Thief of Always is an older book by famed horror aficionado Clive Barker, and it could be considered a type of children’s book. Written for those between the ages of 10-13, the story is fantastic for any age and is easily one of my favorite books by this particular author. Your typical premise; boy gets bored, creepy man takes him away, boy is no longer bored.

The Plot:

Harvey Swick is a 12 year old boy who is feeling rather depressed one dreary February day. Feeling depressed and on the verge of giving up, a strange man bursts through his bedroom windows. The man tells Harvey about a magical place known as the Holiday House; in this magical place all the holidays play on a loop in the course of one day, every day. Intrigued, he follows the man to the magical place. Once there, he finds that it’s more than he could hope for and is taken in by the magic of the house. After a while he starts to get home sick and attempts to go home; it’s at this time he begins to realize that there is a price for happiness.

Why It Qualifies:

This really short book deals with the “Paradox Twins” premise when Harvey finds out that one day inside the Holiday House is equivalent to 1 year in the real world. It also incorporates golems, a sentient home, a vampire, memory extraction, and a force field.

The Reason I like It:

It’s really dark, especially for the intended age group. It deals with the concepts of kidnapping and murder and captures the impatience of a child and counters it with very harsh consequences. The illustrations are typical Barker, creepy and well-drawn fitting perfectly with the theme of the book. I also think that this is his best work ever and I’ve read a few of his other works, the reason being is that it’s short and concise unlike his adult works that seem to be rather long winded and somewhat more difficult to get into.

Genre: Sci-Fi, Fable, Young Adults, Horror
Word Count: 38,592 (with title and chapter names included) ; 38,478 (without title and chapter names)
Original Publishing Date: January 1^st, 1992
Original Publisher: Harper Collins

Sarah Rexman is the main researcher and writer for bedbugs.org. Her most recent accomplishment includes graduating from Florida State, with a degree in environmental science.  Her current focus for the site involves researching how to eliminate bed bugs and the top bed bug medications.

Non-Spoiler summary:

Foster is a young boy, who only wants one thing for his birthday: a nuclear bunker. Everyone else in the neighborhood has one, you see, except for him. His friends keep telling him he’s gonna die when the Reds drop the bomb. His teachers constantly scold him for failing his nuclear readiness exercises. On the TV, the Reds keep coming up with new, deadlier weapons every week.

Well, Foster’s had enough. He’s tired of being scared. He’s gonna do whatever it takes. He’s gonna scream, he’s gonna cry, he’s gonna cuss and plead, till he gets that bunker.

My thoughts while reading it:

‘What the hell, that’s no way to talk to a kid!’ ‘You shove that bunker where the sun don’t shine, Mrs Carlyle!’ ‘The Reds made a WHAT?’ ‘Dude, buy the damn bunker, it’s for your own safety!’ ‘Yaaaay!’ ‘Aaaawww’

The technical stuff:

• Word Count: 7,000 words
• Philip Kindred Dick (December 16, 1928 – March 2, 1982) was an American novelist, short story writer and essayist whose published work is almost entirely in the science fiction genre. Go check your dad’s old stash of scifi books. The best ones are probably written by this guy.

Where you can find it:

• In his collected works anthology The Father-Thing (available in every online bookstore worth its salt)
• This story is currently not available online. Which means you’re gonna have to buy it. And trust me, this is a sound investment

By-Line:
Konstantine Paradias is a short story science fiction and fantasy writer, who has his own blog, called Shapescapes. There you can find a free novel, called Stone Cold Countenance as well as a series of sci-fi comic book reviews. For comments, requests or plain old contact, you can find him at kosparadias@gmail.com

Do You Have Arachnophobia?

Are you afraid of spiders? If you are then don’t feel bad because I have an older brother who is terrified of them too! I must confess that after reading this story I became a little jumpy at the sight of them. It is a great read though – especially if you already dislike the little buggers!

Non-Spoiler Summary

The leader, the gaunt man and the little man are chasing 3 fugitives on horseback when they happen on a great, gray valley. Yeah, it is a little bit mysterious as well as creepy – but that doesn’t stop the from charging into it. It is when they are past the point of no return that they start to notice weird things – like the mad dog that completely ignores them, and the increasingly jittery horses. But once they see the strange haze-balls blowing down the valley they start to get concerned… but will it be too little too late? Hmm – yeah, probably!

