Guilty Crime Story Magazine: Issue 7, Winter 2023, contains seven short stories and one true crime article. As always, the read here is dark. Those seeking cozy mysteries or lighthearted fare should look elsewhere.
Colin Brightwell’s “Sad Sack” leads things off. It is the holidays and two porch pirates have their own plan to pick up spending money. The first step is hitting some porches and grabbing packages on this cold icy afternoon.
Sammy was a comedian with a bit of a cult following in the clubs he played between Sacramento and the San Francisco Bay area. He borrowed a lot of money from a guy in “Not Funny” by Jim Guigli and headed to the east coast. Now the collectors have caught up to him and he is in a world of trouble.
Crank’s girlfriend, Yulia, wants him to change. He tries in “Crank Baxter Ain’t No God-Damned Christian” by Alec Cizak. His attempt to change from his core nature has a lot of consequences.
Two young girls were murdered in Delphi, Indiana, back in 2017. “The Delphi Murders: A True Crime Story” by N. Fraley recounts the details of the case, the hunt for a suspect, and the status of the case at the time this issue was published.
Editor/Publisher Brandon Burrows is next with his short story, “It’s All An Act.” A totally insignificant man named Dan Martin ended everything. He has to pay. As does society which refuses to put a stop to such senseless acts of gun violence. The reader can’t help but wonder why this sort of thing does not happen more often when one reads this tale.
The three men had a plan and it should have worked fine. It would have too in “No Trouble” by Wayne McIntire if one man had not tried to play hero. Or if one of three had not acted as he did.
When you are convicted young and do your prison time, coming back home, and trying to get a job can be very hard. Especially in a small nowhere place like Chesterton. Andy had to come back and is now trying to make it as best as he can. It is very late at the convenience store, the weather is nasty, and it is almost time to close for the day in “Conviction” by Anderson Barres. Then a customer shows up and everything changes.
So, there he was sitting in a bar and halfway to where he wanted to be, stranger sits nearby and ask if he is willing to kill the guy’s wife. Not that our narrator has done that before. But, things are hard, it is 50k, and she will soon be dead anyway. The hook is set in “Two Guys Walk Into A Bar” by Robb T. White.
Another interesting issue, Guilty Crime Story Magazine: Issue 7, Winter 2023, is another in an entertaining series of reads. Dark in tone and filled with characters often compelled to make bad choices and deal with the outcomes, the crime fiction short stories presented here makes no bones about the inner nature of people. Some have power and use it one way. Others have it and use it another. Friends become enemies and the world spins on. If you are looking for light hearted, this is not the read for you.
My reading copy was a purchase of the eBook last December by way of funds in my Amazon Associate account.
Kevin R. Tipple © 2023
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2 comments:
A very thorough review of an interesting magazine. I appreciate it.
Thank you.
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