Showing posts with label Lethe Press. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Lethe Press. Show all posts

Thursday, June 2, 2016

Highlighting: Homo Superiors by L.A. Fields

Two college seniors: Noah, frail like the hollow-boned birds he enjoys watching, caged by his intellect, and by his sense that the only boy as smart as himself is his best friend; Ray who has spent years aping leading men so that his every gesture is suave, but who has become bored with petty cheats and tricks, and now, during summer break in Chicago, needs something momentous to occupy himself.

Noah’s text says, I’ve found some candidates for murder. Ray chuckles and knows that Noah sent the message to cheer him. Both boys realize they stand apart from others their age. One lacks social graces, the other has perfected being charming. Both are too willing to embark on a true challenge of their superiority but neither realizes what such a crime will do because no matter how they see themselves, how they need one another, they still possess the same emotions of H. sapiens.
A modern day retelling of the Leopold and Loeb story from the author of Lambda Award Finalist My Dear Watson.

Publisher: Lethe Press
Publication Date: June 1, 2016
$15.00 Paperback; Electronic edition available
176 Pages, 6 x 9

Thursday, May 19, 2016

Poetry: Angel Park by Roberto F. Santiago




Angel Park, the debut poetry collection by Roberto F. Santiago, explores the intersections of identity (familial, gender, sexual, racial, ethnic, spiritual, class, and linguistic) vis-à-vis the vehicles of travel, or motion from the familiar to the new, the loss of innocence that occurs within the process of maturation.
Let's get this out of the way first. I love this powerful poetry collection, Roberto F. Santiago's strong voice, and recommend Angel Park to anyone who will listen.

Now, let's get down to the book. Those few lines above are an excellent summation of what I found in Angel Park. The collection flows smoothly as it progresses throughout its three sections: Home, Away, and Far Away. That exploration of identity mentioned in the summary -- familial, gender, sexual, ethnic, spiritual, class, and linguistic -- grows stronger with each poem, in each section, and it is fabulously integrated throughout the whole collection.

Although Home holds strong ethnic and familial poems -- "Café con Abuela," "¡Canta Conquí Canta!, "A Blessing," -- they are not exclusive to this section.  Home is where it all begins, however, with family and early personal experiences as the core. The section ends on a powerful note with a few poems such as "Some Birds are Exotic", "Self-portrait of a Boy Kicked Out of His House" and "The Lexington Avenue Line: III. Castle Hill Ave." "There is a boy with teardrops for eyelashes[…]" The end to Home, organically leads to Away.

In Away, the shortest section of the collection, Santiago's poems move away from early youth, gaining strength and momentum. There is a shift which, although personal in nature, sets out to discuss the very nature of racial, class and gender issues, as well as sexual identity. This momentum continues, leading to the last section, Far Away, where Santiago ends the collection by exploring queer life through bold, vibrant poems such as: "The Day He Became Queen," and "The Ways of Men."

Angel Park has been in my possession for a long time; since last year. I have read it many times since then and keep it at my bedside. I could not review it at the time. There is a good reason for that. A poem. The last poem. Was it written for me?

For Those Left Behind

When loss is all you have
left let me remind you
at cinnamon dusk
the dead can dance.

They percuss          the thrash of hearts
                            against their chests
                            with dribble bounce
                            and ball of foot

They timpani          pulse & rattle bone of ankle to knee
                             shimmy-crescendo their hips & neck

They raise              hands like flags
                            waive them like freedoms.

In the realm of the spirit
there is life, and then there is
consciousness. A stillness
of breath condensed

on top of another
like fermented prayer
I can hold in my hands
as the snow crashes down

take comfort in knowing
endings are never
as final as they sound.
This, too, shall pass.

--------------------------
ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Roberto F. Santiago has an MFA in Creative Writing from Rutgers University and is a Coordinator of Post-Secondary Education in San Francisco. He is a Lambda Literary Scholar and past recipient of the Alfred C. Carey Prize for Poetry. He lives in Oakland.

Monday, December 15, 2014

Hilcia's Minis: Downfall & Best Gay Stories 2014

DOWNFALL by Rob Thurman

Downfall is the 9th installment of Rob Thurman's Leandros Brothers urban fantasy series. I was supposed to review this with my fellow bloggers Leslie and Nath at Breezing Through. Unfortunately, unexpected circumstances interfered with our plans. Instead, here are my random impressions on the book:

Good Things:
1) I love that Robin Goodfellow's witty, self-aggrandizing, vain point of view is finally utilized as part of the narration in Downfall. It's about time. Fabulous!
2) Cal's inner monster seems to be in a mellow mood just as his physical self is changing into the monster. I found him to be more human, balanced, and dare I say mature (?) than before. It shows amazing character growth for Cal.
3) Niko's fears, as well as his vulnerabilities, are exposed through Goodfellows point of view. That's a big like for me. Niko is further humanized in this installment because the reader doesn't see him from Cal's idolizing eyes or from his own harsh judgmental ones. Goodfellow sees Niko and Cal as they are with both flaws and virtues: virtues in their flaws, and flaws in their virtues. :)
4) Robin and Ishia's relationship and true feelings for each other are touched on. I like that Ishia as a niggling mystery is finally resolved. Another big like.

Problems:
1) I don't love the introspective, stream of thought style used for Cal's narrative.
2) Introspection trumps action.
3)This introspection is used as a vehicle to remind readers of past events, however, it makes this installment repetitive. Cal's narrative is composed of reminisces about all the previous cases, monsters, and scrapes that he, Niko and Goodfellow investigated and survived in previous installments. As a result, the usual relentless action suffers, slowing the pace at the beginning to a crawl, and to a lesser degree throughout the rest of the novel.

Closing Threads:
1) Thurman closes threads, or seems to, in this installment. She circles back to Delilah, the Vigil, Grimm, and the Auphe. Are these threads really closed? I believe so, unless Thurman comes up with something else. Personally I hope she is done with the Auphe.
2) Additionally, Thurman further explores reincarnation to close threads and reinforce friendship, and the brotherhood theme in this UF series.
3) There is a sense that this is the end to the series -- that, or the series is about to veer in a different direction. Old characters return to give this book that end of series atmosphere. Good or bad? We will have to wait and find out.

Overall, in my opinion, Goodfellow's point of view carries most of Downfall. However, although Cal's sections are repetitive and the introspective, stream of thought style cuts down on the action, the character's maturity or sense of growth keeps the reader interested. This a solid installment with a great ending. And you know what? If it turns out that Downfall is the end, I would be satisfied.
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BEST GAY STORIES 2014 ed. Steve Berman


New York City. Moscow. Guanajuato. Pelion. A nameless suburb that could be found down any street. Trysts, old flames, pulp tales. Gay men are neither confined by locale nor are their stories. The 2014 volume of Best Gay Stories features essays, fiction and memoirs that encompass the myriad experiences gay life has to offer: from the insecurity and longings of youth to the complacency and nostalgia that comes with age. Along the way readers will discover themselves captivated by moments of discontent, of strife, and of revelation.

The above summary reflects the anthology's content. The settings are very different from one piece to another as are the stories. However, my deepest impression of this year's "best of" anthology is that it reflects the current trend in gay fiction and non-fiction -- that of dissecting or exploring recent gay history.
"It was always sad leaving Manhattan. He looked back through the dirty train window at the city, and then rested his head against the seat and closed his eyes. There was nothing to look forward to. He could not help Miles. He was lucky to have escaped himself." "There's a Small Hotel" by Andrew Holleran
Halloran's short story is an excellent example of one man stuck in the past while another revisits his old lifestyle and struggles not to get caught up reliving that tempting cycle. Tommi Avicolli Mecca's biographical essay, "Ma Tu Sei Pazzo?!" (Are you nuts?!), best exemplifies the thrust of this anthology with a look at the past and present with thoughts on how those events may affect the LGBT community's future as a whole.

The 2014 edition of Steve Berman's Best Gay Stories is composed of fiction, essays and memoirs by 20 gay writers, playwrights, activists, and teachers whose diverse contributions of previously printed short works make this collection an eclectic feast. My recommendation is to set some time aside to read and enjoy this anthology.

Contributors: Michael Alenyikov, Richard Bowes, Michael Carroll, Lou Dellaguzzo, Michael Thomas Ford, L.A. Fields , Guy Mark Foster, James Gifford, Trebor Healy, Andrew Halloran, Ed Kurtz, Dmitry Kuzmin, Tommi Avicolli Mecca, Sam J. Miller, James Powers-Black, Jason Schneiderman, Max Steele, Stefen Styrsky, Josef Winkler, Mario Alberto Zambrano

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Both books are 2014 releases read in their entirety before December -- Downfall by Rob Thurman in September 2014 and Best Gay Stories 2014 ed. by Steve Berman in May 2014. My minis are based on notes, impressions, and drafts prepared for reviews.

Tuesday, September 30, 2014

I Knew Him by Erastes

"It's not just his body, although I sound like
 the worst of hedonists, but he can capture
 stillness whilst radiating more energy
than most men can when running.
Don't ask me to explain it. He glows."
Harry George Alexander Bircham: Not necessarily an infamous name in the annals of gay fictional characters…yet. But readers of Erastes’ newest historical novel should prepare themselves for many pages of suspenseful intrigue as the miscreant Bircham, a man of Wildean excesses and humours, will do anything it takes to bend Fate to his will. And that sinister will is to keep the affections and attentions of another young English lad. If accidents, if murder, are necessary, then Bircham is just the villain. Or anti-hero, as he is quite the early twentieth century charmer.
It all begins with Harry, an oh-so-British young man thoroughly infatuated with his long-time roommate and sexual partner Charles as they plan a summer trip to Paris. Unfortunately, Charles is summoned home by his widowed mother and Harry accompanies him. Once at the country home, an announcement serves as the catalyst that unleashes our charming, lethal villain. And between tea, tennis, dinner and drinks, a Shakespearean-style tale unfolds.

I Knew Him by Erastes is a cleverly written historical thriller with fabulous between-wars British atmosphere. The thriller part comes from a sharp, quick-witted narrative and cold intent instead of physical violence that serves to magnify the shocking conclusion. Characters rule in this tale, but none more than Erastes' narrator Harry whose ingenious mind and allure enfold the reader into a plot that builds gradually but relentlessly. I Knew Him is a strangely fun read. Erastes' writing skills are at full force as is evident by the tight plot execution and her creation of Harry's character. Highly recommended.
"It annoyed me that screen villains had to be unattractive, and that only the hero was allowed to be handsome."


Thursday, July 31, 2014

Review: The Filly by Mark R. Probst

Mark R. Probst's The Filly is an LGBT young adult historical western romance. Probst captures the textured atmosphere and characterization found in traditional vintage westerns by focusing on a naive young man as he first experiences the beauty and dangers of the West. These firsthand experiences are later complicated by his growing attraction for a close buddy and existing prejudices and laws of the times.

The novel is divided into three sections beginning with The Cowboy which features seventeen-year-old Ethan Keller's life in a small Texas town. Ethan has two passions: books and horses. The books he borrows from the town’s teacher and resident spinster Ms. Peet with whom he shares a passion for literature. The horses he visits on his way home from his job as a clerk at the general store, but his dream is to own a beautiful horse one day. Life changes for Ethan after he meets Travis Cain, an itinerant young cowboy looking to work in the area. Travis befriends Ethan by allowing him to ride his gorgeous mare and eventually talks Ethan into signing up and going along with him on a 900-mile cattle drive.

In the second section, The Drive, Probst's novel really shines with detailed beauty and western atmosphere as young Ethan and Travis travel through plains, rivers, mountains and desert, encounter dangers and even death on the way to their final destination. During this time, Ethan discovers he feels more than friendship for Travis who obviously returns his feelings. Also notable in this section is Probst's execution of the tender, warm and loving romantic scenes, as well as the budding relationship between Travis and Ethan. Conversations during intimate interactions help Ethan understand his feelings, but also serve as cautionary foreshadowing of what is to come.

As the drive ends, Ethan and Travis make plans for a future together, but first they make their way home to prepare for a new journey. And so the third section, San Antone, begins. Travis and Ethan are met by heavy complications and events take a grim turn as they unfold. This section contrasts heavily with both The Cowboy and The Drive where the expectation and actualization of adventure and love drive the story. Probst introduces new characters with a few from the previous two sections returning to round up his cast of key secondary characters. Of those, Ms. Peet and Ethan's brother Willie are particularly notable to end. As things turn out, anachronistic thinking drives events to a certain conclusion. However, those events contribute to the happy ending expected of a romance. It is not a forced happiness, instead it is one that makes sense and works well within the context of this historical western.

I love my westerns and The Filly by Mark R. Probst fits perfectly in that category. It offers the small western town atmosphere and grandeur of the old American West, small town conflicts and the spirit of great adventure, but at its core this story is about truth, honor, prejudice, loyalty, friendship, and love. The Filly is a grand adventure and a solid contribution, perfect for LGBT young adults.

Category: LGBT/YA Historical Western Fiction
Series: None
Publisher/Release: Lethe Press/July 1, 2014 - Kindle Ed.*
Grade: B


*Note: The Filly was first released in 2007 by Cheyenne Publishing. It was rereleased in print by Lethe Press on July 1, 2014. It is also available in both audio and in ebook formats.

Monday, June 30, 2014

Review: Wingmen by Ensan Case

I began reading Wingmen by Ensan Case on a Saturday afternoon and couldn't put it down until I finished it late the following day. It's that good!

The love story between Lt. Commander Jack Hardigan, USN and Ensign Frederick "Trusty" Trusteau begins in 1943 toward the end of the Pacific conflict during World War II, after Pearl Harbor and the Battle of Midway. The Navy is in the midst of reorganizing the fleet and reconfiguring their strategy against the Japanese. Experienced naval combat aviators are scarce with a majority falling under the young and untried-in-battle classification.

When Trusteau transfers to the VF-20, the fighting squadron of Air Group Twenty, aboard the fictitious aircraft carrier Constitution, he is an inexperienced aviator and his new skipper Jack Hardigan, a hotshot veteran of Midway with quite a few kills under his belt. Trusteau's admiration for Hardigan is immediate and on a grand scale. As events unfold and Fred becomes Jack's wingman, for Jack, the trust that develops between them in the skies translates to everyday admiration of a young man whose flying skills highlight personal qualities, such as loyalty, efficiency and an ability to think on his toes, while on the ground.

Fred is clueless about his sexuality, but knows he’s indifferent to women and doesn’t ‘fit in’ with the other men in his squadron. To fit, Fred follows their lead and has sex with prostitutes, including when he transfers to the VF-20 squadron where he gains the nickname "Trusty" after lasting 17 minutes and gaining a stud’s reputation. But Fred doesn't understand why the other men make such a big deal about women. Yet, Fred does everything in his power to get close to Jack, and although it takes him a while to figure it out, it quickly becomes clear that Fred’s crush on his skipper is enormous. Jack, on the other hand, is dating a wealthy war widow, and for him it's all about company while on leave. There's more of a friendship than a sexual vibe between them, and Jack prefers to spend time with his men than with her. Unlike Fred, Jack fits in with the men and it isn't until much later that he begins to equate his desire for Fred's company and fear of losing him in combat with a more personal attachment.

These are the 1940's, so the feelings that grow between Jack and Fred are kept closely guarded even from each other. There are two intimate scenes between Jack and Fred that take place away from the ship but, like in the old movies, everything fades to black when they hit the sheets. But feelings and emotions go deep for both of them, and before and after their intimate moments even when the two men are alone on the ship, conversations and physical contact are maintained on the buddy level. There's no outward acknowledgment of feelings, particularly under the circumstances since they were at war.

And it’s war! Ensan Case's Wingmen is a plot and character driven novel. His research of what transpired in the Pacific during World War II is fantastic and his take of life in an aircraft carrier is riveting. There is a particular vibrant atmosphere to his portrayal of the life men lead at close quarters on the ship, as well as when they are on leave -- the hard drinking and incessant smoking, the jocular ribbing and womanizing, as well as the desire to distinguish themselves during battle – that allows the reader to know these men. Additionally, Case gives them distinct personalities, making the reader care whether they live or die.

Case also hits the right note when focusing on the politics of command and strategies used by the Americans to hit the Pacific islands -- beginning with Marcus and moving on to Wake, Tarawa, Kwajalein, and Truk -- by incorporating details without, for one moment, slowing the pace or the excitement of the novel. Those details make this novel what it is, as he also incorporates what is critical to the men: the maneuverability of Hellcats, Corsairs and Avengers, dangers of landing on the aircraft carriers, the terrible accidents, lack of supplies. All of those details lead to the strategic air battles in the skies, as well as the one-on-one situations which become some of the most tension-filled and exhilarating moments of the story.

