Miracle Texas by DeAnna Knippling
Miracle Texas by DeAnna Knippling is a short story reminding us that the people we try to ignore by filing away under a short label in our mind are complete actual people and deserve to be treated as such, too. When the tall young Amazon prostitute in this tale finds herself pushed away to the point where the man she has recently been with is gunning down her horse, she becomes more than a little angry.
The young Amazon, Justine, finds herself working in a clandestine valley of ‘free women’ when she meets Giles Carson, a man happy to tell her she is nothing more than a whore. It doesn’t matter to him that while he cheats on his wife it is nothing more than earning money for her; somehow, in his mind, she is clearly the one who is doing more wrong. When Justine, in trying to understand his point of view attempts to get closer to his life; he reacts violently, and attempts to simply run away.
Giles quickly learns that when you treat badly the people you intend to keep a secret with, the truths you’d rather deny have a habit of following you. And when your ‘partner in crime’ happens to be from a clan of mystically fierce warriors, there is little intelligence in invoking that person’s wrath.
Rattling Bones by Thea Atkinson
Rattling Bones
Feelings are heavily focused on in these stories. We catch a glimpse of the helplessness an older gentleman feels watching his wife fall to what could be her death as he is unable to call for assistance quickly. Experience the horror that a young man feels when he realizes that the speech translator he created and uses with his disabled mother has been seriously misinterpreting her words. We see the way a woman who can’t have children tries to fool even herself by claiming pregnancy.
If you like sad stories that leave you somewhat uncomfortable, this book has several of those. This collection of stories may not be cheery, but it is full of tales that reflect how our simplest actions are truly driven by our deepest love.
A Pleasure to Burn by David Bain
A Pleasure to Burn is a short ‘Green River’ story by David Bain that explores the lengths people will go to in an attempt to erase a past they’d rather forget. It’s also a chilling reminder of how we can sometimes lose all sense of caution when trying to uncover the secrets of another.
Rafe Johnson is a Golden Globe winning actor with an unpleasant childhood that haunts him. Finally the memories of his abusive father make him fell he must destroy his former house, and all it stands for in his mind. In his plans for arson, he never considers that he may be followed by Sandra Petosky, a fame hunting tabloid reporter. Wanting to capture his secretive actions on film, she won’t even stop to take note that HER life is now on the line.
Interesting characters here that are written in such a way you could be left wanting to read more about them. Both people written about have a clear motivation. Knowing all that was told of Johnson, I am left unsure even whether to trust his perception of the ending is real.
Amador Lockdown by Coral Russell
Amador Lockdown by Coral Russel is a fun book that tells of the haunting of an old hotel. When a group of ghost hunters, The Paranormal Posse, try to have a fun ghost tour of the place, they suddenly find themselves dealing with angry hotel owners and even possible possession.
Hector, with his ghost hunting pals, Marcos, Tony, and Bev, try to have a fun lockdown event where they bring brave, curious spectators to experience spiritual activity in the old Amador Hotel in El Paso. The building itself has been the site of several strange events that no one has an explanation for. Because Hector has the current custody of his son Darren, from a previous marriage, the boy is brought along.
Although they wanted to show off ghosts, Hector never counted on the fact that his own son’s body could be stolen by a spook lusting for life. Believe in ghosts or not, you have to appreciate the horror of Hector when he starts to see what has become of his son. The steps that this dad will take to try and rescue his child are understandable and leave you wishing him the best.
Feeding the Father by Morgen Bailey
The story is told by a grown child who feels it is his duty to take care of his ageing father when his mother no longer will. Understandable, yes, but the ending took me totally by surprise!
Even if you only have 10-15 minutes to read, that should be enough, and downloading this is worthwhile. What takes so little time to read, may direct your thoughts for hours.
Dark Clouds by Scott Bury
This is an enjoyable Halloween story that Scott is currently offering for free at http://scottswrittenwords.blogspot.com/p/free-halloween-story-for-download.html
It is about Matt, a man that would like to live a normal life with his loving wife, Teri.
Unfortunately, this may not be possible because he has to contend with the fact that his mother is a witch. Not wanting to see the results of her evil ‘fun,’ Matt sees it as his duty to try and stop, or at least reverse the crimes perpetrated her and her coven.
When a carefree walk with his wife in the park brings into sight a conglomeration of dark and evil, whitchly clouds collecting over houses of government, simply hoping for the best is a little more than Matt feels he has any right to do.
So, what evils could do the mysterious Dark Clouds point to? I suppose that depends on how easily you take actions at their face value.
Smoke Without Fire by Steven Lytton
If; however, you are willing to look past all that, you may find yourself unwilling to give it up before you discover what happens next.
When the story starts we meet Peter Stanton, who is lying on a hospital bed trying to piece together all what happened to cause him to be lying beneath the tools of his worried sounding doctors. We learn that he is owner of a nightclub, who found his life quite normal until a short time ago.
How did it become abnormal? Well it seems that a good friend of his was unexpectedly killed. Now with all the crime and drug-issues that can surround a nightclub scene of life, the killing in itself isn’t that surprising. What Peter doesn’t expect is the fact that his investigation into his friend’s death begins to unearth signs that seem to prove his dead pal Charlie Franks was living a double life and secretly procuring underage prostitutes.
If this wasn’t startling enough, now it seems that the attempted investigation is sparking a new string of murders. As these seem connected to Peter, he soon finds the police and the press looking his way. Not intending to, he also finds himself trying to save a young woman trapped working in what he is investigating.
All of the problems Peter finds himself ensnared in are easily visible, yet trying to link them solidly to what he was originally looking for only leaves him grasping at the vanishing mirage. Is anything what it seems, or is it all ‘Smoke Without Fire’?
‘Lunch Time Surprise’ by Mark Stewart
I must say, I like the nerve of this author in getting my attention for a review. He liked my smashwords page and I’m not sure he even read my book. It did get my attention enough to read his one of his free stories.
The story I read, this ‘Lunch Time Surprise’ was a cheery tale of two people trapped in an elevator. the characters begin reacting to each other as any normal people would react when suddenly trapped in close quarters with a complete stranger that may not be trustworthy.
It is quite quick and to the point, but I would definitely say it’s worth downloading and reading, even if you have less than 15 minutes to spare. And because it’s free as well as short you’ve not much to lose even if you disagree with me
Who knows, It might just leave you with a smile. 🙂
Sarah's Readings 