Fantasy, horror
From Mithila Review 5+6
July/August 2016
This is the first of what I call "Mini Reviews:" short reviews of short stories by diverse authors that are (usually) available for free online. My New Year's Resolution is to post two of these Mini Reviews per month in 2017, in addition to the usual long post per week. Wish me luck!
After failing for years, a woman will do anything to have a child. An old hag offers her the opportunity to do so – if she is willing to face the consequences. All of the consequences.
This story considers two interconnected issues. First, the significance of having a child of one’s own, especially for women. The narrator is willing to go to any length to have her own child, and will not even consider adoption. Is this because of the social pressure to have a child? Or because of some deep, internal yearning? Some combination of the two? The source of this desire is unclear, but it comes through strongly in this narrative.
And second, the difficulties of having a child with special needs. To care for her child, Chick, the narrator needs to do things she would never have considered. Just one example is that Chick will not breastfeed; instead, she will only eat worms that have been chewed up and placed in her mouth! Despite her disgust, the narrator puts the child’s needs before her own and does what is needed. However, this puts an immense strain on her, especially after Chick fails to grow and is unable to show any affection. Is all of this care worth it if she never receives anything in return?
You can read the story for free online here. I'd love to hear your thoughts below.
Hello Chelsea,
ReplyDeleteHope you are doing good. I am writing to you looking for an honest review of my suspense, thriller, sci-fi story-book "Time Crawlers", published on June 14, 2018, via Kindle Direct Publishing. The book is 118 pages long.
Alien Invasion, Dark Artificial Intelligence, Time-Travel, High-Tech Hindu Mythology, Djinn Folklore, Telekinetics and life-consuming Cosmic Entities are some major themes in my book which has 6 tightly-knit, fast-paced Sci-Fi stories.
Your precious words would be a very big help to me and help me write better books in the future. Please let me know if you would be willing to share your valuable review. I will share the PDF or MOBI as required by you.
Amazon US link here: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07DRPPGK6
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/40540847-time-crawlers
Please let me know how to proceed.
Very Respectfully,
Varun Sayal