Case ends the book with a postwar section mostly written in letter format that gives the reader a broad idea of what happens to the main characters after the war and an epilogue that ends in 1969. I would have preferred if Fred and Jack’s story had ended a bit earlier, but frankly that did not influence my love of this book one way or another. Wingmen by Ensan Case is a fabulous fusion of historical fiction and romance that I recommend to everyone, but particularly to those who love exciting, well-researched tales set in the Pacific during World War II, as well as to readers who love a war time, tension-filled romance. It is already in my list of 2014 favorites!

Category: Historical Fiction/Gay Romance
Series: None
Publisher/Release Date: Lethe Press/July 2014
Source: ARC Lethe Press
Grade: A


Saturday, June 28, 2014

Review: A Shiny Tin Star by Jon Wilson

Back in April, I read A Shiny Tin Star by Jon Wilson in one sitting. It made the top of my list as a favorite book of the month, and I've already re-read it once since then. A Shiny Tin Star was originally published by Cheyenne Publishing in 2012 and was well received with excellent reviews all around. I can definitely understand the reason behind those reviews. Lethe Press is re-releasing a few select books in July of 2014, this is one of them. Personally, I'm glad that Gene and Forest's romance won't be lost to future readers.

This historical western romance is set in Creek County, Colorado at the turn of the century in 1903, so it's a different sort of western. Townspeople are settled, the law is enforced, and there's not much of the "wild" left in the West. Sheriff Eugene Grey, a local, has matters under control and lives a relatively peaceful life until the young, arrogant Federal Marshal Forest O'Rourke shows up with an ancient wanted poster looking to arrest a local resident.
"I considered punching Forest O'Rourke in the face, the first time, about two minutes after making his acquaintance."
The narrative in this novel is strictly from Gene's first point of view perspective. It is quick witted, engaging, and absorbing throughout the novel, so of course I immediately fell in love with Gene Grey's voice and character. Not so much with young, arrogant Federal Marshal Forest O'Rourke or his brand new shiny tin star. That changes as the story unfolds and Gene exposes Forest's truths and vulnerabilities.
"Still, I gave him the benefit of the doubt that day for a couple of reasons, though mostly I claim I was bedazzled by the sunlight sparkling off his shiny, new badge."
Gene and Forest's story is divided into three parts. It begins with "The Law & Rawley Scoggins" and includes that first meeting, Forest's stubborn determination to arrest the old-timer, the disturbing end to those events for Forest and old Scoggins, and a few days of intimate acquaintance for Gene and Forest. Conversations lead to unexpected private revelations from both sides, particularly from Gene who finds himself attracted to young Forest and takes a leap by answering with the truth when asked why he is not married: "Because I like men, not women." 

What follows is a beautiful seductive scene where Forest takes the lead. This is a favorite scene where a tentative physical move with an almost tender quality builds into full-blown lusty passion between the two men. I found the depiction of this scene to be excellent, specifically in how well Wilson conveys sexual tension, lust, passion, and the emotions involved, without going into unnecessary minute graphic or explicit details.

In the second part of the book, "Diotima's Child," Forest returns to Creek County under false pretenses and moves in with Gene as his lover, eventually becoming Gene's temporary deputy. This section details a joyful period for Gene and Forest filled with passion and love. Their relief at having found each other, however, makes them a careless pair, so it's no surprise when all ends badly and the lovers end up making their way to Atlanta and Philadelphia in the final and, to my way of thinking, strongest section of the book "Lonesome Trail," where loneliness and terrible despair awaits them. And where Gene risks breaking the law, prison, and death for love.

Wilson's characters are a study in contrasts with Gene a confident, educated, working man from the West and Forest a hot-headed, almost illiterate (not-so-bright) well-to-do gentleman from the South. Needless to say, characterization is fine tuned as well, particularly Gene. Through Gene's narrative the reader experiences the full scope of the novel, as well as the inner workings of a self-assured man plagued by loneliness whose passionate love leads to such raging turmoil and despair that he will do anything for a smidgen of hope. To a lesser degree Forest's character, the man who inspires such passionate love, is also well rendered as he evolves throughout the novel. Wilson humanizes the characters by portraying their strengths and vulnerabilities during different sections of the novel, making them fit with each other, as well as with time, place, and setting.

A Shiny Tin Star is a romance with a happy ending. This historical western is memorable for its characters, its witty, engaging, straight-forward narrative style, and a sweet, passionate romance with conflicts that fit the historical period. It ends with one of the best memorable, quotable, last lines I've read in a long time. I would quote it for you, but don't want to spoil it. Read the book and find out!

Category: LGBT/Historical Romance/Western
Series: None
Publisher/Release Date: Lethe Press/ July 1, 2014
Source: eARC Lethe Press
Grade: B+


Sunday, June 1, 2014

Short Stories: Naming Ceremony by Chip Livingston

In the sixteen short stories and profound essays that comprise Naming Ceremony, Chip Livingston examines the worlds we create for ourselves by exploring the names we are called and those we call ourselves. Livingston’s characters express in word and deed the names that confirm their individuality as well as validating their roles in family, culture, politics, and sexuality.
My previous acquaintance with Chip Livingston's works was limited to one short story and his poetry volume Crow-Blue, Crow-Black. In this collection of short stories the quality of Chip Livington's writing cannot be questioned. He is a fine poet and writer. However, for me, the power of some pieces stand out with unqualified force.

First we have a selection of connected short pieces that collectively complete one story -- "Naming Ceremony," "What Calls You Home," "Owls don't have to mean death," "One Hundred Kisses," and "Ghost Dance." These stories depict moments in the life of Peter Strongbow, his HIV positive lover Elan, with Native American culture and family playing key roles in Peter's lifestyle and relationships. Livingston captures moments filled with love, hope and laughter, dreams and fear, loss and grief with a deep sense of truth and powerful honesty.

That same sense of honesty is found in Livingston's "Anthology of Spoon River AIDS Walk" which is composed of small, verse-like snippets that convey thoughts of lovers, friends, family, and acquaintances participating in an AIDS Walk for Tim Kelley who died of AIDS. This powerful piece hits the reader with raw reality and a myriad of emotions.

Susan

I picked Mason in Charleston.
It happened that I was there for a meeting.
Good timing. Right.
Thank you Universal Forces of Love and Light.
I met Mason through Tim.
I'll walk with Mason in memory of Tim.
    And for my Father.


Tom Girl

I used to live with Tim in Columbia
I wanted to come up but I just couldn't
I wanted to see Mason and the Kelley's
It's too hard
I can't deal with it
I wonder how many people
will wear shirts and walk for me
I still feel great but Tim went so quick

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About the Author: Chip Livingston has received awards in fiction from Native Writers’ Circle of the Americas, Wordcraft Circle of Native Writers and Storytellers, the University of Colorado, and the AABB Foundation. As a faculty member of the low-residency MFA program at the Institute of American Indian Arts and at Gotham Writers Workshops, Chip teaches nonfiction, fiction and poetry writing.

Saturday, May 17, 2014

Upcoming Release: Fairs' Point (Aestreiant #4) by Melissa Scott


During Dog Moon, the chief entertainment in the great city of Astreiant, for nobles and commons alike, is the basket-terrier races at New Fair. This year, with spectacularly bad timing, the massive and suspicious bankruptcy of a young nobleman has convulsed the city, leading to suicides, widespread loss of employment, and inconvenient new laws around the universal practice of betting on the races. As well, a rash of mysterious burglaries seems to suggest a magistical conspiracy.

Pointsman Nicolas Rathe is naturally in the midst of all these disturbances--as is his lover, foreign former mercenary Philip Eslingen. When Eslingen receives a basket-terrier puppy in the redistribution of the bankrupt's household goods, he makes the best of it by having the pup trained for the races, an action that draws him and Rathe deeper into the coils of a mystery somehow involving New Fair's dog races, bookies and bettors, the bankruptcy and its causes and fallout, burglaries, and a new uncanny form of murder.

Fourth in the Astreiant series, Fairs' Point once again demonstrates Melissa Scott's mastery of fantasy world building, detective-story plotting, and the provision of sheer delight.
Fairs' Point is the continuation to the classic Astreiant fantasy series by Melissa Scott. I adore the world-building, characters, and mysteries in this series!

