John Helfers ed.: Fiction River: Visions of the Apocalypse

A short story collection about… the end of the world.

Publication year: 2016
Format: ebook, epub
Page count: 252
Publisher: WMG publishing

As you might expect, these are pretty intense stories. All of them are emotional, one way or another. I’m actually not a huge fan of apocalypse stories, except for Terminator movies (and in them, it’s about avoiding the end of the world) but most of these I liked. Most of them are chilling stories, one way or another. When society’s rules break down, some people will only think of themselves but fortunately not all. Otherwise, humanity wouldn’t have evolved to have a society at all. This seems to be something that people are forgetting these days.

I think every story ends the world in a different way. I’m not entirely sure if I should enjoy the creativity or find it chilling.

The stories have been divided into several parts: just before the Apocalypse, the beginning of it, during it, surviving after it, and three stories which describe the whole thing.

Waiting for Apocalypse:
“String of Pearls” by Eric Kent Edstrom: The world has just heard that comets will strike the Earth and end human life. Lucas Piper and his girlfriend Vicki are among them. Lucas regrets not doing anything meaningful with his life. When they go to get more beer from the local small shop, they find out that the elderly shopkeeper has been murdered. Lucas decides to do something.

“The Shoes I Wore This Morning” by J. Daniel Sawyer: Lord Phineas Roxton Summerlee has just returned from an expedition where he and his small party were looking for a city of gold from the Amazons. The locals warned him away from it, but he didn’t listen.

The Beginning of the End
“The Dust Devil, the Riffraff, and the Big Orange Sunset” by Valerie Brook: Charlene Lynn Weaver is a patient on a psych ward. She and all the others have been locked up and nobody has come in the morning to care for them. Dust storms rage outside and the fine dust has filtrated inside so it’s not possible to leave the building. Charlene is one of the few people who know what’s really going on.

“Goin’ to the Chapel” by Rebecca M. Senese: In just three days, Marlee is going to get the perfect wedding she’s dreamed about since she was a little girl. Unfortunately, that’s the day when aliens invade Earth.

“With Wings the End” by Rob Vagle: The world is dying because people’s hearts are turning into blackbirds and flying away. The birds have mirrored bellies and fly in tight formation. Jeffrey wants to stay in his house, away from danger but his wife Laura wants to meet her friend whose heart is changing soon. On the way to the hospital, Laura also contracts the disease (or whatever it is) and Jeffrey brings her home to die.

Amidst the Apocalypse
“Cogs in the Machine” by Paul Eckheart: The Tickers have wiped out much of humanity but the survivors defend the remaining settlements. Tania wants to be part of Major Townsend’s village but she has a secret which might destroy her or save humanity.

“The Faerie Invasion” by Anthea Sharp: Ric Garcia is trying to protect his little sister from murderous fey folk who have invaded all of USA. But Angelina is sick and Ric doesn’t know what to do. Then the Wild Hunt come to their hiding place.

“Demon-touched” by Travis Heermann: Something infests or possesses humans. When they’re “ridden” (as it’s called) they do terrible things but don’t remember any of it afterwards. The narrator is a neuroscientist and one of the few who is still looking for a cause and a cure. But this time he awakes from “being ridden” in a cage with a shotgun in front of his face.

Survivors: Apocalypse came years ago but some survived it and have to continue living in a drastically changed world. This is perhaps my favorite setting for an Apocalypse story.
“Same Time Next Year” by M. E. Owen: 15 years ago something changed many people into Beasts. Still, Arlene’s family has a tradition to gather and celebrate their continued existence. But now they’re late and Arlene is worried for them.

“The Story That Has to Be Written” by Louisa Swann: A giant solar flare has wiped out a lot of humanity and made the whole planet much drier. The narrator, who is seven years old, her little brother, and father are still struggling to survive in a world where food is hard to come by because most of plant life can’t grow and most of the animals are gone.

“Tyrph Rights” by David Stier: USA is a wasteland thanks to genetic engineering gone wrong. Today, Devin and his new partner Rahel are going to try to get inside the Loop – the dangerous remains of the Sears Tower.

