SHORT STORIES is Now THE VAST EXPANSE BEYOND!

Hello, all!

As many of my books are receiving face lifts, I felt it was time for my collection Short Stories to get not only a new edition but a new title as well. The Vast Expanse Beyond takes its name from the final story in the collection and is, I feel, a much more intriguing title than simply Short Stories. The collection has, of course, also received a new cover.

The content of the book has been revised and slightly reordered (the notes now appear at the end of the book as opposed to directly after each story), but the content is essentially unchanged. I hope to have Amazon send update notices to all previous buyers of the collection, so if you have Short Stories, you will hopefully be able to update it soon.

Check out The Vast Expanse Beyond here.

A print edition is coming soon, so watch for further announcements!

Best,

Michael K. Rose

Review: Bastion Science Fiction Magazine

Bastion Science Fiction Magazine may be a brand new publication, but the presentation, editing and story selection are as good as anything you'll find from Analog or Asimov's. The amount of fiction is impressive: nine stories in the May 2014 issue. A few didn't really grab me (which happens with the aforementioned Analog and Asimov's as well, so that's no major criticism), but several really impressed me, particularly Eric Del Carlo's "Nigh," a story about a race of people who exist alongside humans--and can predict the exact date of any person's death. There's a lot more to the story than is apparent at the beginning, and the character development is considerable for a short story.

Rounding out my top three stories in this issue are Jessica Payseur's "Wruyian Sands" and "A Rather Different Sort of F-Bomb" by Marty Bonus. Both of them present unique visions of the future, the first from the perspective of a little girl trying to understand an alien culture while coping with family issues, and the second as an exploration of what a person is willing to do to save humanity.

Another story I particularly enjoyed is Mark Patrick Lynch's "A Considerate Invasion." It definitely reminded me of some of the classic science fiction stories of decades past. Indeed, Bastion's home page states: "Short stories reminiscent of the golden age." They have certainly succeeded in creating a magazine any writer, past or present, would be proud to be published in.

I received a copy of the second issue in exchange for an honest review, but I've already bought and begun reading June's issue, #3. I look forward to enjoying the magazine for many more issues to come.

Click here to check out Bastion's website! Individual issues are available from Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Weightless Books.

DEAD MEDIUM by Peter John

The deathly silence is about to be broken. She disliked the company of others and death did little to warm her spirit. She had led an independent life and she faced death in much the same way. She was finally alone, finally free from the mindless babble of others, at least that's what she thought. May Elizabeth Trump was the rarest of spirits and she was none too happy about it either. She was a dead medium, a ghost who can speak with the living, and her services were to become in great demand. Flung into the limelight and smothered with unwanted attention, May soon discovers that it is not only ghosts with long awaited messages that have taken an interest in her. Something dark was lurking in the shadows, stalking her. Even the dead are not left to rest in peace. 

Dead Medium: A humorous, character driven story and a unique vision of life after death. Not your average ghost story.

Click here to get Dead Medium for your Kindle!

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Peter John was born in Bromley Kent, England in 1973. He gained an interest in creative writing at the age of 14 and was published during the 1990s in several poetry anthologies. He has been happily married to Jo since 1996 and currently lives in Sidcup Kent, not so far from the tree.

You can connect with Peter at his website, blog, Facebook or Twitter.

A New Look for The Sullivan Saga!

Hello, all! Sullivan's War first came out in July of 2012. Sullivan's Wrath arrived in February of the next year. Now that Sullivan's Watch has been out for a while and the story has reached its conclusion, I felt that it was time for the series to get a new look. 

To that end, I have updated the covers for all three books. Sullivan's War and Sullivan's Wrath have received completely new covers! Sullivan's Watch retains the same artwork, but the layout has been changed to match the others. I hope these new covers will appeal to a new set of readers, and if you've read any books of the series and enjoyed them, please do tell a friend (or leave a review)! The new covers can be seen below. To read more about the series, please click here.

Thank you to all my readers who have encouraged me during the writing of this series. If the demand is there, there just might be another Rick Sullivan story in the works. I have some other projects I want to complete first, so stay tuned!

Best,

Michael K. Rose