Saturday 14 September 2019

Book Review: WORLDS: A Science Fiction Microfiction Anthology (Dark Drabbles Book 1) by D Kershaw (editor)

Worlds is a collection of sci-fi microfiction and is the first in a series of Dark Drabbles from Black Hare Press. Some of the stories are creepy, some are heartbreaking, and some are just plain unnerving. Some are even laugh out loud funny (though that might say more about my sick sense of humor than the anthology...)

The 300ish stories in Worlds exhibit different levels of author ability, experience, style, and vision. My favourites are "The Summer in Outer Polsari Lasts One Hundred and Fifty Earth Years" by Okala Elesia (which gave me chills,) "New Rule" by Austin P. Sheehan (which made me chuckle,) "Frank's Baby" by Rich Rurshell (which borders on yucky,) "The Mission" by Alanah Andrews (which amused me more than it should have,) "Pew Pew Pew!" by Alanna Robertson-Webb (which invokes Ender's Game,) "Harmony" by David Bowmore and "Sins of the Flesh 2119" by Nancy Brewka-Clark (both of which were straight up disturbing.)

Drabbles are great for people like me who, thanks to mental health issues, struggle to focus. (Yeah, fuck you, Depression and Anxiety.) A hundred words, the length of a drabble, is basically the literary equivalent of a snack-size candy bar and I love to gobble that shit up. It's nice to finish a quick story and move onto something that's totally different but similar at the same time. If you've got a craving for some sci-fi but don't have the time or energy to slog through a massive novel, try Worlds instead. There's something in it for everyone.

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