★★★☆☆
(Horror) A child struggles with the loss of his big brother and his feelings that maybe things are better without him—and maybe he’s not really gone. (9,765 words; Time: 32m)
Recommended By: 👍MHaskins+1 (Q&A)
"One Hand in the Coffin," by Justin C. Key [bio] (edited by Vanessa Rose Phin), appeared in Strange Horizons issue 01/20/20, published on January 20, 2020.
Mini-Review (click to view--possible spoilers)
Review: 2020.071 (A Word for Authors)
Pro: The story generates a lot of tension, not least because we’re not sure if Corey is going to kill someone thinking he’s killing Michael’s ghost.
Beyond that, it paints a picture of what it might be like to be a young autistic kid in a family where your dad left—possibly because he couldn’t cope with two special-needs kids—and your teenage brother who used to torment you killed himself.
Con: It’s not clear what ultimately happened here. Did Michael’s ghost come back to stay? Did they “tame” it? Is it just a figment of Corey’s imagination?
Other Reviews: Search Web
Justin C. Key Info: Interviews, Websites, ISFDB, FreeSFOnline
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Pro: The story generates a lot of tension, not least because we’re not sure if Corey is going to kill someone thinking he’s killing Michael’s ghost.
Beyond that, it paints a picture of what it might be like to be a young autistic kid in a family where your dad left—possibly because he couldn’t cope with two special-needs kids—and your teenage brother who used to torment you killed himself.
Con: It’s not clear what ultimately happened here. Did Michael’s ghost come back to stay? Did they “tame” it? Is it just a figment of Corey’s imagination?
Other Reviews: Search Web
Justin C. Key Info: Interviews, Websites, ISFDB, FreeSFOnline
Follow RSR on Twitter, Facebook, RSS, or E-mail.
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