Charity and Sacrifice by Gloria Oliver

September 30, 2016 By Leave a Comment


Charity and Sacrifice by Gloria Oliver
Publisher: Uncial Press
Genre: Historical, Horror
Length: Short Story (32 pages)
Rating: 4 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

Trapped in a loveless marriage, will Elizabeth’s sacrifice to regain Robert’s love be in vain?

All Elizabeth hoped to do was to rekindle the love in her marriage. Yet despite ignoring her social obligations and immersing herself in her husband’s important work, somehow this only made things worse.

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Her doctor avoids her. Her husband berates her. And there are whispers — whispers telling of things that cannot be.

Yet the more Elizabeth ignores the rumors, the more they press on her to seek the truth, so she concocts a plan to find it. To find it and hopefully exonerate both Robert and herself. To discover the reason she’s lost all that’s dear to her. And she will do it, even if she must venture into Whitechapel to do it.

Secrets can destroy a life that someone has spent years building. They can also transform it.

This was one of the most deliciously chilling tales that I’ve read in a long time. The horror was mixed in with Elizabeth’s quiet worries about the fragile state of her marriage and her grief over her terrible loss. I genuinely wasn’t sure what genre I was reading in the beginning because there was so much going on. The scenes were written so that they could fit into several different genres, and that made me insatiably curious to know what the author was going to do with all of the themes she’d introduced in the beginning. While I can’t say much else about this without giving away spoilers, I was quite pleased with how Ms. Oliver tied everything together. To me, the best kind of scary story is one that can be found in the last place I’d ever think to look for it.

With that being said, I would have liked to see a little more foreshadowing in the storyline. I had to reread the ending a couple of times to figure out what the author was hinting at. The clues that were shared earlier on were so subtle that I didn’t pick up on enough of them to understand the final scene the first time I read it even though I had really loved the plot up until that point. If this section had been easier to comprehend, I would have chosen a much higher rating.

The character development was nicely done, especially when it came to Elizabeth. Even though she grew quite a bit, my first impression of her was so strong that I could completely understand why her personality matured the way it did. She remained true to her original self even while she evolved into an entirely new version of herself. I deeply enjoyed watching her make that change.

Charity and Sacrifice is full of the kind of horror that slowly sneaks up on a reader. Give it a chance if you’re a fan of psychological frights.

Filed Under: Horror, Reviews Tagged With: , , , , ,

Defragmenting Daniel: The Organ Scrubber by Jason Werbeloff

September 5, 2016 By 29 Comments

MediaKit_BookCover_DefragmentingDaniel
Defragmenting Daniel: The Organ Scrubber by Jason Werbeloff
Publisher: Self-Published
Genre: Sci-Fi Thriller
Length: Short Story (145 pgs)
Rated: 4.5 stars
Review by Poppy

7 stolen organs. 1 vengeful victim. A gruesome sci-fi thriller.

Organ scrubbing was a bloody job, but somebody had to do it. Daniel, an orphan from the Gutter, was put to work scrubbing kidneys at aged twelve. The job had its perks: a warm bed, Law and Order reruns, and an all-you-can-eat Mopane worm buffet.

Until the Orphanage stole Daniel’s parts, and sold them on the organ market.

Now Daniel has grown up, and yearns to become whole again. The cybernetic organ replacements just aren’t the same – he needs his parts back. But the new owners of his organs won’t give them up. Not without a fight.
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Just how far will Daniel go to regain his missing pieces? And how much more of himself will he lose along the way?

Defragmenting Daniel is a cyberpunk crime thriller that will unnerve you. Every part of you.

Disturbing, intriguing, and well-written, Defragmenting Daniel is not a book for the faint of heart.

I wasn’t sure what to expect while reading this book. And while I did have to suspend reality a bit in order to believe that organ transplantation surgery could be done and the patient up and a around in a couple of hours with little pain or indication of major surgery, the ramifications and possibilities of this story were a bit terrifying.

