A collection of twelve original short stories by Chad Taylor first published in 1995. By turns dark and funny, the collection features original adult tales of sex, crime, violence and SF.
The 2015 Kindle edition features original cover art by Ian Dalziel.
The twelve stories are:
. RUNNING HOT & COLD
'Before you know it you'll be here six months with everything still taped shut.' A woman moves into new house, and cleans up after the old tenants.
. CALLING DOCTOR DOLLYWELL
"'This dolly,' she told her, 'is dead.'" Decades after their schoolyard pact, two female friends are reunited in their childhood roles of healer and patient.
. THE MAN WHO WASN'T FEELING HIMSELF
"The new computers, compact and white, hummed. The room felt hot to him." A SF-tinged tale of binary obsession.
. FIRE IN THE HOLE
"So Emma says, come up and hear me play, be a guest to my recital. In my one black jacket, my velvet jacket." A stranger plays with a delicate violinist.
. ARCHIE AND VERONICA
Some die for their true love; others just settle for being very sick. "It reminds her of when she was a teenager, sticking her palm with a needle as she read pornographic magazines." Take a summer drive out to New Zealand's west coast with a real Kiwi couple.
. NO SUN, NO RAIN
"The corpses had washed across from the other side of the harbour, and they were not the first." The mystery of Jann Pilka, and the first crime solved by self-taught detective Ellerslie Penrose (SHIRKER).
. SOMEWHERE IN THE 21ST CENTURY
"'I know, I know - you're not Larry. But as from now you're positioned in the universe in such a way that you appear to be Larry Despot, to me and to everyone else.'" Mild mannered Miles Buxton wakes up to discover his life is nothing more than a walk-on part in a science fiction TV series. The good news? Ms Imogen Hush.
. OILSKIN
"What's going on in Nigel's head? Let's take a look." Late night in the Auckland suburbs, two men fight over a lover who can take a whipping.
. JOHN
"I don't drink in space, Father. In space I am on duty at all times." John may be a hero to the world, but he is still the youngest in the family.
. ME & MISSPELT
"'You're so funny Professor,' she said. 'Everyone says you're uptight but you're funny.'"
An exacting teacher realises he is being outshined by his brightest pupil.
. FROM SOUP TO NUTS
"Are there any f---ing orders? interrupts the first chef. By any chance?" While a controlling diner bores his date, things in the kitchen are heating up. A tale of just desserts.
. ANOTHER WHITE GOWN
"The past has cast shadows across them as surely as the night has made the sidewalks cool." A strange account of a crashed relationship and the traces that remain.
The 2015 Kindle edition features original cover art by Ian Dalziel.
The twelve stories are:
. RUNNING HOT & COLD
'Before you know it you'll be here six months with everything still taped shut.' A woman moves into new house, and cleans up after the old tenants.
. CALLING DOCTOR DOLLYWELL
"'This dolly,' she told her, 'is dead.'" Decades after their schoolyard pact, two female friends are reunited in their childhood roles of healer and patient.
. THE MAN WHO WASN'T FEELING HIMSELF
"The new computers, compact and white, hummed. The room felt hot to him." A SF-tinged tale of binary obsession.
. FIRE IN THE HOLE
"So Emma says, come up and hear me play, be a guest to my recital. In my one black jacket, my velvet jacket." A stranger plays with a delicate violinist.
. ARCHIE AND VERONICA
Some die for their true love; others just settle for being very sick. "It reminds her of when she was a teenager, sticking her palm with a needle as she read pornographic magazines." Take a summer drive out to New Zealand's west coast with a real Kiwi couple.
. NO SUN, NO RAIN
"The corpses had washed across from the other side of the harbour, and they were not the first." The mystery of Jann Pilka, and the first crime solved by self-taught detective Ellerslie Penrose (SHIRKER).
. SOMEWHERE IN THE 21ST CENTURY
"'I know, I know - you're not Larry. But as from now you're positioned in the universe in such a way that you appear to be Larry Despot, to me and to everyone else.'" Mild mannered Miles Buxton wakes up to discover his life is nothing more than a walk-on part in a science fiction TV series. The good news? Ms Imogen Hush.
. OILSKIN
"What's going on in Nigel's head? Let's take a look." Late night in the Auckland suburbs, two men fight over a lover who can take a whipping.
. JOHN
"I don't drink in space, Father. In space I am on duty at all times." John may be a hero to the world, but he is still the youngest in the family.
. ME & MISSPELT
"'You're so funny Professor,' she said. 'Everyone says you're uptight but you're funny.'"
An exacting teacher realises he is being outshined by his brightest pupil.
. FROM SOUP TO NUTS
"Are there any f---ing orders? interrupts the first chef. By any chance?" While a controlling diner bores his date, things in the kitchen are heating up. A tale of just desserts.
. ANOTHER WHITE GOWN
"The past has cast shadows across them as surely as the night has made the sidewalks cool." A strange account of a crashed relationship and the traces that remain.
Used availability for Chad Taylor's The Man Who Wasn't Feeling Himself