I came across this story in Garner’s recent collection of essays, Powsels and Thrums. Garner says it is his only short story, and unlike his novels it is not a magnificent piece of writing: the pace is quite badly off, and the sting in the tale relies on being able to recognise a thumbprint without any specialist equipment; but it carries the same preoccupations with ancient histories and lives and how they can cross over into the present as his other work. I had read only a couple of pages when I realised that I had read it before, just once, probably more than 45 years ago, and that I remembered the ending vividly. And it is still as clever as I remembered it, despite the scientific nonsense.
First published in Powsels and Thrums, 4th Estate, 2024
A Personal Anthology 