The gutter is where Daniel is from and it’s not a nice place. The Orphanage where Daniel lives exacts payment for services by both making him work as an organ scrubber and by taking body parts and replacing them with cybernetic parts. The Bubble is where the beautiful people live. They are those privileged enough to be able to afford real organs to prolong life (the reference to Cher cracked me up!). When Daniel turns eighteen, he’s allowed to leave the orphanage, and a search for his biological family leads him to develop an interesting set of beliefs, which include the need to be once again whole … and so the search for his taken body parts begins.

The story moves fast and world-building is a bit vague, but it didn’t detract from my enjoyment of the story. Be warned, however, the story is bloody and violent and graphic and Daniel’s apparent disregard for humanity was a little difficult to handle. However, he is also oddly attractive and I found myself rooting for his cause, even while being rather disgusted by it.

Kage was an interesting addition as well. He (or she…) works for the police department and is determined to find the person behind a particularly gruesome murder. Apparently, s/he always gets his/her man.

The story surprised me by ending in a cliffhanger… Daniel has only just started his mission. That was frustrating, but I would certainly be interested in reading further to see how things end up for him. I’m still not sure if I want him to succeed or not. Honestly, my ambivalence is an indicator of the author’s skill. Being able to make Daniel sympathetic definitely takes some doing!

Filed Under: Horror, Reviews Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Marvelry’s Curiosity Shop by John Brhel and J. Sullivan

August 22, 2016 By Leave a Comment

SHOP
Marvelry’s Curiosity Shop by John Brhel and J. Sullivan
Publisher: Cemetery Gates Media
Genre: Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Suspense/Mystery, Horror, Paranormal, Contemporary
Length: Full Length (156 pages)
Rating: 4 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

Retired stage magician Dr. Marvelry prefers to stock his antique store with strange and occult items. He has always enjoyed meeting odd people and hearing their stories, the legends attached to mysterious objects. A phonograph that seemingly replays a tragedy. Fertility dolls that are more than decoration. A bedeviled mannequin. These are just some of the relics this eccentric shopkeeper has collected over the years.

No two customers will have the same experience in his curiosity shop — some walk away satisfied, others are never heard from again. But one thing is certain – when you purchase an item at this store, you often get more than what you paid for.
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Follow Marvelry and his hexed objects through twelve tales of suspense, magic, terror, and transformation. Meet his new assistant, fellow illusionists, and some irregular characters along the way. Whatever macabre artifact of the human psyche you’re seeking – you’ll find something special in Marvelry’s Curiosity Shop.

Every antique has a story to tell if you know how to listen to it.

Brent and Kevin Buckley’s experiences in “The Victor Talking Machine” was a wonderful introduction to this collection. Their happy relationship contrasted sharply with the strange phonograph they’d just brought home. I enjoyed seeing how they reacted to all of the weird things going on around them. It made me curious to find out what would happen next, especially once both characters agreed that something needed to be done about their situation.

There were a few tales that would have benefited from having a little more attention paid to their endings. “The Letterbox” was one of them. Josh, the main character in it, accidentally found an antique letterbox that used to belong to his grandparents while browsing Marvelry’s shop. Since Josh had just purchased his grandparents’ old home, he was thrilled to begin outfitting the house with some of its former possessions. I was completely fascinated by what happened after the letterbox was installed in the same spot where it used to hang when the main character’s grandparents lived there. With that being said, I was a bit thrown off by how quickly the storyline ended. There was so much tension being built up that never had a chance to be fully resolved. If not for these missed moments in some scenes, I would have given this book a five star rating as it was otherwise a thrill to read.

In “The Painter’s Premonition,” an artist named Justin got more than he bargained for when he brought home an old easel. The foreshadowing was fantastic in this one. While I did have a pretty good guess about what the twist ending might be ahead of time, it was still a lot of fun to see the main character slowly move closer and closer to the conclusion. I also appreciated how much effort the author put into describing the paintings that Justin was making. Those details made me eager to know what he would paint next and if my guess about the meaning of his work was correct.

Marvelry’s Curiosity Shop was delightfully eerie. Give it a try if you’re in the mood for something spooky.

