Dead Promises | ||||||||
edited by June Hubbard | ||||||||
Chameleon Publishing, 220 pages | ||||||||
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A review by Lisa DuMond
Mr. Hagessy asserts in "Pocket Money," "The most viable ghosts suffer incredibly traumatic, violent
deaths." If that is the case, then there could be almost half a million souls wandering through the sites
of battles long past. And, at least as many stories about the shadows they left behind.
Dead Promises is not the first anthology to tackle the tragedy, not even the first horror
anthology, but it is a good one. If some of the plots have appeared before and if some of the subjects are
repeated, then just put that down to the nature of the supernatural.
Hubbard -- whose own story contribution is sadly absent -- has put together a roster of some of the most
talented authors in the genre. Julie Ann Parks, Owl Goingback, and Stephen Lee Climer lead a corps of dark
fantasy writers who have succeeded in hitting at the heart of this topic; the horror is not only in the
fear the wraiths inspire, but in the anguish.
Three of the stories that start off the collection provoke a shiver as well as any ghost tales they might
be compared to. However, along with the shudder is that of a touch of pity. Michael Nethercott's
"Dusk At Seven Pines" employs a plot device that you will find echoed later in the book, but the short, sharp
piece captures the scene so clearly, it is all too easy to imagine yourself there. The evocative quality of
the story is not so easily pushed out of one's thoughts. "Ill Met by Moonlight" provides a story of love
turned to madness, in Jan Sterling's look at the war at home and the casualties uncounted. The horror that
was Andersonville Prison becomes chillingly clear in Goingback's "Last Man in Line." A warning: if you
suffer claustrophobia, this piece may be even more frightening -- and it is quite frightening enough, thank you.
Several of the stories bring back in grisly detail the hopelessness of those wounded in battle, the ones
who took longer to die. It might be a good idea to read "Strawfoot and Slow Bear," "Common Ground," and the
title story on an empty stomach. Some mental images are just a bit too real for comfort.
Of course, none of the stories are made for comfort, are they? You cannot write about a war without
writing a tragedy. No matter what the uniform, what colour the skin, how right the sides believe
they are, it's a war. Everybody loses.
Lisa DuMond writes science fiction and humour. She co-authored the 45th anniversary issue cover of MAD Magazine. Previews of her latest, as yet unpublished, novel are available at Hades Online. |
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