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Bone Diamond - Weird Stories
When a lowly jeweler in ancient Egypt finds an enormous yellow diamond lodged in the clavicle of a Nile river crocodile, he strikes for riches, selling it to the richest man in Memphis, a living god, the Pharaoh. Then the Pharaoh demands more. So begins a terrifying descent into greed, madness, and murder, with diamonds for all, and diamonds in all, and the blood-red eye of Ra ascendant.
About:
- This bizarre collection of 9 weird short stories delves into a world separated from our own by the most gossamer of veils, rife with horror, mystery, madness, love, and redemption.
- 5 stories were published in pro-level magazines (Beneath Ceaseless Skies, Kaleidotrope, Ideomancer, Podcastle, Something Wicked), 4 are brand new.
Contents:
1) Bone Diamond
2) Caterpillar Man
3) The Tonsor's Son
4) The Mud Girl
5) Flatland
6) The Orphan Queen
7) Sky Painter
8) Leanna Drew The Moon
9) Death Of East
Praise:
- "The dark insanity in this story develops out of greed and terror and self-loathing, until all healthy logic in one person is destroyed. Human life becomes as expendable as filthy Nile water. A very satisfying ending." - Sherry Decker, Tangent Magazine.
- "... a beautiful bittersweet fairy tale, set in the modern day." - Sam Tomaino, SF Revu.
- "Wow. Horrifying and compelling and poignant. This one is going to stick with me." - Kim, Ideomancer.
About the author:
Michael John Grist is a 33-year old British writer and ruins photographer who lives in Tokyo, Japan. He writes strange, twisty fiction, in both fantasy and sci-fi genres. See more at www.michaeljohngrist.com.
Excerpt:
I discover the first bone diamond in a hunk of crocodile clavicle, lodged between the foramen and articular process. I had meant to simply facet the bone tip's lamellar weave, that it might, once polished, dove-tail into a brooch that some high lady in the court might wear to the arena flooding.
Rather, I find a diamond, at least thirty carats in size. It is the most extraordinary bright yellow, like amethyst but glowing hot within. Allory would have loved it.
I take it to my lathe and polish it on corundum, brute it with emery, and at last heat it over a sulfur jet as though it were a citrine. Its yellows melt, whirl, and blaze as though afire inside.
I sit atop my cankerous clay rooftop and hold it up beside the sphere of the moon. Of the two, my bone diamond shines the purest, the brightest, as though the sun risen at night over the slums of Memphis.
I do not know then that it will be the end of everything I know.
About:
- This bizarre collection of 9 weird short stories delves into a world separated from our own by the most gossamer of veils, rife with horror, mystery, madness, love, and redemption.
- 5 stories were published in pro-level magazines (Beneath Ceaseless Skies, Kaleidotrope, Ideomancer, Podcastle, Something Wicked), 4 are brand new.
Contents:
1) Bone Diamond
2) Caterpillar Man
3) The Tonsor's Son
4) The Mud Girl
5) Flatland
6) The Orphan Queen
7) Sky Painter
8) Leanna Drew The Moon
9) Death Of East
Praise:
- "The dark insanity in this story develops out of greed and terror and self-loathing, until all healthy logic in one person is destroyed. Human life becomes as expendable as filthy Nile water. A very satisfying ending." - Sherry Decker, Tangent Magazine.
- "... a beautiful bittersweet fairy tale, set in the modern day." - Sam Tomaino, SF Revu.
- "Wow. Horrifying and compelling and poignant. This one is going to stick with me." - Kim, Ideomancer.
About the author:
Michael John Grist is a 33-year old British writer and ruins photographer who lives in Tokyo, Japan. He writes strange, twisty fiction, in both fantasy and sci-fi genres. See more at www.michaeljohngrist.com.
Excerpt:
I discover the first bone diamond in a hunk of crocodile clavicle, lodged between the foramen and articular process. I had meant to simply facet the bone tip's lamellar weave, that it might, once polished, dove-tail into a brooch that some high lady in the court might wear to the arena flooding.
Rather, I find a diamond, at least thirty carats in size. It is the most extraordinary bright yellow, like amethyst but glowing hot within. Allory would have loved it.
I take it to my lathe and polish it on corundum, brute it with emery, and at last heat it over a sulfur jet as though it were a citrine. Its yellows melt, whirl, and blaze as though afire inside.