Category: Fantasy
Publisher: Lethe Press Books
Release Date: May 20, 2014

Series:
Point of Hopes
Point of Dreams
Point of Knives (Novella)
Fairs' Point #5

Tuesday, May 13, 2014

Review: Scruffians! by Hal Duncan

---I was born under a bad signpost, says Foxtrot Wainscot Hottentot III.
---I was stolen from bypasses, says Puckerscruff of the urchins.
---I was raised by werewolves, says Flashjack of the hellions.
---I ran away from the circus, says Joey Picaroni.
---I bought me soul from the Devil, says Nuffinmuch O'Anyfink, king of the tinkers.
---I was a teenage virgin mum, says Bananastasia Roamin-hopper, rightful Princess of Russia (allegedly).
---I took the King's shilling and died in all his wars, says Ratatat Dan. But not for the likes of you.
---You see, says Gob, a Scruffian's story needs a hook.
I fell in love with Hal Duncan's collection, Scruffians! as soon as I read the first story. How can that be? Well, as Gob would say, that one story is the hook. It got me to read the whole book in one sitting.

Hal Duncan's work can be dense, non-linear, and highly imaginative along with extraordinary writing skills that always impress. With the addition of his homoerotic fantasy-based Scruffian stories, mythology-based fairies and pirates, and other fun adventures found in this short story speculative fiction collection, readers get a well-defined sense of what makes Duncan such a fine story teller and weaver of dreams.

The Scruffian pieces are connected primarily through world-building and recurring characters. In "How a Scruffian Starts Their Story," "How a Scruffian Gets Their Name," "Scruffian's Stamp," "An Amfabetcha of Scruffian's Names," and "Jack Scalliwag," Duncan weaves fantasy stories of lost boys and girls, some very young and others older, that after having been used or abused through the ages, gained semi-immortality and banded together in order to survive. Duncan's Scruffians are outsiders, rough and tough fighters and survivors who stand up for one another, and others, when nobody else will. In "Behold of the Eye," a recurring character, this time appearing as a fairy, inhabits the eye of a boy and experiences from the inside the changes, anguish, and terrors that take place as the boy grows into a teenager and realizes he is gay. This is a coming of age fairy tale like you've never read before.
Orphans, foundlings, latchkey kids.
Urchins, changelings, live-by-wits.
Rascals, scallywags, ruffians, scamps.
Scoundrels, hellions, Scruffians STAMP!
The characters alone make these stories stand out, but what really captures the attention is how Duncan mixes fantasy with raw reality and urban contemporary language. It is a rough reality that he depicts in the guise of fantasy. However, Duncan's boys, sodomites or not, are sexy, sly, and playful, and his stories are also filled with a high dose of fun, as well as homoeroticism, adventure, quests, and strong underlying emotions.

The collection slowly shifts to other speculative fiction pieces such as "The Disappearance of James H---," a twist on Peter Pan and Captain Hook, "The Island of the Pirate Gods," a fun, mythology-based piece with two pirates and Oberon's fairies that is filled with adventure and a fantastic narrative, and "The Shoulder of Pelops," another twist, based on the Tantalus and Pelops myth. There are also three unique pieces, the art-focused "The Bizarre Cubiques," the western-style "Sons of the Law," and my favorites in this group "The Angel of Gamblers," a story that I loved for its excellent pacing and suspenseful narrative about a gambler who sells his soul to an angel and then attempts to gain it back.

I previously read three stories included in this collection, all chosen as favorites in years past. "Sic Him, Hellhound! Kill! Kill!" I absolutely loved for its unique, fun, first person narrative from the hellhound's perspective, but for me, "Oneirica" and "The Nature of the Fiend" stand out for the distinct ways in which Duncan takes characters and readers from one plane to another. In "Oneirica," Duncan lulls the reader by using smooth dreamlike sequences that begin when a man looks into a grain of sand and travels through the ages experiencing the evolution of man and civilizations, while in "The Nature of the Fiend," the changes are surprising, abrupt, and a shock to the reader, as time evolves and a boy's recurring losses and cumulative grief bring out the darkness in him. This is a simplistic way of summarizing these stories because with their complexity and beauty they both garner strong reactions from the reader and are worth a reread or two.

To date, Scruffians! is one of my favorite single-author collections of the year -- I've already read it twice. It is the first compilation of Hal Duncan's short works and includes 15 previously published speculative fiction pieces. They are all of the upmost quality, bearing the distinct Duncan signature: a mixture of mythology and urban contemporary, fantasy and raw reality, as well as beautiful, often complex and thought-provoking plotting and characters. I find that Duncan's short works leave me gasping with excitement or reaching for better understanding, and always wanting more. Highly recommended.

Category: LGBT/Speculative Fiction
Series: None - Single Author Collection
Publisher/Release Date: Lethe Press/April 19, 2014
Grade: A

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ADDITIONAL INFO: Lethe Press is offering a Deluxe edition of Duncan's first short story collection. Hardcover, with dust jacket, full color art and text on heavy stock paper. Scandalous cover, too. This edition has an original story not to be found in the regular edition as well as over 40 photographs that complement the homoerotic tales. Click here for more details.

Sunday, February 23, 2014

Red Caps: New Fairy Tales for Out of the Ordinary Readers by Steve Berman

Do you know what I love about Steve Berman's young adult stories? His characters always come across as young adults, neither too young nor too old. And, whether his short stories are strictly contemporary, speculative fiction or fairy tales, the core of the queer themes have weight and meaning, and there's always a sense of fun to be found in them -- creepy, adventurous, romantic, weird, fun. Their endings vary from the happy to the memorable, to the twisty weird, but as a whole they usually have a positive message.

That's what you will find in Red Caps: New Fairy Tales for Out of the Ordinary Readers. Thirteen stories where today's queer youth face contemporary issues, except that in most of them there's a sprinkle of magic, a dose of the unexplained, encounters with ghosts and/or mythological beings, loads of imagination, a bit of horror here and there, and plenty of atmosphere to reel the reader in. Add fifty original illustrations contributed by thirteen different artists and you have a stand out collection that any young adult (or lover of LGBT YA literature) would be proud to own.

All of Berman's stories have something to offer. For example, "The Harvestbuck" has an ambiguous ending, yet it is one of the most atmospheric, hair-raising yarns in this collection. "Three on a Match," on the other hand becomes riveting due to the plot's evolution and ending. "Worse than Alligators" is a horror piece that begins with a fun, relaxed atmosphere that evolves into a nightmare. And "Gomorrahs of the Deep, a Musical Coming Someday to Off-Broadway" is Berman's musical! Yes, he wrote a musical about Melville and Moby Dick that is both creative and amusing.

"Texting in Bed" from Cruel Movember
Illustration by Plunderpuss*
There are also two fantasy fairy tales, for girls, "Thimbleriggery and Fledlings" the wizard's daughter finds freedom through self-confidence and is infused with magic. And in "Steeped in Debt to the Chimney-pots," a quasi-Victorian piece, an ex-chimney boy steals from the fairy folk and falls for one of them. I was swept away into the world of this fairy tale, and loved the illustrations that fit this piece to perfection.

With one exception, all the stories in this collection have been previously published in anthologies and/or magazines. The only original piece, "A Calenture of the Jungle" begins with two young Jewish girls, one with too much imagination and the other with none, falling into a sort of frantic attraction fueled by role play, and evolves into an adventure with a twisty role-reversal, ending in a feverish dream-like madness where the narrator's imagination overtakes reality.

I do have particular favorites, one of them is "Cruel Movember," the only strictly contemporary young adult piece included. In this great piece boyfriends Beau and Easton learn the importance of communication in a relationship and how to lend support and understanding during rough times when during the month of November, Easton participates in the Movember mustache-wearing charity, causing havoc in school and embarrassing Beau.

From Bittersweet
Illustration by Kimball Davis**
In "Persimmon, Teeth and Boys," another favorite, Cecil, a nerdy black high school kid who has dealt with labels throughout high school, seeks help from a twisted tooth sprite and gains clarity about those labels and awareness about the attraction he feels for bright, brave, out and proud Bergen. "Bittersweet," another contemporary young adult piece with just a hint of magic, highlights relationships and confidence-building through two boys dealing with health problems as one goes into surgery and both suffer from fear and doubts.

I previously read and loved the following three stories and that still holds. I still believe "All Smiles" is a fantastic young adult speculative fiction piece with a hint of horror, great action and a wonderful ending. "Most Likely," a contemporary romance-based story with a speculative fiction flavor is memorable for the great sibling relationship and sweet ending.

