Oh, it was about time I got to make a bad, vague pun about something (Jason Fischer will be proud of me).
Peter Ball’s debut novella Horn has had a sweeeeeeeet review in the September ish of Locus. Rich Horton is frequently a source of good, informative and informed words about short fiction and he is also great about noticing Aussie spec-fic. So, yay for Horn and a celebratory snoopy dance in honour of Rich Horton.
New from Australia’s Twelfth Planet Press is a first rate novella chapbook, Horn, by Peter M. Ball. Miriam Aster is a freelance detective, having blown her police career with some unprofessional behavior, but she’s still called back for certain cases as a consultant. Cases, apparently, involving visitors from Faerie. This story starts with a teenager found raped and killed, evidently by a unicorn’s horn. To her regret, the case requires Aster to deal again with her former lover, an exiled Queen of Faerie, and of course Aster still loves the other woman, but knows she can’t get back with her.
But there’s a rogue unicorn loose, and maybe worse in the form of people willing to use a rogue unicorn for very nasty purposes indeed … All the traditional hardboiled attitude, mixed effectively with a dark look a Faerie. Strong stuff indeed.
Rich Horton
Recommended Stories
Peter M. Ball, Horn (Twelfth Planet Press)
http://www.locusmag.com/Magazine/2009/Issue09_Toc.html
[Nods]
Yes. This pleases me.
That’s one heck of a review from Locus! My stars, this Ball fellow seems to be going gang-busters. And it’s a good thing. If this magazine had panned the review, it would be like a plague of Locus.
Arrrrgghhhhh!!!!