James Pyles's Blog, page 5

Review (and Commentary) of “Treasure Island” by Robert Louis Stevenson

At the ripe old age of seventy (soon to be seventy-one), I don’t believe I’ve read Robert Louis Stevenson’s novel Treasure Island before. It first appeared in book form in 1883 and before that, was serialized in a children’s magazine from 1881 to 1882 under the title “Treasure Island or the Mutiny of the Hispaniola.” […]

The Patchwork Man

“What the hell is this?” Matthew’s new eyes flickered across the macabre collection of “get well” gifts by his hospital bed. “I would think it’s obvious, Sir.” He called her “Big Nurse” but the woman’s nametag said “Louise.” “I’m back from the dead and my friends send me crap?” He tried to sit up in […]

“Short Fantasy Stories” Coming Soon!

Short Fantasy Stories: Fantasy in 100 Words from Shacklebound Books is now available for pre-order from Amazon. It will be delivered to your kindle device when it’s published on July 4, 2025 (very patriotic). It contains a number of my fantasy drabbles for your reading pleasure. The Amazon blurb says: Short Fantasy Stories is an […]

Bad Art

“This is just like before. Look at the image and tell me what you see.” Ron sat across the table from Dr. Anita Smythe in the mint-green examination room, his blue eyes staring at the photo. “Bad art.” “Does it evoke any particular thoughts or emotions?” she asked. “Only that I’m getting tired of this […]

Something Old, Something Stolen, and a Dead Cat

Fifteen-year-old Daphne plopped herself down on the chair next to the table. “This is stupid.” She blew a random cluster of hair out of her eyes. “We’re looking for an old book, not old junk. What is this crud?” The backpack at her feet stirred and Skinner’s head lolled awkwardly to the side. “That ancient […]

Book Review of “To Sleep in a Sea of Stars” (2020)

I just finished reading To Sleep In A Sea Of Stars (2020) by Christopher Paolini and was really impressed. One of the biggest points for me is that the book is over 800 pages long and it didn’t drag at some point. From the blurb on Amazon: Kira Navárez dreamed of life on new worlds. […]

Geoffrey’s Secret

The female attendant politely asked to verify Geoffrey’s identification. Something was wrong. Of course, something was wrong. He was traveling under false documents on the Beijing to Xi’an bullet train at 350 kph. If he was discovered, there would be no jumping off like in some fanciful old spy movie. His synthetic biology let him […]

All the World’s a Game and All the Lords and Captives Merely Players

“Shall we play a game?” Her jailer placed the elements of Charlotte on the table between him and Ciara with notable mistakes. Ciara recognized what Isom had taken from her brother’s style but only a barbarian would have so clumsily arranged the dice on the left of the cards and the board. “You bested my […]

Seven Drabbles Accepted Into “Second Wave”

I’ve just had seven (out of the ten submitted) of my science fiction drabbles accepted into the Starry Eyed Press anthology “Second Wave.” Here’s the short blurb: For Second Wave we are looking for stories centering on the aftermath of initial contact with aliens. Show us what impact first contact had. Give us changing politics, […]

Book Review of the Dresden Files Novel “Small Favor” (2009)

I finished Jim Butcher’s Dresden Files novel Small Favor a week or more ago, but I’ve been so busy (largely with granddaughters) that I haven’t had time to write the review before now. Just when I think everything that can happen to wizard Harry Dresden has happened, something new comes up. As you recall, Dresden […]