And, the collection ends with the magnificently spun "Only Lost Boys are Found." Beautifully illustrated by Brian Britigan, this is a rescue adventure that takes the reader through a winding world of closets, where kids may hide or find a door to freedom while encountering pirates, ninjas, remorseful siblings, friends or boyfriends, and where reality and fantasy are seamlessly woven into my very favorite short story by Steve Berman. Recommended.

Category: LGBT Young Adult Speculative Fiction
Series: None
Publisher/Release Date: Lethe Press/February 14, 2014
Source: eARC from Publisher/Purchased print book
Grade: B+

Visit Lethe Press here.

Illustrations posted with permission from the publisher. © 2014 Lethe Press, Plunderpuss*  © 2014 Lethe Press, Kimball Davis**

Sunday, July 21, 2013

Review: Dust Devil on a Quiet Street by Richard Bowes

I was introduced to Richard Bowes's writing by way of a short story. Later I read and really enjoyed his adult fairy tale book The Queen, The Cambion, and Seven Others. His short story "Grierson at the Pain Clinic" in the Wilde Stories 2013 anthology was so unique and creative that I went hunting for his Lambda Literary Award-winning novel Minions of the Moon. So what is it that about Richard Bowes' works that grabbed me? I love the realism he utilizes to set up his fantasy. His latest fantasy novel Dust Devil on a Quiet Street has that quality in spades.
As a child I went to bed worried that the me who fell asleep would disappear in the dark and not be remembered by the me who woke up. I've never wholly lost that. It's one reason I write these stories.
Bowes's tale of dust devils, local ghosts and small gods begins in Greenwich Village on the evening of 9/11 right after the Towers fell. Richard's friend and old lover Megs insists that as a result of the tragedy, a rift opened and ghosts from past and present disasters are coming through and flooding the City. She can see them, and decides to search for the ghost of Richard and Megs' old lover Geoff. As this tale of ghosts, friendships, and lovers lost progresses, the reality of what happened on that beautiful, tragic September morning slowly creeps in as Bowes imbues the atmosphere and his characters with a sense of dislocation and disorientation so spot on that ghosts, dust devils and witch girls seamlessly become part of that reality.

As the story of Richard, Megs and Geoff continues, Bowes plays with time by relating events taking place in the present and connecting them to the past, taking the reader for a fantastic ride through a Village's past history full of the real and the supernatural. In the second chapter we learn what drives our main character and narrator, Richard. Supernatural events surrounding Richard's encounter with the eerie Witch Girls are weaved in with his college years, new friendships, sexual escapades, and a significant early childhood trauma that leads to a long battle with self-destructive behavior and drug addiction.
When I opened my eyes they were gone. I understood that what I'd done and what had been done to me were the misfortunes that come to a Witch Boy trying in all the wrong ways to be human.
The supernatural encounters continue as the reader is introduced to lovers, friends, writers, sexual escapades, and in the process is whisked back in time to a City that lived a long time ago. That is most evident in the Ray Light and Judy Finch incident where the narrator's strong presence is felt on the periphery while Bowes transports the reader to the 1960's in a mesmerizing story of young runaways, hippy life, hustlers, drugs, sex, psychic powers, and murder. Bowes brilliantly weaves the Ray Light incident throughout the whole book so that it blends in with the "memoir" style of this novel. But as I said before, he also plays with time, so that this and other events that begin long ago are effectively connected to events, or small moments, taking place in the present. It all works out quite well.

I particularly love how Bowes incorporates events that begin with the present as the setting but flow in and out of the past. In relating the death of New York City, Bowes turns to Richard's present and the ghost of a past lover Hal Dizeg, dubbed the Downtown Ganymede, who was legendary in the Village for his brilliant beauty and wealthy sugar daddies. Later they were involved as lovers in a relationship fueled by drugs that ended with Hal telling Richard: "I don't think you're really here, and you don't think I'm really human." But this chapter is about Richard's present and his nostalgia for the past. He is singularly harsh on a modern Manhattan full of yuppified New Yorkers, yet, not unexpectedly, Richard is always toughest on himself. The proof is in the pudding when returning as a ghost Hal leaves our aging narrator with these words: "It wasn't a soul you lacked, it was courage and timing, darling. You didn't know when it was your moment to die."

Dust Devil on a Quiet Street was more of an experience than I expected. It is a fantasy book full of those fantastic supernatural events some of us love, and yet, it is also much more. Bowes inserts himself as the central character, establishing a thorough connection with the reader while relating the highs and lows of life, such as they are or were, so that this book is an intricate, masterful blend of fantasy and life-long experiences gained during a lifetime of living in a New York City he knows and loves. Bowes is so good at using this device that there are times when the reader must wonder where reality ends and fiction begins. Highly recommended.

Category: LGBT/Fantasy
Series: None
Publisher/Release Date: Lethe Press/June 21, 2013
Grade: A-

Visit Richard Bowes here.
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Favorite quote: (Chapter 11, Page 158)
"Writing is the place where I can be as bold and compassionate and wise as I choose." 

Thursday, July 4, 2013

Review: Best Gay Stories 2013 ed. by Steve Berman


Best Gay Stories 2013 edited by Steve Berman is Lethe Press's yearly collection of twenty of last year's best gay stories. This year's edition is focused on different and highly relevant gay themes.

Berman chose a wide variety of stories written by well-known authors as well as new talent. The authors' writing styles are as diverse as their approach to the stories, and by the time I finished reading this collection it became obvious to me why each story and writer was chosen. The themes vary from young to adult love, and from fear of aging to committed partnership and cheating issues, but there is much more.

There is Irrespective of the Storm by Mark Ameen, a fantastic story about 1980's gay lifestyle and hookups. Farewell to Wise's by William Sterling Walker explores complacency and the need to move on, and Steve Berman's "Bottom of the Menu" manages the question of aging with great wit and eroticism. Also included, there are two must read favorites, Next Year at Sonny's by Eddy Sarfaty, an excellent essay exploring family, friends and modern gay lifestyle, and an essay I've dubbed "body beautiful" by Peter Knegt, "How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Have Sex in Gay Art Porn."

As in all collections of this size, there are pieces that stand out and there is always the question of preference, however, I firmly believe that within the twenty stories included in Best Gay Stories 2013 there are plenty of meaningful, excellent pieces to satisfy the most discerning reader. This is certainly a winning collection of gay themed stories for me.

Category: LGBT/ Gay Fiction
Series: Best Gay Stories
Publisher/Release Date: Lethe Press/June 1, 2013
Grade: B+

※※※※※※※※

This collection has 20 stories and B+ is a high grade, indeed, for such a large collection. As always when grading a collection, I take into consideration writing, content, and the editor's contribution. As an added bonus and because these stories deserve to be highlighted, below I'm including my brief impressions of the whole collection:

"Wheat, Barley, Lettuce, Fennel, Salt for Sorrow, Blood for Joy" by Alex Jeffers
Young Adult. This excellent and well-written mythology-based romance between two young men transports the reader to another time and place where youthful lusty thoughts and yearning abound.

"Two Variations on the Theme of Envy" by Matthew R. Loney
Looks don't make the man. "Dancing, I saw a man nearby whose face my gut said ugly to instinctively. [...] Thinking back, I may have even said unlovable." Two highly relevant shorts: one focuses on those often wrong superficial judgments based on outward appearance, and the other on the sad consequences that come from attempting to find and maintain modern man's idea of perfect beauty.

"What Comes Around" by Jameson Currier
That birthday. "Forty is looming. You are approaching a time zone of trauma." Excellent short  rationalizing the pros, cons, and insecurities that come along with aging while alone.

"I Will Forget the Sound of His Voice" by Thomas Kearnes
Drugs & Sex. "Tweak makes you ambitious." "Curtis will likely shift, like a pianist from key to key, over to a new man. There will be no anger, no tears. I've survived the party scene over seven years. A simple rule: nothing lasts[...]" Excellent and pertinent short highlighting the party scene, drugs, sex and passing relationships.

"East Tenth Street, 1999" by Nicholas Boggs
Independence. A rather truncated short focused on a young man whose sole goal is to gain independence from his family when he finally gets that coveted apartment inherited from his uncle in the City. Excellent writing style, but it left me wanting more.

"Don't Tell Me" by Chip Livingston
The Breakup. A good but very short story about the heartbreak that comes as the result of a breakup, as seen from the perspective of the one left behind.

