Review: Great Value, Good Reads
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 07 19, 2014
Real bang for the buck here, overall I rate this collection five stars, value, quality, and, interesting plots.  That being said, not all of the stories in this collection rate the same, but, the collection as a whole is hard to beat for the price.  It helps that all of the writers know their craft.  All of the stories in this collection have that pulp fiction verve to them, lots of action, lots of plot twists and turns, all of it generally carried along at a fast pace by non-stop action.Here's how I rate the stories:SNAKE SKIN  - Three starsWell written, as are all of these stories, has a made-for-TV feel to the plot line, somewhat contrived, and, not altogether that convincing.  However, it is well written, with good character development, and keeps you turning the page with plenty of action and some interesting, and sometimes excruciatingly contrived plotting.POST  - Five StarsThis is the most pure action thriller of the bunch.  Action, action, and more action, not much time for in-depth character development, or, for that matter, much in the way texture to the setting.  The story moves a long quickly and covers a lot of territory.  What sets this story apart from the rest is the skill the author uses in building the plot line, introducing the characters, and blending in the action sequences.  Sean Black mixes both first person narrative and the omniscient in telling this story.  He does it skillfully, you never lose track of what is happening, and, you don't get caught up in story-loops that take you off of on a tangent.  There's another intriguing aspect of the this two-track story telling approach, you get nuggets of information that tell a secondary story in your mind as you read along.  By only giving you glimpses of the internal workings of the main characters mind, you are left with questions that keep you guessing throughout the story.  Questions that in many cases are never answered, but, as they aren't actually part of the story, allow the reader to build their own narrative of the tale.  Ok...that seems a little confusing, but, trust me, once you have read this story, you will continue to think about it.  It raises legitimate questions of moral and ethical conduct, the consequences of taking risks, and the price you sometimes have to pay when you take those risks.  I liked this one a lot.THE BLOOD WHISPERER - Five StarsVery well written, well paced, and lots of action.  Characters are well developed, the story is original, plotting is good, and the action carries it all along nicely.  Next to POST, this is my favorite book in this collection.  This would make an excellent plot for a movie.  This one really held my attention and I actually cared about what happened to the heroine.  This story and POST make this collection a great deal on their own merits.THE WORLD BENEATH - Three-and-a-half starsNot the worst story of the bunch, a little far fetched, seemed to drag in places.  There are some holes to the plot that test the reader's credulity at times.  Good deal of action, some of the characters seem very one-dimensional, and the plot is very contrived.KISS HER GOODBYE - Three StarsA good read, a straight-forward, cops and robbers tale that takes a twist into the supernatural.  Bit of a Twilight Zone feel to this one.  Cop chases bad guy, bad guy kidnaps cops daughter, then the bad guy gets killed and the story takes a turn into the supernatural.  There's a lot to like in this story, just be ready to take that sharp turn into the unknown.THE DESTROYED - Four StarsA very good modern day thriller set amongst the CIA, and other alphabet soup agencies, and the global war on terror.  The tale of a cleaner, no make that THE cleaner, but, not a guy who works at a laundry.  This kind of cleaner is a free-lance contractor who disposes of dead bodies that are the target of assassination.  You kill someone you don't want anyone to know about, you call in the cleaner to dispose of the evidence.  He disposes of the body, cleans everything up so no one knows what happened, and he leaves.  All for a fee of course.  The cleaner is a professional, is an expert at his job, and asks no questions.The story takes place in the present and touches on some very interesting what if questions.  Questions such as: What if someone inside the government decided they needed to make someone disappear into the abyss of extraordinary rendition?  Suppose that someone was an American citizen in the US: Who would ever know?A good story with excellent character development.  The plot is only modestly contrived and the story does raise some interesting questions about the National Security State."THE THIEF" - a short storyAs an added bonus you get this short story about a mentally-challenged young man with a penchant for kleptomania.  The ending is a real surprise, but, the story itself is a little unsettling.  Not for everyone.