Stars Seen Through Stone

Vernon is a small-time regional music producer who landed in Black William, Pennsylvania with his (now) ex-wife, Andrea, when their car broke down. Perhaps because he’s recounting events that happened ten years before the main action of the story, the opening passage of “Stars Seen Through Stone,” by Lucius Shephard, sounds stiff in its formality [...]

A Handbook of American Prayer

In the opening of A Handbook of American Prayer, by Lucius Shepard, Wardlin is tending bar when a woman walks in before opening hours. He gives her a hard time, but her boyfriend gets it even rougher, when they get in a fight and Wardlin accidentally kills him. Though Wardlin isn’t the nicest guy in [...]

softspoken

Do you go to cons only to discover that the Guest of Honor is someone you’ve barely heard of? That certainly makes me feel stupid. For instance, last year Lucius Shepard was the GoH at Readercon, and had interesting things to say in his interview. I decided I needed to do my homework. Now I’m [...]