Book Review: The Inconsolables by Michael Wehunt
Title: The Inconsolables: Stories
Author: Michael Wehunt
Release date: June 6th, 2023
Back in 2018, I had the immense pleasure of reading Michael Wehunt’s PHENOMENAL collection, ‘Greener Pastures.’ Then, to my utter surprise, the following year, Michael reached out to see if I’d like to read a copy of his charity novella, ‘Everything Is Beautiful and Nothing Bad Can Ever Happen Here.’ I absolutely said yes.
Fast forward to early 2023, and we get the announcement of Michael releasing a new collection through Bad Hand Books and even before I learned Trevor Henderson would be contributing artwork to each story, I smashed the preorder button. I couldn’t wait to get my hands on this.
And the funny thing is – I was and still am completely turned off with short story collections and anthologies. I’m burned out on them. It seems everyone has one out or coming out (and I type this with a completely ironic smile, knowing I’m currently putting together a two-volume compilation of my short fiction!) and over the last however many years, I’ve read hundreds of them.
But… Wehunt is different. Wehunt writes the ‘every man’ stories. The bits and pieces of normal life that get flipped upside down and ground through a meat-grinder. Of all the short fiction masters out there, Wehunt is the rare author who writes fictional stories that feel like non-fiction. As though every single piece he puts forth COULD happen and just might, if you read it.
Now, I know we see a lot of ridiculous adjectives thrown around in blurbs – from authors and reviewers alike – to try to entice readers to read whatever it is they are blurbing – but Wehunt’s work is just what those blurbs say. It is compulsive. It is off-putting. And it must be read.
What I liked: Entering into this collection is like revisiting an old friend, but a friend who has slightly changed since you last saw them. They’ve grown a bit more grizzled, a bit more anxious and they often dart their eyes around the room with the expectation that something else is there.
In ‘Greener Pastures,’ Wehunt consistently controlled the narrative in each story, dragging the reader along. In this collection, some of the stories feel a bit looser, a bit more frazzled, as though the string holding it all together has started to come loose – unspool – at one end, but we’re unsure of which end that is.
The first story gives the reader an idea of what they’re in for. ‘Vampire Fiction,’ is as unsettling (and upsetting) as you can get – before reading the rest of the collection that is – where we follow a husband (granted one who has seen odd things outside of his window his entire life) desperately wanting to do what he can to reunite with his wife and child. There’s a number of layers at play here, which in this case, Wehunt makes sure to tease out as the story goes along. This one felt like a much longer story than it is, simply because of Michael’s ability to do so much with so little. A paragraph as a chapter. A page as a section. When the ending arrives, even if you’ve figured it out beforehand, it hits your heart like a ten ton hammer.
‘Holoow’ is a strange story. We get a wonderfully, quirky character with Claudette, but nothing is what it seems and when that is embedded in a story told through Wehunt’s eyes, it creates a sort of chaotic-depression throughout.
‘Caring for a Stray Dog (Metaphors)’ is a rare story in the Wehunt pantheon, in that it has some genuine, heartwarming moments. Of course, this is bookended with some truly horrible news, some real-life topicality throughout, but with the character Kent, you’ll immediately grasp onto the sorrow that permeates his every move and follow along as he navigates his world.
‘The Pine Arch Collection’ sees Wehunt return to the world of found-footage story telling and for those who loved what he did with that in ‘Greener Pastures,’ I can already see those smiles on your faces. This one ramps up really quickly and gives us perhaps the biggest chills within the entire collection. Perhaps.
‘The Tired Sounds, A Wake.’ Wow. What a story. What starts out as a tale of a husband and wife falling away from each other, while trying to stay together – especially as they look to celebrate their 25th wedding anniversary – turns into a ‘making a deal with the Devil,’ type scenario. It was also a unique take on when communication breaks down and one of the partnership begins to experience success in the arts.
‘A Heart Arrhythmia Creeping into a Dark Room’ was, at first, a bit of an odd duck with the meta aspects, but worked really well overall. It also speaks to the internal anxiety every writer experiences when a deadline looms and the creative juices won’t flow.
‘The Teeth of America’ showcases (much like ‘Everything Is Beautiful and Nothing Bad Can Ever Happen Here’ did) Wehunt’s socio-political leanings overtly. It was really well done and speaks to the unhinged wtf-ness a lot of non-America’s experience with every piece of news that comes out of that country.
‘It Takes Slow Sips’ was the perfect follow-up story to ‘The Teeth of America,’ and with the tie-in to ‘The Pine Arch Collection’ it’ll make readers very happy. What won’t is the undertones of ‘incel’ throughout and the reality that a growing movement of feverish indoctrination is continuing to occur with so many disillusioned young males.
‘Is There Human Kindness Still in the World?’ The title along made me gulp going into this story and as it slowly morphs from a woman losing the love of her life, to looking for something that meant so much to them, to transforming her grief into horrendous acts, spoke really well to just how complex and layered humans are.
‘An Ending (Ascent)’ might very well be the perfect closer to this collection and will potentially throw some people off with its very heavy sci-fi leanings, but it was a wonderful story and shows Wehunt’s ability to keep his readers wrapped around his pen, no matter the subject matter.
Every single story throughout this was a textual marvel. From how the characters were developed, to how the grief and dread was introduced and the volumes of each was turned up or down as things went on, these stories showcase just how phenomenal of a writer Wehunt is.
What I didn’t like: The reality is, I loved every single story within this. Even with me being burned out on short blasts of creations, AND actively looking for a reason to hurry up and move on, I simply couldn’t. But, that was me. Others may dislike how Wehunt delivers his political takes through subplots and some may dislike a sci-fi story within a horror collection. While none of that applied to me here, it may very well be what we see in coming reviews and why this collection isn’t a universally 5-star rated release.
Why you should buy this: It’s not very often that you get a bone fide classic released that you know will be a classic for the rest of time and will be showcased and studied by lovers of the short fiction craft in your active reading lifetime. It’s even more rare for one author to release two of those collections – and with ‘Greener Pastures’ and ‘The Inconsolables,’ Michael Wehunt has done just that. There are very few authors out there creating stories as innocent on the surface while being as devastating below as Wehunt is. This is a must read and one that will be discussed and raved about for years to come.
Well done, Michael.
5/5
