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Batch 22
Batch 22
Twenty-two very short stories from the author of ‘Resonance’, written for people who want to squeeze a quick read into their busy lives. This collection of stories crams a lot of ideas into a tiny little book and the wide range of subjects means there will be something for everyone to enjoy.
Aliens! Theoretical Physics! Jam! Santa! Murder! Mayhem! God! Auschwitz! Old People! War! Magic! Fungus!
Cholongov
The villagers hold an annual festival for their mysterious landlords the Cholongovs. At the end, the twisted, mewling Cholongov daughter will choose a new playmate for the year ahead.
What’s Cookin?
Elaine Tilbrook is abducted from the quiet country lanes of Norfolk and wakes up in a television studio, where filming is underway. It’s only during the cookery section of the programme that she realises just what’s in store for her.
Cordyceps
Tad Brenneman’s small team is studying Ophiocordyceps unilateralis, a particularly nasty fungus that overtakes hosts and alters their behaviour before killing them. When he gets a call from another department saying that one of his team is acting weird, Tad suspects he might have a bigger problem than getting home early for Christmas.
The Magician
A man seeks out the mysterious Chron’s Tower, a powerful artefact once owned by legendary alchemist Alexander Chron. When he finds it, his life is altered forever. One should always be careful what one wishes for……
Bonsher
Frail old Mr Carter accepts an invitation to give a short talk to a class of schoolchildren as part of a community project. He tells them about the best friend he ever had, a miniature elephant called Bonsher who was with him for sixty years before recently passing away. As he recounts his story, it seems that the children just aren’t interested.
Dog Skin
When news breaks of a factory in China that kills dogs to makes leather goods from their skins, it upsets an English housewife so much that she decides to do something about it.
The Psychic
A cynical man visits a psychic to confirm his view that all psychics are simply charlatans. However, Mme Walpole appears to have some kind of gift that may just change his mind about these things.
The Christmas Party
A tyrannical Nurse hates it when the oldies in her care have fun, and makes plans to curtail any enjoyment that can be gained out of the festive period. The residents have other ideas.
Heaven is Closed
A good Christian woman dies and is met at the Pearly Gates by Saint Peter, who doesn’t seem to want to let her in. She demands entry and God Himself has to come along and tell her why there’s a problem.
Charity
Children from various disasters question the ‘help’ being given to them by famous do-gooders.
Awshitz
A simple online video clip gives rise to a heated discussion in the comments section. Insults are hurled and the inevitable invocation of Hitler brings about further outrage before the moderator has to get involved to try and calm things down a bit.
War, Interrupted
A soldier struggles to complete his mission whilst being hunted by one of the enemy. As tanks explode and bullets fly, a most unwelcome interruption occurs.
Tommy and George
Two residents of a rest home share a story that plays havoc with their bowels.
Elf Abuse
When it becomes clear that the quota of presents isn’t going to be met, Santa gets brutal with the elves and warns them that they’d better fix the problem or there will be big trouble.
Batch 22
A small business is struggling to survive and things take a turn for the better when a particular batch of product sells out and receives great reviews online. The owner investigates and finds that there was an unexpected new ingredient. The question he faces is whether to add this new ingredient to every batch from now on.
Twenty-two very short stories from the author of ‘Resonance’, written for people who want to squeeze a quick read into their busy lives. This collection of stories crams a lot of ideas into a tiny little book and the wide range of subjects means there will be something for everyone to enjoy.
Aliens! Theoretical Physics! Jam! Santa! Murder! Mayhem! God! Auschwitz! Old People! War! Magic! Fungus!
Cholongov
The villagers hold an annual festival for their mysterious landlords the Cholongovs. At the end, the twisted, mewling Cholongov daughter will choose a new playmate for the year ahead.
What’s Cookin?
Elaine Tilbrook is abducted from the quiet country lanes of Norfolk and wakes up in a television studio, where filming is underway. It’s only during the cookery section of the programme that she realises just what’s in store for her.
Cordyceps
Tad Brenneman’s small team is studying Ophiocordyceps unilateralis, a particularly nasty fungus that overtakes hosts and alters their behaviour before killing them. When he gets a call from another department saying that one of his team is acting weird, Tad suspects he might have a bigger problem than getting home early for Christmas.
The Magician
A man seeks out the mysterious Chron’s Tower, a powerful artefact once owned by legendary alchemist Alexander Chron. When he finds it, his life is altered forever. One should always be careful what one wishes for……
Bonsher
Frail old Mr Carter accepts an invitation to give a short talk to a class of schoolchildren as part of a community project. He tells them about the best friend he ever had, a miniature elephant called Bonsher who was with him for sixty years before recently passing away. As he recounts his story, it seems that the children just aren’t interested.
Dog Skin
When news breaks of a factory in China that kills dogs to makes leather goods from their skins, it upsets an English housewife so much that she decides to do something about it.
The Psychic
A cynical man visits a psychic to confirm his view that all psychics are simply charlatans. However, Mme Walpole appears to have some kind of gift that may just change his mind about these things.
The Christmas Party
A tyrannical Nurse hates it when the oldies in her care have fun, and makes plans to curtail any enjoyment that can be gained out of the festive period. The residents have other ideas.
Heaven is Closed
A good Christian woman dies and is met at the Pearly Gates by Saint Peter, who doesn’t seem to want to let her in. She demands entry and God Himself has to come along and tell her why there’s a problem.
Charity
Children from various disasters question the ‘help’ being given to them by famous do-gooders.
Awshitz
A simple online video clip gives rise to a heated discussion in the comments section. Insults are hurled and the inevitable invocation of Hitler brings about further outrage before the moderator has to get involved to try and calm things down a bit.
War, Interrupted
A soldier struggles to complete his mission whilst being hunted by one of the enemy. As tanks explode and bullets fly, a most unwelcome interruption occurs.
Tommy and George
Two residents of a rest home share a story that plays havoc with their bowels.
Elf Abuse
When it becomes clear that the quota of presents isn’t going to be met, Santa gets brutal with the elves and warns them that they’d better fix the problem or there will be big trouble.
Batch 22
A small business is struggling to survive and things take a turn for the better when a particular batch of product sells out and receives great reviews online. The owner investigates and finds that there was an unexpected new ingredient. The question he faces is whether to add this new ingredient to every batch from now on.
100 pages, Kindle Edition
First published February 4, 2015
1 person want to read
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Displaying 1 of 1 review
April 30, 2015
This is a collection of short stories, the title being the name of the last story in the collection. They range widely in theme, from horror, through to humour and touching on many an idea in between. I found the stories very readable and well written. One or two of them felt a little as though they weren’t finished – they just stopped. I like, even in the shortest of stories, to have a rounding off and conclusion at the end.
Having said that, I enjoyed reading them. I recommend them for those short times in the day which you don’t’ want to waste but haven’t the time to get stuck into a novel. A good, quick read.
Having said that, I enjoyed reading them. I recommend them for those short times in the day which you don’t’ want to waste but haven’t the time to get stuck into a novel. A good, quick read.
Displaying 1 of 1 review