Casual Shorts & the ISFdb Top Short Fiction # 28: The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas by Ursula K. Leguin

Leguin, Ursula K. "The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas." New Dimensions 3, Robert Silverberg, ed. New York: Doubleday, October 1973.

This article is part of my attempt to read all the 155 stories currently (as of 1 November 2022) on the ISFdb's Top Short Fiction list. Please see the introduction and list of stories here. I am encouraging readers to rate the stories and books they have read on the ISFdb.

ISFdb Rating:   8.93/10

My Rating:        9/10

"With a clamor of bells that set the swallows soaring, the Festival of Summer came to the city
Omelas, bright-towered by the sea."

The land of Omelas is a beautiful utopia, where all the inhabitants are happy. All except for one child who is locked away and neglected. It is the abuse of this child that is the cost for all others to be happy.

An effective take on the moral conundrum of one person's eternal suffering resulting in the happiness of the multitude. The story presents a moral thought experiment: Can we allow a single individual to exist in perpetual squalor, to be tortured and shunned and isolated from all others, so that all others can live in peace and plenty? And yet the story moves beyond thought and debate, as Le Guin appears to be giving the reader an answer.

In Le Guin's version of the debate, the idyll is a seaside village celebrating its summer festival, while a child is locked away in the dark and damp of a broom closet. Le Guin's narrator reports on the village activities, and after painting the utopian picture, tells of the child. This is followed by the varying responses of the villagers to the child. The narrator's tone, though reporting, is not altogether removed. There is an underlying sense of judgement, and the voice indicates that the people of Omelas are, in effect, just like the reader, average people with a certain level of intelligence.

There is also a dark underlying element. These intelligent people, for the most part, do nothing for the child, and accept the word that the child's suffering is in effect their happiness, and yet there is no proof given, neither concrete nor heresy, that freeing the child would result in suffering for Omelas. The narrator tells it as fact, and we, like the citizens of Omelas, are expected to accept it as such, like the traditional stoning of Shirley Jackson's "The Lottery" and other truths or realities whose origins have been lost, and whose practices should be questioned.

Moreover, the narrator tells us early in the story that not only are these people intelligent, but "there is no guilt in Omelas." The idyll in Omelas includes not just material comforts, but the added benefit of being guilt-free. We are also informed that everyone in Omelas, as soon as they reach a certain age, are informed of the child and of the reason for its captivity, and moreover, are allowed to visit and witness the child's suffering in person. The citizens of Omelas are not morally upset by the captivity of the child, or if upset, they quickly accept the situation and move on: "Their tears at the bitter injustice dry when they begin to perceive the terrible justice of reality, and to accept it."

(While the ending is not transformative, it is impressionable, and I must here discuss that ending. So if you have not read the story, please do so now.)

The ones who walk away refers to those who witness the child and, as a result, leave Omelas, never to return. No one knows where these people go, only that they are never seen again. At least not in Omelas. The ones who walk away presumably feel guilt, and cannot dry their tears and move on, and therefore cannot stay. They are the morally enlightened members of the society, and abandon all the happiness and material plenty of that world to walk away on their own. This enlightenment results in their self-banishment, as they would rather be challenged by the hardships of the outside world, unable to accept the wealth provided through the suffering of one child.

A powerful story, exquisitely written.

The short story has been a favourite of critics and editors over the years. It received the 1974 Hugo for best short story, and has been included in an impressive number of major (and minor) anthologies. There are the "Best of..." and "Greatest..." collections, such as The Best Science Fiction of the Year #3 (Terry Carr, ed., Ballantine, July 1974), The Hugo Winners, Volume Three (Isaac Asimov, ed., Doubleday, August 1977), The Best of New Dimensions (Robert Silverberg, ed., Pocket Books, November 1979), The Greatest Science Fiction Stories of the Twentieth Century (Martin H. Greenberg, ed., NewStar, October 1998) and Masterpieces: The Best Science Fiction of the Twentieth Century (Orson Scott Card, ed., Ace,  November 2001). Then there are the noted fantasy anthologies such as Black Water: The Anthology of Fantastic Literature (Alberto Manguel, ed., Picador, 1983), The Fantasy Hall of Fame (Martin H. Greenberg & Robert Silverberg, eds., Arbor House, October 1983; later reprinted as The Mammoth Book of Fantasy All-Time Greats), and The Big Book of Modern Fantasy (Ann VanderMeer & Jeff VanderMeer, eds, Vintage, July 2020). There are even anthologies for horror (Wolf's Book of Terror), female horror authors (Mistresses of the Dark), dystopias (Brave New Worlds), general literature (Thirty American Stories from the Last Thirty Years) and academic literature (Backpack Literature). And several others... It was of course included in many of Le Guin's collections, initially in her first collection, The Wind's Twelve Quarters (Harper & Row, October 1975). The story is also a staple in readings for courses on literature, sociology, and philosophy. And likely others.

