truckstop

Truck Stop Madness

Nancy Wood BooksLeave a comment

Hey everyone,

I have two Truck Stop stories to review today: “The Smugglers” by Vanessa MacLaren-Wray and “Better Angels” by Steven D. Brewer. (Vanessa and Steven were on the “Technical Fiction” Panel Discussion with me.) The Smugglers was released in July, and Better Angels came out just last week. Both of these stories deliver characters and settings you want to know more about. Read on for my reviews!

“The Smugglers” by Vanessa MacLaren-Wray

Attachment is everything.

Mother says, “Don’t name the merchandise,” and “Don’t let the humans see you.”

But Boy can’t resist naming the cute, fuzzy ball of feathers and knife-sharp talons they’re delivering. And why be afraid of weak, ignorant humans?

Plus, this old skinsuit works, but it’s getting cramped. Maybe it’s time for a change.

“The Smugglers” is a novella-length coming-of-age story that is layered and complex. There’s a lot going on here, having to do with what’s hidden and what’s not. The relationship between mother, Deralka, and child, Boy, is woven through the story, along with the fate of the adorable creature that’s being smuggled. On a more subtle level, there’s the need to squeeze into a skinsuit to blend in at the Truck Stop, as well as Boy’s leap into puberty that results in unexpected changes.

When Deralka and Boy, the smugglers referred to in the story’s title, arrive at the Truck Stop at the Center of the Galaxy to meet the buyer of their goods, the deal immediately goes sideways. Then Mother and Boy get separated and Boy goes on a round-about adventure that leads to the Truck Stop’s mysterious Orange Quadrant. The story is well-paced and engaging, with characters I hope to find in future stories. This is a great addition to the Truck Stop series, and I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

“Better Angels” by Steven D. Brewer

After trailing a notorious trafficker across the galaxy, a self-appointed guardian angel arrives at the Truck Stop.

Hidden within the trafficker’s cargo hold may be just what he needs to shut down the trafficker’s illicit trade for good.

“Better Angels” is a kick, no pun intended. It’s short, immediate and forceful. It catches you right from the beginning with an attention-grabbing surprise that may put some readers off, but I suggest that you read on. “Better Angels” will surprise you again and again, and it’s impressive how the author is able to accomplish this in a short 20 pages. It’s great science-fiction, and is another strong addition to the Truck Stop series.

So that’s it for today! Catch up with you again in a few weeks.

Nancy

Truck Stop at the Center of the Galaxy

Nancy Wood BooksLeave a comment

Hi all!

I can’t believe it’s been a month since I last posted. Jeez, I have great intentions for a steady schedule, but….we all know how that goes!

Truck Stop Tuesday was last Tuesday already and I wanted to let you know about the third story in the Truck Stop series, “Hippolyta’s Dagger” by the talented L.A. Jacob. In addition to writing Carnival Farm, which I reviewed last November (and really enjoyed), she’s written two fantasy series published with Water Dragon Publishing (a Paper Angel Press imprint), Grimaulkin and War Mage, as well as a number of other works, which you can find on her website. Besides being a prolific author, L.A. Jacob is also the host of the Small Publishing in a Big Universe podcast. She’s also been curating submissions for the Water Dragon short story program, submissions I’m now reading. (Which is so much fun!)

Anyway, here’s my review:

“Hippolyta’s Dagger” by L.A. Jacob

Someone’s always watching.

Graduate student Laurie Miller makes an unexpected find while working at an archeological excavation site in the Orange Quadrant.

When she learns that the head archeologist has taken credit for her discovery, her revenge comes from a surprising and ancient source.

This is another story in the Truck Stop series with several universal themes: power, privilege, gender, prejudice.

Laurie Miller, a student in archaeology, is completing her graduate studies under the preeminent, and pompous, Dr. Tom Jameson, an expert on the Orange Quadrant, the area currently under examination. Their excavation effort has been on-going for many months now, with nothing, other than dust, to show for it. Unusually, the site is guarded by sentinel bots, who look like a lot like Spartan warriors in their metal skirts, chain-mail breastplates, and bucket-like helmet; complemented with seriously pointed spears.

