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Book Review: The Mind Altar: A Novel of Subterranean Terror by Michael Just

 

The Mind Altar: A Novel of Subterranean Terror by Michael Just

Giddings Street Press, 2018

ISBN 13:9781530441297

Available: Paperback, Kindle edition

 

The Mind Altar: A Novel of Subterranean Terror by Michael Just is head and shoulders above most novels in the science fiction, horror and mystery genres. The author describes scenes in just the right amount of detail to place the reader within the story.  He reveals the personalities and motives of the characters gradually, keeping the reader engaged.  His plot has twists and turns that keep the reader continually guessing about the story’s outcome.  The ending is no less complicated and intriguing, seemingly doubling back on itself three times.

Taking place in the near future, the U.S. government sends a team of black-ops mercenaries to the desert in the Four Corners region of the country.  Communications with a secret facility buried in a mountain, called Bright Angel, went dead a few weeks earlier.  Each of the seven-team members has a special skill, and knows only part of their mission.  Our protagonist, Eurydice Wiles, is an expert in resurrecting programs and data from crashed computers.  She is buttoned up, avoids emotional contact and has no memories from the age of seven to eight.

As Eury and her teammates explore the myriad of Bright Angel’s rooms and caverns, they discover hollowed-out, plasticized bodies with no heads, preserved brains cut in-half, and dozens of crisp, burned bodies.  All computer hard drives have been smashed.  Eury intuits that the entire tunneled mountain is a computer and that ghostly visions and voices are part of its programs.  Did the staff and inmates go mad and kill each other?  One-by-one the team members are dying.  What will Eury and the other survivors find when they get to the Mind Altar at the heart of the mountain? Highly recommended.

Contains: Mild sexual situations, moderate gore.

 

Reviewed by Robert D. Yee

Posted on December 5, 2018 by , Reply

Book Review: Future Fiction: New Dimensions in International Science Fiction edited by Bill Campbell and Francesco Verso

Future Fiction: New Dimensions in International Science Fiction Edited by Bill Campbell and Francesco Verso

Rosarium Publishing, 2018

ISBN 13: 978-0998705910

Available: Paperback, Kindle

 

Future Fiction is a new anthology of short science fiction from around the world. Representing African countries, China, Spain, and others, this collection seeks to bring the reader a sampling of some very fine, if mature, short science fiction. The stories here seem to approach the genre much the way The Twilight Zone did: they are dark, unique and somewhat surreal takes on what the future will be like.

 

Standouts include Nina Munteau’s “The Way of Water”, which imagines a future where water has become currency, and to run out of your cash is to literally die of thirst. Tendai Huchu’s “Hostbods” explores what it really is like to have your consciousness placed within a fresh new body. Xia Jia’s “TongTong’s Summer” is a wonderful look at caregiving for an older relative when you’re a child, during the summer, and you have a prototype android to help you. These stories really draw you in, and give you an excellent sense of science fiction, horror, and dark fantasy from around the world. The target audience is definitely most appropriate for teens and adults.  I highly recommend Future Fiction: New Dimensions in International Science Fiction, for any library looking to diversify its short story collections with quality fiction.

 

Contains: Gore, Violence, Graphic Sex, Adult Situations

Reviewed by Ben Franz

 

 

Posted on November 5, 2018 by , Reply

Book Review: A Deep Horror That Was Very Nearly Awe by J.R. Hamantaschen

A Deep Horror That Was Very Nearly Awe by J.R. Hamantaschen

Amazon Digital Services, 2018

ISBN: 978-1722219901

Available: Paperback, Kindle edition

 

A Deep Horror That Was Very Nearly Awe is Hamantaschen’s third short story collection, and it is just as enjoyable as his first collection, You Shall Never Know Security. More than just dark and macabre horror stories, Hamantaschen crafts stories that explore the human condition in all its many emotions. They are not, however, for the faint of heart.

 

The last of the book’s stories, “I Will Soon Be Home and Never Need Anyone Ever Again”, is more of a novella than a short story. Thomas is a smart 14-year-old, with a bit of an arrogant streak, who is bullied in school. Most of it is verbal, but it eventually becomes physical. Thomas meets Brandon, who wants to help Thomas with his problem. Though intrigued, and happy to have a friend, Thomas refuses Brandon’s help. Thomas’ life continues into adulthood, though not necessarily as he would have liked. This is an excellent story, and you really feel for Thomas and almost hope he takes Brandon up on his offer. Who can’t relate to a kid being bullied at some point in their lives? While Thomas can be annoying, Hamantaschen writes him with much empathy, even while Thomas denies his own desperate need for friendship.

Other fantastic stories include “That’s Just the Way Things Are These Days”, about a rare and strange disorder that affects a small portion of boys during puberty in a very unexpected manner; “Rococo Veins and Lurid Stains”, about a teenager contemplating suicide and what drives her thoughts; “Faithfully and Lovingly”, about a young couple destroyed by tragic events, though the tragedy ultimately continues; and “Story Title Revealed About Halfway Through”, about a young man who feels no emotions and cares for nothing, though a new treatment may have brought him too far in the other direction.

All the stories in A Deep Horror That Was Very Nearly Awe are highly engaging. Hamantaschen has a way of writing that completely draws you in and makes you feel something—anything—for all his characters.

Recommended

Contains some adult language and (minor) sexual situations; also contains some gore

Revieweed by Colleen Wanglund

Posted on October 28, 2018 by , Reply
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