For more of this week's "Wednesday Short Stories," please visit Patti Abbott's blog.

Casual Shorts & the ISFdb Top Short Fiction # 27: Kaleidoscope by Ray Bradbury

Bradbury, Ray. "Kaleidoscope." Thrilling Wonder Stories, October 1949. pp 129-134

This article is part of my attempt to read all the 155 stories currently (as of 1 November 2022) on the ISFdb's Top Short Fiction list. Please see the introduction and list of stories here. I am encouraging readers to rate the stories and books they have read on the ISFdb.

ISFdb Rating:   9.00/10

My Rating:        7/10

"The first concussion cut the ship up the side like a giant can opener."

A dozen astronauts are launched into space when their rocket ship breaks open. They are each hurtling toward a different direction and a separate destination, away from one another, with about an hour remaining before they can no longer hear one another. In a brief space of time they contemplate mortality and whether a life fully lived meant anything more than one that was not, now that they will soon all be corpses.

Bradbury is in existential mode. While this is not among his best thinking stories, it is nonetheless quite good. I did find myself more affected with the thought of spinning dizzyingly across space with not a shred of control--an absolutely horrific thought--than the idea of reminiscing and regretting minutes before death. Published in 1949, the story is as dated as one would expect, with a primitive take on space travel, and an all-male cast whose envy is aimed at the one man who had experienced many women and much comfort in his lifetime. With humans colonizing Jupiter, you would think their ships and their suits would be more advanced and better equipped, but in all fairness that was not Bradbury's aim. And humanity does not evolve as quickly as technology, and the main idea is still relevant and will continue to remain relevant as our rocket ships continue to improve.

The title is well thought out. It refers to the image of one of the astronauts carried off by a small meteor shower and the metal and rock that surround him. Yet it refers simultaneously to the kaleidoscopic view of one's life, that it can be viewed at different angles and can contain beauty regardless of its experience.

Bradbury's prose is distracting, His overuse of similes (the opening brief three-sentence paragraph contains three similes, with another close behind, and then another, like a barrage of meteorites, or like thoughts flashing quickly through one's mind, or like...). 

Not my favourite Bradbury (though it's his highest ranked on the ISFdb), but nonetheless a solid story, well worth reading..

"Kaleidoscope" was among the stories selected for inclusion in Bradbury's famed The Illustrated Man. It has been reprinted excessively over the years.

Casual Shorts & the ISFdb Top Short Fiction # 26: Enemy Mine by Barry B. Longyear

Longyear, Barry B. "Enemy Mine." Isaac Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine, September 1979.

This article is part of my attempt to read all the 155 stories currently (as of 1 November 2022) on the ISFdb's Top Short Fiction list. Please see the introduction and list of stories here. I am encouraging readers to rate the stories and books they have read on the ISFdb.

ISFdb Rating:   9.00/10

My Rating:        9/10

"The Dracon's three-fingered hand flexed."

On an unexplored planetoid, a human and a Dracon (or "Drac") have crash landed during a battle between the two species. They must survive both the inhospitable landscape and their hatred for each other.

Reads like the premise of many a Hollywood script, and as expected, the two learn to work together and eventually develop a strong bond during their long months of confinement. However, unlike many stories that follow this plot-line, interracial or not, "Enemy Mine" has an engaging plot and is ultimately a genuinely touching story. The interracial aspects are strong, though they are to be expected (the racist human later experiences racism directed toward him when visiting Dracon society, etc.), but the friendship and commitment to another's cultural responsibilities is what I find mostly intriguing.

Along with hefty thematic elements, Longyear builds an excellent environment on Fyrine IV, the planet on which the two are stranded. The pair of enemies begin by struggling against the extreme elements, and then must build a life for themselves by seeking proper shelter, food and making clothes and other necessities with the little they have at hand. The details in which they learn to build and stitch are reminiscent of Daniel Defoe's Robinson Crusoe, who also eventually discovers a companion. The story can be expanded by discovering more of Fyrine IV, and Longyear did expand the novella into a full-fledged novel in 1998 as "Enemy Mine: The Author's Cut," published alongside new stories set in the same universe, as The Enemy Papers (Borealis, 1998). I have not read the works but will likely do so at some time.

