A review by bookcraft
Footsteps in the Dark by Nicole Kimberling, Dal MacLean, Josh Lanyon
4.0
Ratings for individual stories, with any notes:
"Entreé to Murder" by Nicole Kimberling
â â â â â (4/5 stars)
Drew and Mac are great characters, and I particularly love how Drew's impression of Mac changes as he gets to know him.
"Twelve Seconds" by Meg Perry
â â âââ (2/5 stars)
This felt like a first draft rather than a final story; my fingers itched to take a red pencil to it. There was a lot of telling rather than showing.
"Reality Bites" by S. C. Wynne
â â â ââ (3/5 stars)
The characters never quite seemed real to me. I think there just wasn't enough sensory / evocative detail when it came to both place and character.
"Blind Man's Buff" by L. B. Gregg
â â â â â (4/5 stars)
I noticed some weird word choices and ungrammatical sentences that don't seem to be an intentional part of the stream-of-consciousness narrative style, but that's a pretty minor quibble. Also, I'm very much over the "fat villain" trope. Otherwise, though, this was a really excellent adventure story.
"A Country for Old Men" by Dal Maclean
â â â â â (5/5 stars)
There's so much about this story to unpack. It really made me think about duty versus personal happiness and the shift in how Western culture has prioritized the two over the last couple of centuries. (Cool-to-me side note: It's set on the island my dad's family comes from.)
Content warning: Internalized homophobia
"Pepper the Crime Lab" by Z. A. Maxfield
â â â â â (4/5 stars)
Worst title pun ever!
"Lights, Camera, Murder" by C. S. Poe
â â â ââ (3/5 stars)
These ought to be the kind of characters that I really love, but I didn't quite connect with them.
"Stranger in the House" by Josh Lanyon
â â â ââ (3/5 stars)
Interesting characters who have actual depth. Great sense of place; I can clearly picture the mansion and its eclectic contents.
"Entreé to Murder" by Nicole Kimberling
â â â â â (4/5 stars)
Drew and Mac are great characters, and I particularly love how Drew's impression of Mac changes as he gets to know him.
"Twelve Seconds" by Meg Perry
â â âââ (2/5 stars)
This felt like a first draft rather than a final story; my fingers itched to take a red pencil to it. There was a lot of telling rather than showing.
"Reality Bites" by S. C. Wynne
â â â ââ (3/5 stars)
The characters never quite seemed real to me. I think there just wasn't enough sensory / evocative detail when it came to both place and character.
"Blind Man's Buff" by L. B. Gregg
â â â â â (4/5 stars)
I noticed some weird word choices and ungrammatical sentences that don't seem to be an intentional part of the stream-of-consciousness narrative style, but that's a pretty minor quibble. Also, I'm very much over the "fat villain" trope. Otherwise, though, this was a really excellent adventure story.
"A Country for Old Men" by Dal Maclean
â â â â â (5/5 stars)
There's so much about this story to unpack. It really made me think about duty versus personal happiness and the shift in how Western culture has prioritized the two over the last couple of centuries. (Cool-to-me side note: It's set on the island my dad's family comes from.)
Content warning: Internalized homophobia
"Pepper the Crime Lab" by Z. A. Maxfield
â â â â â (4/5 stars)
Worst title pun ever!
"Lights, Camera, Murder" by C. S. Poe
â â â ââ (3/5 stars)
These ought to be the kind of characters that I really love, but I didn't quite connect with them.
"Stranger in the House" by Josh Lanyon
â â â ââ (3/5 stars)
Interesting characters who have actual depth. Great sense of place; I can clearly picture the mansion and its eclectic contents.