Filed Under: Horror, Mystery/Suspense, Reviews, Science Fiction/Fantasy Tagged With: , , , , , , , ,

Tales from Valleyview Cemetery by John Brhel and J. Sullivan

August 19, 2016 By Leave a Comment

TALES
Tales from Valleyview Cemetery by John Brhel and J. Sullivan
Publisher: Cemetery Gates Media
Genre: Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Suspense/Mystery, Paranormal, Horror, Holiday, Contemporary, Historical
Length: Full Length (184 pages)
Heat Level: Sensual
Rating: 3 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

Welcome to Valleyview, where bodies lie buried but an ancient curse never sleeps. A father hears strange voices on his daughter’s baby monitor. A trio of gravediggers faces a swarm of supernatural creatures. A group of teenagers puts a mausoleum legend to the test. A husband and wife take a stroll through a corn maze that they’ll never forget.

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Death doesn’t always bring peace.

This isn’t your typical anthology. It was fascinating to see how all of the short stories were connected to each other. I liked the fact that I got to experience the same places and people from different points of view. Sometimes my opinions of them completely changed once they popped up in a new tale and showed me a new side of their personality or history, so it was really interesting to guess who I might meet again as I kept reading.

I would have liked to see more details included in this book. There were times when I had trouble imagining what the characters were experiencing because everything was described so quickly and sparsely. This was especially true when it came to what the ghosts and other supernatural creatures looked like. While I could picture some of them quite well, many others were harder to bring to mind because I had so few clues about how they looked or what they sounded like.

Some of the plot twists were extremely well done. “All Hallows Eve” was by far my favorite example of a great surprise from these authors. The characters in were a snooty, young couple who decided to mock everything they saw at a rural Halloween carnival. When they were invited to find their way through a corn maze, I was sure I knew how their night would end. The fact that I was wrong about what happened next only made me more curious to know their fate. If you’re planning to read this collection out of order, this would be a wonderful place to start.

Give Tales from Valleyview Cemetery if you’re in the mood for something spooky.

Filed Under: Horror, Mystery/Suspense, Reviews, Science Fiction/Fantasy Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , ,

Drawing in the Dark by Jeremy Baker

June 2, 2016 By Leave a Comment

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Drawing in the Dark by Jeremy Baker
Publisher: Self-Published
Genre: Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Horror, Paranormal, Historical, Contemporary
Length: Short Story (148 pages)
Rating: 3.5 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

On a lonely mountain, deep in the high desert country of the American Southwest, a rifle-toting nun faces an unexpected test. A scientist makes an incredible discovery at the heart of a melting European glacier, and nine years later finds himself inexorably drawn back to the site. During the Siege of Bastogne, while facing overwhelming odds in the frozen forests of Belgium, a pragmatic young medic encounters a war he never could have imagined. The Florida Everglades exert an irresistible, supernatural pull on a dying man, the last descendant of a great Seminole shaman. A young girl, trapped in a waking nightmare and seemingly without hope, devises her ultimate escape using the most unexpected tools. A group of desperate men, almost out of luck and on the run, find themselves in an eerie Badlands town. Jeremy Baker delivers these tales and more, in a collection of twelve haunting short stories and one novella.

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“The Standing Cave” was a thrilling introduction to Mr. Baker’s writing style. I couldn’t imagine what a hunter-gatherer could have to do with the science fiction genre, much less how Mrukk’s quest to hunt down the deer he desperately needed to take down to feed his tribe would be so important later on. When he discovered something extremely unusual on his hunt, I was more fascinated than ever. While I can’t say anything else about the plot without giving away spoilers, I can say that this was my favorite story in the entire book.

Some of this tales in this collection could have used more details. “Bumps War at Bastogne” was a good example of this. It was about a platoon of soldiers who struggled to survive in a particularly bloody battle with the Nazis. The main character had such a matter of fact way of describing even the most harrowing scenes that I was mesmerized by his recollection of what happened that day. I couldn’t wait to find out what happened to these soldiers, so it was disappointing to see how briefly the last few scenes were described. There were so many more explanations that could have been added to them about what was going on, especially when it came to the ending.