"Body and Mind" by Eric Sasson
Commitment & Cheating. "Why did affection have to be the death knell of lust? What is it about hugging Hunter that makes Andy's dick limp? Or rather, not limp, but awake for the briefest spell, like a bear that peeks out of his cave only to decide his winter isn't over." Does affection kill a relationship? A very good piece that effectively explores the subject of cheating when sex life turns stale between committed partners.

"Boy, A History" by Saeed Jones
Sexual Discovery & Identity from African American perspective. A complete short with an excellent rhythmic writing style where the author depicts violence and abuse as his character goes through the process of sexual discovery and a search for identity.

"Irrespective of the Storm" by Mark Ameen
1980's Gay Lifestyle & AIDS. "Irrespective of the storm, the soul struck by lightning time and again, throughout the abominable Eighties there they were: compact, beautiful men spreading the cheeks of their asses on beds of gently rushing water." An excellent retrospective highlighting the gay lifestyle in New York City during the 1980's. The author focuses on lifestyle, places, relationships, and hookups, ending with the AIDS epidemic. I loved this one.

"This is Love" by Stephen Graham Jones
Gay Bashing. The speculative fiction version of gay bashing, this story is haunting and ohhh so sad!

"Villainelle" by Chaz Brenchley
Home. "Home. For some people, it's where they end up, where they settle. For some of us, it's where you start. Where you run away from. Where you leave. For some of us, coming back would never be a choice. Only ever a thing we did because we had to." I like Chaz Brenchley's style and really enjoyed his fantasy take on this theme.

"The Origin of a Fiend" by Hal Duncan
Killing the Secret. "You'll never forgive the fact that the world's first homo superhero is no sooner out than he's suffering and dying. You'll never forgive, never forget, never. . . " A rather complex comic book-based story with much to offer. This is the brilliant Hal Duncan we're talking about so I may have to read this story again. Enough said.

"The Bloated Woman" by Jonathan Harper
Dangerous Liaisons. A young man goes to a coast town to take care of an old professor and hooks up with an older, local man. I have read Harper's story twice now and it left me wanting to read it again. It is certainly memorable!

"Cinema Love" by Aaron Chan
Looking for common ground. I have one word for this romantic love story: sweet!

"Ghost Water" by Casey Hannan
The Closet. I absolutely love the atmosphere and setting, and the excellent way in which the author gets to the point of his story with few words.

"The Theater of the Floating World" by Simon Jacobs
Obsession. "I wasn't much better off. I was here to pay for sex. I was as desperate as anyone else." I loved the setting and found the Asian focus quite interesting. There is an air of desperation and obsession that makes this a disturbing, memorable read.

"Farewell to Wise's" by William Sterling Walker
Moving On. "There's nothing for you in this city anymore. No opportunity. No more turkey, girlfriend. The buffet is closed. You need to move on to something else. Save yourself. Get out while you can. You've been too complacent. You need to see the world. You've been on the party jag too long." Lord, did I love Farewell to Wise's! I love the atmosphere. The relationship between the characters is so marvelous that they came alive for me, and the way the author makes his point is excellent. What more can I say?

"Bottom of the Menu" by Steve Berman
The unexpected and always welcomed "meal." "Hustlers must go to school for etiquette now. I shall have to revise my view of the twenty-first century.""Fresh pound cake w/confiture de lait. My mouth has grown dry as my mother's pound cake. And how much the faygele am I to be thinking about my mother while on my knees before a crotch?" Berman's contribution is sexy, erotic, and funny. So enjoyable. I kept getting a visual while reading this story, which says a lot about the writing. A favorite among Berman's shorts.

"Next Year at Sonny's" by Eddy Sarfaty
Family, Friends, Lifestyle. "You're a good kid." "I'm forty-six." "You'll always be a kid to me," she says as she pats my cheek." Sarfaty writes a funny, heartwarming, and thought provoking essay using what has become a traditional Passover with "the boys" at Eddy's mother's home in Long Island as a setting. A must read.

"How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Have Sex in Gay Art Porn" by Peter Knegt
Body Beautiful. "I spent a lot of my adult life so far feeling threatened by my own body and by my own sexuality," I said. "But I think I've come pretty far in that regard." "[...] I thought about how life had brought me from being a gay little boy in a small town dancing to "Under The Sea" in his living room to a gay little man rapidly drinking pints of beer in a gross San Francisco gay bar awaiting his debut as a pornographic actor. I felt oddly proud of this progression." I was touched by the intimacy of thought and truthfulness in Mr. Knegt's essay. I love both the progression and the end of this essay!


Sunday, June 30, 2013

Poetry Highlight: Waxwings by Daniel Nathan Terry

Cover by Benjamin Billingsley
"Icarus 1"
(acrylic on canvas, 16x20, 1996)
"Waxwings is a book that takes observation, meditation, and memory as seriously as men and women take life and death. These elegiac lyrics show that Daniel Nathan Terry is unafraid of putting his experiences to use in the making of poems that ache after transcendence and long for revelation." -- Jericho Brown, author of Please
"Observation, meditation, and memory, as seriously as men and women take life and death." What a magnificent way of saying what I found in this book. In WaxwingsDaniel Nathan Terry lets it all hang out through his poetry. He connects with the reader as his experiences are revealed with deep emotions, truth, and underlying passion that come through each individual poem.

Terry is a former horticulturist. His passion for nature lights up the pages as he explores heartbreaking and at times heartwarming childhood memories, sexual discovery, loss, and love through poetry. I read Waxwings twice in one sitting, and then once again for good measure.
Scarecrow*

Scarecrow crafter, burlap-tailor,
black-eye smudger, when I'm done,
crows mistake you for a man:
silent shooer, stock-still farmer,
to them alone a tartan terror.
I fisted through your flannel,
spiced your straw with artemisia,
puffed your chest with wilted-rue,
perfumed your thighs with summer sweet---
another half-attempt at love---to keep
the flies from you, who do not care
if you are flesh or straw; stand still in June,
they will devour you. If they don't and you see
the summer through, the sun, the wind, the rain
make fast work of you until your pie-pan hands
cease to flutter and the crows
begin to mutter that you can't be much.
Winter comes. Now the squash begins
to earn its name; cold snaps beans.
Like tomatoes that turn from green to glass
my red for you is missing.
How long before the snow and I
take you down?
❧❧❧❧❧❧

About the author: Daniel Nathan Terry, a former landscaper and horticulturist, is the author of Capturing the Dead, (NFSPS 2008) which won the Stevens Prize, and a chapbook, Days of Dark Miracles (Seven Kitchens Press 2011). He teaches English at the University of North Carolina Wilmington and serves on the advisory board of One Pause Poetry.

Category: Poetry
Length: 68 Pages
Publisher/Release Date: Lethe Press/July 1, 2012

*Copyright © 2012 Daniel Nathan Terry

Thursday, May 30, 2013

Review: Wilde Stories 2013: The Year's Best Gay Speculative Fiction edited by Steve Berman


Every year editor Steve Berman publishes one special collection after gathering the best of previously published gay speculative fiction stories written by a wide variety of authors. I've loved Berman's collections in past years and Wilde Stories 2013 is no exception. This year's volume, however, is memorable for the different and interesting young adult speculative fiction short stories included. They provide this volume with adventure, a touch of whimsy, and yes, an edge that I really enjoyed.

Breakwater in the Summer Park by L Lark is a light and fun summer camp story with a mysterious monster in the lake whose presence inadvertently helps two boys whose lives are full of insecurities and personal fears about the future. I enjoyed this story in the Boys of Summer* anthology and although it is one of the lightest stories in this collection, it definitely belongs. The Keets Variation by K.M. Ferebee on the other hand has young adults as main characters, yet the dense narrative and heavy subject matter give this story edge and weight. Tatooed Love Boys by Alex Jeffers is queer fantasy at its best. With a plot that shifts and curves, this story takes the characters and the reader on a wonderful ride.

I initially read Wave Boys by Vincent Kovar in The Touch of the Sea* anthology and loved it so much that it made my 2012 short story "best of" list. This dystopian young adult story is memorable for its fantastic world-building, great adventure, and characters that I feel should be further explored -- it was a pleasure re-reading it again! Another young adult story with excellent world-building is Next Door by Rahul Kanakia. This is an action and anxiety driven futuristic science fiction short set in a society where technology trumps humanity.