Another aspect of the novella that I quite like, though it is not discussed too much, is the notion that the war between humans and Dracs is for naught, as our human mentions at the story's opening that the battle was essentially pointless, in a part of space no one really wanted. This is elaborated later on, but only slightly, and we are to understand that the hatred between the two species developed from a chance encounter as they were each attempting to expand their species. Yet there is no value in that part of space, so the war is driven partly by pride, the desire to conquer and perhaps the need each species has to burrow unhindered into deeper space. One thing we discover later in the story is that Dracons and humans are, despite their obvious differences, essentially the same species. Like humans they tend to other those who are unlike them, placing themselves on a higher rung. They have religion, a kind of caste system, and a knack for bureaucracy. Not entirely original, but it serves to drive home much of the story's thematic concerns.

"Enemy Mine" swept the novella awards for stories published in 1979, being awarded the Hugo, the Nebula and the Locus in the novella category. Six years following its publication it was released as a major motion picture, Enemy Mine (1985), directed by Wolfgang Petersen, and starring Dennis Quaid and Louis Gossett, Jr. I first watched the movie, in French, around 1987 or '88 with my brother, and read the novella not too long afterwards in the anthology Nebula Winners Fifteen (ed. Frank Herbert, Harper & Row, 1981). My brother and I both enjoyed the movie, and I loved the novella, so much so that I gave it to my mother to read, who, an avid reader, disliked science fiction. She too loved the novella, and may have shed a tear if memory serves. I re-read the novella a couple years ago and enjoyed it once again then, and re-read it yet again a few days ago, and it holds up nicely.

Casual Shorts & the ISFdb Top Short Fiction # 25: The Machine Stops by E. M. Forster

Forster, E. M. "The Machine Stops." The Oxford and Cambridge Review, Michaelmas Term (November) 1909.

This article is part of my attempt to read all the 155 stories currently (as of 1 November 2022) on the ISFdb's Top Short Fiction list. Please see the introduction and list of stories here. I am encouraging readers to rate the stories and books they have read on the ISFdb.

ISFdb Rating:   9.00/10

My Rating:        8/10

"Imagine, if you can, a small room, hexagonal in shape, like the cell of a bee."

In the distant future, humanity has reached a climax in their evolution, as humans have nestled into a stagnant existence. Some time before, people believed that it would be to their benefit to construct a great machine that spans the globe underground, and in which now are contained many cells that are home to individuals. Society is controlled by what appears to be artificial intelligence (as viewed in 1909), and humans are kept at bay: distracted by ideas, made to fear the outside, controlled birth and weaning, while babies born with special abilities, such as advanced athletics, are "destroyed." It appears the Machine is looking out for the interest of the people, but the people are instead being trained to worship the Machine.

People rarely leave their cells, and have access to an assortment of buttons, each of which, by being pressed, provides the person with their immediate need: feeding, bathing, communicating with others in primitive audio or video, listening to music, attending lectures, and so forth. Like today's internet, people can also access information, texts and music of the past. Thanks to the Machine (now capital M), humanity no longer progresses, and people pursue frivolous acts, seeking new ideas and preparing to share them with others either through private communication or public lectures. This pursuit of "ideas" is intended to prevent humans from accessing true Ideas--those associated with their existence. Like television and the internet which distract more than they educate, Forster manages to foresee a future that is close to today's reality. The story seems to have had a resurgence during the pandemic lockdown, as we were living in cells and pursuing frivolous activities.

The novelette focuses on Vashti, a woman content to be a part of the Machine. In a moment of pure irony, Vashti encounters the greatest form of ideas in the use of her imagination, as she views the clouds while riding in an air-ship: "Their shapes were fantastic; one of them resembled a prostate man. 'No ideas here', murmured Vashti, and hid the Caucasus behind a metal blind." This need to distance oneself from the outside world is an act of limiting thought and imagination. True progress is technological, not social, as "progress had come to mean the progress of the Machine."

Vashti receives a call from her son, who is interested in the outdoors and in the stars, concepts that make Vashti uncomfortable. Her son requests a visit from her, and reluctantly she agrees. In person, he admits to having committed a great crime: he has found a way to the outside world, and gave in to his need to pursue it, even though the act can result in "homelessness": being left outside to die.