From start to finish:
“Paradox. Lost.” by Stefon Mears: The narrator has invented a time machine and it turns out to be a big mistake. Time travel doesn’t work like any of the theories.

“The Night of Brahma” by Leigh Saunders: Reina Varela Harrak can see the future but it hasn’t brought her happiness because only rarely have people believed what she has told them. Including her own family. Partly because they’re struggling to survive in the horrors of the Endless War.

“Three Degrees Above Zero” by Doug Dandridge: Scott Stafford was an astronomy teacher in Florida. Now, he might be the last man left alive on Earth because of a neutron star. The most science oriented story in this selection.

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Allyson Longueira ed.: Fiction River Presents: The Unexpected

Reprints some of the funniest stories from Fiction River.

Publication year: 2016
Format: ebook, epub
Page count: 146
Publisher: WMG publishing

“Generations” by Steve Perry: from “Fantasy Adrift”: Ziggy and his brothers live in a frontier planet where police aren’t around. When their enemy has a new toy, Ziggy has to get creative.

“Case Cracked” by Joe Cron: from “Fantastic Detectives”: Frank Dumpty is a hard-boiled detective in Magic City Police Department. A troll has been killed and Frank has a strong hunch who is behind it. But getting justice in a corrupt city isn’t a laughing matter.

“Role Model” by Kevin J. Anderson: another funny story from “Fantastic Detectives”: Dan Shamble is a zombie P.I. While working in a Cosplay Convention, he gets a sidekick: someone cosplaying him.

“Finally Family” by Ray Vukcevich: from “Unnatural Worlds”: Bugboy is an alien but he can’t tell people that. He lives in Japan but doesn’t even know the language. Then he meets Kimiko who teaches English to the Japanese.

“Time, Expressed as an Entrée” by Robert T. Jeschonek: from “Time Streams”: time devouring Rainbow Leviathan eats up everything until just one day is left. Then he encounters an anomaly.

“One-Night Stands for Love and Glory” by David H. Hendrickson: from “Universe Between”: the main character is a stand-up comedian. He used to be great but now unfortunately his Artificial Intelligence, which translates the jokes to the local language and culture, has begun to deteriorate.

“Earth Day” by Kristine Kathryn Rusch: from “How to save the world”: One man thinks that he can save the world. His mother was an ardent environmentalist and so is the son… in his own way.

“Jelly’s Heroes” by Louisa Swann: from “Valor”: Staff Sergeant Jillian K. Wilson was given the task of training a small group of locals at Centauri VI. However, the locals are small and have no arms or legs. But that doesn’t mean they lack the spirit.

“Nice Timestream Youse Got Here” by Lee Allred: another story from “Time Streams”: the narrator and his good-looking but dumb partner Maizie work for the Temporal Protection Agency. This time they’re in New York City in 1940, looking for their next target. But they aren’t in it to protect any timeline.

“In the Play of Frigid Women” by Dean Wesley Smith: from “Fantasy Adrift”: Poker Boy and his love the Front Desk Girl are superheroes. However, this time they’ve decided to relax on a cruise. Everything goes smoothly at first but then a terrible storm hits. This time, Poker Boy and his gang have to really stretch their creativity to save the day.

These are all fun. I especially liked “Jelly’s heroes”, “Generations”, and “One-Night Stands for Love and Glory”. I’ve read previously about half of these stories but enjoyed them again.

 

Kristine Kathryn Rusch, ed.: Fiction River: Hidden in Crime

Short stories about crimes which were crimes in the past but are no longer. Well, not in USA anway.

Publication year: 2015
Format: ebook
Page count: 251
Publisher: WMG Publishing

Some of these stories are about rights for other humans than heterosexual white males. But they are still quite a varied bunch, even though most of them are set in the USA. Some of them remind us about things that history tends to forget, like that the Jewish people weren’t the only ones killed in Nazi camps.

However, quite a few of these stories are somber and depressing because the world can be a nasty place, especially when the people around you all condemn you for your actions or simply for existing.

The Color of Guilt by Annie Reed: Josef is a Holocaust survivor and is troubled by his past for many reasons.

Hiro’s Welcome by Patrick O’Sullivan: Sergeant Kintoki Hiro is coming home to California after fighting in the Second World War. He wants to marry his sweetheart. But there’s just one problem: she’s white.

