Short Stories Book Reviews | Self-Publishing Review

Review: The Ephialtes Shorts Collection by Gavin E. Parker

Following on the heels of the first book in the epic space opera Ephialtes, author Gavin E. Parker brings readers a collection of shorts from his carefully crafted world, with the intention of bridging the first and second installments of the trilogy. The second installment of the epic is planned for a fall release in 2017.

The Ephialtes universe is a rich tapestry, with the first book in the series based around the end of World War IV in 2241, where the huge and powerful air warship Ephialtes is refitted for interplanetary space travel by the dominant ruling forces […]

Review: Stories of Yesteryear: Horse & Buggy Days by Harry H. Brown

Stories of Yesteryear: Horse & Buggy Days by Harry H. Brown is a charming reprint of Harry Brown’s tales of Halifax, Massachusetts and New England at the turn of the century and earlier. Harkening back to days before cars, or even electricity, these vignettes are in turns amusing and moving, as it tells an important story about a bygone era. Much of what Brown writes about is lost to history, which makes this reprint by his family and important and worthy enterprise.

At only a page or so apiece, these stories are easy to read and ingest, and have a […]

SPR2019-02-11T09:18:32+02:00May 1st, 2017|Categories: Book Reviews, Lead Story|Tags: History Book Reviews, Short Stories Book Reviews|

Review: You Were The Last by Angie Kenny

You Were The Last by Angie Kenny is an evocative collection of ten interconnected short stories based around the idea of being alone when everyone around you is suddenly gone.

The theme of the book is mostly literal, with an unknowable and unexplainable mass disappearance occurring suddenly in the lives of each character, and leaving them alone to ponder their circumstances. The result is an introspective journey of the lives of two strangers who are faced with something they could never be fully prepared for, and how their experiences color their situations and their emotional lives.

Kenny’s writing style is […]

James Grimsby2019-02-11T09:18:57+02:00April 21st, 2017|Categories: Book Reviews, Lead Story|Tags: Short Stories Book Reviews|

Review: God, Grace, Dumb Luck by Phloyd Knucklez

God, Grace, Dumb Luck by Phloyd Knucklez

In God, Grace, Dumb Luck, Phloyd Knucklez writes self-deprecating urban prose that explores the connections between his experiences with women, and snapshots of life in short story form with down-on-their-luck characters.

In a way, this is a difficult book to read because it’s not entirely clear if the writer understands how deeply depressed he is, even if his expectations for life are so low as to wear his distress and apathy as a badge of honor. His characters seem to reflect memories and situations he himself has been in, or search for meaning in their dark and squalid settings.[…]

Cate Baum2019-02-11T09:18:45+02:00January 13th, 2017|Categories: Book Reviews, Lead Story|Tags: Poetry Book Reviews, Short Stories Book Reviews|

Still Dreaming: Poetry and Short Stories by Ellie Rose McKee

In her latest collection, Still Dreaming, Ellie Rose McKee weaves together poetry and prose to consider themes of loss and longing, dreams, and family secrets. One story concerns a coffeehouse with a mysterious regular customer, while two different stories deal with young women in distress, one on the verge of losing her sight, another considering ending her life after suffering a traumatic event.

McKee’s poems are sparse but endearing. In one, the author wishes she could flip a switch to gain sudden inner peace, “Insomnia? No problem! Flick a switch and that’ll solve ’em.” Her language is direct and […]

Lisa Butts2016-07-14T10:22:03+02:00July 14th, 2016|Categories: New Releases|Tags: Poetry Book Reviews, Short Stories Book Reviews|

Review: Prasvapa by Chand Svare Ghei

★★★½ Prasvapa by Chand Svare Ghei

Prasvapa by Chand Svare Ghei is a dreamlike collection of short stories that’s part fantasy, part crime, part universe entirely of Ghei’s vivid imagination. A Norwegian author writing in English, Ghei has created a fantastical world that has little relation to our own, past or present. Each story is introduced with an abstract epigraph, which invites the reader to explore the story’s deeper meaning. The word “Prasvapa” is Sanskrit for “dream,” and that dreamlike quality permeates each one of these evocative and mind-bending stories.

Ghei is a highly inventive writer. Without question, you won’t find another book of short […]

Henry Baum2019-01-22T11:12:19+02:00April 29th, 2016|Categories: Book Reviews, Lead Story|Tags: Short Stories Book Reviews|

Review: The Little Scary Book by Kevin Duncan

★★★★½

The Little Scary Book by Kevin Duncan is a horror story collection, with ten stories for “anyone who was ever young.” This extremely brief description is surprisingly effective at summarizing the piece; the collection is meant for the slightly younger scare-fans out there, though with just as much for an older reader to enjoy. Slip back into the shoes of your younger self for a whole bunch of frights.

It’s very simple book in look and form, though frankly quite terrifying at first glance with its text-less black-and-white depiction of a warped skull. Even as an adult, readers could […]

James Grimsby2019-01-22T11:01:18+02:00March 8th, 2016|Categories: Book Reviews|Tags: Horror Book Reviews, Middle Grade Fiction Book Reviews, Short Stories Book Reviews|

Review: Stealing from Isis by Erik Mackenzie

★★★½ Stealing from Isis by Erik Mackenzie

Erik Mackenzie’s fictional short story Stealing from Isis tells of ex-SAS Brit Richard’s adventure in wartorn Northern Iraq. He is hired to locate ancient Persian treasures that have been hidden underground for over a thousand years. His mission takes him deep into ISIS territory, using his drone ‘Hornet’ to recover the treasure and keep it safe. Richard, a self proclaimed ‘action junkie,’ is aided by French comrade Charles, and the Kurdish warriors Diyako and his daughter Jiyan. But the mission is not all it seems, and they are double-crossed.

The story gets off to an interesting start – the […]

Helen Chenaf2016-03-04T03:43:16+02:00February 8th, 2016|Categories: Book Reviews|Tags: Short Stories Book Reviews|