Then there's the fantastic and unforgettable story about a boy and his wolf, Sic Him, Hellhound! Kill! Kill! by Hal Duncan. I've never read anything like it. There are some rather ironic references to those dreaded sparkly vampires and the girls who admire them, but what can I say? This story cracked me up, particularly since it is narrated from the dog/wolf's point of view!
---Hello hello hello hello! I love you!
---Yes, I know, I love you too.
---But I really love you! I missed you so much!
---And I missed you too. Yes. I did! Oh yes I did! Now, down you go.
---But I missed you!
From the adult speculative fiction short stories, Wetside Story by Steve Vernon is memorable and the most irreverent in this collection. This fun, creative piece has some crass humor that won't quit. I appreciated it from beginning to end. Imagine a sexy gay squid in love with another squid who has a radioactive smile. Yeah...
Bucky grinned me back a picket fence full of pleasure. The toxic waste that riddled his cavities gave them a wonderfully fluorescent neon gleam. His scales glittered as prettily as those of the dead mackerel had.

My heart went thump. 
Changing gears, in Laird Barron's A Strange Form of Life his talents are displayed in all their glory and can be fully appreciated as, in short order, he weaves a fantastic Lovecraftian horror piece. Grierson at the Pain Clinic by Richard Bowes is such a gripping and unique story, about a man and his rather disturbing Shadow, that I couldn't stop thinking about it. And the fantasy, myth-based, whaling adventure Keep the Aspidochelone Floating by Chaz Brechley is another  story from The Touch of the Sea anthology that made my 2012 "best of" list. Re-reading this well-written, detailed piece full of action, pirates, and a love story between a mariner and his boy was a pleasure.

I had a tough time choosing favorites in this volume of the Wilde Stories series. Steve Berman included a wide range of stories and gay themes, as well as an excellent mixture of writing styles in Wilde Stories 2013. Combining young adult and adult speculative fiction not only added a creative edge but a unique touch to this collection.

Category: LGBT/ Gay Speculative Fiction
Series: Wilde Stories: The Year's Best Speculative Fiction Anthologies
Publisher/Release Date: Lethe Press/June 15, 2013
Source: eARC from publisher
Grade: B+

*See my reviews of:
The Touch of the Sea ed. by Steve Berman
Boys of Summer ed. by Steve Berman

Find this and all speculative fiction titles mentioned above here.

Thursday, April 25, 2013

Review: Death by Silver by Melissa Scott & Amy Griswold


Death by Silver by Melissa Scott & Amy Griswold is a fantasy mystery with an unquestionable steampunk flavor that does not overwhelm the world-building, yet offers enough magic and subtle details to give this story set in a recognizable Victorian London, a very distinct atmosphere. There is quite a lot to enjoy in this well executed fantasy mystery with its delicious twists and turns, red herrings, murders by magic, personal struggles and a question of the heart.

The story begins when metaphysician Ned Mathey's newly established practice is hired by well-known banker Mr. Edgar Nevett to cleanse his family silver of ancient or modern curses. Ned hesitates as soon as he realizes that Mr. Nevett is Victor Nevett's father, the prefect who bullied him and others throughout his years in boarding school. Nevertheless, Ned accepts the commission and finds that the silver is clean of enchantment.

Unfortunately a few days later, Mr. Edgar Nevett is found in his study murdered by an enchanted silver candlestick. Soon thereafter, Victor Nevett himself offers to hire Ned to solve the murder. Ned accepts reluctantly, after all business is business and his name and reputation as a metaphysician must be cleared. With the aid of his assistant Ms. Frost, Ned and closest school friend and sometimes lover Private Detective Julian Lynes rush to solve a murder, a burglary, and the mystery of the enchanted silver candlestick. Ned and Julian face danger, old and new foes, struggle to come to terms with painful past experiences and with feelings they may or may not have for each other.

The absorbing mystery drives the plot in Death by Silver as Scott and Griswold keep clues and details coming at a fast pace with well-executed red herrings, twists and turns. The mystery is well integrated with the world-building and the relationship struggle taking place between the characters. Most importantly, none of the characters in Death by Silver, including the villain(s), fall into the black and white category. Instead, they all display strengths and human frailty. Scott and Griswold effectively explore gray areas and the humanity of their characters through Ned and Julian's perspectives.

The fantasy details are organically incorporated into the world-building throughout the story and make sense from the beginning. For example, details such as a recognizable London as the setting with true to time Victorian morals, behavior, and lifestyle, are subtly blended in with magic, enchantments, automata-building salesmen, alternate institutions, laws, some rather interesting flora, and religious beliefs.

However, the hearts of this story are our main characters and narrators Ned and Julian. The story is narrated from their alternating first point of view perspectives. As a result, Scott and Griswold give the reader an in-depth look into both characters that include personal history, intimate thoughts, fears, and feelings. They also give an excellent view of secondary characters and different perspectives of the unfolding plot. The shifts in point of view flow well as do the intermittent flashbacks employed to show the characters' pertinent past experiences with bullies at boarding school.

The extent of the bullying episodes is revealed slowly and blends in with the mystery, as Julian and Ned confront personal fears and consequences of those boarding school days while working closely with the man who bullied them. Also slowly integrated are our main characters' depth of feelings and insecurities as they circle each other and wonder where their relationship stands. This is not the main focus of the story, still, I love Ned and Julian's "friends and lovers to romance-in-the-making" conflict.

I loved everything about Death by Silver -- the world-building and excellent atmosphere, the characters and their personal struggles, the twisty well-paced plot and the delicious romantic relationship-building elements, all the way to the great ending. I just hope that Scott and Griswold are planning a series because these characters and world are begging for one! Highly enjoyed and recommended.

Category: Fantasy/Mystery - LGBT
Publisher: Lethe Press (ARC for review)
Upcoming Release Date: May 25, 2013
Grade: A

Visit Melissa Scott at Goodreads, and Amy Griswold at her LJ page or Goodreads.

Saturday, April 20, 2013

Review: My Dear Watson by L.A. Fields

My Dear Watson by L.A. Fields
Cover Art: Ben Baldwin
I treasure my volumes of Sherlock Holmes mysteries by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, don't you? Needless to say, I was thrilled when I received a copy of My Dear Watson by L.A. Fields for review. This story, however, is not focused on details about the mysteries. Instead, my dear friends, Fields queers the relationship between Holmes and Watson as it evolved throughout the years they worked together as detecting partners.

Fields approaches the queering of these favorite characters from a different and creative angle by utilizing the second Mrs. Watson as narrator. Mrs. Watson's somewhat acerbic narrative voice rivals that of Holmes himself, as do her well-honed powers of observation and deduction -- particularly when it comes to the relationship that existed and still exists between her dear, sweet Dr. Watson and the odious Mr. Holmes. It is most telling that as she begins her narrative, Mrs. Watson casually mentions her acceptance of her husband's flexible sexuality and relationship with the well-known detective, yet when referring to Sherlock Holmes in her journal, she uses the three dreaded capital H's: He, Him and Holmes. What does that tell you?
I can smell a hint of salt from here, so my dear Watson must be overwhelmed with the scent, since he has his face buried in Holmes's shoulder.

They are embracing each other tightly, blissfully, as if they've been a lifetime away from one another. I don't believe I am jealous --- I'm a modern woman, and I knew of my husband's flexible nature before I married him --- but I am rather destabilized by this scene. They just look so desperately happy to be holding one another. It's touching, but it touches one awfully hard.
You see, although Mrs. Watson doesn't openly oppose Watson's relationship with Holmes and says she understands her husband's obsession with the great detective, she believes in her heart that this only came to pass because of Holmes' manipulative nature. Mrs. Watson narrates Holmes' courtship and seduction of an initially unaware, naive Watson who then becomes enthralled and devoted to Him throughout the years. The relationship between the two men fluctuates between happy and deep dark times until their time together at 221B Baker Street ends. The first separation takes place when deeply hurt and disappointed in Holmes, Watson marries his first wife Mary only to be seduced away from her within a short period of time. Mrs. Watson shows sympathy for Mary but understands her sweet Watson, after all "He is rather infectious, Sherlock Holmes. A dark and glamorous thing. "

The story is divided into sections. In the present time Mrs. Watson and her household receive Holmes during his first visit to Watson's home. In other more abundant sections, Fields employs a rather interesting flashback format by having Mrs. Watson narrate the complete history of the men's relationship as it unfolds while they solve mysteries, until the timelines merge in the present. This presentation works rather splendidly as Fields concentrates mainly on the history of the relationship with spare entries dedicated to the present.