The American Flag of Sergeant Hale Schofield by Kelly Washington: Willa’s father came home from the Vietnam war when she was very young. He has nightmares which won’t stop and he visits the Arlington National Cemetery every year for a fellow soldier’s grave and takes the US flag from it. Then he burns the flag. Willa finally understands why.

Combat Medic by Kris Nelscott: June Eagleton was a medic for five years in the Vietnam war. Now, she lives in Berkeley and is horrified to wake up at the sound of combat helicopters. It’s May 1969 near People’s Park.

Night of the Healer by Tonya D. Price: Pierre-Joseph Wawanolewat is heading to Boston to cure a sick woman. But the journey is filled with danger for the simple reason that he’s a Native American and during this time there weren’t any laws which protected him. And the police officer following him isn’t making things any easier.

The Quality of Mercy by Michele Lang: Mrs. Abigail Abbott’s late husband was a lawyer and he taught Abigail, too. However, in the 1800s women can’t practice law so she has to use more roundabout means to help people.

Daughter of Joy by Cindie Geddes: Ah Toy is a young Chinese wife on her way to America. Her abusive childhood has taught her that gold is the only thing that can give her freedom. So, she will use her only asset.

Democracy by Mario Milosevic: The small town of Glory has a dilemma: the vote for the next sheriff is a tie. Robin is woman masquerading as a man and so she has voted, illegally. Her vote will have more power than anyone in the town would have believed.

Sisters in Suffrage by Debbie Mumford: Emily Tuttle joins the Silent Sentinels who are picketing President Wilson’s office. Little does she know what is to follow.

Knocked Up by Elliotte Rusty Harold: When a high school girl gets pregnant in a small town in Kentucky, her choices are pretty limited.

O Best Beloved by Angela Penrose: Marceau’s wife is giving birth and he’s afraid that his sins will become manifest in the child.

Sunshine by Michael Kowal: The narrator is a gumshoe in 1930s and he’s helping an actress, Little Jackie Sunshine, who has a terrible family.

The Harper’s Escape by Anthea Sharp: Bronagh O’Riada is harper and a bard but after Oliver Cromwell invaded Ireland she became a fugitive unable to practice her craft.

As the Berimbau Begins to Play by Paul Eckheart: In Rio de Janeiro, the narrator is introduced to a game which was then technically illegal which was and is very popular.

Death of the Turban by Bill Beatty: Veli Yaziz is a detective in post-Atatürk Turkey where some traditions are illegal and some are merely frowned upon. His assistant works for the secret police and is spying on him while he investigates the murder of a hodja (a holy man) who is now an outlaw.

On the Edge of the Nations by Dan C. Duval: Cellie and her Mama were house slaves but now they’re on the run, trying to keep out of sight from the slave hunters.

Window Frame, Handprint, Bloodstain by M. Elizabeth Castle: A story in a haiku form, set in April 4, 1968.

The White Game by Ron Collins: In 1963 in Alabama, even playing in a baseball game can be a crime with disproportional punishment if your skin has a different color. An old journalist reminiscent what happened and what he thinks happened in May that year.

I liked all of these stories, but my favorites were “The Harper’s Escape”, “Combat Medic”, “The Night of the Healer”, “Quality of Mercy”, and “Death of the Turban”. “Democracy” is deliciously ironic. “Daughter of Joy” and “Sisters in Suffrage” are just chilling but for different reasons.

 

John Helfers, ed.: Fiction River: Recycled Pulp

Short story collection where the idea was to give writers pulp titles and for them to write a non-pulp story based on the title they chose. I loved that idea. The stories cover different genres. Not all of them are SF/F.

Format: ebook
Page count: 237
Publisher: WMG Publishing

“The Revolt of the Philosophers of Fomalhaul” by Phaeda Weldon. Aaron to ordered to kill a child but he struggles with the order and finds out something terrible is happening.

“Marvelous Contrivance of the Heart” by Cat Rambo. Mike builds the most intricate and life-like dioramas. His wife hates the “dollhouses”.

“The Flower of the Tabernacle” by Annie Reed. A young woman appears to have taken her own life in a Catholic church but a determined cop investigates.

