One of the shortest stories included in my upcoming anthology was written for an Edgar Allan Poe competition in 2021, in which my work came Runner-Up, and is titled The Clockmaker . Edgar Allan Poe is most famous for his works of Gothic Horror, but it is easy to forget that he also dabbled in Science Fiction, as did many of his Gothic contemporaries. Indeed, a quick Google search has informed me that there are anthologies which solely contain his Science Fiction. The Clockmaker was designed to marry these Horror and SciFi elements to create the sort of story which Poe himself might have written. I won’t deny it: I was pleased with the outcome. At only 500 words, it tells the story of a man who pays a visit to an old schoolfriend (you will realise, if you read much of my Gothic Horror, that old school/university friends play vital roles!) who is an inventor, and spends some time admiring a clock which he has made. I won’t spoil by telling you the ending, but I will say that he does...
"Only One Death" by Alexander Crow
Book Review
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☆☆☆☆☆
“Only One Death” is an engaging novel, which is quite dark
in places, but creates a sense of urgency for the reader to read on…you need to
find out what’s going to happen next!! As a result, this is a very difficult
book to put down!
It is a fantasy novel and some of the names can be a bit
tricky, especially as it is about a group of 10 people. Three characters, in
particular, are very well developed. As it is a novella, it is quite short, but
you feel like you really know some of the characters by the end.
The book is written by someone who knows how to survive in
the wilderness, and this comes across in the writing. The wilds play an
important role in the story, and is clearly important to the author. The reader
is left pondering on a time when more of Britain was engulfed in wilderness,
rather than the towns and settlements we know today.
I would certainly recommend this book to any lover of
fantasy stories.
Book Blurb (from Goodreads)
“Amongst his people ten was an unlucky number.”
Dhinal is searching for a guide into the high mountains. With his mismatched band of companions, he knows he must find the legendary Red City. Meanwhile, in Eastsea, Kees prepares to leave behind the Talking Races for winter. Both Dhinal and Kees know that nature does not care whether you live, or whether you die. Both Dhinal and Kees know that even the best prepared of expeditions can falter and fail. A journey into the mountains, with winter approaching. A group with secrets to hide. What could possibly go wrong? The novella Only One Death is the first of three introductions to the Isthmus, and both a homage and an alternative approach to the standard fantasy quest. |
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