And speaking of spare, each chapter/mystery case revealing the building intimate relationship between Holmes and Watson is also short in length. Usually short chapters make for a quick read, however that was not the case in this instance. The relationship as it unfolds between Holmes and Watson and Fields' approach to this story is quite creative. However, while Mrs. Watson's narrative gives the reader an immediate sense of her perceptions and inner emotions, there are sections where it simultaneously creates a certain distance between the reader and the other main characters -- a disconnect -- that slows down the pace.

Fields' characterization of Holmes is notable in that it reveals the man behind the legend by overtly magnifying his weaknesses while subtly depicting strengths. Watson's characterization is not as well defined as that of Holmes, but the portrayal is just as subtle. Fields portrays Watson as an extremely sympathetic character, but look under the surface and you'll find that this depiction is deceiving. On the other hand, our narrator Mrs. Watson becomes as fascinating a character as Mr. Holmes. A contradiction, she's a woman to be reckoned with -- astute and intuitive, possessive and giving, protective, strong and vulnerable -- and I do believe that in the end Mrs. Watson has the last word!

To summarize, I enjoyed My Dear Watson, particularly L.A. Fields' subtle execution and creative approach to building of a complex queer romantic relationship riddled with conflict, jealousy, resentment, love, tenderness, and understanding -- one that involves two of my favorite fictional characters of all time. A solid read.

Category: LGBT/Queer Historical Fiction
Series: None
Publisher/Release Date: Lethe Press/April 4, 2013
Source: ARC Lethe Press
Grade: B

Sunday, March 3, 2013

In Search Of and Others by Will Ludwigsen

In Search Of and Others

Do you think of romance when you hear the term speculative fiction? There is a kind of romance that goes along with reading speculative fiction. It's true. I believe it happens because readers, or fans like me, fall a little in love with the what ifs and why nots, the unexplained, the unexpected, the twists and turns that sometimes push edginess into the weird. The wonder.

The title of Will Ludwigsen's collection, In Search Of and Others is a take on the 1970's television program In Search Of hosted by Leonard Nimoy. That program specialized in debunking myths and legends, in other words as Ludwigsen says in his foreword, they in fact specialized in killing the imagination. However, this collection is his answer or the antithesis of all that: "What am I "in search of"? I'm looking for any signs of imagination in the universe, and if I don't find any, I'm willing to create some of my own. The truth that paralyzed me twenty years ago has come full circle: you don't find magic but make it." When I began reading this collection of 15 stories, I went in my own "search" for magic, the unexpected, those what ifs and why nots that keep the romance of speculative fiction alive and kicking for me.

In his first story "In Search Of," Ludwigsen creates his own version of the television program where he goes from giving general answers to well known events shifting to personal, more intimate moments and building tension until it ends with an edge. The collection continues with "Endless Encore," a fun story with a somewhat predictable outcome, followed by the brilliantly executed "The Speed of Dreams" which has one of those stop-on-your-track endings, and "Nora's Thing" with its excellent plot and beautifully organic finish. As I kept reading, I found that with stories about moving old houses, rednecks, canny realtors, and clowns, this collection just kept getting better and more consistent as it moved along.

At the back of this collection there is a short section where Ludwigsen explains what inspired him to write each story. In his witty explanation as to what inspired him to write "Universicule," he uses the phrase "coaxing meaning out of meaninglessness" while referring to language. This phrase brought to mind how we, as readers, bring our own baggage and imagination to the table, and sometimes "coax meaning" out of stories that may in fact have an entirely different meaning or no meaning at all to someone else. This is true of all stories, but then again that is the beauty of reading. In this case, what I found in Ludwigsen's stories seemed to touch on the personal.

For example, in reading "The Ghost Factory" I made an immediate connection between the eerily fictional circumstances presented by Ludwigsen and real life past job experiences, giving this piece a significance that goes beyond the obvious. This is a story set in a mental health institution narrated by an unethical psychologist. The narrator shifts from events that took place in the 1990's to his present position as the only resident at said institution. The one passage that made this story gel and snap for me is: "The whole world's a ghost factory. We all fade like the paint on these buildings, sometimes from too much sun, sometimes from too little. We blur and blend to the murky shades left behind when something vivid dies." At times the atmosphere in this story is oppressive and immediate which Ludwigsen juxtapositions quite effectively against the coldness of his disconnected characters, and at other times the sense of disconnect and distance is all encompassing. This excellent story is precise in its execution.

"Universicule" on the other hand provided me with quite a few chuckles regardless of the ending and great passages interspersed throughout the text. "[...] but here in person, smelling this loamy garden of a book --- God, you could plant seeds inside it and they'd grow trees of glass with absinthe fruit." In this story, a bibliophile writes letters to Charlotte to keep her informed of his progress as he obsessively studies and attempts to decipher the contents of a rare book. It builds to an unexpected ending, but in reality this story is an elaborate farce. "They miss the fluidity of language qua language." Hah! Written in letter form, Universicule is creative in writing style, development and content. I absolutely loved it.

"She Shells" is a great example of the diversity of stories found in this collection because this story borders on the creepy-horror category. It freaked me out! Again, this could be interpreted as a personal reaction since I suffer from deep-water phobia. I always blame my personal fear on the movie "Jaws" and that awfully effective music (not true, but it sounds better than the truth). In this story, Ludwigsen uses a seemingly simple narrative style and a very short story format heavy in atmosphere to great effect.

And the excellent "We Were Wonder Scouts" brought back memories of days when as a girl my imagination was the best entertainment and I believed in such places as Ludwigsen's fictional Thuria, and of one particular moment when cold reality interfered. But, there is always a place for Wonder Scouts like Harald; boys and girls who are willing to explore and look for the unexplained and the unexpected, the what ifs and why nots. I love that even after reality creeps into this story, Ludwigsen imbues it with enough imagination that the magic lingers to the end.

If you haven't figured it out yet, then I will tell you. In reading In Search Of and Other Stories, I found that Mr. Ludwigsen was quite successful in "making his magic." He took me along for a ride of the imagination and I loved every minute of it. Highly recommended.

Category: Speculative Fiction
Publisher/Release Date: Lethe Press/March 1, 2013
Source: ARC Lethe Press
Grade: A-

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About the Author: Will Ludwigsen's fiction has appeared in Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine, Asimov's Science Fiction, Weird Tales, Strange Horizons, and many other magazines. His first collection of short fiction, Cthulhu Fhtagn, Baby! and Other Cosmic Insolence, appeared in 2007. A 2011 MFA graduate from the University of Southern Maine's Stonecoast program in popular fiction, he teaches creative writing at the University of North Florida. He resides in Jacksonvile, Florida, with writer Aimee Payne.

Saturday, February 2, 2013

Highlighting... The Rest of Us: Stories by Guy Mark Foster

The Rest of Us: Stories by Guy Mark Foster

Releasing February 7th
''Love makes us all vulnerable. Guy Mark Foster's exquisitely crafted new collection The Rest of Us cradles that vulnerability in crystal-clear yet cryptic language. And story after story within this deeply engaging book portrays what it means to love even more dangerously, to live for love that's marked by race, sex, age, and class as 'other.' From visions of clubbing immortals to elegiac letters written by regretful adulterers,The Rest of Us rings true notes, dances surely through complicated steps, and offers intimate, detailed vignettes of heroes who surprise readers and themselves with their despair, determination, and hope.'' --Nisi Shawl, acclaimed co-author of Writing the Other: Bridging Cultural Differences for Successful Fiction

A remarkable collection of short stories that embrace the breadth and depth of being a gay African-American, The Rest of Us approaches life from the angst of youth and first love to the familiarities of cruising and romancing later in life. The boys and men in Guy Mark Foster's tales refuse to be bound by the heavy chains of oppressive religion in the family household or racism encountered on campus. And this strength will be needed to face the passions stirring in their chests, their bedrooms, their lives. From the restlessness of "Lasius niger (The Black Ant)" to familiar discord in "Legacy" and the promise of love in "This Man and Me," Foster's is a voice that will resonate with all readers.
I love the idea behind Lethe Press' Tincture imprint. Tincture showcases quality fiction written by authors whose stories bring to the forefront the gay experience as experienced from different cultural perspectives. I've read and loved a few of the books from their catalogue: The Abode of Bliss: Ten Stories for Adam by Alex Jeffers, Slant by Timothy Wang, and From Macho to Mariposa: New Gay Latino Fiction edited by Charles Rice-González and Charlie Vázquez. All winners! Needless to say my expectations for The Rest of Us: Stories by Guy Mark Foster are high.

Gay Fiction / African-American Fiction
A Tincture imprint of Lethe Press
Paperback, 180 pages