An extraordinary story and well ahead of its time. The story appeared during a time of transition for dystopian fiction. We are moving away from the fantasy dystopias of Sir Thomas Moore, Jonathan Swift, and Samuel Butler, and toward more technological and science fiction dystopias. Forster apparently wrote the story as a response to the utopian fiction of H. G. Wells, who frequently wrote positively about technological advance, and believed that technology would bring much good to mankind despite potential dangers. Forster's vision is evidently darker. Later twentieth century dystopian novels have clearly borrowed or were influenced by "The Machine Stops." Forster himself was familiar with the precursors to dystopian fiction and early science fiction writing, and forged his work entirely around technology, replacing leadership with artificial intelligence and the dystopian hero who was an outsider and, with Forster, is now born into the dystopian world, rather than the Gullivers of the past who wander into their dystopian realities, whether they be lost lands or a present figure awakening in the future.

Casual Shorts & the ISFdb Top Short Fiction # 24: The Cask of Amontillado by Edgar Allan Poe

Poe, Edgar Allan. "The Cask of Amontillado." Godey's Magazine and Lady's Book 33, November 1846; New England Weekly Review, 14 November 1846.

This article is part of my attempt to read all the 155 stories currently (as of 1 November 2022) on the ISFdb's Top Short Fiction list. Please see the introduction and list of stories here. I am encouraging readers to rate the stories and books they have read on the ISFdb.

ISFdb Rating:   9.00/10

My Rating:        10/10

Illustration by Arthur Rakham,
for Tales of Mystery and Imagination,
J. B. Lippincott, 1935

"The thousand injuries of Fortunato I had borne as I best could; but when he ventured upon insult, I vowed revenge."

One of literature's strongest opening sentences launches the reader into the confession of narrator Montresor's horrible act of vengeance against the insulting Fortunato.

As with "The Tell-Tale Heart," Poe does not directly state the motivation for the need to commit murder, and we can only speculate as to what this single insult was to drive Montresor to commit the crime, when a thousand other injuries did not. While the "thousand" is hyperbolic, it is understood through Montresor's descriptions that Fortunato, a well-to-do elite Italian with pride and an ego, is capable of injuring others in an offhanded way. Fortunato makes flippant comments without thought, and is entirely dismissive of the only other person mentioned in the confession, another Italian wine connoisseur by the name of Luchesi. In the brief narrative, Montresor is able to portray the arrogance of Fortunato, who sits atop social circles and despite regularly committing offences, appears otherwise friendly and accommodating, so that his behaviour, kind or offensive, is simply his natural self. He may not have disliked Montresor and simply caused injury in the wake of his stumbling, not always sober path, via flippant remarks not meant to injure others but instead to uphold his own pride. And yet this last insult must have been a doozy, as Montresor reveals himself to be a man of conscience and, unlike the narrator of "The Tell-Tale Heart," of moral awareness. (More on this later.)

Montresor chooses to seek his revenge on carnival day, knowing Fortunato, a connoisseur of wine, would be inebriated and hence off his guard. He would lead the drunken Fortunato with the promise of some pure amontillado, a high quality Italian sherry. Montresor plays on the other's vanity, telling him he needs an expert to be able to identify whether he has purchased true amontillado or wasted his money on mere sherry, and plays on the man's ego by mentioning that he can instead seek the advice of competitor Luchesi. Clearly Fortunato is prideful and egoist.

In contrast, Montresor is overly sensitive. He refers to Fortunato as "my friend" and treats him as a  most beloved companion, though admits early that this treatment was part of his great plan. As they stumble through the catacombs, he says to Fortunato, "you are happy, as once I was," as though poking at him, insinuating that his own happiness left him at the moment of Fortunato's insult. A sensitive man, Montresor, who over an insult plots to kill a man, claims the insult is the reason for his unhappiness, and following the murder suffers a half-century of guilt. The man's disintegration is his sensitivity.

Despite leading Fortunato through his family catacombs, patiently and with intent, Montresor soon suffers pangs of guilt, and maintains that suffering for fifty years. After immuring Fortunato, Montresor is stricken with guilt over what he has done. "My heart grew sick," he says, just as the last stone of his plan has been laid. He attributes the feeling to the dampness of the catacombs, but the wiser reader is aware that the sickness he experiences is moral. Montresor concludes his narrative with: "For the half of a century no mortal has disturbed them. In pace requiescat!" Rest in peace. This solidifies the notion that Montresor, though he acted cold-heartedly, is now burdened with remorse. As some wise critics have indicated, by walling up Fortunato, Montresor has walled himself up, as he narrates this tale half a century after the events, and in that half a century has been burdened by the guilt of his actions.