I sit atop my cankerous clay rooftop and hold it up beside the sphere of the moon. Of the two, my bone diamond shines the purest, the brightest, as though the sun risen at night over the slums of Memphis.
I do not know then that it will be the end of everything I know.
- GenresShort StoriesFantasy
171 pages, Kindle Edition
First published October 9, 2013
About the author
Michael John Grist
54 books105 followersMichael John Grist is a British/American author and ruins photographer who lives in London, UK. He writes dark and weird science fiction and fantasy books, such as the fantasy novel Ignifer’s Rise and the SF series The Ruins Sonata.
For 11 years he lived in Tokyo exploring Japan’s modern ruins, such as abandoned theme parks, military bases, and ghost towns, gaining millions of hits on this website with his photographs and stories.
The best of these adventures are now collected in his unique travel book Into the Ruins, which thriller bestseller Barry Eisler calls, “gorgeous, haunting, stunning.”
Now Michael enjoys working out in the gym, watching TV and movies, and of course writing stories and novels. He lives in London with his wife, and works as an academic English lecturer at university.
For 11 years he lived in Tokyo exploring Japan’s modern ruins, such as abandoned theme parks, military bases, and ghost towns, gaining millions of hits on this website with his photographs and stories.
The best of these adventures are now collected in his unique travel book Into the Ruins, which thriller bestseller Barry Eisler calls, “gorgeous, haunting, stunning.”
Now Michael enjoys working out in the gym, watching TV and movies, and of course writing stories and novels. He lives in London with his wife, and works as an academic English lecturer at university.
Ratings & Reviews
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
October 3, 2014
This collection of nine short stories (some not so short. perhaps they even qualify as novellas) is highly imaginative. From a man who finds diamonds in shoulder blades to a little girl who becomes a queen but loses her humanity to another little girl who talks to the moon to the murder of the direction East, these stories will take you places that you have never imagined.
For me, it was hard to get into this collection. The first three stories were fairly long and a little bizarre for my tastes. The last six stories were just as bizarre but for some reason, they appealed to me more. All of these stories reminded me of those stories that they made you read in school so you could discuss their meanings. There isn't anything wrong with that type of story. I just prefer my reading to be more on the fun side. (I never did like being told what to read, even if it was something I would enjoy. This is especially true if someone tries to tell me what the story should make me think or feel. That may have been what the author meant, but it doesn't mean I felt that or that either of us were wrong. Climbing off the soapbox now.) A lot of the stories in this collection deal with loss or sacrifice and the consequences of those.
I wouldn't call these stories bright, feel good reads. They are dark fantasies. Some might be a little too strange for your tastes, even if you read sci-fi and fantasy as much as I do. Still, I think most fans of those categories will find some stories to their tastes. And the best part is that no one will quiz you on them when you are done.
For me, it was hard to get into this collection. The first three stories were fairly long and a little bizarre for my tastes. The last six stories were just as bizarre but for some reason, they appealed to me more. All of these stories reminded me of those stories that they made you read in school so you could discuss their meanings. There isn't anything wrong with that type of story. I just prefer my reading to be more on the fun side. (I never did like being told what to read, even if it was something I would enjoy. This is especially true if someone tries to tell me what the story should make me think or feel. That may have been what the author meant, but it doesn't mean I felt that or that either of us were wrong. Climbing off the soapbox now.) A lot of the stories in this collection deal with loss or sacrifice and the consequences of those.
I wouldn't call these stories bright, feel good reads. They are dark fantasies. Some might be a little too strange for your tastes, even if you read sci-fi and fantasy as much as I do. Still, I think most fans of those categories will find some stories to their tastes. And the best part is that no one will quiz you on them when you are done.
February 24, 2019
Quite possibly one of the five best single-author collections I've ever read, up there with the likes of Ray Bradbury, Harlan Ellison, and Michael Chabon's A Model World.
April 4, 2014
It's not often I end up downloading a Kindle book for free and absolutely loving it. This collection of short stories is brilliant, beautifully written, and a fine addition to any book-lover's library. Grist has a very classical voice that I thoroughly enjoyed. There wasn't a single story I didn't like. I can't wait to read his other works.
Want to read
May 19, 2014I read the author's short story The Orphan Queen a few years back on the Ideomancer. I loved that story and look forward to reading more of his work.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews