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Mayhem: selected stories
Dark: gritty: fierce.
A farmer is confronted by two desperadoes; a tourist does her terrible best to evade a tracker and his dog; a teenager discards his civilised mask inside a lonely roadhouse.
This collection of 28 short stories propels the reader through a kaleidoscope of Australian lowlife. In a range of styles, from dirty realism to noir, Deborah Sheldon pens the kind of fiction that is tough enough to shock, yet tender enough to hurt.
An exploration of what it means to be human in the face of brutality, Mayhem: selected stories, is perfect reading for pulp novices and crime aficionados alike.
Praise for Deborah Sheldon:
"[This is] short fiction told masterfully. Sheldon’s stories have that rare ability to speak volumes between each word. There are pieces of life’s puzzles the reader must complete, wonderfully unsettling strips of humanity that linger in the mind long after closing the book.” – Craig Bezant, Dark Prints Press
“Deborah Sheldon explores the rich vein of violence that runs through Australian society… The merely disconcerting and the deadly are juxtaposed and those who don’t know the difference, pay the price.” – Antonia Hildebrand, Polestar Writers’ Journal
“Sheldon specialises in the little moments that reveal the chaos and terror beneath.” – Elizabeth Rutherford-Johnson, The Short Review (UK)
A farmer is confronted by two desperadoes; a tourist does her terrible best to evade a tracker and his dog; a teenager discards his civilised mask inside a lonely roadhouse.
This collection of 28 short stories propels the reader through a kaleidoscope of Australian lowlife. In a range of styles, from dirty realism to noir, Deborah Sheldon pens the kind of fiction that is tough enough to shock, yet tender enough to hurt.
An exploration of what it means to be human in the face of brutality, Mayhem: selected stories, is perfect reading for pulp novices and crime aficionados alike.
Praise for Deborah Sheldon:
"[This is] short fiction told masterfully. Sheldon’s stories have that rare ability to speak volumes between each word. There are pieces of life’s puzzles the reader must complete, wonderfully unsettling strips of humanity that linger in the mind long after closing the book.” – Craig Bezant, Dark Prints Press
“Deborah Sheldon explores the rich vein of violence that runs through Australian society… The merely disconcerting and the deadly are juxtaposed and those who don’t know the difference, pay the price.” – Antonia Hildebrand, Polestar Writers’ Journal
“Sheldon specialises in the little moments that reveal the chaos and terror beneath.” – Elizabeth Rutherford-Johnson, The Short Review (UK)
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First published February 14, 2015
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About the author
Deborah Sheldon
79 books278 followersI'm a multi-award-winning author and anthology editor from Melbourne, Australia. I write poems, short stories, novelettes, novellas and novels across the darker spectrum of horror, crime and noir. My latest titles are the novel Nightmare Reef and the poetry collection The Broonie and Other Dark Poems.
My award-winning titles include the novella Redhead Town and the collection Perfect Little Stitches and Other Stories. My award-nominated titles include the novels Bodily Harm, Cretaceous Canyon, Body Farm Z, Contrition and Devil Dragon; the novella Thylacines; and the collections Figments and Fragments: Dark Stories and Liminal Spaces: Horror Stories.
My short fiction has appeared in many well-respected magazines, been shortlisted for numerous awards, translated, and included in various 'best of' anthologies such as Year's Best Hardcore Horror.
I've won the Australian Shadows 'Best Edited Work' Award three times: for Midnight Echo 14, and for the anthologies I conceived and edited, Spawn: Weird Horror Tales About Pregnancy, Birth and Babies, and Killer Creatures Down Under: Horror Stories with Bite.
Other credits include TV scripts such as NEIGHBOURS, feature articles, non-fiction books published by Reed Books and Random House, stage plays, award-nominated poetry, and award-winning medical writing including Better Health Channel.
My award-winning titles include the novella Redhead Town and the collection Perfect Little Stitches and Other Stories. My award-nominated titles include the novels Bodily Harm, Cretaceous Canyon, Body Farm Z, Contrition and Devil Dragon; the novella Thylacines; and the collections Figments and Fragments: Dark Stories and Liminal Spaces: Horror Stories.
My short fiction has appeared in many well-respected magazines, been shortlisted for numerous awards, translated, and included in various 'best of' anthologies such as Year's Best Hardcore Horror.
I've won the Australian Shadows 'Best Edited Work' Award three times: for Midnight Echo 14, and for the anthologies I conceived and edited, Spawn: Weird Horror Tales About Pregnancy, Birth and Babies, and Killer Creatures Down Under: Horror Stories with Bite.
Other credits include TV scripts such as NEIGHBOURS, feature articles, non-fiction books published by Reed Books and Random House, stage plays, award-nominated poetry, and award-winning medical writing including Better Health Channel.
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
December 12, 2016
This collection of short stories by Deborah Sheldon knocked me for six. At times challenging, realistic, creepy, evocative, shocking and yet always highly literate, it is one of my reads of the year. There really is something within for every reader of dark fiction – I read this collection more or less in one go and I would wager you will do the same. Highly recommended.
July 9, 2015
A great read, i highly recommend it.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews