Brought to you By OBS reviewer Andra

I obtained a copy of The Reconstruction Descending from the author, Newton – a free e-copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Synopsis:

Ghosts? Check. Killer robots? Check. Spontaneous combustion? Yup. A swirling tornado filled with industrial inspired monsters? You betcha.

You’ll find all that and more in this genre-bending short story showcase that blends together elements of science fiction, horror, and fantasy.

Review:

I am generally not a fan of short stories….seems you just get started and it is over.  Unfortunately, my feelings for short stories have not been altered, however…..

• The first story “Totem” was just plain creepy.  Who exacts a price of all her eggs to bring back to life her dead husband?  Of course, one could say….we should not be bringing back the dead to life anyways.
• The second story “Reconstruction Descending” – well written but I just found the story weird.
• The third story “Quality of Life” was an interesting portrayal of cancer in the body.  I felt the story brought forth the concept of one’s body attacking itself, the “cancer” having a life of its own, which is an intuitive reflection of the disease for me.
• The fourth story “Gifted”  was moving when considering the lengths a mothers love and pain can go.
• The fifth story “An Angel and the Devil over Coffee” – VERY short…over before I got started and actually had to read a couple of times to get the point.
• The final story “Breathing Room” was by far the story I liked the best, with its futuristic bent .  It was captivating and did not feel like it was over before it began.  While set in the future, it contained humour as well as suspense and “weird” stuff…and very entertaining.

Overall, the stories were crafted well, and if the short story was “my thing”, I would have enjoyed it more.  It is just not my style.