“Lost in the Tarnished Cube” by Thomas K. Carpenter. Mage Vance has bought, at long last, a wizard’s tower to himself. Unfortunately, the loan he had to take has stricter terms than he initially thought.

“Crypt of the Metal Ghouls” by Angela Penrose. A group of teens work as salvagers in the ruins of former civilization. They enter into a Ghoul house and find out how it got its name.

“The Imperfect Otter Empire” by Dayle A. Dermatis. Alyse has just lost her fiancée and her job. She’s always adored otters so she goes to the otter exhibit to wonder what she’s going to do next.

“The Unknowable Mansion of the Night” by Sandra M. Odell. In a cyberpunk society where people without constant access are called deadheads, Willy Shakes is one of the deadheads but he also has a reputation as dependable worker. Cecil B. de Millionaire hires Willy to do a job.

“The Portal of Wrong Love” by Dean Wesley Smith. A Poker Boy adventure where couples are disappearing.

“Sacred Poet from the Future” by Kelly Cairo. The main character helps a new employee in her grandfather’s firm and strange things happen.

“Swamp of the Prehistoric Clan” by Christy Fifield. Real estate developers think that the old residents are at their mercy, but some of the “fossils” decide to fight back.

“The Magnificent Citadel” by Rebecca M. Senese. Charlotte has a chance to pay back to her bully at school but is it worth it?

“Night of the Dancing Champions” by Kristine Katheryn Rusch. In 1941 Gertie was the jitterbug champion. Years later, the champions are recognized once again and Gertie relives her glory days.

“The Delicatessen from Beyond the Monolith” by Lisa Silverthorne. Chance is a cop who wakes up every night from an awful nightmare where he kills his partner Boone. Chance, and other cops, have started to think Boone is dirty. And for some reason the local deli owner keeps giving Chance wrong sandwiches.

“Prism of the Crab Gods” by Kelly Washington. Miles isn’t what his father wanted him to be, everyone says he’s slow and he only cares about counting; so his dad beats him and the others in their family, too. Miles prays that his best friends, the crab gods, will help his family.

“The Gleaming Crater” by Thea Hutcheson. Even though Janos is a mage, he feels that his life is going nowhere. But when he gets a vision from a goddess and meets a strange mage, who seems to be part of the vision, he is swept into a grand adventure.

Some of the stories are quiet and “mundane” (without any SF or fantasy elements), many are exciting, and one of them is even epic. My favorites were “the Revolt”, “Lost in the Tarnished Cube”, and “Crypt of the Metal Ghouls”. The cyberpunk story has some interesting elements but the whole plugging your brain to a computer squicks me out too much.

 

Kristine Kathryn Rush ed.: Fiction River: Fantastic Detectives

A short story collection.

Publication year: 2014
Format: print
Page count: 273
Publisher: WMG Publishing

This is another of the Fiction River anthologies. I’ve enjoyed the previous ones a lot and was looking forward to reading this one, too. I liked all of the stories but only a couple of them were outstanding to me. Still, some of them are part of ongoing or planned series and if I didn’t have a physical TBR pile of over 100 books (still…) I’d be very tempted to check them out. However, they work just fine as stand-alones. Only two stories have professional detectives (and three various agents), the rest are amateur sleuths.

“Case Cracked” by Joe Cron: Frank Dumpty is a detective in the Magic City Police Department. When a troll is killed Frank finally has a chance to go against one of the more corrupt characters in the city.

“Living With The Past” by Dayle A. Dermatis: A ghost of a Marilyn Monroe impersonator asks Nikki Ashbourne for help and even though Nikki’s life has just exploded, she can’t refuse.

“All She Can Be” by Karen L. Abrahamson: This is a prequel story to Abrahamson’s Cartographer series (which sounds very interesting!). Vallon Drake has the ability to control earth. She uses it in the service of her government and this is her first case; someone has changed US’s landscape and Vallon and her (asshole) partner have to take that person in custody and reverse the change.

“Under Oregon” by Kara Legend: Evangeline’s family has just moved to Oregon but their livelihood, the crops, are in danger. Evangeline makes a potion to save them but angers a local fairy.