In “Drawing in the Dark,” a young girl named Kara had the ability to make anything she drew actually happen. The government discovered her talent, kidnapped her, and forced her to draw all kinds of terrible things. What I found most interesting about this character is how maturely she was able to process what had happened to her. She was a child being forced to experience stuff that no child should ever have to think about, much less actually live through. The author captured her loss of innocence so heartbreakingly that I couldn’t wait to find out what would happen next to Kara.

I’d recommend Drawing in the Dark to anyone who is in the mood for something creative.

Filed Under: Horror, Reviews, Science Fiction/Fantasy Tagged With: , , , , , , , ,

Tales from the Lake Vol. 2 by Jack Ketchum, Ramsey Campbell, Edward Lee, Tim Lebbon, Lisa Morton, etc.

May 11, 2016 By Leave a Comment

LAKE
Tales from the Lake Vol. 2 by Jack Ketchum, Ramsey Campbell, Edward Lee, Tim Lebbon, Lisa Morton, etc.
Publisher: Crystal Lake Publishing
Genre: Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Horror, Paranormal, Contemporary, Historical
Length: Full Length (382 pages)
Rating: 4 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

If you came here to read short stories about tranquil lakes, run to the nearest exit. Run as far away as you can from Ramsey Campbell, Jack Ketchum, Edward Lee, and our array of international voices:
Lisa Morton
Tim Lebbon
Richard Chizmar
Jim Goforth
Ben Eads
Jan Edwards
Hal Bodner
Raven Dane
Rocky Alexander
Glen Johnson
Aaron Dries
Mark West

It is a pure form of love that is day by day becoming adulterated. go to these guys cheap viagra pill Men viagra buy in usa that do all these exercises adequately reach multi-orgasm. Keep alcohol consumption low levitra online no prescription quit. Used for centuries to reduce symptoms of respiratory disorders, colds, liver damage, coughs, and much more. viagra 100mg pfizer Tales from The Lake volume two also includes the three winners from Crystal Lake Publishing’s Tales from The Lake Horror Writing Competition:
1st: Descending by John Whalen
2nd: Forever Dark by Jonathan Winn
3rd: Ripperscape by Vincenzo Bilof

Beneath this lake you’ll find nothing but mystery and suspense, horror and dread. Not to mention death and misery – tales to share around the campfire or living room floor. Dive beneath a frozen lake with Rena Mason’s “Winter’s Dollhouse”; allow Tim Lebbon to introduce you to “The God of Rain”; don’t go into the lake when Jim Goforth takes you to the haunting sit of “Lago de los Perdidos”; and never get in an elevator again with John Whalen’s award-winning “Descending.”

Cover by Ben Baldwin, and edited by Joe Mynhardt, Emma Audsley and R.J. Cavender, you can’t afford to spend another minute away from The Lake.

So dive on in.

The water’s just…right.

Even the most deeply buried secrets can eventually see the light of day.

In “Damned If You Do,” a man named John has started seeing a therapist in order to untangle his troubled home life. The problem is that he really doesn’t seem to want to revisit the past and figure out why he’s ended up in such a difficult situation with his wife. I was fascinated by the idea of a protagonist who is incredibly reluctant to allow the audience into even the smallest corner of his mind, and I only became more intrigued by John’s backstory as the plot progressed. The ending caught me by surprise in a good way!

While I enjoyed all of the stories in this anthology, there were a few that could have used little more polishing before being published. “St. Thomas of El Paso” was a good example of this. The plot followed a young man named Thomas who was kicked out of the orphanage where he was being raised when the priest running it discovered that the boy was gay. I was enthralled with the main character’s struggle to survive on his own as a teenager and young adult, especially once strange things began to happen in the small towns near his home. The ending felt rushed when I compared it to the beginning and middle, though. I would have really liked to see the narrator slow down and dig into the conflicts that had originally drawn me into the plot. There was a lot of material in there that wasn’t given as much room to grow as it needed.

