Saturday, August 19, 2017

Strange Weather

Strange Weather: four short novels by Joe Hill.  Due out October, 2017. I read an e-galley.  448 pages

I had previously gotten part-way through my print galley of this book before I gave it away to someone --- so I downloaded the e-galley so I could keep reading.  I had been partway through the second story and couldn't wait until October, and I'm really glad I didn't wait.

I already wrote about the first story, "Snapshot," which was great. The second story, "Loaded," is about a mall security guard who courageously stops a mass shooting and becomes a hero to the modern gun rights movement. However, did he really stop a mass shooting?  The reader knows, because you get his perspective, but you also read along as a reporter starts to uncover more about him and unravel his story.  No spoilers, but the ending was not quite what I thought it was going to be (although perfectly in line with what I guess I would expect).

The third story, "Aloft," gives us a young man who is about to experience his first parachute jump (which he really doesn't want to do). When he jumps, he winds up a castaway on what appears to be a solid cloud. Obviously, though, it's not a cloud. But what is it, and why does it seem to have a mind of its own?

The last story, "Rain," is pretty scary. On a seemingly ordinary day in Boulder, Colorado, the skies open up and there's a downpour.  Not of rain, though, but razor-sharp crystalline splinters. Shredding the skin of anyone who doesn't take cover, these shards wreak havoc on people, animals, planes, and more.  This story is about an escalating event, and I found it to be the most somewhat realistic and thus the scariest.

Great book, and just as enjoyable as I had hoped it would be.

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