“Role Model” by Kevin J. Anderson: Dan Shamble is a zombie P.I. His friend asks him to go to a Cosplay Convention and he agrees. One of the Stormtroopers is murdered. Shamble is on the case and he even gets a sidekick: someone cosplaying him. This was a lot of fun.

“Death In Hathaway Tower” by Ryan M. Williams: Emily Hathaway is the young Lady of the Tower and when a dead body turns up in her library, she has to deal with it. This setting has really ethereal elves which I’m always sucker for.

“Trouble Aboard The Flying Scotsman” by Alistair Kimble: Harland Stone has just resolved the Scottish Affair for His Majesty’s Dashing Chaps and is looking forward to a quiet train ride to London. But then the conductor claims that something has sabotaged the train and only Stone can help.

“Containing Patient Zero” by Paul Eckheart: Zombies in this world result from a virus – except for patient zero. Leroy Star is a reality TV star and also a convicted serial killer who is about to be executed. Unfortunately, he’s also patient zero and Doctor Joseph Nelson is brought in to see Leroy. Fortunately, Joseph knows who can help Leroy and prevent a zombie plague. Unfortunately, that’s person unlikely to help.

“Canine Agent Rocky Arnold Vs. The Evil Alliance” by Judith Nordeen: Rocky is a German Shepard who belongs to an FBI agent. But when the agent takes her dog to the dog park, Rocky is the one who has to figure out a mystery. Another fun story.

“An Incursion Of Mice” by Kristine Kathryn Rusch: Five rescued cats live in one house with their two human servants. Wall T is their boss and should have caught the mice incursion.

“They’re Back” by Dean Wesley Smith: A Poker Boy story where a vanquished villain returns to torment our intrepid heroes.

My favorites were “Death In Hathaway Tower”, “Under Oregon”, and “Containing Patient Zero”. All had strong atmospheres. As a dog person I also liked Judith Nordeen’s story a lot.

 

Fiction River: Unnatural Worlds

A collection of fantasy short stories.

Publication year: 2014
Format: audiobook
Running time: 7 hours, 24 minute
Narrated by: Jerimy Colbert, Jane Kennedy, Kristine Kathryn Rusch, Dean Wesley Smith, Matthew Buchman, Iretty Y. Patterson, Stephanie Writt, Shaun Yoder
Publisher: WMG Publishing

Once again I like all of the stories, some more, some less but this is still perhaps my least favorites Fiction River collection. I most enjoyed Rusch’s story and ”Sisters”. These aren’t really just urban fantasy but a mix of different styles and settings.

“Life between dreams” by Devon Monk is a story of Wardens who guard the different realities and also put down the humans who are Dreamers. There are horrors between realities which use the Dreamers as portals to the real world.

“The grasshopper and my Aunts” by Esther M. Friesner: the 14-year-old narrator is frustrated with her guardians who are her aunts. The story is quite comedic and several myths are referenced. When the governess throws, by accident, a sowing basket in the small pond, it unleashes terrible powers.

“Here, Kitty Kitty” by Annie Reed: D&D investigations will look for any lost items. This time they’re hired to find a statue for a fairy and things go wrong.

In ”Shadow side” by Kristine Kathryn Rusch the narrator, Dan, is a cop who has had too many brushes with supernatural. He’s trying to escape it with a new job in a small town. He goes to the job interview but realizes that his luck is all bad.

“That lost riddle” by Dean Wesley Smith is a Poker Boy story where the characters think through a problem rather than fighting. Very good for those who know and love the characters.

“Barbarians” by David Farland is a prequel to his Runelords series which I haven’t read. Duvaal’s people are at war with the Mistarrians. Chasing a lost horse, Duvaal has strayed into their lands and stumbles on a wrecked carriage. He wants to just loot it, but he finds a survivor and then a wolf pack comes near.

“Finally family” by Ray Vukcevich. Bugboy can’t tell people that he’s actually an alien. He ended up in Japan, without knowing any Japanese. Kimiko is an American-Japanese woman who has come to live in Japan but she doesn’t know any Japanese, either. She teaches English to Japanese people. Bugboy and Kimiko meet during an earthquake.

