The Audio File: Poe Theatre on the Air: Season 2

A new year means discovering new show, but that doesn’t mean we can’t revisit old friends. In fact, today we’re going to visit a friend from when I first started taking requests for audio drama reviews. So, without further ado, let’s get into it. We’re taking a look at season two of Poe Theatre on the Air.

We’ve had our fun at the asylum of Dr. Maillard, but it is time to move on. Specifically, we’re going to a delightful Parisian café. Our host is an American expat named Zach Yeager. He used to work the crime beat for a Parisian newspaper. Zach found himself in need of lodgings. As it so happened, C. Auguste Dupin was in need of a roommate. Dupin has an incredibly brilliant mind, and a true knack for solving mysteries. However, he has about as much common sense as a lemon. Thus, Zach found himself having to be Dupin’s babysitter. Still, Zach made the best of things, and even got to help Dupin solve some mysteries. Zach will regale us with three tales of mysteries he and Dupin investigated.

I had known that this is the direction Poe Theatre on the Air would be heading for a while. Alex Zavistovich allowed me to see the scripts before this season was recorded. I flipped through them, but I’m of the opinion that audio dramas are meant to be listened to, not read. So, I eagerly awaited the finished product.

Alex pitched this season to me by comparing it to the television shows Monk and Psyche. This got my attention immediately. Monk was one of my absolute favorite shows when I was growing up. I always found Mr. Monk’s struggles to be incredibly relatable. I also quite enjoyed Psyche. It helped that Monk and Psyche always played back-to-back every Friday.

I can certainly see the influence. This season had a humorous bent to it, but also knew when to take itself seriously. Dupin is clearly a brilliant detective, but he struggles with social situations. It’s not that he’s depressed or nervous. He has a surprisingly sunny and cheerful disposition. Rather, he seems to have absolutely no clue how to interact with other people. He frequently overshares information, he follows strict routines, he often misses when he has upset people or hurt their feelings. He also doesn’t understand why silly things like rules or laws should interfere with his investigations.

All of this makes him come across as though he is autistic. Which is interesting, because Adrian Monk also always struck me as autistic. I know he canonically has OCD, but that is often co-morbid with autism. And I don’t know if Alex Zavistovich intended for Dupin to come across was autistic, but it is an interesting parallel.

Complicating things further is the setting. Much like season 1, the exact time period is a bit ambiguous. It seems to be vaguely set in the past, but that’s about it. Interestingly, the original short stories were also vague about when they were set. So, perhaps the audio drama is set before autism was formally recognized. On an unrelated note, though this season is set in Paris, all the actors use their natural accents.

Another influence from Monk and Psyche is the way that Dupin solves the crimes. The original short stories, surprisingly, don’t really have Dupin finding that many clues. In fact, he usually doesn’t even mention clues until the denouement. By contrast, Poe Theatre on the Air makes a point of having Dupin uncover numerous clues. That way, you can follow his train of thought, and it doesn’t feel like he’s pulling things out of his ass.

Although, I do wonder when Dupin and Zach find time to sleep. They stay up till all hours of the night, but we clearly see them working during the day, and they aren’t sleep deprived. Eh, we can write it off as another of Dupin’s many quirks and idiosyncrasies. Dupin is a chevalier, which means knight in French. So, I suppose that makes him Sir Dupin, the eccentric rich detective who likes to slum it in the city.

There are some other slight changes compared to the original shot stories. For example, the narrator didn’t have a name in the short stories. Also, the police department includes far more women than the original stories did. For example, the police chief is named Honoré, and she is Zach’s love interest.

Also, “Murder in the Rue Morgue” features an orangutan. I bring this up because, apparently, the orangutan is a source of much contention among Poe scholars. Specifically, regarding what it is supposed to represent. Arguments have been known to get rather heated at Poe conferences when the orangutan is discussed. I found this amusing.

The Dupin short stories proved quite influential on numerous fictional detectives. Before there was Sherlock Holmes or Hercule Poirot, there was C. Auguste Dupin. However, despite creating the template for the detective story, Poe only ever wrote three short stories starring Dupin.

However, Poe Theatre on the Air has been keeping busy. In fact, they’ve expanded their adaptations beyond just Edgar Allan Poe stories. They adapted the short story “The Eye That Saw Death” as part of a festival dedicated to the works of Tennessee Williams. The story follows a rich person who lost their sight, but received an eye transplant. However, they soon become haunted by specters and visions from the donor’s life.

I can see why Poe Theatre went with this one. The plot won’t be out of place in a Poe short story. For example, invokes optography, which shows up in a couple of Poe’s short stories. Optography was a, since discredited, scientific theory that the last image the eye witness before death becomes recorded onto the retina. The general tone and atmosphere is also reminiscent of one of Poe’s horror stories. Interestingly, “The Eye That Saw Death” was almost lost to history. Tennessee Williams never published the story in his lifetime, but it was rediscovered by chance in 2015. Hopefully, this will help it get known to a wider audience.

But that’s not the only non-Poe story that Poe Theatre has adapted. They’ve also done adaptations of “The Terror of Blue John Gap” by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. It is titled “The Beast in the Caves.” This one features our good friend Zach Jaeger traveling to Britain to investigate rumors of a fearsome beast inhabiting an abandoned mine. Ah, but all is not necessarily as it seems.