What I appreciated the most about “Bone Wary” was how much time the narrator, Henry, took to describe his art studio and home to the audience. All of those details not only made me curious to find out why Henry spent so much time explaining them, they also paid off handsomely once I realized what his dark secret to all of his success was. This is the kind of tale that requires some legwork from the audience in order to understand what’s going on, but it’s well worth the effort.

Tales from the Lake Vol. 2 was a rewarding read. I’d heartily recommend it to any fellow fans of scary science fiction.

Filed Under: Horror, Reviews, Science Fiction/Fantasy Tagged With: , , , , , , , ,

Personal Demons by Gregory Lamberson

May 9, 2016 By Leave a Comment

DEMONS
Personal Demons by Gregory Lamberson
Publisher: Medallion Press
Genre: Contemporary, Paranormal
Length: Full Length (386 pgs)
Rating: 3 stars
Reviewed by Ginger

Jake Helman, an elite member of the New York Special Homicide Task Force, faces what every cop dreads—an elusive serial killer. While investigating a series of bloodletting rituals executed by an ominous perpetrator know as the Cipher, Jake refuses to submit to a drug test and resigns from the police department. Tower International, a controversial genetic engineering company, employs him as their director of security.

While battling an addiction to cocaine, Jake enters his new high-pressure position in the private sector. What he encounters behind the closed doors of this sinister operation is beyond the realm of human imagination. Too horrible to contemplate, the experimentation is pure madness, the outcome of a hell where only pain and terror reside. Nicholas Tower is not the hero flaunted on the cover of Time magazine. Beneath the polished exterior of this frontiersman on the cutting edge of science is a corporate executive surrounded by the creations of his deranged mind.
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As Jake delves deeper into the hidden sphere of this frightening laboratory, his discoveries elicit more than stereotypical condemnation for unethical practices performed for the good of mankind. Sequestered in rooms veiled in secrecy is the worst crime the world will ever see—the theft of the human soul.

Jake Helman is an officer on the New York Homicide Task Force and is on the hunt for a serial killer. Even though he is deep in the middle of the investigation of unsolved murders that doesn’t stop Jake’s cocaine addiction. In fact it seems to escalate it. Where is the old Nick?

The book started off grabbing my attention but as the story starts to unfold the plot gets so murky with too much going on it makes the story lose it’s momentum.

The suspense and action is consistent through out the book but with a story that has a compelling plot of soul stealing, witch-like-zombie bodies along the downtown side walk, a mysterious pharmaceutical genetic business owner, anti-cloning, Marc Gorman with his multiple identities there was just too much being touched on in this novel. I would have liked to know more about Jake and how he ended up on drugs, or more about Marc Gorman how he got started in bleeding souls. A few topics were touched on but there wasn’t an in depth story built to have the reader relate to or come to know a main character that will have a series of stories to follow after this book.

I wouldn’t classify this as a true horror. It just wasn’t scary to me; more along the lines of an intricate paranormal plot twist within a complex and fast paced novel. This is a good story but wasn’t presented in a masterful style that built a memorial main character and the plot structure wasn’t set to keep the story going because the climax touched on so many things.

The writing is a engrossing thriller that shows the imagination and darkness of the author. This wasn’t a five star horror for me but the action and suspense are factors that kept me reading.

Filed Under: Horror, Mystery/Suspense, Other, Reviews Tagged With: , , , , ,

Struck by Clarissa Johal

May 4, 2016 By Leave a Comment

STRUCK
Struck by Clarissa Johal
Publisher: Booktrope
Genre: Paranormal, Contemporary
Length: Full Length (252 pgs)
Rating: 3 stars
Reviewed by Ginger

Struck by lightning…claimed by shadows.

Caught in a terrible storm, Gwynneth is struck by lightning. She wakes in the hospital with a vague memory of a mysterious stranger. Following her release, the stranger visits her at will and offers Gwynneth a gift—one that will stay the hands of death. She is uncertain whether Julian is a savior or something sinister… for as he shares more of this gift, his price becomes deadly.

Gwynneth Reese is a young lady living with her childhood friend Seth. She is recovering from a bitter break with her boyfriend and decides she needs a change of scenery. In that change from being a painter she took a job at a local retirement home. An emotional wreck on her way home during a thunderstorm in the area, Gwynn is struck by lightening.
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This is a different kind of ghost story.

