Review: A Potpourri of Thrills and Chills
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 06 12, 2014
Most Amazon readers know that some of the best Kindle bargains available are the anthologies that present the works of a number of different Amazon authors either for free or a minimal price. "Killer Thriller Collection" is a condensed version of one of these anthologies: a collection of shorter works by eight different thriller and sci fi writers that Amazon usually offers for free (as I received it). "Killer Thriller" is as entertaining as any of the longer anthologies but a considerably quicker read.As in any anthology, the theme and quality of the different works vary somewhat:"Paydown" by Nick Stephenson (3 stars):The prequel novella to Stephenson's Leopold Blake series featuring Blake, the wealthy heir to a financial empire who is a brilliant detective in his own right, Mary Jordan, a New York City detective who works with Blake on various cases, and Jerome, Blake's bodyguard, who helps extricate him from tough jams. In this book (which Stephenson sells on Amazon on a standalone basis), Blake and Mary investigate the murder of a Wall Street banker that's tied into the 2007 financial crisis. Although the book is heavy on clichés and short on actual investigating, it has good action sequences, and Stephenson often displays a good sense of humor. For those new to Stephenson, the book should spark interest in reading about Blake and company's further adventures."Loose Ends" by David VanDyke (3.5 stars): A novelette featuring California ("Cal") Corwin, a female PI based in San Francisco. VanDyke usually writes science fiction, but he has a natural flair for the hardboiled detective genre. Although Corwin seems to be a series character, as far as I can tell, this story represents her only adventure available on Amazon. She's an interesting character, an ex-cop dealing with some heavy physical (and possible heavy) emotional trauma resulting from being caught in a bomb blast. In the story, she tries to help a pharmaceutical company executive recover her kidnapped daughter and thwart some kidnappers trying to get their hands on some prescription drugs with considerable street value. The story is entertaining but probably could have been a good 30-40 pages longer, as some of the plot developments are a bit hard to follow."Mr. Mockingbird Drive" by Robert Swartwood (4 stars): A short story about two muggers trying to rob a victim withdrawing money from an ATM machine. The robbers actually want to get inside the man's home and loot it, but find out they have let themselves in for more than they anticipated. The story is reminiscent of the types of tales Alfred Hitchcock used to feature on his TV anthology series: tightly written with a clever twist at the end."Ladies' Weekend" by Ryan King (4 stars): A novelette about the female members of a Southern family making their annual weekend trip to a Gulf Shores beach resort. As the story begins, readers are probably expecting a typical "Steel Magnolias"-type of bonding story, especially when the author reveals that one of the women is dying of cancer and likely on her last such weekend. However, there's far more sinister goings on here, as one of the women soon finds out. The story does a better job of plotting than character development, but it's a good contrast to typical weepy melodramas of this genre."Veritas: Concubine" by R.S. Guthrie (4 stars): A tale about a convicted mass murderer and the journalist who records his final hours. Veritas is a former Army ranger who made it his life's mission to go after sexual predators and other scummy characters who had evaded legal punishment for their crimes, including the man who had kidnapped the journalist's daughter and sold her into white slavery. It's heavy, fairly graphic reading but compelling for readers who aren't offended by the material. The ending is rather abrupt for a standalone story, but, in the Afterword, the editors explain that author Guthrie plans a series of books detailing Veritas' exploits. If so, this story establishes the series' main characters, and the premise, quite well."Divide and Conquer" by Kay Hadashi (5 stars): A cat-and-mouse suspense novelette about a clever woman baby sitting her two nieces who finds herself the victim of a home invasion by three hardened ex-cons. She faces seemingly insurmountable odds but proves extremely adept with both words and fists and gradually evens the odds she faces against the criminals. Hadashi frequently makes readers privy to the heroine's thought processes as she tries to figure out her next move, which actually makes a seemingly preposterous story quite credible. This fast paced, suspenseful novelette is easily the best story in the book and begs to be made into a movie."Recidivist" by Alan McDermott (4 stars): A short story about a wealthy man who offers juvenile offenders a second chance for those who want it and something rather different for those who don't. This story has science fiction elements but also a good old-fashioned twist at the end and makes for a good, quick read."Return of the Bride" by Michael Maxwell (3 stars): A short, short story about a man going to the Middle East to rescue his dead brother's wife, who has been kidnapped by extremists and held for ransom. It's a sad story, but one that could have been longer to have the optimum emotional impact.Overall, the quality of these stories is very good. "Divide and Conquer" is an excellent short thriller, and four of the other stories are very good. Best of all, there are no clunkers in the lot. Based on the overall quality of the stories and the book's added value in assembling all these stories in one volume, I give "Killer Thriller" a rating of 4.5 stars, rounded up to 5 on the basis of the value-for-money factor.