At the time of its publication, "The Cask of Amontillado" was not among Poe's most popular stories. In fact, it was reprinted only once in his lifetime (compared with at least ten printings of "The Tell-Tale Heart" between 1843-1845, or fourteen printings of "The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar, 1845-1849). However, it has become among the most anthologized of his short stories, finding its way into anthologies for young adults, as well as horror, crime and literary anthologies for adults, and anthologies used in colleges and universities. For a glimpse of its popularity over the years, visit the story's ISFdb page. Its growing popularity may be that the story needs a closer reading to uncover the narrator's guilt, which is where the emotional impact of the story lies. The emotional impact in "The Tell-Tale Heart," to compare, lies perhaps in the dichotomy between the narrator's love of the old man, and the passionate need to kill him, which is more readily available than the subtler heart of "The Cask of Amontillado."

Casual Shorts & the ISFdb Top Short Fiction #23: The Tell-Tale Heart by Edgar Allan Poe

Poe, Edgar Allan. "The Tell-Tale Heart." Pioneer, January 1843; Dollar Newspaper, 25 January 1843.

This article is part of my attempt to read all the 155 stories currently (as of 1 November 2022) on the ISFdb's Top Short Fiction list. Please see the introduction and list of stories here. I am encouraging readers to rate the stories and books they have read on the ISFdb.

ISFdb Rating:   9.00/10

My Rating:        10/10

"True! — nervous — very, very dreadfully nervous I had been and am; but why will you say that I am mad?"

Artwork by Virgil Finlay,
from Fantastic, Fall 1952

A man tells of a murder he has committed, attempting desperately to convince the listener of his sanity. The narrative is driven by a combination of character and plot, as the narrator's skewed judgement drives his actions. The main plot point--the narrator has killed a man--is quickly revealed, as Poe is interested in the teller more than he is in the tale.

The narration centres around the murderer's mental state, with emphasis on his heightened senses, and the detailing of the two major scenes: the murder itself and the police interrogation. Everything else is up for conjecture, and there is much conjecture to be sought. The narrator is more focused on the quieter, indistinguishable sounds, the heartbeats rather than the shrieks. This ends up being his eventual undoing, as he misinterprets ticking for the beating of the dead man's heart. The title emphasizes this, but it is ironic, as the heart is obviously silent, and cannot tell a tale, nor tattle tale (as was Poe's intention for the title). It is not the heart that tells, but the mind, the same mind that led the narrator to commit the horrible deed.

"The tell-Tale Heart" is among Poe's shortest stories, and its brevity is the result of the stripping of much detail. Poe also employs his own form of minimalism, and motive for the crime and the relationship between the killer and his victim are not directly revealed. As a result there is a good deal of work to be done by the reader in order to understand the relationship between murderer and victim, as well as the motive for the crime. Poe does sprinkle the test with hints for both, and over the years several interesting theories have been developed.

Many interpretations suggest the narrator is related to the "old man," either a son-father or nephew-uncle relationship. However, Poe inserts a few small clues to dissuade the interpretation that the two are related. We assume an age gap as the narrator refers to his victim as an old man. Beyond this, the relationship appears to be more business-like, somewhat formal as they live together and yet all of the old man's belongings are stored in his own room, and the narrator examines them without an emotional response, as though the objects are foreign to him. We are given the impression that the narrator owns the house, as it is he who answers the door when the police arrive, and it is he the police is interested in. He gives the investigators a tour of the house, accessing all of its rooms. The old man, then, is possibly a lodger. That his single room is filled with all his belongings, as mentioned above, we can assume the other rooms in the house are off limits to him, at least to a degree, or at least not in his possession as he would have his little trinkets all over the place, not just in the single room he occupies. Poe is also specific that the house is in the midst of an urban setting. This is an important point, since at the time houses along urban streets were built side-by-side, attached to one another. Poe reveals that it is a neighbour who calls the police, having heard noise. This tight-housed urban landscape is used in many of Poe's stories, notable "The Black Cat," whose geography is also integral to the story's plot.

Given these details, my interpretation of the story is that the men are unrelated, yet have been living together for some time, as there is an intimacy between them. "I loved the old man," says the narrator, and we have no reason to not believe this statement. The "old man" is used as a form of endearment, and is repeated each time without disdain. So why would this possible landlord want to murder a beloved old man whom, so he tells us, has no money or valuables, and whom he professes to love?

