He ends up trying to drum up sales in a trailer park, and has the misfortune to knock on the door of a middle-aged skinhead named Marco. “Ill-defined prison tattoos lined his muscular arms, one of them a crude swastika.” The skinhead has a much younger girlfriend, Jewel, who is beautiful. The cable salesman cannot hide that he is struck by her beauty. To his consternation, the protagonist realizes that he may have walked into a dangerous situation when the skinhead asks if he would like to see his wedding night videotape. The protagonist’s survival instincts kick in and he makes a hasty retreat out the door. As he is about to make a great escape in his car, the young woman runs out of the house and bangs on the window, pleading for help. The protagonist lets her in the car, and Jewel screams for him to drive as fast as possible to the freeway because if Marco catches up, they will both be dead. Their exhilarating escape culminates in a memorable conclusion.

“Baby Bridget’s Ashes” is quite simply a beautifully rendered and highly affecting tale. It is arguably the most powerful and poignant story in the collection. Adrian Reynosa is a probation officer who, by a stroke of fate, comes in possession of a small cardboard box which contain the cremains of a 10-day old baby who had died decades before. Although the baby’s name is on the box, there is very little other information as regards her identity and heredity. Spurred by the belief that he has been granted the high and almost holy task to find the baby’s relatives and ensure she has a proper burial, Adrian is relentless in achieving his goal. As indicated at the outset of this review, the author consciously and with purpose chose the subtitle: Tales of Hope and Redemption. All of the stories in this collection in some way are about how hope allows one to endure the travails of life, and why redemption can be transformative in nature; and perhaps this story more than the others, is the clearest example.

In closing, the four stories highlighted in this review are not only worthy of reading, but also illuminating and inspirational. The settings range from the American West to the Midwest, and beyond. There is an emphasis on the influence of the Mexican-Spanish culture and language in many of the stories, which further enrich them. The characters presented and portrayed are vivid, real, fallible, and overwhelmingly human. Although, as with any collection, some of the stories did not always strike the same chord of heightened interest with this reviewer, as a whole these tales are immensely readable and infinitely interesting. The author, Krin Van Tatenhove, is to be congratulated on his fine collection of stories.

Reference:

The Sanctuary: Tales of Hope and Redemption, Krin Van Tatenhove, published 2025, Story Sanctum Publishing, LLC, ISBN: 979-8-9928559-4-4

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John RC Potter is an international educator from Canada, residing in Istanbul.  He has experienced a revolution (Indonesia), air strikes (Israel), earthquakes (Turkey), boredom (UAE), and blinding snow blizzards (Canada), the last being the subject of his story, ‘Snowbound in the House of God’ (Memoirist). His poems, stories, essays, articles, and reviews have appeared in numerous magazines and journals. The author’s poem, “Nie Wieder/Never Again”, and his story, “Ruth’s World,” were Pushcart Prize nominees, and his poem, “Tomato Heart,” was nominated for the Best of the Net Award. The author has a gay-themed children’s picture book scheduled for publication. He is a member of the League of Canadian Poets and the Playwrights Guild of Canada. Recent Fiction Publication: “Clara Von Clapp’s Secret Admirer” in The Lemonwood Quarterly, Clara Von Clapp’s Secret Admirer – The Lemonwood Quarterly