Book Review - Dead Men Can't Complain and Other Stories by Peter Clines

I am a huge lover of short stories, especially science fiction short stories. I buy and read a lot of anthologies, but find myself disappointed by a good number of stories in almost any collection (Edmond Hamilton collections being an exception). The two books I've read by Peter Clines were both excellent and original, so I thought I'd give his short fiction a whirl.

Dead Men Can't Complain and Other Stories is a science fiction short story anthology by Peter Clines. It's an Audible original and exclusive.

The Good

Mulligan. This story involves time travel and changing history so different species become the dominant species told thru a police interrogation.

The End of the Experiment. This is a time travel story in England.

Flesh Trade. This is a monster story mixed with a slave trade.

The Apocrypha of Gamma 202. This is an android story that explores deity.

Dead Men Can't Complain. This is another zombie story about what life is like for the undead.

Forged. This is a very short story about magic and immortality.

Contraption. This is a story about the dangers of an addictive game.

The Not-Quite-As-Good

Bedtime Story. This story is a dark version of Superman showing what would happen if he decided to make everyone safe.

The Long, Deep Dream. This story is a detective story where the private eye finds out about a secret the whole world is controlled by.

Red Neck Romancy. This is very short horror story.

The Hat Box. This is a zombie story.

What I Would Like to Have Seen

More stories!!

Overall

Dead Men Can't Complain and Other Stories by Peter Clines is an incredible anthology of science fiction and horror stories, each taking an original angle on a tried-and-true troupe of the genres. Even though the stories are short, they don't feel rushed or cut short. Each feels fully realized and left me satisfied while wanting a sequel. Even the not-quite-as-good stories are well done. I give it a solid 5 out of 5 eReaders.

      

Book Review: Paradox Bound by Peter Clines

The first book I ever read by Peter Clines was really good, and the next one blew me away. I kept reading more and more by this author until I got to his Ex-Heroes series that was so awful I didn't dare read anything more from this author. This book had been in my wish list for a long time, before I decided to give it a chance.

Paradox Bound is an time travel mystery adventure. It is available as an eBook, audiobook, and those paper things your grandparents used to read.

The Good

Characters. The characters were so distinct, well developed, and likable, even those that appeared briefly.

Original Take on Time Travel. I love time travel, but most of the time it's the same half dozen stories being retold. This was a fresh and clever take on the idea that I've never seen done before. And yet it makes so much sense that I can't understand why I haven't seen it before.

World. The author creates a really wonderful world with clearly established rules he never breaks. Exploring the world was a lot of fun.

Twist. I never saw the twist at the end coming even though it was foreshadowed and made perfect sense.

Ray Porter. Ray Porter is a master of reading audiobooks. I buy audiobooks just because he reads them, and even mediocre ones he elevates to pretty good.

The Bad

I've got nothing

What I Would Like to Have Seen

I've got nothing.

Overall

Paradox Bound by Peter Clines is pure perfection. It is one of the best books I have ever read. The characters are all so distinct and so likable. The original take on time travel was both refreshing and clever. The twist at the end I never saw coming even though it was foreshadowed and made perfect sense. I give this series a solid 5 out of 5 eReaders.

    

    

Book Review: Dead Men Can't Complain and Other Stories by Peter Clines

I am a huge lover of short stories, especially science fiction short stories. I buy and read a lot of anthologies, but find myself disappointed by a good number of stories in almost any collection (Edmond Hamilton collections being an exception). The two books I've read by Peter Clines were both excellent and original, so I thought I'd give his short fiction a whirl.

Dead Men Can't Complain and Other Stories is a science fiction short story anthology by Peter Clines. It's an Audible original and exclusive.

The Good

Original Approach. Peter Clines takes the common, overused troupes of the science fiction and horror genres and gives each one a unique twist. I've never seen stories quite like these, which was a refreshing change.

Variety. Each story deals with a different genre from time travel to zombies to superheroes to magic to dime novel detectives, and each is done so well.

Development. The stories are very short, and yet almost none of them feel short. The characters feel sufficiently realized and fleshed out. The stories almost all have a beginning, middle, and end (unlike a lot of short stories that are little more than a scene that leaves you hanging). The ideas and messages are all clear. At the end of each story (with the exception of two), I felt satisfied, and yet still wanting a sequel.

Ray Porter. What more can be said about Ray Porter than what I've already written in other reviews. He is a master of his craft and at the height of his powers.

The Bad

Two Bad Stories. Only two of the stories weren't excellent, and they weren't so awful I had to skip past them.

What I Would Like to Have Seen

More stories!!

Overall

Dead Men Can't Complain and Other Stories by Peter Clines is an incredible anthology of science fiction and horror stories, each taking an original angle on a tried-and-true troupe of the genres. Even though the stories are short, they don't feel rushed or cut short. Each feels fully realized and left me satisfied while wanting a sequel. I give it a solid 5 out of 5 eReaders.

      

Book Review: 14 by Peter Clines

I'm not a huge fan of urban horror, but when it is done well I really enjoy it (such as Buffy the Vampire Slayer and the MTV Teen Wolf series). I also love science fiction. Peter Clines has managed to craft an excellent story that straddles both genres while providing a great mystery, interesting characters, and a compelling story. Not an easy feat.

14 is science fiction, urban horror novel written by Peter Clines that incorporates the worlds of HP Lovecraft into a modern horror story with a little Tesla science fiction for good measure. It tells the story of an apartment building and its tenants' attempts to solve the mystery of the building. It's available in all formats: eBook, Audiobook, and those old-fashioned paper book things.

The Good

The Writing. Peter Cline is an excellent writer. The writing is crisp and clean. It never talks down to the reader nor does it ever become pretentious trying to show off. It never gets in the way of the story.

The Characters. This book has several interesting characters that are entertaining on their own, but when they get together they have really good chemistry. When characters die during the course of the story, I found myself caring.

The Setting. The story centers around an apartment building and the mystery of its construction and maintenance. The author paints the building as a seemingly normal apartment building like any other, but when the characters start to take a closer look, they see something sinister hiding in the corners and shadows, but it wasn't even close to what I thought it was going to be.

The Mystery. From the first chapter, strange things happen and they continue to happen with the mystery adding two questions for every answer it gives, and the mystery isn't solved until almost the end. It kept me at the edge of my seat wondering what it all meant.

The Twist. After the first few chapters, I was expecting a certain type of story, but I was truly surprised by the twists the story took. I didn't see any of them coming, but at the same time none of them felt like cheats. They made sense and I completely bought them.

Tesla Cliché. Nikola Tesla was very famous in his day, but during the latter half of the twentieth century sunk into obscurity until the 2006 film The Illusionist put him back on the world's radar. I love Tesla and all the amazing things he did. I love Tesla stories. I just feel he's getting to be a little clichéd in today's world. This story took a different enough approach that I didn't think to myself, "Oh, no, not this again." It wasn't as fresh as I would have liked, but still different enough to be mostly unique.

Ray Porter. I listened to this as an Audiobook narrated by Ray Porter. Ray Porter is one of my favorite narrators. I actually seek out and buy books he narrates even if I know nothing about the author or subject matter, because his reading is that good. 

The Bad

Ummm...

What I Would Like to Have Seen

I've got nothing.

Overall

14 is an incredibly well-written science fiction, urban horror novel with interesting characters, and intriguing mystery, and several twists. I couldn't put it down. I highly recommend it and give it a solid 5 out of 5 eReaders.