The narrator claims he wanted to destroy the old man's eye which he sees akin to that of a vulture. The narrator separates the eye from the man, so that he loves the man, but hates the eye. He is unable to harm the man, and it is the eye that he wishes to destroy. He is in this way excising himself from committing murder, as he is destroying an object and not a person. But why would he want to destroy this eye? It is "a pale blue eye, with a film over it," and every time the eye "fell upon" the narrator, his "blood ran cold." It is a creepy, ugly eye--the eye of a buzzard. The old man would watch the narrator, we suspect, and that look perhaps held a hint of judgement or disapproval, or simple wariness as the narrator has heightened senses and likely behaves daily with this defect. Perhaps there is no specific look given by the old man, but the narrator's heightened senses and paranoia may lead him to believe that there is. Described as a vulture's eye, we understand that a vulture is a scavenger, seeking carcasses rather than hunting and gathering, so that it is possible the narrator believed the old man was coveting his home or his belongings, as the old man in his advanced age had so little, and was forced to be content lodging in the home of this madman.

And so the conjecture can run on. Why Poe left us so little detail in this story is not problematic. He is interested in the character, his voice and the irony of his own undoing. Yet the food for thought left behind is of value to the reader, as we have such a short but rich text to appreciate.

For more of this week's Short Story Wednesday, please visit Patti Abbott's blog.

Louise Penny, The Best American Mysteries Stories 2018

Penny, Louise, ed. The Best American Mysteries Stories 2018 (Otto Penzler, series editor). Boston & New York: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2018.

The Best American Mystery Stories 2018 at Goodreads

Overall rating:     6/10

In my attempt at reading more contemporary fiction, I selected this book for mystery (with another "Best of" anthology for contemporary horror, and some modern literature for a novel). So much reading to get through, I had little time for writing. Now that I am the end of that stint, I can write about it all, beginning with my least favourite of the batch.

The selection of stories in The Best American Mysteries Stories 2018 is somewhat varied, though there appears to be a slight shift toward more adventure or thriller stories, where the mystery transforms into a climactic showdown or chase, and where the mystery element feels almost secondary to the action, like a standard Hollywood movie. This is not necessarily a bad thing, but for many of these stories, such as David Edgerley Gates's "Cabin Fever" and David A. Hendrickson's "Death in Serengeti," we know how it is going end, so other elements need to be elevated and the action shortened. Though I understand many readers may prefer the adrenaline brought on by the action, this is not my sub-genre of choice.

Less varied is the gender of the authors. Of the twenty stories in the anthology, a whopping two are written by women. Ten percent. According to the UN, there is a greater representation of women in parliament than there is in this anthology.

(I wonder how much the selections in these best-of books are influenced by the stories' authors, so editors & publishers choose entries not on the individual story merits, but on their author or a combination of the two, to help increase sales. The best stories here are not necessarily by the more recognizable authors. Both women are big names.)

As usual I prefer the stories that are character-based, and the real stand-out for me is T. C. Boyle's "The Designee," which I read as a modern tragedy. Other strong stories are Rob Hart's "Takeout," the excellently titled opening story by Louis Bayard, "Banana Triangle Six," Scott Loring Sanders's "Waiting on Joe," and "All Our Yesterday's" by Andrew Klavan. I also like the the Joyce Carol Oates novelette, though I feel it does not belong in this book. The rest are pretty forgettable.

Banana Triangle Six by Louis Bayard     7/10

Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine, July/August 2017

Eighty-four year-old Mr. Hank is living out his days at the Morning Has Broken home for the elderly. He is grumpily abandoning his lunch and heading to his room for a nap. His memory seems to be fading, and he barely recognizes the woman, Dr. Landis, who appears unexpectedly in his room to run a few small tests. A touching story, tightly written, and a good one to launch the collection.

Y is for Yangchuan Lizard by Andrew Bourelle     7/10

D is for Dinosaur, edited by Rhonda Parrish, Edmonton: Poise and Pen, 2017

To pay off a debt, a young man sells drugs from a bar for the Chechen mafia. When his friend gets ahold of a rare bag of coke mixed with dinosaur bones, the mafia is prepared to commit murder in order to get their hands on the stash. A pretty good read with some standard twists, elevated by a nice dark undertone of hopelessness.

The Designee by T. C. Boyle     8/10

The Iowa Review, 47:2, Fall 2017

I have yet to read a story by T. C. Boyle (author of "Greasy Lake") that I do not like. In this one, a retired elderly professor is caught in a mail scheme that sees him slowly sending his life savings overseas. A painful read, as we know what is transpiring and must be content to continue amid frustration and outrage. This story's designation here as a mystery is arguable: while it has elements of mystery, so does every short story, yet this one doesn't hinge on any moment of discovery or climax. It is more of a character study and a portrait of a very real scheme that has seen so many retirees taken for so much money. Very well written with a heartbreaking finish.

