Title: Dimensions
Author: Robert Blevins and Geoff Nelder
Price: $9.98
Genre: Sci-fi/Anthology
ISBN: 978-1-4116-6087-8
Publisher: Adventure Books/Lulu Press
Point of Sale: http://www.lulu.com/content/185340
I just finished reading “Dimensions,” a science fiction short story collection by Robert Blevins and Geoff Nelder. The book is well-put together, with a small illustration for each of its 23 short stories. Like any collection of shorts, I like some stories more then others, but overall it was quite a readable book.
The first short story in the collection, Blevin’s “Cruel and Unusual,” was to me perhaps the weakest in the collection. It seemed to be a rift on the old “Twilight Zone” episode of a convict (in this case a mass murderer) marooned on a distant and hostile world. He spent over twenty years trying to get back to Earth, in the process becoming completely reformed, only to discover that he should have stayed where he was.
The strongest story, in my view, was Goeff Nelder’s “Prime Meridian.” Goeff is an Englishman, and his story is set in an English village. The protagonist, a schoolteacher named John Forrister, inherits his grandfather’s house. John finds the whole setup lacking – the only bright spot in his life is that his neighbor likes to wash her hair at the kitchen sink sans shirt. Things become more interesting when meteorites start piercing his house every day at 3:20 PM. The ending is both unexpected and cute.
Blevin’s story “Hole Card” is another short story, and quite solid. It turns out that the aliens at Roswell, NM were from the future – and the surviving pilot was human. Also of note is Blevin’s story “A Smaller Step,” which puts an alternate-history spin on the death of Yuri Gargarin. When I finished it, I had a case of goose bumps.
Although there are 23 short stories, a number of them are more vignettes or episodes then full stories, covering a page or two. Still, considering that the book is available for just under $10 at Amazon.com, I have to recommend “Dimensions” for anybody seeking new science fiction.
Chris Gerrib is a resident of Villa Park, IL and Director of Technology for a Chicago-area bank. This is his first novel. He holds degrees from the University of Illinois and Southern Illinois University and is president-elect of the Rotary Club of Darien, IL.
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