Appetite: A Short Story

by Jon McGoran

A social outcast becomes one of the richest men in the world when he invents a diet wonder drug. But things take a turn for the horrific when he realizes that just because you no longer crave food, doesn't mean you've lost your Appetite. Part science fiction, part horror, part social satire, Appetite is scary, funny, and at times almost touching.

15 pages, Kindle Edition

First published October 13, 2014

About the author

Jon McGoran is the author of ten novels, including Spliced, Splintered and Spiked, a trilogy of near-future YA science fiction thrillers from Holiday House Books.Spliced was named to the ALA’s Library Information Technology Association (LITA) inaugural 2018 LITA Excellence in Children’s and Young Adult Science Fiction Notable Lists and was also named one of the American Bookseller’s Association’s 2017 ABC Best Books for Young Readers. The sequel, Splintered, comes out May 2019. His other books include the acclaimed ecological thrillers Drift, Deadout, and Dust Up, from Tor/Forge Books, and The Dead Ring, based on the hit TV show, The Blacklist. Writing as D. H. Dublin, he is the author of the forensic thrillers Body Trace, Blood Poison and Freezer Burn, from Penguin Books. His short fiction includes stories in the recent anthologies Hardboiled Horror and Joe Ledger: Unstoppable, as well as the novella “After Effects,” from Amazon StoryFront; Bad Debt, which received an honorable mention in Best American Mystery Stories 2014; and stories in a variety of other anthologies. He is a founding member of the Philadelphia Liars Club, a group of published authors dedicated to writers helping writers. When not writing novels and short fiction, McGoran works as a freelance writer and developmental editor and co-host of the writing podcast The Liars Club Oddcast. Find him on Twitter at @JonMcGoran, facebook.com/jonmcgoran/ or at www.jonmcgoran.com. Or visit www.spliced.world and splice yourself!

Reviews

[John Langan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Don't get taken in by Jon McGoran... His neatly cropped hair, pressed clothes and hipster spectacles. Yeah, he's funny after a few drinks, but read this short story and you'll know he's just a sick f&$k.

I liked it.

[Marsha Hubbell · Rating 4 out of 5]

Two factions at odds with each other - those who like and depend on fix-all drugs and vitamins from big Pharma, and those who want organic and natural foods. Jon McGoran's "Appetite" is a fun and shock-filled short story with a message.