Review: Incredibly good
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 08 30, 2011
I got this story for free (the price has since changed).  For anybody who has read more than a handful of Kindle free short stories, you'll be familiar with how difficult it is to find anything worth reading.  This story is good.  I mean really good.  I actually checked when I was done reading it to make sure I had actually gotten it for free and hadn't accidently paid for it.  The quality difference between this and the next best free Kindle short story I've read so far . . . worlds apart.The premise of the story is somewhat sci-fi - government agencies use "remote viewers," people trained in psychic abilities, to meet various goals.  In this story, the goal is to recover a lost painting of Vincent Van Gogh's.  Maroch, a man with a painful past, is paired with Laure, a woman with a painful past, to guide her through the process of finding the painting.  A relatively simple plot, but Smith turns it into so much more.Nothing is predictable or obvious in this story.  It is beautifully written and incredibly satisfying.  I highly recommend this story and plan to read more of the author's work.