Review: Recipe for a great debut:
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 03 16, 2012
I received this book as an advance review copy from the author: Get yourself a couple pounds of Prime EC Comics (preferably Vault of Horror), season lightly with some HBO's Tales From the Crypt Spice and sprinkle the whole thing with some Twilight Zone Irony. (Do not overcook, this one bleeds when you bite into it.) Present the dish in slices of exactly 666 words. This is the makings for a very fine debut offering from author Michael E. Grant. It's flash fiction so it's a perfect read while you have your morning coffee, wait in line at the post office, or any time you have a few minutes to kill. Grant fires on all cylinders here, and for the most part makes it work. A few tales didn't grab me as much as most of them, but that's the nature of Flash: it's all in the reader's perception. I still give it 5 stars because as a wordsmith, Grant has some serious chops. Every tale is crafted to perfection. With the bonus tale at the end, it seems that Grant is following up his Freshman debut with another collection of short stories. I personally am looking forward to his first full length novel. Bravo Mr. Grant. Very impressive debut. I will be watching you closely.