Moon Shot: Murder and Mayhem on the Edge of Space by J. Alan Hartman

December 31, 2013 By 1 Comment

MOON
Moon Shot: Murder and Mayhem on the Edge of Space edited by J. Alan Hartman

Publisher: Untreed Reads
Genre: Suspense/Mystery, Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Contemporary
Length: Short Story (132 pages)
Heat Level: Sensual
Rating: 3.5 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

Mystery and science fiction come together in a brand-new volume of short stories featuring original works from 14 of today’s best writers.

Whether it’s a murder on the International Space Station or a theft of a valuable piece of equipment from NASA, Moon Shot presents a stellar (and, in some cases, interstellar) lineup of stories that cross genres and are sure to entertain readers who appreciate a blend of suspense, thriller, mystery and sci-fi.

The stories onboard the space shuttle Moon Shot are written by Suzanne Berube Rorhus, Elizabeth Hosang, Jack Bates, Laird Long, Jeremy K. Tyler, E. Lynn Hooghiemstra, Toby Speed, Wenda Morrone, Suzanne Derham Cifarelli, Andrew MacRae, Jeff Howe, Percy Spurlark Parker, Mary McCarroll White and Lance Zarimba.

How would you plan the perfect murder? Is the risk of getting caught worth the reward?
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There aren’t many anthologies out there that attempt to blend science fiction with murder mysteries, yet this book is a solid example of just how much both genres can enrich one another. I never would have thought to mix them together, but the results speak for themselves.

By far the best entry in this collection is “Fedoras.” It’s set at a time in the future when computers solve the vast majority of the crimes that are committed, and humans are only called in for special cases. Although I never had trouble understanding what was happening, the plot is so complex that it easily could have been expanded into a novella. The characterization is especially rich, and I enjoyed figuring out Detective Stone’s background almost as much as I did attempting to solve the case alongside him.

One of the few missteps takes place in “A Murder Far From Home.” It follows the investigation of the brutal murder of a scientist who is working onboard an international space station. While the pacing was perfect, the investigator who tries to figure out what happened to her has an obvious bias against the deceased as a woman and fellow human being. His constant character assassination of someone who has just died made it difficult for me to take anything else he deduces seriously even though the mystery itself is quite intriguing.

The premise of “Downhill Slide” seems impossible at first. A man is murdered while living in almost total isolation on a work-related project. The sole suspect has an excellent reason to explain why they couldn’t possibly have killed him. What confused me about this tale was the gender of the investigator. Chris Ba has a wife and two children waiting at home, but I was never able to figure out if this character was supposed to be a man or a woman. At first this question didn’t matter so much, but by the end I really wished the answer to it was clearer because of how it affects how the reader interprets certain scenes.

“Crime of Passion” is another must-read. In it the death of a quiet, cheerful teacher living in a colony on Mars reveals some surprising secrets as Officers Jacobs and Smith untangle the mystery of a life cut short. The twist at the end is particularly clever. In retrospect I completely understand why it was written that way, but it was definitely not what I thought was going to happen. This is another entry that I wish was a novella instead of a short story. It answers all of the questions it raises, but I was so enthralled with the characters that I didn’t want to say goodbye to them.

While Moon Shot contains elements from both the science fiction and mystery genres, it leans more heavily on the latter as far as which tropes are relied up to advance the plot. Some of the mysteries are specific to conditions that can only be found in outer space or on other planets, but many others could have potentially taken place on Earth. There are good reasons why the authors in this collection chose less familiar settings, though, and their stories are richer for it.

Moon Shot: Murder and Mayhem on the Edge of Space is a fascinating collection of tales that I’d recommend to fans of mysteries and science fiction alike.

