You'll never know by looking at him, but the fly that runs across your computer screen might have been infected... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/House_fly |
Macabre Tales:
A Collection of
Speculative Stories
By Tony Thorne, MBE
Tony Thorne sent a book of short stories, plus one...I thought that was an interesting marketing maneuver, don't you? So, in addition to reading the 18 tales, I also got "Washout" which, according to the author is "a parting quirky tale about some strange visitors" to an old lonely house... Indeed, I thoroughly enjoyed this extra gift, and am wondering if I could arrange a visit from the same guests. I loved the ending of this one!
If you stop to think about everyday things happening in your life, and then turn a speculative. scientific, but definitely weird glare on that activity, you would begin to understand the type of stories written by Thorne. For instance, his parting tale, hidden between the pages of his book, describes how a man one day found his wife frozen in place by fright, holding a knife. She stands near the washing machine. Now the man had already been frightened by a strange creature on the way home, so immediately he wondered if another was in the machine...After all, something was causing the glow and the strange wailing from inside his washer...
Another author described Thorne as having the mind of a scientist...[with] a brilliant flash of black humor. Indeed many of the stories you will read deal with the potential use of science. Consider the cell phone... Do you carry yours everywhere you go? Might you even take it to the grave with you? After all, you might want to, say, call your spouse and share a little...
Have you heard much about nanotechnology? It is the future for medical surgical procedures according to some individuals... Thorne poses the question: What if one of those nanophytes decides to take up residence in...your head?
In these days of hacking, identity and information theft on the computer, Thorne postulates that we might have to fight fire with fire, as the old saying goes...or, rather, fight with anything that is in range of a computer screen--even a fly?
A futuristic thought--individuals may become trained to work at Euthanasic, Inc. You'd probably never be out of work, right? Don't count on it...
We are all warned about having radiation therapy except in short bursts; it's dangerous so even workers don't stay around when the machine is on. But if a mouse should crawl way up into the internal parts of that equipment...
Or consider the weight-loss clinic who hosted free operations to those qualified, with guarantees...
I found Tony Thorne more droll than truly gruesome. His concepts are clever, his writing sharp and quickly to the point and he closes with a quiet flourish... He delves into personal areas, our daily lives and asks you to consider the alternatives that are conceivably possible, if only... But then, again, there really might be a bit of truth just waiting to be scientifically researched and created! Explore our potential future with Tony Thorne. You just never know how and when death will call...Recognize that some tales are indeed possible right now!
Book Received
Via LinkedIn
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