In two days, my speculative short story, THE PASSING OF MILLIE HUDSON, will appear alongside 12 other speculative short stories in the anthology, #READINGGLASSES. Take a look below at the thirteen reasons why you absolutely, have to have READING GLASSES:
TALES OF FICTION INFUSED WITH THE FANTASTICAL
From the publishers of the popular Tall Tales and Short Stories from South Jersey comes a mesmerizing compilation of new fiction. Suspenseful and mysterious, with a touch of ironic humor, Reading Glasses will transport you to the very edge of reality. From life on a space station to tales that orbit a little too close to home, Reading Glasses is a compelling, fantastical departure from the familiar.
1. THE MALOCCHIO by Bruce Capoferri
A young man in old Italy falls victim to a devil in a blue dress in an original fairy tale, based on the legends of “the evil eye.”
2. The Icarus Option by John Farquhar
An old man with a terminal illness, who feels he got life all wrong, wants to make sure that at least he gets death right. Joe Hill is tired of this life, where modern gadgets have removed all real fun, familiar buildings are crumbling, and art and tradition all but forgotten. The answer he is looking for may lie in an old painting, The Fall of Icarus, and a popular new business called Thanatos. It’s a comedy, but probably shouldn’t be.
3. Starstruck by Gregg Feistmann
While living on a space station to try to forget the past, Aaron Kramer encounters an exotic woman determined to be a part of his future. She offers him the opportunity of a lifetime – several lifetimes – in exchange for a seemingly simple promise.
4. The Passing of Mille Hudson by J. Keller Ford
When elderly spinster, Millie Hudson, returns to her childhood home to attend her sister’s funeral, she encounters touching memories and ghosts from her past. It’s not until the family vultures descend to lay claim to the estate that Millie decides to teach them a valuable lesson: sometimes it is the way we leave this life that matters more than how we live it.
5. The Beach House by Christine L. Hardy
Under the threat of international warfare, a woman coming to terms with the death of dear friends learns that their disappearance was not as permanent as it appeared.
6. Fox and the Rose by Amy Holiday
A struggling musician has fended off his father’s calls to join his wealthy family’s business for years, and facing 30 with an uncertain financial future, it’s starting to look like a good idea. But an ancestor with an axe to grind against the “all work and no play” philosophy has other plans.
7. The Highborn by K.A. Magrowski
A highborn priestess’ faith is tested when she learns that even those she trusts the most can betray everything she believes in. Will the Goddess answer her prayers or will the virgin priestess fall prey to the evil designs others have planned?
8. Sifkin’s Fence by Ray Rebmann
A man seeking escape from mistakes he’s made in his personal life, happens upon a dried up bayside settlement that has unfinished business with its own tragic past. In seeking to unlock the secret behind the sorrowful condition of Shellbank, the man is shown a possible way to resolve his own problems.
9. Mason, On His Way Home by Randy Ribay
A teenage boy’s family drama is no secret, and the judgment of outsiders is painful. One terrible day he rescues a tiny turtle, and soon discovers that a hard exterior isn’t the solution.
10. The Hearing of Memory’s Voice by J.J. Steinfeld
“The Hearing of Memory’s Voice” is the story of Jack Zwick, an 81-year-old former Yiddish Theatre actor recovering from a stroke, who shares a room in a neurological ward in 1979 Toronto with two other men: a middle-aged computer salesman recovering from a blow to the head by his wife, and an amnesiac in his early twenties who has been severely beaten. The old actor, who can remember lines from only one play—Ansky’s The Dybbuk—of his long acting career, and the amnesiac develop a friendship as the old actor attempts to prepare the amnesiac for a role in The Dybbuk and doctors attempt to find out who he is.
11. Mrs. Rabinski by Richard Voza
After a terminal diagnosis, grumpy old Mrs. Rabinski spends her final days plotting revenge. And everything goes to plan, until a reversal of fortune finds her last wishes may not be as final as she had hoped.
12. Unquiet Mind by Jessica A. Walsh
Incapable of sleep and forced to hide her condition, a young woman wonders tirelessly about her past while yearning for the comfort of a life left behind.
13. Reading Glasses by Neal Wooten
In a dystopian future where reading and writing are against the law, a lowly fringe dweller named Mat discovers a pair of glasses that proves that the publishing world is alive and well… and incognito. He is determined to become a professional author — even if it kills him.
Book reviewers are more than welcome.
You don’t have to be a professional book reviewer. All we want are avid book readers to read the anthology and leave your comments on your blog, Facebook, Twitter, etc. If you are interested in reviewing the anthology, please contact:
Amy Hollinger | (609) 204.7078 | amy@hypotheticalpress.com
Purchase Links
Reading Glasses will be available September 24, 2014 in eBook and Paperback through Amazon.com, Smashwords, and CreateSpace. I will provide links as they become available.
Launch Party
As I live in Florida, I’m not sure if I’ll be able to attend the Launch Party, but I am trying to get there. For those of you in the South New Jersey area, you may wish to attend for a spectacular night of reading, mingling and eating the best chocolate chip cookies in all South Jersey.
When: October 24, 2014
Time: 7:00 PM
Where: Victorian Savories Bakery Cafe, Voorhees Town Center, Voorhees, NJ
Featuring: #Giveaways, readings, meet-the-authors, behind-the-scenes, South Jersey Writers’ Group member’s books, and of course, the cookies.
Hope you guys can be there. If not, at least please pick up your copy of READING GLASSES and snuggle in to a night of awesome speculative fiction reading.
YA Chit Chat 