Filed Under: Mystery/Suspense, Reviews, Romance Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Willow, Weep by Victor J. Banis

December 30, 2013 By 2 Comments

WILLOW
Willow, Weep by Victor J. Banis
Publisher: Untreed Reads
Genre: Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Paranormal, Horror, Historical
Length: Short Story (6 pages)
Rating: 3 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

The old inn sits by a lake in an ancient forest, shrouded in mystery. Outside, a restless willow thrashes its limbs and, for a fleeting moment, a woman seems to dance in the mist. A trick of the light? Or a villi, perhaps, one of the sirens of legend, who tempt the unfaithful lover to his doom? A man would be a fool to venture out into that night–but the sultry Magda may be waiting for him, an invitation he is unable to resist. And it’s only mist, isn’t it…?

Everyone is tempted by something or someone eventually. The question is, what makes one person give in while another continues to keep his or her promises?
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One of the most interesting parts of travelling to a new area is learning about their local myths. Brad and his bride are one of only a handful of visitors at this particular inn tonight, and their reactions to the stories that Magda, the woman who runs the establishment, tells are quite revealing. The best parts of this short story involve subtle hints about what is really going on that are tucked into otherwise ordinary conversations.

I had a hard time believing that Brad could be as naive as he was written. He consistently fails to pick up on obvious clues that not everything around him is necessarily what it appears to be. His offensive mannerisms and profound lack of curiosity about his surroundings also made it difficult for me to empathize with what happens to him. Not every character needs to be likable in order to be interesting, of course, but in this case Brad was written with such a negative slant that he comes across as very one dimensional.

The creepy atmosphere is what drew me back into the plot. Mr. Banis’ use of the extremely isolated location and poor weather conditions lends an eerie quality to this tale that drastically heightens the suspense. In some ways the setting is actually scarier than anything else the characters experience because the fog obstructs their view so completely. It’s extremely hard to know where you’re going in a thick, unrelenting fog, after all.

Willow, Weep is a solid horror tale that I would recommend to anyone who likes to be frightened but isn’t interested in the explicit violence that is so common in this genre.

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

Nightlight by Trey Dowell

December 19, 2013 By Leave a Comment

NIGHT
Nightlight by Trey Dowell
Publisher: Untreed Reads
Genre: Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Horror, Contemporary
Length: Short Story (9 pages)
Rating: 4 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

Nine-year-old Kayla suffers from horrible dreams, along with the nagging fear that monsters will come for her in the night. Employees of the Stafford Sleep Clinic think they know better, until an astonished technician discovers that beyond all of the machines, wires, and monitors he trusts so completely, the little girl’s fears may not be imaginary after all.

A lot of kids fear the dark at some point during their development. Some of them have much better reasons for doing so than others do, though.
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Most sleep clinic technicians don’t see kids very often in their profession. What endeared me to Ben was how quickly he warmed up to Kayla when he realized that she was lonely and scared in a new place. The conversation they have at the beginning of this piece not only reveals important clues about what is about to take place, it gives the reader a glimpse of Ben’s kind personality as well. While there isn’t a great deal of room to delve into the backgrounds of characters in something this short, I really liked what I learned about him during the course of this tale.

I momentarily wondered if such a young child would really be left alone during such a long medical test. While I have a few theories about why the author chose this route, it would have been nice for either Ben or Kayla to mention why she alone at the Stafford Sleep Clinic. Based on what the reader learns about Kayla’s past I’m not entirely sure if this was meant to be a clue about what is happening in her life, but I think a strong argument can be made for this interpretation.

The pacing in this story is superb. I had a knot of dread in my stomach from the very first scene, and the conversation between Kayla and Ben only made me more anxious to find out what happens next. Sleep clinics aren’t inherently scary places, but Mr. Dowell teases out everything unknown about this sort of experience in order to make the setting as unnerving as possible.

Nightlight sent a chill down my spine. This is a great introduction to horror for anyone who is unfamiliar to the genre, although I’d recommend it just as highly to long-term fans. There is something terrifying here for everyone!

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

Vend U. by Nancy Springer

December 18, 2013 By Leave a Comment

VEND
Vend U. by Nancy Springer
Publisher: Untreed Reads
Genre: Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Contemporary
Length: Short Story (8 pages)
Rating: 4 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

Jocelyn is a complete pest, She’s constantly playing practical jokes and has no problems beating up boys. Not quite the person you want around you when you’re trying to enjoy your summer art class on a college campus.