Some Interesting Tidbits

• Word count: 4,153 (7 pages)
• Special thanks to the members of the Classic Science Fiction group – whose engaging discussion of this story made me want to read it!
• Did you know that H.G. Wells is often referred to as one of the “fathers of science fiction?” Yep. You can learn more about this classic science fiction author on Wikipedia.

Where To Find The Valley of Spiders

• This short story was can be read for free online at The Literature Network.
• "The Valley of Spiders" is also included in the anthology Great Tales of Horror & the Supernatural.

Craving More SF Stories Like This One?

If you liked "The Valley of Spiders" then you may also enjoy “The Monkey’s Paw” by W.W. Jacobs – about a family who discovers a magical talisman that grants 3 wishes.

Non-spoiler summary:

Ed Morris is a citizen of Earth, who works for an accounting firm on Ganymede. Every day, during his daily trans-solar commute, he is bombarded by animated billboards, radio and tv ads. When he has finally run this gauntlet, he reaches his home planet, only to be beset by swarms of robot salesmen, who pester him. Even at home, the barrage will not cease.

Ed Morris finally realizes he has had enough, so he pleads with his wife Molly to relocate to an extra-sola colony, where people live their lives in peace and quiet, ‘like they used to do in the 20^th century’. Molly won’t even consider it, when suddenly Ed’s worst nightmare comes to life, in the form of a Fully Automated Self-Regulating Android (Domestic use only).

What I think:

Opinions on Philip K. Dick’s tone of his work vary, but everyone can agree on one thing: the man writes like an angel; he is also terribly depressing. This story is both the best and the worst one in his anthology The Father-Thing (buy it now, it’s awesome). It’s the best because it actually addresses the contemporary problem of media saturation and the increasing aggressiveness of ad campaigns, which so far have intruded into every aspect of our lives. It’s also damn funny.

It’s the worst because of its ending. Its ending is, in fact, so depressing, that even Philip Dick apologizes for it at the end of the book.

Boring Technical Stuff:

• Word Count: 5,000
• Philip Kindred Dick (December 16, 1928 – March 2, 1982) was an American novelist, short story writer and essayist whose published work is almost entirely in the science fiction genre. His work is legion and I suggest you start as soon as possible, or you’ll die unfulfilled.

Where you can find this story:

• In his collected works anthology The Father-Thing (available in every online bookstore worth its salt)
• This story is currently not available online. Which means you’re gonna have to buy it. And trust me, this is a sound investment

By-Line:

Konstantine Paradias is a short story science fiction and fantasy writer, who has his own blog, called Shapescapes (shapescapes). For comments or plain old contact, you can find him at kosparadias@gmail.com

The End of the Whole Mess is a post-apocalyptic short story by Stephen King, as told from the view point of Howard Fonroy, the older brother of one of the smartest (and few remaining) men on the planet.

Non-Spoiler version in a jiffy:

Howard Fonroy is a moderately successful writer, who has lived his entire life in awe (and fear) of his Lex Luthory-type genius of his brother, Robert. During his talks with Robert, the reader realizes that things have indeed taken a turn for the worse and that the world is teetering at the edge. Drastic measures are required, or else mankind will end up destroying itself pretty soon. Thus, Robert dedicates his life to finding a way out of this, convincing his brother to follow along with a madcap plan that actually works. In a surprising twist, not only does he make it, but everyone also lives happily ever after with nobody dying.

Hahahahaha…no. That’s not what happens at all.

My thoughts on the story:

Say what you will about Stephen King, but the man can write a wicked backstory for his characters. In the story’s few pages, you actually get emotionally invested in both characters and you end up loving the infuriatingly intelligent Robert. However, the story does seem to suffer from comic book logic syndrome, with an oversimplified solution and execution, which might put some of you hard scifi guys out there off. As for me, I absolutely loved this story and its ending sent chills up my spine.

Specs:

• Word count: 10,000 words
• The story was first published in Omni Magazine in 1986, and later published in the Nightmares & Dreamscapes collection (1993) and Wastelands: Stories of the Apocalypse (2008).
• Stephen King is a world-renowned author. You’ve probably seen at least one movie version of his book. If you’ve never heard of him before, then welcome to earth, ye mighty alien overlords!

Where you can find this little gem:

• In the short story collection Wastelands: Stories of the Apocalypse (2008), which I highly recommend
• And here (http://www.scribd.com/doc/17129794/The-End-of-the-Whole-Mess) for free.

