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Taste Test
Taste Test: Summer Solstice
It's the longest day of the year, which means the summer solstice is a great time to get busy! The three stories in the Summer Solstice Taste Test are all about what can happen when folks have too many hours in one day! The Holly and the Oak, by GS Wiley features Alan, a World War II florist who lives in a village near Stonehenge. Will his relationship with American pilot Gary help to heal his wounds?
Kit Zheng's Roy LeRoy and the Longest Day has our hero Roy LeRoy thinking something just isn't right when it's seven P.M. and the sky still looks like high noon. Can he win a little sucking contest with Cyclone Steve and save the day? Finally, in Rude Mechanicals, by Syd McGinley, Dr. Fell is camping out in the forest, but his peaceful Solstice night is interrupted by a group of young men. Will one of them turn out to be the worst bottom ever? Celebrate the Solstice in style with this Taste Test today!
Kit Zheng's Roy LeRoy and the Longest Day has our hero Roy LeRoy thinking something just isn't right when it's seven P.M. and the sky still looks like high noon. Can he win a little sucking contest with Cyclone Steve and save the day? Finally, in Rude Mechanicals, by Syd McGinley, Dr. Fell is camping out in the forest, but his peaceful Solstice night is interrupted by a group of young men. Will one of them turn out to be the worst bottom ever? Celebrate the Solstice in style with this Taste Test today!
35 pages, ebook
First published June 18, 2008
1 person is currently reading
33 people want to read
About the author
Mychael Black
324 books113 followersFormerly known as Kay Derwydd
Myc has been writing professionally since 2005, solo and with Shayne Carmichael. Genres include pretty much anything (no steampunk yet), though Myc is well known for paranormal stories. When not writing, Myc is usually playing PC games, reading, editing, watching movies and shows on Netflix and Amazon, or spending way too much time on Facebook.
Myc has been writing professionally since 2005, solo and with Shayne Carmichael. Genres include pretty much anything (no steampunk yet), though Myc is well known for paranormal stories. When not writing, Myc is usually playing PC games, reading, editing, watching movies and shows on Netflix and Amazon, or spending way too much time on Facebook.
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
October 29, 2018
The Holly and the Oak, by GS Wiley - 1.5 stars
I admit this was consistent with the setting. Still, I didn't like it.
Roy LeRoy and the Longest Day, by Kit Zheng -3 stars
Story that tries to be a farcical fantasy, I think.
Rude Mechanicals, by Syd McGinley - 2.5 stars
Part of a series, which I have not read (yet); even so, it holds. I didn't enjoy the first part, but the story is saved with the last part, when emotions masters of prose, leaving me with a sad aftertaste.
I admit this was consistent with the setting. Still, I didn't like it.
Roy LeRoy and the Longest Day, by Kit Zheng -3 stars
Story that tries to be a farcical fantasy, I think.
Rude Mechanicals, by Syd McGinley - 2.5 stars
Part of a series, which I have not read (yet); even so, it holds. I didn't enjoy the first part, but the story is saved with the last part, when emotions masters of prose, leaving me with a sad aftertaste.
March 22, 2017
It's the longest day of the year, which means the summer solstice is a great time to get busy! The three stories in the Summer Solstice Taste Test are all about what can happen when folks have too many hours in one day! The Holly and the Oak, by GS Wiley features Alan, a World War II florist who lives in a village near Stonehenge. Will his relationship with American pilot Gary help to heal his wounds?
Kit Zheng's Roy LeRoy and the Longest Day has our hero Roy LeRoy thinking something just isn't right when it's seven P.M. and the sky still looks like high noon. Can he win a little sucking contest with Cyclone Steve and save the day? Finally, in Rude Mechanicals, by Syd McGinley, Dr. Fell is camping out in the forest, but his peaceful Solstice night is interrupted by a group of young men. Will one of them turn out to be the worst bottom ever? Celebrate the Solstice in style with this Taste Test today!
“The Holly and the Oak” by GS Wiley is a sweet story about people that enter our lives for a short while yet make a lasting impact. The relationship with Gary reminds Alan of a story told by his mother about the constant cycle between summer and winter solstices, the cycle of darkness moving to lightness and vice versa. Alan is an interesting character, dealing with his life the best he can. I especially enjoyed the attention to detail in remaining true to the time period, which added a level of realism to this brief but touching story.