When Jocelyn decides to take out her inner aggressions on the cafeteria’s vending machines, it’s not just the students who decide it’s time to do something about the biggest bully on campus. After all, even a vending machine has feelings.

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Do bullies ever change? If so, what’s the best way to get them to see the error of their ways?

Disruptive peers can make childhood feel like it’s going to last forever. The narrator of this piece reminded me of what it feels like to be stuck in this situation, and their descriptions of endless frustration ring true. Adults can see the bigger picture, but kids tend to focus on everything they’re missing out on by being stuck in the same activity with a hyperactive or cruel classmate. Ms. Springer did an excellent job at capturing what this is like, and her detailed descriptions of the abuse Jocelyn inflicts onto her peers make the narrative come alive.

It would have been helpful to have the logistics of Jocelyn’s encounter with the vending machines described in more detail. Certain passages made it a little difficult to figure out what was happening, and I had to reread them in order to understand what everyone was doing. This is a minor critique of an otherwise memorable story, though.

I certainly didn’t start reading this tale with the expectation of finding something funny in it, but there were some wonderfully humorous passages that popped out when I least expected them to do so. The idea of a kid taking her aggression out on a vending machine is amusing enough, but what happens next makes this piece something I will be recommending to everyone I know who loves science fiction and fantasy novels.

Vend U. kept me on my toes until the final sentence. This is a great choice for anyone who loves surprises in a plot.

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

The Life Portrait by Jacquelynn Luben

December 18, 2013 By 2 Comments

LIFE
The Life Portrait by Jacquelynn Luben
Publisher: Untreed Reads
Genre: Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Historical
Length: Short Story (5 pages)
Rating: 4 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

When Count Felipo’s daughter, Ursula, becomes ill, her father is desperate to find a remedy, so much so that he is prepared to hire the artist who previously painted her portrait to transform the girl in the picture to a sorry, ailing creature, in the hope that the life from the original portrait will somehow be transferred to the dying girl. What will be the result of his gamble?

Few things in life are scarier than watching someone you love experience a life-threatening illness. What if there was a way to restore him or her to good health?
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Count Felipo’s dilemma hit close to home for me as someone who has recently watched a loved one fight a different but equally daunting disease. His response to his daughter’s health crisis is very accurate, and I sympathized with his emotional highs and lows as he struggles to figure out what to do. Fairy tales are most powerful when they address heartbreaking situations that real people face.The inclusion of such a common experience makes this one a must-read.

My only criticism of this story is difficult to discuss without inadvertently giving away spoilers. Early on in the piece one of the characters says something that foreshadows how it will end, and while that information is necessary in order to understand why certain decisions were made I do wish it could have been revealed a little later on in the plot. The final scene was so good that I would have preferred to go into it without having such a solid hunch about what was going to happen.

This is the second tale from Ms. Luben that I’ve read so far and I was quite pleased to revisit her writing style. She has a wonderful way of pulling the reader into the past through the use of words and customs that have since fallen out of fashion. In this case it works particularly well. While I was reading I truly felt like Count Felipo was standing next to me wringing his hands over his daughter’s worsening health, and I am eager to read more from her in the future.

The Life Portrait reads like a modern-day fairy tale. I highly recommend it to anyone who loves this genre as much as I do.

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

Autumn Glory and Other Stories by Barbara Metzger

December 17, 2013 By Leave a Comment

GLORY
Autumn Glory and Other Stories by Barbara Metzger
Publisher: Untreed Reads
Genre: Historical
Length: Short Story (123 pages)
Heat Level: sweet
Rating: 5 stars
Reviewed by Aloe

Originally published in separate anthologies, and out-of-print for many years, these three novellas by legendary Regency romance author Barbara Metzger are in one volume for the first time ever!

