Strange Weather is a collection of 4 novellas, thinly connected by weather in each story. Below is a brief description of each and my comments:
Snapshot - A young boy is threatened by an older man who has an old style Polaroid that erases your memories when ever he takes your picture, snapshot by snapshot.
★★★ - An interesting story about a young boy in the 80’s who is warned by his former housekeeper to beware of ‘The Phoenician’ a man who has a Polaroid type camera that can steal your memories. The boy eventually does cross paths with the mysterious man and the story goes on from there.
With the exception of the nostalgia angle of life in the 80’s I found the story just okay, a little creepy but not really scary. I also saw the story as a metaphor for the loss of memory caused by dementia/Alzheimer’s disease which comes into play in the story.
★★★ Aloft - Aubrey and his friends decide to honor one of their friends who has died; they are all going to skydive for the first time. When they have to make an emergency jump from the plane Aubrey lands on a solid cloud. And Aubrey’s memories and secret desires come to life.
This story didn’t seem to fit in with the others in the book. It was a little more whimsical although by the end I was wondering if Aubrey actually lived through the emergency jump.
★★★★ Rain - An apocalyptic tale, where Denver is under attack by clouds that rain crystallized ice needles that kill thousands.
When Honeysuckle steps out of her home one morning a storm is brewing. Suddenly she feels a sting in her arm and sees a crystalline needle sticking out of her arm. In the ensuing storm Honeysuckle’s girlfriend is killed, as are thousands of people in Denver and the city itself is destroyed. Soon the storms have spread all over the world.
Honeysuckle sets out to tell her girlfriend’s father of her death. As she sets out on her journey she crosses paths with numerous survivor’s and those using the disaster to their own advantage.
This was a really engaging story that had me captivated from the start. Sadly it touches on numerous subjects that are very relevant in today’s world, chief among them terrorist attacks.
★★★★★ Loaded - A story that focuses on gun violence and it’s horrific and all too familiar outcome.
This story is the best of the four although it is extremely violent and very disturbing.
Mall cop Randall Kelloway has dreams of becoming a real cop; dreams that probably won’t come to fruition due to his psychological problems. When a shooting occurs at the mall, Randall becomes a hero when he kills the shooter. A local reporter doesn’t believe the shooting went down as stated and begins an investigation that drags on for a number of years. Years after the event Randall’s unraveling reaches it’s peak in a serious of violent encounters.
Clearly this is a stand for gun control and the most terrifying of the stories because it’s too realistic.
Snapshot - A young boy is threatened by an older man who has an old style Polaroid that erases your memories when ever he takes your picture, snapshot by snapshot.
★★★ - An interesting story about a young boy in the 80’s who is warned by his former housekeeper to beware of ‘The Phoenician’ a man who has a Polaroid type camera that can steal your memories. The boy eventually does cross paths with the mysterious man and the story goes on from there.
With the exception of the nostalgia angle of life in the 80’s I found the story just okay, a little creepy but not really scary. I also saw the story as a metaphor for the loss of memory caused by dementia/Alzheimer’s disease which comes into play in the story.
★★★ Aloft - Aubrey and his friends decide to honor one of their friends who has died; they are all going to skydive for the first time. When they have to make an emergency jump from the plane Aubrey lands on a solid cloud. And Aubrey’s memories and secret desires come to life.
This story didn’t seem to fit in with the others in the book. It was a little more whimsical although by the end I was wondering if Aubrey actually lived through the emergency jump.
★★★★ Rain - An apocalyptic tale, where Denver is under attack by clouds that rain crystallized ice needles that kill thousands.
When Honeysuckle steps out of her home one morning a storm is brewing. Suddenly she feels a sting in her arm and sees a crystalline needle sticking out of her arm. In the ensuing storm Honeysuckle’s girlfriend is killed, as are thousands of people in Denver and the city itself is destroyed. Soon the storms have spread all over the world.
Honeysuckle sets out to tell her girlfriend’s father of her death. As she sets out on her journey she crosses paths with numerous survivor’s and those using the disaster to their own advantage.
This was a really engaging story that had me captivated from the start. Sadly it touches on numerous subjects that are very relevant in today’s world, chief among them terrorist attacks.
★★★★★ Loaded - A story that focuses on gun violence and it’s horrific and all too familiar outcome.
This story is the best of the four although it is extremely violent and very disturbing.
Mall cop Randall Kelloway has dreams of becoming a real cop; dreams that probably won’t come to fruition due to his psychological problems. When a shooting occurs at the mall, Randall becomes a hero when he kills the shooter. A local reporter doesn’t believe the shooting went down as stated and begins an investigation that drags on for a number of years. Years after the event Randall’s unraveling reaches it’s peak in a serious of violent encounters.
Clearly this is a stand for gun control and the most terrifying of the stories because it’s too realistic.