Pressure Suite

by Christine Clukey Reece (Editor)

Pressure Suite - Digital Science Fiction Anthology 3 (54,535 words; about 194 pages in print), is an anthology of original science fiction short stories from professional writers. This edition of Digital Science Fiction's anthology series delves into the corners of the human psyche to push and prod and demonstrate how our species acts under varying degrees of adversity. We didn't intentionally seek out any particular theme - it emerged and developed its own life as if it was sentient and wanted to emphatically demonstrate its existence. From the slightly humorous to an in-depth look at how the mind can fragment under intense strain, these ten stories cover the gamut of human responses to pressure.

Ten Unique Stories by Professional Science Fiction Authors

Pressure Suite includes 10 first-time-published science fiction short stories by:
- Matthew W. Quinn - Coil Gun
- William R. Eakin - 50-Foot Woman Over Redgunk, Mississippi
- Laura J. Campbell - Beyond Valhalla
- R.J. Bell - Brae na Ùrd
- David Murphy - The Blanket Box
- Kyle Aisteach - Pressure and the Argument Tree
- James C. Glass
- Skirmish at Heklara
- Fox Mc Geever - The Crossing
- Kate O'Connor - The Sun Dodgers
- Jason Palmer - Son of Man

Editorial Standards
Digital Science Fiction Anthology 3 welcomes back Christine Clukey as editor. At Digital Science Fiction, we strive for technically perfect digital and print versions of all our books. Each Digital Science Fiction book is vetted for superior literary quality then subjected to comprehensive professional editing. After editing, all content is proofread before submission to layout and formatting, then again after the book is fully built. In this way we expect you to find each Digital Science Fiction book not only entertaining, but error free.

Closing Notes
We thank you for your interest in our book, and invite you to plunge into the ten terrific stories contained within. We hope you enjoy them as much as we have enjoyed providing them. Michael Wills, Publisher - Digital Science Fiction

Genres: Science Fiction

194 pages, Kindle Edition

First published September 13, 2011

Reviews

[Yev · Rating 2 out of 5]

Coil Gun - Matthew W. Quinn
In an alternate Earth of 2001, the Afrikaner Confederation led by the Boers nukes several countries, including the United States, because the ruling Theonomic (God's Law) Party demands it. Orbital strikes also occur. The cover image is probably about this story.
Blah

50-Foot Woman over Redgunk, Mississippi - William R. Eakin
A borderline fetish material story with a metaphysical ending.
Blah

Beyond Valhalla - Laura J. Campbell
A child's family dies. He now has PTSD. The self-pitying is immense. Everything goes terribly until the end. It's been a long time since I've been so irritated by a story.
Blah

Brae na Ùrd - R.J. Bell
Two guys go camping and when they come back they realize something's gone very wrong. The End. This is a tease at best, but aside from that, not terrible.
Meh

The Blanket Box - David Murphy
I haven't mentioned this previously, but some of these stories in these anthologies remind me a lot of specific Black Mirror episodes. These anthologies preceded its first season though. This story in particular reminded me of the "Playtest" episode because it's also about playtesting a VR horror game.
Meh

Pressure and the Argument Tree - Kyle Aisteach
A rescue mission on the Venus colony goes wrong and he argues with an argument tree sent by his wife.
Meh

Skirmish at Heklara - James C. Glass
It's time to retake the colony from the Snakemen invaders!
Meh

The Crossing - Fox McGeever
A guy crosses dimensions and gets stuck, but has one last hope with a guy asked to come to his residence.
Meh

The Sun Dodgers - Kate O'Connor
Candidates have a 1/300 chance of being compatible with a ship to become an elite pilot. Those who fail have their memory wiped of recent events. Reads like the opening to a longer story.
Ok

Son of Man - Jason Palmer
A space virus has infected him and it wants to LIVE!
Meh

[Kyle Aisteach · Rating 5 out of 5]

Now, I'm beginning with the disclaimer that I've got a story in this anthology, and it's natural for authors to like publications that publish their work. That's because most of us write what we like, and publications tend to publish what they like, and when those tastes overlap, the writer gets sales. (Note to you writers out there, submit to markets you like to read. You'll do better that way.)

But that said, I do, sincerely, think this is a very solid anthology. 10 stories, spanning many different sub-genres of science fiction. There's a zombie-attack piece. There's a military science fiction piece. There's an alien parasite piece. There's an inter-dimensional travel piece. And they're all solidly written. The great strength of this anthology is that it's very accessible. If you've never read science fiction before, or if you're trying to introduce someone to the genre, this is a great starting point.

The downside of that is that for those of you steeped in 50 years of SF history who believe that every story should push the limits of the genre, these stories are probably going to be a bit trope-intensive for your taste. (Yes, I include my own story in that criticism.)

I don't think there's any one story that's stronger than any of the others. I say that because I saw one other reviewer comment that "50-Foot Woman Over Redgunk, Mississippi" by William R. Eakin was the only piece in the anthology he didn't care for, yet it was one of my favorites. That means it's all coming down to taste. My personal favorite was "Skirmish at Heklara" by James C. Glass, but that's not a surprise since I'm generally fond of Glass' work.

Only one story truly didn't work for me, "The Sun Dodgers" by Kate O’Connor. Don't get me wrong. If this story had been the first chapter in a novel, I'd've immediately turned to Chapter 2 and kept on reading. But that's the problem. As a standalone story, it feels cut off, with too many dangling threads and unanswered questions for me to feel it works on its own. And, yes, this criticism is coming from the kid who is notorious for leaving readers screaming for the next story in the series. I don't know that I always find the balance myself, but I don't think O'Connor quite pulled it off in this one.

But, generally, I think this anthology is worth every penny of the $3.99 list price, whether you're generally a science fiction reader or not.

[Heather Wilson · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoy anthologies because there's bound to be a few you really enjoy. I found myself enjoying more than a few of the ones collected here. I always like it when I walk away from these with some new authors to look for,which happened in this case.

There's some interesting insight into the human psyche and plays around with human form which I think elevates any genre of storytelling. These weren't heavy on anything super sciency or technical, so I think this'd appeal to folks who aren't already sci-fi fans. I was going to review this for a free or discounted rate, but ended up purchasing a Kindle edition. It's definitely worth getting and I'll now look for other installments in this series.

[Meagan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pressure Suite-Digital Science Fiction Anthology 3 is a great collection of 10 original short stories that explore the human psyche and body. Sci-Fi lover or not, these stories are easy to read, easy to follow and easy to understand. They are well written and give an interesting look at how the human body react to certain stimuli. As I am not normally a sci-fi reader, I was a little worried that I wouldn't like this book but in the end I found myself really enjoying something new to me. Each of the authors did a really great job of keeping their stories interesting and easy to read.

[David Richardson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another good short story book; the third in the series. These are short books that are easy to read. Two more in the series so far and I plan to read all of them.

[Terry · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it!

The very best story of all was the very last one. Read it and weep ... with joy!

What if ... ???? (HUGE SMILE)