This collection includes the following stories:

“Autumn Glory”
“The Management Requests”
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The first story has a conniving little sister, the second has a misunderstanding about who the hotel manager is, and the third has God and the Devil trying to influence a man’s actions. How could you not like reading this collection? It has something for everyone!

Ms. Metzger writes light, humorous stories about love. She draws you in, entices you with details and makes you love her characters. These three novellas will demonstrate her skill to you and make you smile as you read them.

The first story, Autumn Glory, is about a mother who is going to marry her daughter’s off so she can have some freedom. She loves them, but the oldest is almost a spinster and she won’t stand for that. As long as she’s playing match mate, she might as well get them all lined up. The most amusing part of this story is the fact that the man she is working with in her planning is the unseen male that her mother has chosen for her older sister. She tells him how awful that person is while not realizing who he is. That really tickled me!

The Management Requests has a wounded soldier who is staying at the hotel to get away from his sister-in-law and her demands. He has to stay downstairs because of his leg, there are no rooms left there, and he pays a premium to take over the office. Just how that complicates his life is unexpected and takes the form of a young woman looking for a beau who only wanted her money. The dance between those two and the chapters being titled with management requests is great.

My personal favorite though was A Match Made in Heaven or Hell. A soldier is close to death on the field and God and the Devil are fighting over who gets him. How much more fantastic a plot can you imagine? Hugh will never be the same again and that’s a good thing!

Are you looking for a fun easy read that you fit in between present wrapping and cooking? Look no further. These stories have been gathered from out of print anthologies and presented in a new edition for you. I really enjoyed this collection and it was a fast read. You need to give it a try.

Filed Under: Reviews, Romance Tagged With: , , , ,

Phoenix by Poppy Summers

December 17, 2013 By Leave a Comment

PHOENIX
Phoenix by Poppy Summers
Publisher: Untreed Reads
Genre: Contemporary
Length: Short Story (9 pgs)
Heat Level: Sensual
Rating: 4 Stars
Reviewed by Stephantois

Alone in a remote Scottish lighthouse, author Dani Maxwell has one thing on her mind: getting her new book finished in blissful isolation. But she hasn’t banked on the distracting qualities of her hot landlord…

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I loved the setting of the remote lighthouse in Scotland. A little mysterious perhaps, with some romance thrown in. When Adam comes knocking on Dani’s door, you know things won’t be the same for her.

Phoenix has fast pacing but it didn’t seemed rushed. I liked the surprise about why Adam was cautious about another relationship, and glad it had a happy ending.

It’s a good pick when you want something to read but don’t have a lot of time.

Filed Under: Reviews, Romance Tagged With: , , , ,

Tales from the Fountain Pen by E. Lynn Hooghiemstra

December 17, 2013 By Leave a Comment

PEN
Tales from the Fountain Pen by E. Lynn Hooghiemstra
Publisher: Untreed Reads
Genre: Paranormal, Contemporary, Historical
Length: Short Story (59 pages)
Rating: 4.5 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

Maggie was ready to embrace life and enjoy attending vocational college when the war came to her village in the Netherlands and changed everything. In a series of interconnected stories Maggie struggles with fear, shortages, the resistance, the dangers of falling in love and who to trust. Nothing is as it had been and, as the holder of the fountain pen learns from her comfortable office in the present day, fear and uncertainty are ever-present companions.

As the narrator fills and refills the inherited fountain pen from the 1940s, the pen takes on a life of its own as it relates the details of the events that shaped Maggie’s life, and strengthens the bond between Maggie and her future daughter.

Some memories never dim over time.
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Imagine what it would be like to step into a chapter of your mother’s life that she did her very best to erase for good. Maggie’s young adulthood was spent living in unrelenting fear and deprivation, and she thought she was doing the right thing by shielding her daughter from the harsh reality of her formative years. By far the most powerful scenes show how this decision affects not only the rest of her life but her daughter’s experiences as well.

