James Pyles's Blog

Ari’s gaze was transfixed by the ner tamid just in front of the Aron Kodesh. Sweaty hands gripped his rifle as sirens continued to wail outside. He’d hoped to marry Esther here, but now it was too late. There would be no stopping them this time. At least his fiancée was safe in the shelter […]

Seven years ago, at his request, I reviewed author Rick Sulik’s supernatural murder mystery novel Death Unmasked. Seven years is a long time, and I ultimately forgot all about it. Then I got an email from Sulik asking if I’d be willing to review the book’s sequel Two Peas In A Pod. My memory was […]

Update on the anthology Far Futures: Book Four published by Blue Planet Press. It’s available for pre-order NOW for download onto your Kindle device November 25. Yep, it’s could be a great Christmas gift. The anthology required all stories to be written on or about Saturn’s moon Titan, so I wrote “Awash on Titan’s Shores.” […]

“So, what does it do?” Alex shifted the weight on his shoulder for balance while looking at the giant glass “Tetris” piece. The sun was just coming up. Time was running out. “It doesn’t do anything,” said Giselle. “It’s just another tourist trap.” “La Tour du Port de Montréal.” Alex sighted in on the center […]

I just finished reading the 2012 novel Bowl of Heaven authored by two science fiction heavy hitters: Gregory Benford and Larry Niven. The basic idea is that a colony sleeper ship from Earth on its way to a new system encounters a megastructure in space. This is a sun that has been manipulated so its […]

“Have a seat.” Jackie’s voice was young and encouraging. “Learn to play guitar at my age?” Anxiety from the time he tried learning the trumpet when he was ten surged in his seventy-one-year-old chest. “Learning something new will keep you young,” his granddaughter said. “It sharpens the mind and…” “There’s nothing wrong with my mind,” […]

Another morning alone sitting in front of the window. Another morning with my wee table absent of a decent game of checkers. Dim, gray light pours through the window while the desk lamp emits a warmer, golden glow. I wish I’d gotten more sleep last night but the missus continues to refuse to admit she […]

Fifty-seven drabbles. All military science fiction. Each tale is exactly one-hundred words long. Four of the stories are mine. Buy A Lady A Drink? – Sakura’s war ended when she crashed on a backwater planet, but that didn’t end her story. Mindwar – The wars were supposed to be simulated and supposedly no one died […]

Olena came to America from a war-torn country in Europe for a better life. Home was hardly the place to encourage her, but then great music comes from pain. The last thing she felt in her life was pain. Riding a light-rail home she didn’t know she was in danger until the first stab. He […]

First of all, I got cover credit, so I’m really happy. My short story “Dead Cat Fever” will be featured in the Wisecraft Publishing anthology “Fantastic Schools Familiars.” This is part of a much larger series in which I’m only sparingly represented. I promise you that my protagonist Daphne and her familiar Skinner aren’t nearly […]