eNOVELLA REVIEW - Merrie Axemas
Mike
Novella 41 Pages Free www.willowtreepress.com
M. R. Sellars decided to do a short story in the space of a couple of
weeks. But he suffers from a serious problem. His nightmares
(er...umm...I mean inspirations) don't necessarily pay attention to
what he wants to accomplish in a given time frame, and the short story
grew into a novelette, and then morphed into a short novella. Now, it
might not seem that 41 pages is a lot to write, but a lot more goes
into writing than most people are aware of.
This isn't a Rowan Gant story, although it does center on FBI Special
Agent Constance Mandalay, with a cameo appearance by Homicide
Detective Ben Storm, both of whom are mainstays in the Rowan Gant
universe. Rowan does NOT make an appearance, although there are
enough paranormal aspects to make you expect him to show up.
Sheriff Addison Carmichael seems to be stuck, like the town and
townspeople of Hulis, Missouri, in a time which the rest of the world
has passed through. There were horrible events which occurred in
1975; and which have been repeated for each of the past 7 years. In
1975 a ten-year-old girl was kidnapped, tortured and brutalized. She
escaped from her abductor after hacking him apart with an axe. For
the past seven years that killing has been re-enacted. In every case,
the victim's fingerprints match those of the original perpetrator,
although the individual men are never actually identified.
But, who is killing these men? Several FBI agents has attempted to
solve that mystery. The case file is missing some crucial
information; Agents don't return calls; and the townspeople are
protective of Merrie Callahan.
The solution to the murders is easy to see, but more than difficult to
comprehend. Constance vows to find an answer, even if it involves
spending more than a single Christmas in Hulis. Maybe next time
she'll bring along Ben, or Rowan, or maybe even Felicity. Rowan or
Felicity would bring a better knowledge of the supernatural aspects,
but Ben would bring some serious grounding for her.
Enough of the speculation. This is an excellent story, and I highly
recommend it (as well as any of the other works by Mr. Sellars). Go
to the website and download this novella. Then sit back and enjoy.