Smoked by Michael Bracken     6/10

Noir at the Salad Bar, edited by Verena Rose, Harriette Sacker, and Shawn Reilly Simmons, Level Best Books, 2017

In small town Texa,s Beau James is running the Quarryville Smokehouse. When his photo appears in a local paper, he fears he has been outed as he settled in town via the witness protection program. A fairly average story with a noisy climax.

The Wild Side of Life by James Lee Burke     6/10

The Southern Review, Winter 2017

Oil driller has an affair with the wife of Louisiana bigshot who runs the local police. Some familiar events, focus on PTSD following a tragic event many years before, and a rushed and dwindling finish. The title refers to a country song.

Too Much Time by Lee Child     6.5/10

No Middle Name, Delacorte Press, 2017

While walking through a plaza minding his own business, Jack Reacher witnesses the snatch-theft of a handbag and gets involved in the investigation, the cops pulling him in as a key witness. This novella is my first Jack Reacher, and I did enjoy it, though it could have been shorter. I guess it took just too much time reading this...

The Third Panel by Michael Connolly     6/10

Alive in Shape and Color, edited by Lawrence Block, 2017

Police investigate a brutal crime scene at a model home in an abandoned development area seventy miles from Los Angeles that was being used as a meth cookhouse. An FBI agent arrives to determine if it matches other similar crimes attributed to a group calling themselves The Third Panel. Pretty good short story with a minor, semi-expected twist.

Gun Work by John M. Floyd     6/10

Coast to Coast: Private Eyes from Sea to Shining Sea, edited by Andrew McAleer and Paul D. Marks, Down & Out Books, 2017

A western tale of mystery. Investigator Will Parker is sent to uncover the truth about a twenty-two year incident involving a retired sheriff and the shooting of a wanted criminal. Average story with an expected finish

Cabin Fever by David Edgerley Gates     6/10

Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine, September/October 2017

Ranger Hector is caught in a storm in the midst of the wild, while a pair of cold-blooded murderers are on the loose after a prison bus turns over. The story shifts between Hector and the two escaped convicts who take him hostage, and the FBI and the ranger's girlfriend medic who try to locate him, while coordinating a wildfire triggered by lightning. This is a common formula and I was not too invested in this one, as we can guess early on how it will turn out.

Small Signs by Charlaine Harris     6/10

Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine, November/December 2017

High school principal and former trainer of government operatives Anne DeWitt is surprised by a visit from former colleagues. It appears money has been laundered from the training camp, and Anne's replacement at the camp is desperate to discover the culprit. This is part of a series of short stories featuring Anne DeWitt with her new identity. This one was alright, but the quick scenes needed to be interspersed with so much background information for those unfamiliar with the series (such as myself), that it only became interesting half-way through.

Takeout by Rob Hart     8/10

Mystery Tribune, Issue No. 2, Summer 2017

To pay off a gambling debt to the Chinese gambling house and restaurant, The Happy Dumpling, Harold makes special takeout deliveries for owner Mr. Mo. He does not, however, deliver food, but rather messages in the form of seemingly random items. Harold wants out, but behind on alimony payments and wanting to get on the good side of his former wife and their six year-old daughter, he has no choice but to continue. Until an option comes to light.

A character driven story that also presents a great situation and environment, this story is a slice of life, a few days amid a hefty sequence of events. Well written and well framed, each moment is both necessary and interesting, and honestly I liked the scenario so much, with its not-too-likable protagonist, I would have read a good deal more. In addition, it has something many of the stories in the anthology do not: a great ending.

Death in the Serengeti by David H. Hendrickson     6/10

Fiction River #24: Pulse Pounders Adrenaline, edited by Kevin J. Anderson, July 2017

Senior Serengeti park ranger Makinda comes across the carcasses of several elephants, their ivory tusks sawed off. Shortly thereafter his jeep explodes, followed by additional explosions in the distance as the vehicles of the other rangers in the district also explode. Makinda becomes aware that he has just evaded being murdered, and that there are dangerous poachers in the vicinity who have likely killed his colleagues, leaving him alone to fight the threat.