In “Sisters” by Leah Cutter the narrator’s younger sister has died and she will do everything she can to make sure that her eight-year-old sister will be remembered and have a happy afterlife.

“Dog Boy Remembers” by Jane Yolen tells the sad tale of Dog Boy whose abusive father is Redcap who just want to train the boy to be useful and doesn’t really care out him, or his mother.

In “True Calling” by Iretty Y. Patterson the narrator, Cat, tries to ensnare her true love with baking.

In “A taste of joie de vivre” by Kellen Knolan the main character, Ashley, is a fat girl in high school. She’s also agreed to be the mascot in an almost suffocating outfit. She’s bullied by the school’s pretty girls. Magic vanished from her small town during her grandmother’s time but now it’s returning.

In “The witch’s house” by Richard Bowes the narrator is taken by telepathic fay. She’s being trained to use her own telepathic gifts. She’s also a former soldier and have troubles with flashbacks to previous violence.

 

Fiction River: Time Streams

Publication year: 2014
Format: audiobook
Running time: 8 hours, 2 minute
Narrated by: Jerimy Colbert, Jane Kennedy, Kristine Kathryn Rusch, Dean Wesley Smith, Matthew Buchman. Allyson Longueira
Publisher: WMG Publishing

The stories in this collection range from a slow, contemplating story to adventure. I liked all of them but maybe I’m just easy to please. 🙂 Then again, I’ve enjoyed almost every Fiction River story I’ve listened, so maybe I just click with the editors.

I’ve never read a time travel story similar to ”Love in the time of Dust and Venom” by Sharon Joss. The main character is Keiko whose 97-year-old grandfather decides to travel in time to the future. A company has developed a time travel device and they want to test it with one person and choose the grandfather. He could die during it but wants to try it, anyway. This is a quiet, contemplative story and a good way to start the collection.

”This Time, I Return for Good” by Michael Robert Thomas is written in a series of letters, not in a chronological order.

“The Elevator in the Cornfield” by Scott William Carter starts when a father and son find an elevator on their cornfield. This starts a strange adventure.

In “Radio Free Future” by J. Steven York one man can hear transmissions from the future. Unfortunately, they don’t have all the information. Sometimes he wants to prevent the future from which the transmissions are coming.

“Unstuck” by D.K. Holmberg: Jason has a terrible row with his wife and after he’s hit by weird lightning, he slowly realizes that he’s not in the same place anymore.

In “Your Permanent Record” by Ray Vukcevich the MC tries to get rich with time travel but it’s not easy.

In “Waiting for the Coin to Drop” by Dean Wesley Smith time travel has been invented and an author is using it in order to travel back in time, research it and then write a book about what he has learned. Somewhat familiar, right? Except that in this world, time traveling is done a bit differently.

“Nice Timestream Youse Got Here” by Lee Allred: about, yep, people out to get money with time travel. And not in a ”nice” way. Unfortunately, I really didn’t care for the narrator.

“The Highlight of a Life” by Jeffrey A. Ballard: scientists in a US university have found a way to cross over to other timelines and one of the scientists decides to correct something he regrets.

“A Beautiful Friendship” by Mike Resnick & Lou J. Berger: Calley is so average that people forget him even when he’s talking to them but he has a unique ability: to travel in time. He goes to a psychologist and the meeting changes both their lives.

“Fix” by Michael A. Stackpole: A war between two timetraveling families reaches its conclusion in a very personal way.

“The Totem of Curtained Minds” by Ken Hinckley starts from a prison where one prisoner refuses to be fenced in.

“September at Wall and Broad” by Kristine Kathryn Rusch: Rusch is one of my favorite writers so it’s no coincidence that I really liked this one and I’m hoping she’ll write more in this universe. Although, I actually find the idea of having a time traveling agency accountable to the US senate frightening. A timetraveler has been sent to 1920 to explore bombing but something goes wrong. The Time Agency in 2057 has lost contact with her and sends another agent to look for her. However, they find out more than they wanted.

In “Time, Expressed As An Entree” by Robert T. Jeschonek time devouring Rainbow Leviathan eats up everything until just one day is left. Then he encounters an anomaly.