a review by Donald Pitsiladis
Award-winning speculative fiction author Mike Robinson offers up 19 of his creepily provocative short stories in his new book, Too Much Dark Matter, Too Little Gray: A Collection of Weird Fiction.
A beer run becomes an interdimensional excursion. Two men settle their differences after discovering an extraordinary secret in the wilderness. A woman faces the bureaucratic logistics of a digital afterlife. A grieving man seeks to know where his wife was reincarnated. Strange lights in the sky begin to transform the lives of a small town. God and the Devil play billiards for people’s souls. A teenage deity’s science fair project sprouts a startling discovery.
These and more dream-like detours into the surreal, interstitial and inexplicable await within the pages of Too Much Dark Matter, Too Little Gray: A Collection of Weird Fiction.
Hello Horror Addicts!
I just finished reading a rather interesting collection of short stories called, “Too Much Dark Matter, Too Little Gray” by Mike Robinson. It is billed as a collection of weird fiction, and I can attest that all of the stories in this book fit the bill. Whether it is a computer program that determines whether your consciousness survives virtually by weighing the entirety of the life you lead, fabulous gelatin that falls from the sky, or a hiking trail that steals your youth like a Venus flytrap. While they don’t fit any traditional definitions of horror, but they will make you grin and cringe at times.
Overall, I really enjoyed the book, and if I had to pick my favorite, there would be a tie between “The Cyclops Convention” and “Symbols of Atlantis”. The first because of the fun macabreness of it, the second because it is actually a very relatable story. It is definitely worth reading as light fare, a pick me up, or a palate cleanser between dark stories.
My rating is a 3.75 out of 5.
“A Dark and Winding Road” is a collection of dark short stories that range from park animal vengeance to a government program to take care of people deemed too much of a burden or danger to their families and society, and finally a teenager so bullied he calls upon a demon for revenge. No two stories share the same scare factor, so be prepared for some horror filled variety.
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