River Weather

by Cameron Mackenzie

As the D.C. city sprawl moved west along the banks of the Potomac in the late 1990s, what had once been a rural backwater was rapidly transformed into a dystopian suburbia of suspicion, greed, and naked self-interest. This collection examines the resulting blends of money, race, and class that have come to define the ongoing metamorphosis of Northern Virginia. In “Kalim Mansour,” a boy trying to understand his father fixates on a mysterious Saudi car salesman. In “Rowdy,” a man who was sexually assaulted by his high school football team still romanticizes their masculine code of behavior. In “A Non-Smoking House,” two contractors battle the realtors who control their livelihood as the ties that bind civil behavior pull tight, and then snap. Each of MacKenzie’s stories explores the incommensurable moments that lie at the heart of shared experience, the yawning gaps that separate us, and our desperate attempts to close them.

“The stories in River Weather manage to be both sensitive and transgressive, socially conscious and hard-edged. MacKenzie captures with exquisite detail the challenges of being a man in a world that’s gone to hell, coping with irresistible urges and impossible expectations. Like the work of Palahniuk and Ellis, these stories are riveting and bleed tensile masculinity. Crisp and hard-hitting, this book will leave you breathless.”
—Cliff Garstang, author of What the Zhang Boys Know

“Not since the short stories of Raymond Carver have I read a collection so attuned to the more dangerous currents of masculinity. Bloodied by every attempt to gentle them, MacKenzie’s characters are raw as an open wound. Men and boys alike, they careen through a world where mayhem follows like a loyal dog, always at their heels, always ready to leap.”
—Ed Falco, author of The Family Corleone

Content warnings: suicide, derogatory epithets, sports rape, peer pressure, strong language, racism, xenophobia, social injustice, war trauma, disability, toxic masculinity

Genres: Short Stories, Fiction

172 pages, Paperback

First published December 7, 2021

Reviews

[Lori]

I've partnered up with Cameron and Alternating Current Press to help promote this amazing collection of stories. Very excited to help this collection of intriguing stories make its way into the world. Hit me up if you'd like to help it on its journey by reviewing, interviewing, or sharing content!!!

[Clifford · Rating 5 out of 5]

“The stories in River Weather manage to be both sensitive and transgressive, socially conscious and hard-edged. MacKenzie captures with exquisite detail the challenges of being a man in a world that’s gone to hell, coping with irresistible urges and impossible expectations. Like the work of Palahniuk and Ellis, these stories are riveting and bleed tensile masculinity. Crisp and hard-hitting, this book will leave you breathless.”
—Clifford Garstang, author of What the Zhang Boys Know

[Jason · Rating 4 out of 5]

A collection of brutal short stories that examines masculinity and the pressures a man is under to keep up the the appearance of being a big strong man. A lot of the stories had a similar set up, two people, one who has put up walls and thinks that sharing their emotions is not the correct thing to do and the second is the person trying desperately to understand this male figure in their life. There is nothing to like about the first person, their masculine face has been worn for so long that they have become bitter and twisted. The second person makes for hard reading, you instantly care for them but you can see the inevitable outcome that they are going to turn out just as bad.

The writing is very good, these characters are experiencing every day events and MacKenzie manages to draw you in very quickly, in fact he does this a little too well, a few of the stories are only 2 or 3 pages long and I had already invested myself when it had suddenly ended. There is a constant threat of violence, quite often alcohol induced and it is this theme that made me think of Palahniuk…without Palahniuk’s trademark of trying to gross you out.

This is the first thing I’ve read by MacKenzie and I see that he has a novel too, this book has left me intrigued to see what he can do with a longer project. Favourite story here was the opening one “Scenarios” a great little discussion between kids on the most awesome way to die…Jerry was very wise. haha

Blog review: https://felcherman.wordpress.com/2021...

[Leah Angstman · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm the editor and publisher of this book, so of course I'm completely biased, but it's so strong and powerful and good. A lot of it is hard to stomach. It's not a light, breezy beach read, and it's a total gut punch. But it defines the Appalachian sense of place and its people in a way that only someone who resides there can.

[Melissa · Rating 5 out of 5]

“When I was in seventh grade or thereabouts, I had a suicide scenario…”

That’s how the first story of the River Weather collection begins, and it’s really the best way to plunge into this painfully honest read. These stories are brutal, haunting, and the kind that each take a while to read because every sentence, every word feels placed with painstaking importance. I loved it, but I made sure to space it out and dive into lighter reads between stories.

[Not Sarah Connor Writes · Rating 4 out of 5]

Happy release day to River Weather! This collection of short stories are dark and disturbing, following characters trapped and promoting toxic masculinity. I enjoyed this collection more than I thought I would!

Read the full review on my blog!

[Betsy Ashton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mackenzie presents a muscular collection of short stories focusing on the male psyche. Full of tension, well-developed characters, brief sketches hard-boiled and yet sensitive. Worth sipping slowly and thinking about the social issues Mackenzie raises.

[Sydney Tammarine · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sharp, arresting stories from a writer with a powerful range of voice—this is a must-read collection. The characters are well-rendered and real enough to want to read it all in one sitting—but the mood is also rich and textured enough to linger in, one story at a time.

[Samuel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Really interesting to see NoVA in fiction. Will definitely be revisiting the contractors story.

[Robbie Priore · Rating 3 out of 5]

This collection of stories is just fine.