Welcome to the Lair!
Exploring dark alleys. Discovering new nightmares.
Revisiting the masters.
Not all villains succeed at being evil. Not all diseases deserve the word plague. Fate can be ironic indeed. The chilling short story, The Giving Plague, follows microbiologist Forry, a self-proclaimed cynic, jealous of his “boy wonder” colleague who discovers a unique virus that could change humanity. Transmitted by blood donations, the virus manipulates humans toward altruism and charity. Forry decides that he will do anything to take credit for this discovery…until a more deadly alien virus infects the human race, forcing him to wrestle with his own inner demons.
The Giving Plague by David Brin is a sci-fi horror story about a non-violent virus outbreak which has deadly consequences years later. The science is fascinating, the fiction is horrifying, and, as any sci-fi fan will tell you, stories like this one have a way of predicting the future. How could forced altruism be a bad thing? Read on and see for yourselves...
As always,
AstraDaemon
P.S. This is one of those rare times I highly recommend reading the author's note at the end of the story.
Charlie is a man who follows the rules. He is a man who is never late. He is a man who always obeys.
This is the most important day of Charlie's life, and he is running late.
The Hour of the Time by Vincent Hobbes is the second story I've read by this author and I'm thinking his writing style just isn't my cup of tea. This author seems to think being vague is somehow clever, but it's simply annoying.
Charlie doesn't like to be late, and, oh hey, there's a big mystery about what it is he's late for...and when it's finally revealed, no one will care because Charlie is annoying and this flash fiction is like a soggy match that won't burn.
As always,
AstraDaemon
A man travelling a broken world tries to make his way through the city, only to discover the world isn't quite as dead as he first thought.
The City by A.M. Halkyard reminded me a little of The Road by Cormac McCarthy. Although a flash fiction piece, this story has a surprising amount of drama, action and suspense. The man's name is never revealed and readers never learn what events led up to this post-apocalypse, other than a mention of war. Halkyard does give a reason why the man is not likely to ever trust another person, which gives an important clue about his decision-making. Overall, this is a great social commentary on human behavior.
As always,
AstraDaemon
A lone man drives into swamplands on a dark night. Far away from any civilization, he hunts for something mysterious armed only with a map. A series of curious and chilling incidences leave him wondering if he’s the one doing the hunting at all.
Tracking Darkness by Elliott S. Clark is a strange piece of flash fiction. The author spends half the story dragging out William's drive into the middle of nowhere, being extremely vague. When the reason for his journey is finally revealed, most of the action is limited to a vision, and the author remains stingy with details. With the ending being so mysterious, I'm wondering why Clark bothered writing this at all.
I think the story could've have been much better if the author had shared more of William's plan with the readers. I prefer Clark's story, Road Trip, over this one.
As always,
AstraDaemon
Runaway male slave fleeing across the desert is pursued by an android tracker.
Android Tracker by Abe Evergreen, author of the Dark City series, is a flash fiction story about the bittersweet taste of freedom. Sometimes the grass isn't greener on the side...sometimes the grass doesn't grow at all. Facing a harsh landscape, Ten encounters one obstacle after another during his escape.
The setting appears to be in a dystopian future of our world, with a reference to constellations seen from Earth. Almost nothing is revealed about the society Ten is fleeing from, but the hyper-focus on the slave and his fears creates an overwhelming level of suspense.
The ending is an unpredictable shock. I don't think the author intended it to be at all funny, but I had to laugh...for dark, ironic reasons. Evergreen definitely knows how to create quality science fiction.
As always,
AstraDaemon
The depths are dark and treacherous for even the deadliest of predators, and what may appear to be prey may just be an even deadlier ruse.
A dark political thriller set in a feudalistic underwater kingdom. It is not a question of if, but when the madness will consume you.
Blood In The Water by Charles Hash is full of political intrigue, with characters making moves as if playing a game of chess. I had the strangest feeling of déjà vu while reading this story...I think this flash fiction drama is reminiscent of the fantasy fiction I loved so much in the 1980s. The use of non-human characters adds an extra depth, no pun intended.
This underwater family feud is very different from anything else I've read by Charles Hash. I'd like to see the author revisit this genre again. Perhaps a prequel novel revealing exactly how Agulia rose to power and the various ways his reign fractured the kingdom.
As always,
AstraDaemon
My family told me a story of a sadistic man, shrouded in white, who terrorized the children of Roanoke Road. They called him The White Man. That street has another secret it will not reveal freely.
The White Man by S.O. Bailey is a tragic short story about the kidnapping of a young girl and the efforts made by the neighborhood children to find her. Unfortunately for the children, there is more than one threat on Roanoke Road.
Bailey has taken something similar to an urban legend and used a creative mix of suspense and innocence to create a captivating campfire tale. I only wish the author had spent a little less time on Billy and more time on the previous sightings of the White Man.
As always,
AstraDaemon