“Roy LeRoy and the Longest Day” by Kit Zheng reads like a children’s fable, but it is most definitely for adults. This wonderfully humorous tale follows the sheriff Roy LeRoy as he participates in a contest set by Sucking Cyclone Steve Darling, hoping to win some help with rescuing the sun on the “longest longest-day-of-the-year.” I challenge you to guess what the contest entails. You only get one guess though. I started chuckling at the start of this story and didn’t stop until the end. There is a singsong quality to the writing that gives it a whimsical feel and set my imagination running with images fit for an illustrated fairy tale book. One for adults, of course. You will positively enjoy your visit to Whistler’s Gulch!
“Rude Mechanicals” by Syd McGinley is another wonderful story in the Dr. Fell series. Being a true lover of Shakespeare, he is horrified when a troupe of young men rehearsing the rude mechanicals’ role call scene from A Midsummer Night’s Dream interrupts his peaceful evening outdoors. And the play is to be performed on the night of summer solstice of course. Dr. Fell has a finely tuned radar for boys that need his help, and he of course offers additional help to the boy assigned the role of Bottom. Watching Dr. Fell with one of his boys is always entertaining, and this story does not disappoint, but the real gem here is the ending when he arrives at the house of Mike and his boy Chris. Taking only 3 of the 18 pages of this story, the ending packs a powerful emotional punch. Dr. Fell has gone through so much to reach this point and it is certain to be a turning point for him. Fans of Dr. Fell will greatly enjoy this story, and for those who aren’t familiar with him, this is a magnificent introduction to a classic character and McGinley’s marvelous writing style.
Kit Zheng's Roy LeRoy and the Longest Day has our hero Roy LeRoy thinking something just isn't right when it's seven P.M. and the sky still looks like high noon. Can he win a little sucking contest with Cyclone Steve and save the day? Finally, in Rude Mechanicals, by Syd McGinley, Dr. Fell is camping out in the forest, but his peaceful Solstice night is interrupted by a group of young men. Will one of them turn out to be the worst bottom ever? Celebrate the Solstice in style with this Taste Test today!
“The Holly and the Oak” by GS Wiley is a sweet story about people that enter our lives for a short while yet make a lasting impact. The relationship with Gary reminds Alan of a story told by his mother about the constant cycle between summer and winter solstices, the cycle of darkness moving to lightness and vice versa. Alan is an interesting character, dealing with his life the best he can. I especially enjoyed the attention to detail in remaining true to the time period, which added a level of realism to this brief but touching story.
“Roy LeRoy and the Longest Day” by Kit Zheng reads like a children’s fable, but it is most definitely for adults. This wonderfully humorous tale follows the sheriff Roy LeRoy as he participates in a contest set by Sucking Cyclone Steve Darling, hoping to win some help with rescuing the sun on the “longest longest-day-of-the-year.” I challenge you to guess what the contest entails. You only get one guess though. I started chuckling at the start of this story and didn’t stop until the end. There is a singsong quality to the writing that gives it a whimsical feel and set my imagination running with images fit for an illustrated fairy tale book. One for adults, of course. You will positively enjoy your visit to Whistler’s Gulch!
“Rude Mechanicals” by Syd McGinley is another wonderful story in the Dr. Fell series. Being a true lover of Shakespeare, he is horrified when a troupe of young men rehearsing the rude mechanicals’ role call scene from A Midsummer Night’s Dream interrupts his peaceful evening outdoors. And the play is to be performed on the night of summer solstice of course. Dr. Fell has a finely tuned radar for boys that need his help, and he of course offers additional help to the boy assigned the role of Bottom. Watching Dr. Fell with one of his boys is always entertaining, and this story does not disappoint, but the real gem here is the ending when he arrives at the house of Mike and his boy Chris. Taking only 3 of the 18 pages of this story, the ending packs a powerful emotional punch. Dr. Fell has gone through so much to reach this point and it is certain to be a turning point for him. Fans of Dr. Fell will greatly enjoy this story, and for those who aren’t familiar with him, this is a magnificent introduction to a classic character and McGinley’s marvelous writing style.
July 2, 2012
Read The Holly & The Oak from G.S. Wiley and really enjoyed it. A historical set in the UK near Stonehenge during WWII, one MC is a disabled local floral shop owner an the other is an American stationed at the airbase. They have one night together before the American shipped out. Bittersweet and poignant.
June 5, 2012
Rating and review for the short story Rude Mechanicals by Syd McGinley ONLY. Read as part of Dr. Fell series.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews