Official Review: Shadowcat: Tales from the Edge of Sleep

[PashaRu]

[Following is the official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Shadowcat: Tales from the Edge of Sleep" by Victoria Randall.]

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3 out of 4 stars

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What if cats could be used as weapons? What if, centuries from now, humans are an all-but-dead species, but one happens to unexpectedly pop up? What if you discovered a degree of malevolence in your food, and it had a threatening message for you? These and other motifs are explored in Shadowcat: Tales from the Edge of Sleep by Victoria Randall. Independently published in August 2015, it is available in both paperback and e-format from Amazon.

This is a 46-page book comprised of seven short stories. The blurb on Amazon describes them as taking place in “a world of strangeness” in “a misty place between sleep and waking.” In each of the stories, the author quickly creates an alternate world where things are, at the very least, slightly off kilter. The setting could be a normal living room of a man who simply wants a late-night snack, or a far-off planet in the distant future.

Author Victoria Randall presents these different worlds and settings in a quick, matter-of-fact sort of way, with no superfluous details or explanations cluttering the literary scenery. In this, she dignifies the reader, and it makes for easy, interesting reading. Each story is preceded by a one-to-three-sentence introduction that establishes the basic setting or premise. The stories move quickly and are sometimes told in just a couple of pages. But like a tangy beach drink, they’re fun with a twist, and at the end of each story Randall’s look-at-the-world-at-a-45-degree-angle imagination leaves a light smile on your lips and evokes an aftertaste of “that was pretty clever, I wish I had thought of that.”

My favorite story is the titular “Shadowcat.” A pair of striking sentences entice you into the story:

His fur was black, black that swallowed the starlight, swallowed the moonlight. If there were ever a cat-shaped black hole, he was it.

Marvelous. In the particular world of this story, shadowcats are “weaponscats” that are used to combat crises which are possibly on the scale of “Oh no, this could possibly destroy the city,” for example…well, no spoilers. But every shadowcat requires a human catmaster who is highly trained to properly deploy the weaponscat. A potential catastrophe is looming, and an unlikely catmaster is...again, no spoilers! The writing, although not maintaining the eloquence of the above-quoted sentences, remains jaunty, fun, and lightly peppered with humor.

The longest story is the 15-page “Scary Red Things.” A search team has been sent to a far-off planet to discover the whereabouts of a colonist ship and its crew that arrived three months before but hasn’t been heard from since. What follows is an adventurous narrative of discovery, danger, and not-so-benevolent aliens. This story contains a skosh of character development/portrayal – as much as the page count will allow – and is, considering this restriction, well done.

While the settings, worlds, and situations presented in these stories are not of the wholly unique, stretch-your-imagination-to-the-breaking-point type, they are quirky and original enough to keep the reader interested. Eccentric realities are the author’s playground and, with tongue firmly in cheek, in each story she seems to be playfully asking “What if…?” accompanied by a knowing wink and nod. As would be expected of narratives of this length, they are plot-driven, and the characters simply provide a conduit for the action. The writing is generally well done: not uber-imaginative, but buoyant, lighthearted, and devoid of errors, which is quite refreshing in a self-published book.

If you’re a fan of The Twilight Zone television show – where a strange world was quickly created, the story focused on one dramatic element, and the ending often included an unexpected, ironic twist – then you’ll get a kick out of these stories. There is no objectionable content. I recommend this to anyone who enjoys quirky, clever short stories that nestle more or less into the genre of fiction/science fiction, but without all the technobabble.

Because of the scope of this book, I can’t award it four stars. It’s certainly not life-changing or earth-shattering. For the published rating, I award Shadowcat: Tales from the Edge of Sleep 3 out of 4 stars, but I’d like to settle in the neighborhood of 3.3 stars. I know that’s an unorthodox rating, but there it is. The book is under a dollar on Amazon, and it’s worth it. Sure, you can read the entire thing inside of an hour, but the entertainment value is arguably a tad more than that cup of coffee at Starbucks, and you paid four times as much for that. Think about it.

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Shadowcat: Tales from the Edge of Sleep
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Like PashaRu's review? Post a comment saying so!

[gali]

Excellent review as always! I am glad you enjoyed it.

[Gravy]

This sounds very interesting. Nice use of the letters C. A. T. by the way

[PashaRu]

Thank you both!

[ALynnPowers]

We all know I'm not a fan of short stories... but can I just have this cover?? It's so cute!!!

[bookowlie]

Great review as always. You made the book sound interesting for a dog lover (and cat not-so-lover) like me. Settling in the neighborhood of 3.3 stars....what, no 3.4 stars?

[PashaRu]

We all know I'm not a fan of short stories... but can I just have this cover?? It's so cute!!!

Yes! His name is Meroo. He's a bit of a smart aleck. You two should get along well.

Great review as always. You made the book sound interesting for a dog lover (and cat not-so-lover) like me. Settling in the neighborhood of 3.3 stars....what, no 3.4 stars?

Thanks! I too am not a cat lover. Oh, and I could probably be talked into 3.4 stars. Especially if it included ice cream.

[Gravy]

Great review as always. You made the book sound interesting for a dog lover (and cat not-so-lover) like me. Settling in the neighborhood of 3.3 stars....what, no 3.4 stars?

Thanks! I too am not a cat lover. Oh, and I could probably be talked into 3.4 stars. Especially if it included ice cream.

[PashaRu]

Yay! Okay, 3.4 stars, to be split between the author and Gravy.

[Gravy]

I think that little cherry guy deserves something

This still sounds interesting

Almost like that story about the king of cats...

[VictoriaR]

Thanks for the positive review, PashaRu. I'm the author, and it makes me want to read it! (Am I allowed to comment? I'm afraid to fall afoul of the (necessarily) strict rules.)
I like the cover too, ALynn. It's by a lovely artist named Daniela, from a website that I guess must not be named. But they do great covers and you can add the lettering and change the font.

[Gravy]

Authors are welcome to comment
And that cover is very pretty...with the moon and the cat. It fits rather well with the time of year

[ALynnPowers]

Thanks for the positive review, PashaRu. I'm the author, and it makes me want to read it! (Am I allowed to comment? I'm afraid to fall afoul of the (necessarily) strict rules.)
I like the cover too, ALynn. It's by a lovely artist named Daniela, from a website that I guess must not be named. But they do great covers and you can add the lettering and change the font.

I will have to keep this in mind for future reference. I always make my own covers, and I'm pretty bad at it. Hahaha.

[PashaRu]

Thanks for the positive review, PashaRu. I'm the author, and it makes me want to read it! (Am I allowed to comment? I'm afraid to fall afoul of the (necessarily) strict rules.)
I like the cover too, ALynn. It's by a lovely artist named Daniela, from a website that I guess must not be named. But they do great covers and you can add the lettering and change the font.

Thank you for the reply! It's always nice to hear from the authors themselves and, as Graverobber said, there is no rule against it. I enjoyed the book very much and am glad I had the opportunity to read it.

[Sapphire01]

great review, I'm not a fan of short stories, but this book sounds just the ticket for my frequent short train rides.