andrewlynch's review

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5.0

Editor Erik Secker is the mastermind behind the unique and top-notch Bourbon Penn annual anthology. I was pleased and honoured to have a story in the 10th edition.

My own contribution, "The Rainbow Gun", was inspired by the sheer volume of rainbows that appear in Auckland. When I first moved here, their frequency amazed me, but when I mentioned this to locals, they barely seemed to notice. That got me thinking about a situation in which one of the most benign natural marvels possible – the rainbow – could be entirely overlooked, even if it represented something far from benign.

The other tales in the issue are uniformly terrific, which made me feel great about being in such fine company. They run the gamut from Jarry-esque symbolism to the mundane in the magical to the creepiness inherent in how people sometimes perceive the world around them.

It's a credit to Erik that he gets this sort of writing and can so carefully weave a set of tales into a coherent whole.
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