It was in these moments that I wished Tales from the Fountain Pen was either a few hundred pages longer or the first in a long series of novellas. The author’s depiction of how the quiet scars from emotional trauma can be inadvertently passed down to the next generation is as heartbreaking as it is stunningly accurate.

The first transition from present day to the past is a little difficult to pick out at first because the narration continues to be written in first person, but this is a very minor criticism of an otherwise enthralling tale. As soon as I adjusted to it I had no problem slipping from one time period to the next as Maggie’s daughter discovers some of her mother’s deepest secrets.

The historical details in this piece are what solidified my decision to give it such a high rating. From the inherent messiness of old-fashioned fountain pens to the sweet and slightly flowery taste of Elderflower tea, I felt like I, too, had been transported back to the middle of last century. Some facts are difficult to tease out unless one has personal experience with household goods that have since become quite rare in modern society, but all of the antiques that I have personal experience with were described in impeccable detail during the course of Maggie’s adventures.

I never wanted Tales from the Fountain Pen to end. This is an unforgettable story that I’d highly recommend to anyone who loves mainstream fiction with a paranormal flair.

Filed Under: Other, Reviews Tagged With: , , , , ,

Elvis Has Left The Building by Charity Tahmaseb

December 16, 2013 By Leave a Comment

ELVIS
Elvis Has Left The Building by Charity Tahmaseb
Publisher: Untreed Reeds
Genre: Contemporary
Length: Short Story (11 pgs)
Rating: 4 Stars
Reviewed by Stephantois

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The title of this story sort of sums up the theme and feel of it; part nostalgia, and part humor. For such a short read, Ms. Tahmaseb did a wonderful job offering some detail to the background of the main character, Elliot, and how he came to be an Elvis impersonator. It doesn’t drag on but dives right into the action about Elliot and the woman who came to see him perform.

In a way it’s a bittersweet tale, about a father and son, of tradition and things that bind us together forever.

If you’re looking for a short, very well written and lighthearted-read then this might be a good one for you.

Filed Under: Other, Reviews Tagged With: , , ,

Venom and the River: A Novel of Pepin by Marsha Qualey

December 10, 2013 By Leave a Comment

VENOM
Venom and the River: A Novel of Pepin by Marsha Qualey
Publisher: Untreed Reads
Genre: Contemporary, Suspense/Mystery
Length: Full Length (151 Pages)
Rating: 4 Stars
Reviewed by Cyclamen

Several hundred women are about to converge on tiny Pepin, Minnesota, to celebrate the birthday of Ida May Turnbull, the long-dead author of a beloved series of children’s books. When the “Little Girls” gather in Pepin, one woman finds life has changed forever.

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This is a novel of secrets, some of them held for decades. Leigh Burton uncovers a number of them, but her secret is one of the biggest. She is a disgraced journalist, stripped of her Pulitzer, and now, having changed her name, is eking out a life as a freelancer. She arrives in Pepin, Minnesota, a small rural town to help an aged former vice-president with his memoirs.

Marsha Qualey hooked me from the very beginning and I found myself immersed in Leigh’s struggles. I really cared about her and I wanted her to succeed with her work and with her daughter. This novel is not a conventional whodunit type mystery. Instead, Leigh has to work out what happened in the past and how past events connect with the present. There are no current crimes to solve and yet the suspense in the novel is tightly woven.

Qualey has written a very solid character driven novel and the characters are well-defined and fully fleshed out. Even the minor characters ring true to the point where I felt that the town of Pepin really exists. I can see the newer section and the historical section. I just know that if I walked into the library I’d meet Kate, the overworked reference librarian who moonlights as a bartender, or Marti Lanier, who sells real estate, and who wants Ida May Turnbull recognized for her literary talent and not for the hype from the television shows. These people are very real and the secrets that are held are ones that Leigh ferrets out or stumbles upon. And as is true in many small towns, the secrets reach into the past and link many of the town’s current inhabitants in the web of mystery.

If you enjoy a well-written story with great characters filled with decades of secrets, Venom and the River might be just what you are looking for.

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