Book Review – Worst-Case Scenario: a short story by Paul Falk

All life on earth is doomed to be destroyed by an approaching asteroid.  This is the scenario depicted by Paul Falk and described mostly in the first person by narrator, James Stone.  When the impending doom is announced by television media wholesale panic ensues and the frightening situation Stone finds himself in leads him to take desperate measures.

It is possible the story can be thought as an indictment of modern day gun carrying American society.  I don’t think the method used to switch to a different point of view at the end of the story worked.  But I did sympathise with the central character and my concern for his welfare, and those closest to him, kept me absorbed to the end.

Keith Jahans

Available at Amazon Kindle Store for $1.34 / £0.99

Book Review – Caged by Paul Falk

This is a novella written in the first person.  The story reads like an official report.  But this is okay as the protagonist, Jack Toback, is a government servant brought up through the ranks of a USA prison service.  He makes some small attempts at humour, which though few, fit into his personality.

He is put in charge of a revolutionary correctional facility run by robots and there is a great deal of description about their development and how they work.  Although the narrative is set in the future it is very relevant to the current time as the use of electronic technology and robots are becoming more integrated into our society.  The story left a number of issues unresolved.  This is not a unique or bad idea as it keeps the reader thinking about the various forces influencing the outcome of the automated prison experiment.

There is certainly potential here to expand the plot further and develop it into a novel or as a series of shorter stories.  The detailed style of writing may not be to everyone’s taste but it locked me in to turning the pages of my Kindle right to the end.  I can recommend it to any lover of dystopian fiction.

Keith Jahans

Caged is available on Amazon’s Kindle Store for $1.40 / £0.99