Konstantine Paradias is a short story science fiction and fantasy writer, who has his own blog, called Shapescapes (shapescapes). For comments or plain old contact, you can find him at kosparadias@gmail.com

Born of Man and Woman, a 1950 short story by Richard Matheson, is about a young child, apparently a monstrosity, who is kept chained in the basement by its parents and frequently beaten.

Non-spoiler summary

This extremely short story is told by the main protagonist, the young child himself, in the form of a personal diary written in broken English. It gives us a brief look into the every day life of an abused child who really doesn’t know what it is to be a child. He is kept chained in the basement by his parents, and frequently beaten. Nevertheless, he remains curious. He is able to pull his chain out of the wall and is able to observe what happens outside, in the real world, through a little basement window.

At one point during the story, the child relates an incident where his young sister (which he refers to as a “little mother”) comes to see him in the basement with her pet. When the pet smells him and attacks him, he crushes it to death.

The last journal entry takes place after a beating from his father. As the child is going over the events in his mind, we learn that he knocked the stick from his father’s hand and made some noises. Then, he begins to ponder over some tactics to use if his parents do not treat him better in the future.

My thoughts on this story

• The first few sentences of the story are intriguing; I found myself hooked right away.
• Matheson brilliantly depicted the passing of days in his story, from a child’s viewpoint, by using unique analogies, such as “This day it had water falling from upstairs” and “This day it had goldness in the upstairs.”
• The last sentences of the diary, along with the fact that he bleeds green blood, provide a clear hint as to why this short story belongs to the science fiction genre.

Interesting tidbits

• Word count: 1,239
• This short story was written by Matheson when he was in his early twenties. It was his first professional sale. It became the title piece in his first short story collection published in 1954.
• “Born of Man and Woman” was nominated for a 1951 Retro Hugo Award in the Best Short Story category.
• Famous author Stephen King said that Richard Matheson influenced him the most as a writer.

Where to find the story

• This short story was first published in 1950 in The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction.
• It was also published in Richard Matheson’s first short collection, Born of Man and Woman (1954).
• You can also find it in The Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Vol. 1: 1929-1964.

Author bio and blog

Martin Dugas is a civil engineer. Fluent in both English and French, he writes in both languages. He is a science fiction junkie and blogs at http://martindugas.wordpress.com.

One Dream Job Coming Right Up!

This story evokes a setting that I would die for: being one of the first explorers on a newly discovered planet! Honestly, how cool would that be? It would be rough, but it would still be my dream life. This is a very cool story with descriptions that reminded me of both Hyperion and Chasm City – and that is a good thing indeed!

Non-Spoiler Summary

Cord is a teen-aged boy with the Colonial Team on the outback world of Sutang. There is a lot of work to do and very few people to do it, which is why Cord often gets in trouble for doing some exploring on his own. In fact, Cord’s local leader wants to send him back to his home world, but Cord doesn’t like that idea at all. Lucky for him the Planetary Regent is coming to visit, and she wants Cord to accompany them while riding a local life form. This is Cord’s big chance to impress the people who control his destiny – but can he be both chivalrous and safe at the same time? He is about to find out… because a big test is heading his way!

Some Interesting Tidbits

• Word count: 8,935 (15 pages)
• Special thanks to Tinkoo at Variety SF for recommending this great story!

Where To Find Grandpa

• This short story was first published in the February 1955 edition of Astounding Science Fiction.
• You can read a free online version of “Grandpa” at Baen eBooks.
• It is also included in the anthology Explorers: SF Adventures to Far Horizons.

Craving More SF Stories Like This One?

If you liked “Grandpa” then you may also enjoy “The World That Couldn’t Be” by Clifford D. Simak – about a farmer who tries to save his crops by hunting a very dangerous alien beast.

Who Needs Friends Anyway?

I think that I have always imagined that aliens, when we finally meet them, will tend to be aggressive and hostile – not at all peaceful and lovey-dovey. I don’t know, that’s just my feeling. However, here is a story where humans have become very peaceful, and what’s more is that they expect aliens to be peaceful too! Well, you can probably guess how that’s going to turn out, huh?