The most interesting aspect of the story is the tragic and cold-blooded poaching business, which genuinely enraged me as I was reading. While this made me emotionally invested in the story, this is the kind of adventure story in which I am not normally interested. Also, because I was emotionally invested, I was hoping for a better finishing off of the culprits, something more poetic and long-lasting, whereas they were simply done away with all too quickly.

The story received the 2018 Derringer Award for "Best Long Story" (4,001-8,000 words).

All Our Yesterdays by Andrew Klavan     7/10

Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine, March/April 2017

During the First World War, Brooks is injured during a charge from his trench, and is sent to England for a lengthy recuperation period. He finds that everything has changed--not just the world around him, but his own self as well. He experiences blackouts and sudden, strong bouts of fear and anger, often associated with inexplicable rage. He longs for a former time, during the late nineteenth century when times were easier and women, in particular, were purer. He befriends his older doctor with whom he feels the need to reminiscence, yet while Dr. Haven tries to explain that it was not a better time, that there was darkness even then, Brooks's desire to talk about the past does not dampen, and his blackouts, which he keeps a secret, seem to become more severe.

What a long description for this excellent story that had me glued. A great finish as well that links the details nicely.

PX Christmas by Martin Limón     6/10

The Usual Santas: A Collection of Soho Crime Christmas Capers, (no credited editor), Random House, 2017

In the Korean demilitarized zone, a pair of American army officers investigate the abuse of the military PX shop, a shop designed for the military and their spouses where imported items can be purchased at low cost. Some wives abuse the shops by making their purchases and selling them in Seoul for great profit, and one of these is sighted by our officers.

The premise of the story is its strongest aspect, as the plot to re-take the wife and make sure Huk leaves everyone alone is less interesting than the mechanisms of the US military in the DMZ.

Windward by Paul D. Marks     6/10

Coast to Coast: Private Eyes from Sea to Shining Sea, edited by Andrew McAleer and Paul D. Marks, Down & Out Books, 2017

Private investigator receives a visit from no-nonsense successful film producer claiming his wife has disappeared and that the police believe she has simply run off. PI investigates, theorizes, things happen and mystery is resolved. Fairly average tale with fairly average PI.

Phantomwise: 1972 by Joyce Carol Oates     7/10

Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, September/October 2017

Undergraduate student Alyce is seduced and impregnated by one of her young instructors, who soon thereafter distances himself from her. In the meantime, Alyce befriends visiting professor and successful poet Roland, who hires her to help collect his papers.

While there is a clear element of mystery, and even crime, these are relegated to the backdrop, as the story focuses on Alyce and her complicated relationship with Roland. This is also the most interesting element of the story, so that as a mystery it is weaker than as a character study. I sympathized with both Alyce and Roland, and would even have liked to see their relationship continue to develop. The ending moves away from this and does its own thing.

Rule Number One by Alan Orloff     7/10

Snowbound: Best New England Crime Stories 2017, Shawn Reilly Simmons, Harriette Sackler, Verena Rose, editors, Level best Books, 2017

A thief helps his aging, retiring mentor by allowing him to take part in one final heist. And of course, there is much double-crossing. A familiar set-up, and you can figure out the ending at the last leg, but it is nonetheless an enjoyable, well written story.

The Apex Predator by William Dylan Powell     6/10

Switchblade #1, Scotch Rutherford ed., 2017

Professional diver is hired to help police locate sunken cars in an attempt to close unsolved disappearances. When preparing a sunken Camaro and its pair of police corpses for ascent, our diver notices there are hundred dollar bills floating around in the vehicle. Down on his luck, he decides to keep the stash for himself.

Pretty good, but the first half is far more interesting than the second, and I didn't care for for the jokey ending. I really liked the concept of recovering sunken vehicles and would read more on that topic.

Waiting on Joe by Scott Loring Sanders     8/10

Shooting Creek and Other Stories, Down & Out Books, March 2017

Christmas tree plantation worker loves his dog, so much that he whittles wood into little mutt statues. That mutt digs close to the house and comes up with a human foot. This leads to so much, and sets up expectations which it nicely tears down as the narrative progresses. Highly enjoyable, not only in plotting but also in tone. The narrator's voice is a blast and the story ends as well as it begins.

Breadfruit by Brian Silverman     6/10

Mystery Tribune, Fall 2017

Former firefighter and current bar owner in St. Pierre, Len Buonfiglio, finds a pair of local breadfruit on his bar. Shortly thereafter he is visited by a man claiming interest in exporting breadfruit. A great opening wanes as the story gets into its final action sequence, with which I am less interested. However the focus on breadfruit and the conversation between the men, as well as the locale and surrounding characters, all work well.