Inhuman Condition

Kate Thornton

ISBN 978-1-60364-033-6
$14.00
310 pages
Denouement Press

Reviewed by Marlene Pyle

This is a collection of mystery and science fiction short stories.  Although they are all written by the same author, the feel of each of the stories is vastly different.  Thornton manages to speak in her characters’ voices,  whether a small-town Southern teenager in “Summer Freeze” or the young mother in “Key Witness”.  Each has his own vocabulary and tone.  The stories are written in first person, so each character’s point of view is clear.

Aside from the well-drawn characters, I liked Thornton’s vivid descriptions.  A professor’s office smelled like “college:  Papers, dust and anxiety.”  The sly and quirky humor she injects into her stories is also entertaining, as in “some people should need a license to breed.”  I must admit, I’ve had that very thought myself many times.

Some of Thornton’s stories  are set in the future, and involve people living on other planets, but the stories I found most frightening were present-day  tales, told from the perspective of a kidnapper as in “Working in the Suburbs”.  Though only two pages long, it is chilling.

Last, I admire that Thornton is not afraid to touch on social issues.  “Only a Matter of Time” is told by a young girl being raised in the projects who dreams of a better life, and “One of the Family”, though set in the future, deals with immigration.

All in all, I found this to be an excellent compilation of the author’s work and a thoroughly  enjoyable read.

Copyright ©2010 Marlene Pyle

Disclosure of material connection:  I have a material connection because I received a review copy that I can keep for consideration in preparing to write this content. I was not expected to return this item after my review.