The Comet: An Alison Duncan Tale and Other Short Stories is a fantastic compilation of short stories. As a stand alone, I give it five stars. As a fan of Mark Mackey, I would give it more if I could. The characters in these stories are interwoven with the other books written by Mark Mackey, adding ghosts, nightmares, even unicorns to an already familiar cast. I haven't found it necessary to read this one in order to enjoy the others, nor do I think you have to read the others in order to enjoy this. There is enough back ground and character development to enjoy these stories individually. And I surely did.