The characters were enjoyable to read about but also had weird characteristic that brought interest to the story. Gwynn is going through all this but is being so secretive. Seth cooked through out the entire book but found it hard to express his feelings for Gwynn. Fenton, Gwynn’s co-worker and friend, I like his humor and I truly understand why he was a sucker for a free meal. Who can turn down good cooking? Dante was a weird funeral home guy that played his stereotype creepy part very well. Great characterization on the part of the author.

The story had my interest as in I wanted to know what would happen but it wasn’t one I couldn’t put down; more like I did a sigh when I saw I still had quite a bit left. I give the author praise in the details in letting the reader know the scenes and the visual view of the characters and also praise for storytelling but a minus for not telling the details of the story where it counted or needed details to give the story balance. Like for example how did Julian come to be? What brought him to Gwynneth and I never could understand what was it he or the shadows wanted. After reading the ending I felt cheated as a reader. Gwynn closed the port. Where are the details of how she closed the port? The author has giving minimum details of trips taken with Julian but then to close the book there is only telling and no action of how Gwynn ends all this fiasco. Don’t get me wrong this is an original plot for me and I was excited to read it but it didn’t keep the sizzle.

Another point that stands out is the translator translated Hannah’s diary but then call Gwynn back to tell her more. Was the diary a series? It just seemed out of place to call Gwynn a second time after he already translated the diary. Julian I couldn’t figure out; the shadows either. I was left at the end wondering what was the point or reason of Julian and the shadows.

The plot, set-up, the writing all were good and helped me finish the book but there was just too much left missing to give it a higher review score.

Struck is an original story that is well constructed, where the author displayed good writing skills and a talent for telling a good story. A creepy, alive story, it is that will have you looking over your shoulder and under your bed. This entertaining and vibrant story includes interesting characters as well as showcases many sweet and caring relationships.

Filed Under: Horror, Reviews Tagged With: , , , , ,

Screaming Down Splitsville by Kayla Bashe

May 2, 2016 By Leave a Comment

SPLITSVILLE
Screaming Down Splitsville by Kayla Bashe
Publisher: Torquere Press
Genre: Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Paranormal, Horror, Contemporary, LGBTQ
Length: Short Story (41 pages)
Heat Level: Sweet, F/F
Rating: 3.5 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

Screaming Down Splitsville takes place in an alternate 1950s where two groups of people with magical powers fight for dominance. Flip, a young lesbian, thinks her healing powers are completely useless. After her escape from a lab, she’s been grounded to a safe base, and while everyone else is on important missions, she keeps the fridge stocked and fixes the plumbing. However, when a chance coincidence sends her on a solo rescue mission, Flip has a surprising reunion with a woman from her past.

Unable to speak after a botched cleft palate surgery, Emma-Rose grew up half-wild in the Southern backwoods- until strangers discovered her magical powers and imprisoned her in a laboratory of torture. Her one salvation was the woman in the next cell, Flip. Now Flip’s returned, and according to her, they’ll both make it to safety. But Emma’s plans have failed so many times that she has no hope left to lose.
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As the two women seek to evade their pursuers, their friendship rekindles, and they are forced to confront both enemies and insecurities.

Rescue comes in many forms.

Wow, what an intense story. Everything from the torture chamber to the big chase later on made it impossible for me to stop reading. The fast pacing worked well how energetically the plot was written. I simply had to know what would happen next and if Emma-Rose would get away from her captors. This is the kind of world I deeply enjoy discovering when I crack open a new book because of how much fun it is to explore.

The romantic elements of this tale didn’t work so well for me. They didn’t show up until very late in the plot, and there wasn’t much foreshadowing going on for them before then. I absolutely loved both the characters involved in this part of the storyline, and I was excited to see what would happen to them next. With that being said, I would have liked to see much more time spent building up the romantic tension between them before anything flirtatious happened.