When Laurie finds something unexpected, and knows that Dr. Jameson will take full credit, her blood boils. But revenge comes in unusual ways…!

This is an fun story and a quick read, one you’ll definitely enjoy.

Favorite sentence: “Writing in minimum gravity, while wearing a clunky space suit fit for an overly tall human male, seemed to be more difficult than impossible.”

Truck Stop at the Center of the Galaxy

Nancy Wood BooksLeave a comment

Hey everyone,

Paper Angel Press has a new short story series underway, with the first story released several weeks ago, and the next to be released on April 12th. Stories will be released monthly, on Tuesdays, so get ready for Truck Stop Tuesdays! Based on the first two stories, “The Stargazer Gift Shop” by Steve Soult and “Coke Machine” by Vanessa MacLaren-Wray, this series is a winner.

At the center of the galaxy rests a mystery — a fully-functional space station abandoned by an alien race for centuries.

Now a thriving hub for interstellar commerce and tourism, the station still contains more mysteries than you might imagine …

Both of these stories blew me away. I was taken with how both authors, from the first sentence, created a fully-functional world in such a compressed format. The characters are alive, the plots are quick and nimble, and the setting is fantastic. The premise is brilliant; this series is going to be so much fun. You can purchase the stories as they are released; the full complement of stories will be out as an anthology sometime in 2023, but I suggest not waiting — read them as soon as you can!

My reviews of the first two stories in the series are below:

“The Stargazer Gift Shop” by Steve Soult

What would you buy at the Stargazer Gift Shop at the center of the galaxy?

Would you buy a soft drink, science kit, makeup, data disk, gumball, something else, or perhaps nothing at all?

While you are there, Rhoda will always be very happy to help you find the perfect gift.

On the surface, this is a sweet story about an android, Rhoda, who works in a gift shop at the center of the galaxy. She’s getting older, is eager to help, and worries about being shut down and her components farmed out. Rhoda is fully invested in her community and her job. She worries about the other androids working in the station and checks in with them during the course of the day. She enthusiastically helps out folks who wander into the shop, having to react quickly to avoid sticky situations. She has an ugly confrontation with a family of tourists, who, through some fast thinking and a small measure of grace, she manages to connect with in a positive way.

I love science fiction for its ability to reflect social justice issues. This story accomplishes that brilliantly. As the story unfolds, you’ll find universal themes: community, empathy, and kindness; along with privilege, prejudice, and power. As I read the story, I found myself resonating with the daily challenges of anyone working with the public — you never know what’s coming.

Favorite sentence: “It’s always nice to be fully charged in the morning, she [Rhoda] thought. That way I can get through the day without having to conserve energy.“

“Coke Machine” by Vanessa MacLaren-Wray

Every truck stop needs a coke machine.

What a way to die — coated in sticky effluent, upside-down in a disused access tube, lost forever in a drifting, abandoned, bankrupt trader ship.

Skip-ship engineer Marichka’s busy with a fire, a faulty Ancient-tech component, and now the etheric cabling’s sprung a leak.

Could everyone just shut up already?

Just like MacLaren-Wray’s full-length book, All That Was Asked, this story captured me right from the get-go. The author has an uncanny ability to draw the reader all the way in, starting with the first sentence, and not letting go until the hapless reader surfaces for air at the end. The story takes place in the compressed engine quarters of a ship, where Marichka, the ship’s engineer, is floating in a vat of goo, trying to make life-or-death repairs before the engine overheats, incinerating the ship and its crew.

Maclaren-Wray’s imagination is brilliant, bringing her world to life with vivid imagery and fierce characters. And her strong knowledge of engineering and physics, along with her attention to mechanical detail, pull the reader into a vortex of adrenaline-fueled, realistic action. It’s thrilling!

Favorite sentence (which happens to be the first sentence!): “Hanging upside down, lungs on fire, fingers sizzling with bad information, I’m trying to reconstruct a joke I heard once, back in my beer-clouded apprentice days, a long story ending in a terrible pun.”

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That’s it for today — hope you enjoy these stories as much as I did.

Until next time,

Nancy