Non-Spoiler Summary

The crew of a Kzinti war ship has just discovered a new and relatively weak species: humans. They study them slowly and try to decide if they should attack or not. Meanwhile, the crew of the Human ship is trying to make peaceful first contact, but there are just a few things that don’t seem right to the captain, so he makes a desperate decision which could either help or further endanger all those aboard.

Some Interesting Tidbits

• Word count: 5,181 (11 pages)
• You can learn more about science fiction author Larry Niven by checking out his fascinating biography.
• Special thanks to Variety SF for pointing out this great story.
• Do you like reading about the Kzinti? If so, there are plenty more stories and novels about them – and Wikipedia has a lot of information too.

Where To Find The Warriors

• This short story was first published in the February 1966 edition of If magazine.
• You can read "The Warriors" online for free at the Baen eBooks web site.
• It is also included in the famous anthology The Man-Kzin Wars.

Craving More SF Stories Like This One?

If you liked "The Warriors" then you might enjoy “Neutron Star” also by Larry Niven – about a man sent to investigate the mysterious deaths of two space explorers who were studying the galaxy’s only known neutron star.

It was a dark and gritty night…

In the past few years there have been several dark-and-gritty stories about the future. (Nearly all of Paolo Bacigalupi’s stories come to mind.) Here is another one. While this is not a very action packed story, it does have some cool, unique ideas that I have never seen before – and that made me really enjoy it!

Non-Spoiler Summary

This is the story of a man who used to be famous, but now ekes out a living doing menial work for somebody who is rich. You know the type, right? Someone who blew his or her big chance and now is humiliated and paying for it? I do. Anyway, the protagonist of this story used to work in the vacuum of space, but now lives in a crowded Chinese city painting ancient space trinkets. But he has a deal with a local crime lord: basically he’ll stay alive as long as he continues doing good work. While he and the cook eye each other with suspicion, he suddenly gets word that the boss is coming to see him, and that is not good news at all – especially since there are lots of people who are clamoring for a piece of him!

Some Interesting Tidbits

• Word count: 4,187 (7 pages)
• Did you know that Jay Lake is a cancer survivor who blogs about politics, technology and health? Yep. Learn more about this fascinating science fiction author at his web site.
• Special thanks to SF Signal for pointing out this cool little story.

Where To Find The Sky that Wraps the World Round, Past the Blue and into the Black

• This short story was first published online in the March 2008 edition of Clarkesworld Magazine – where you can still read it for free.
• You can also find "The Sky that Wraps the World Round, Past the Blue and into the Black" in The Year’s Best Science Fiction: Twenty-Sixth Annual Collection.

Craving More SF Stories Like This One?

If you liked "The Sky that Wraps the World Round, Past the Blue and into the Black" then you may also enjoy “The Shangri-La Affair” by Lavie Tidhar – about a special agent who travels to Southeast Asia to find a unique virus engineered to bring peace.

Like The Gold Rush

Have you ever dreamed about being a prospector? I have. Sure, it may be a little bit more difficult (or maybe just more electronic) now that it was back in the gold rush days, but the idea of discovering something worth a fortune sure is attractive! This excellent story has that “prospector” feel to it which, along with many other plot twists, makes this a must read if you enjoy adventure stories.

Non-Spoiler Summary

Audee Walthers lives in the harsh environment of Venus. He owns a little business and gets by pretty well most of the time. However, he now needs a liver transplant which is quite expensive, so when a super rich tourist from Earth comes looking for someone to guide him and his young girlfriend to underground alien artefacts Audee steps up to the plate. Things are looking good for Audee, that is until he learns some dark secrets about his client at the same time his liver is about to give out. Sounds fun huh? But don’t worry – there are even more surprises in store for our lucky protagonist and they are not all bad… I think.

Some Interesting Tidbits

• Word count: 32,884 (55 pages)
• Did you know that this was Frederik Pohl’s first Heechee story? Yep. This was the start of a fantastic series of stories and novels that eventually included the multiple award winning book Gateway.

Where To Find The Merchants of Venus

• This story was first published in the July 1972 edition of Worlds of If.
• You can read "The Merchants of Venus" for free online at Baen eBooks.
• It is also included in the excellent anthology Platinum Pohl: The Collected Best Stories.

Craving More SF Stories Like This One?

If you liked "The Merchants of Venus" then you may also enjoy “The Hated” – about an astronaut who has returned from Mars and the psychological problems he is trying to work out – also by Frederik Pohl.