Ms. Bashe did some interesting things with her flashbacks that made me smile. I barely knew anything about the two main characters in the beginning, and she didn’t reveal very much about them until several scenes had flown by. It was fascinating to get to know them so well before learning anything about their previous lives. I also liked seeing how the author tied even the smallest and simplest memories to what was currently going on in the characters’ lives. This isn’t something I’ve seen done very often in this genre.

I’d recommend Screaming Down Splitsville to anyone who enjoys a little romance in their science fiction.

Filed Under: Horror, Other, Reviews, Romance, Science Fiction/Fantasy Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , ,

C is for Chimera by Rhonda Parrish, editor

April 15, 2016 By Leave a Comment

CHIMERA
C is for Chimera by Rhonda Parrish, editor
Publisher: Poise and Pen Publishing
Genre: Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Paranormal, Horror, Historical, Contemporary
Length: Full Length (259 pages)
Rating: 3.5 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

This installment of Rhonda Parrish’s alphabet anthology series asks skilled storytellers to write around the theme of chimera. The resulting tales are part fable, part poem, part dream. But like any chimera, the parts make up a greater whole.

Blend reality with fantasy. Mesh science fiction with mystery. Mix history with what should have been. They are all chimera.

A shadow tells a tale of schoolyard bullies. A long-vanished monster returns from the cold dark. Make-up makes up a life. Alchemy, Atlantis, and apocalypse. These 26 tales bring both chaos and closure to dark and elusively fantastic geographies.
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Contributing authors include:

~ Alexandra Seidel ~ KV Taylor ~ Marge Simon ~ Pete Aldin ~ Michael M. Jones ~ Simon Kewin ~ BD Wilson ~ Gabrielle Harbowy ~ Sara Cleto ~ Megan Engelhardt ~ Michael Fosburg ~ Megan Arkenberg ~ Lilah Wild ~ Laura VanArendonk Baugh ~ Milo James Fowler ~ Brittany Warman ~ Michael B. Tager ~ L.S. Johnson ~ Beth Cato ~ C.S. MacCath ~ Sammantha Kymmell-Harvey ~ Steve Bornstein ~ Suzanne van Rooyen ~ Michael Kellar ~ Jonathan C. Parrish ~ Amanda C. Davis ~

These chimeras came in every shape and size I could imagine and even a few I never would have dreamed of.

The main character in Michael M. Jones’ “E” was a spirit who was trapped in a high school after losing her own body. At first she spent her time shadowing the students there, but she soon found herself drawn to a lonely girl named Madeline. There weren’t many clues about what was going on, but the ones that were provided were irresistibly fascinating. I also loved how clearly the spirit’s personality was described. Even though I had no idea what she looked like, I could still picture her in my mind because of how much I knew about her habits, interests, and flaws. While I would have loved to know what happened after the final scene, this did work really well as a short story.

What originally attracted me to this collection was the thought of reading so many tales about chimeras. I was curious to see how twenty-six different writers would approach the same idea, and in many cases their twists on the topic were incredibly creative and memorable. With that being said, this anthology was uneven in places. Milo James Fowler’s “O” was one of the stories that could have used more polishing. The plot showed what happened when the surrounding community discovered what Dr. Horstmann had been experimenting with in his spare time. While I was intrigued by the premise, everything happened so quickly that I had trouble figuring out what it was the doctor had been doing or why the people who lived nearby were so alarmed by his work. There simply wasn’t enough time to explore the storyline the way it needed to be explored.

Megan Arkenberg’s “L” grabbed my attention when the narrator confessed to murder before the end of the first sentence. Immediately I wanted to know more about who the main character was and why she’d killed someone. It was the last thing I would have expected to encounter in a quiet, rural, nineteenth-century setting. Figuring out what was happening only made me curious to learn more, although I can’t say anything else about the plot without giving away spoilers. Like “E,” this could have easily been expanded into something full length. The fact that I’m so eager to know what happened next for both of them is a sign of how well written they were.

I’d recommend C is for Chimera to anyone who enjoys smart science fiction anthologies.

Filed Under: Horror, Reviews, Science Fiction/Fantasy Tagged With: , , , , , , , ,
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