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle wrote more than just Sherlock Holmes. He penned several horror and science fiction stories. Personally, my favorite are his Professor Challenger stories. Poe Theatre put their own flourish on this story. In the original, the monster turns out to be a giant bear that has evolved to live underground. Poe Theatre on the Air goes with a different monster, but I’ll let you discover what the surprise is. Admittedly, I did kind of see the twist coming, but it was very well done. I felt it maintained the feel of growing suspense and dread; just like the original story did. Arthur Conan Doyle stories are very hit or miss for me, but this was a good adaption. It is nice to see Poe Theatre occasionally trying new things, and expanding beyond Edgar Allan Poe. 

Well, there you have it. Season 2 of Poe Theatre on the Air brings some great adaptions of the C. Auguste Dupin short stories. We also get a couple adaptions that expand beyond the works of Poe. I don’t know where this audio drama is going next, but I can’t wait to find out.

I think that should do it from me for now. I will see you guys next time.

The Books of Thoth: My First Foray into Audio Drama Production

I’m back with another update post, and this one is an especially big update. You see, I’ve finally done it. I have officially launched my audio drama anthology podcast The Books of Thoth.

We’re kicking things off with “Paleontology Conference.” million years in the future. Humans are extinct and squids rule the Earth. They only know us from the fossils we leave behind. What will the squids make of us?

As you might guess, The Future is Wild was a big inspiration for this episode. I blame that show for igniting my love of terrestrial cephalopods. The part where the narrator speculates about the Squibbons developing their own civilization always sparked my imagination. The All Todays segment of the book All Yesterdays was another big inspiration. I love the way it pokes fun at how our notions of prehistoric animals sometimes turn out to be very wrong. You do get some references to how our views on prehistoric animals have changed. The part where the professor mentions chordates used to be viewed as slow and lumbering, but then were viewed as active and dynamic? That was almost word-for-word how our views of dinosaurs changed over the years. And there’s a few more in-jokes if you’re paying attention for them.

A bit about where the title for the podcast came from. Thoth is the god of wisdom, writing, and magic in Egyptian Mythology. He possessed an ultimate book of spells known as the Book of Thoth. Among other things, it had spells that could enable you to speak the language of animals, restore the dead to life, and peer through the layers of reality and gaze upon the gods themselves. Thoth acted as scribe of the gods, and he’s probably written quite a few scrolls in his time. And those scrolls are bound to have some pretty good stories within them.

The Books of Thoth has been a long time coming. I’m both nervous and excited. I admit that maybe there were a few things I could have tweaked. But after a certain point, perfect becomes the enemy of good. And so, I decided to release my audio drama into the wild for all to enjoy.

A big thank you to everyone who made this episode possible. Thank you to Marnie Warner, Amy Young, Faye Holliday, Juan Cruz III, Tiffany Perdue, and Melissa Bowens for providing the voices. As well as my thanks to Geno Samuel for providing the opening narration. And to Nadine Trollip, aka Stardust-Phantom, for providing the series cover art.

The Books of Thoth is hosted on RedCricle, and you can find it on all major podcast platforms. Including, but not limited to, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, iHeart, Podcast Addict, Amazon Music, Player.FM, Audible, TuneIn, RadioPublic, Apollo Podcasts, and Goodpods. And yes, I do have transcripts available.

It hopefully won’t be too long before I have more episodes for your listening pleasure. But in the meantime, I do hope that you enjoy the inaugural episode of The Books of Thoth.

AlloAmericana, Sea Lion Press Interview, and Kill FM 2

It has been a while since I’ve done one of these life update posts. However, I’ve had many major developments happen. Several of these are well overdue. So, let’s get straight into it.

The first item on the agenda. I have had a short story published in an alternate history anthology. So, I’m in the Alternate History Online group on Facebook. I saw a post by my pal Alexander Wallace. He was calling for submission for an anthology he was putting together for Sea Lion Press. They are an independent publishing house specializing in alternate history. The collection is called AlloAmericana, and it focuses on folklore and legends from alternate versions of America. You better believe I jumped at the opportunity to be part of something like that.

My story is called “Coyote and the Great Sturgeon.” It takes place in a world where Japan colonized California in the 17th Century. My inspiration was a Japanese folktale about why Japan has earthquakes. According to legend, there is a giant catfish that lives beneath Japan. It is being held in place by a water god. However, occasionally the god will lose his grip, and that catfish is able to wiggle. And that is why earthquakes happen in Japan, so the legend goes. California is also prone to earthquakes. So, I thought about the myths and legends the Japanese settlers would bring with them. Specifically, how they would change and evolve to fit their new homeland. Shinto and Buddhism are highly syncretic religions that happily adopt deities from across cultures. So, I figured it wouldn’t be unreasonable to assume they might appropriate figures from Native American spirituality; such as the trickster Coyote.

Coyote is an interesting figure. He is a trickers, but he often winds up being the one who gets outwitted in his stories. The way I approach the story was to think of what I did with the stories I wrote for The Moonlit Road. “Irwin Tarheel and the Fair Folk” was an adaption of the Japanese folktale of Urashima Taro, and “Golem of the Gullah” was an adaption the Jewish folktale The Golem of Prague. So, I basically tried to imagine the story of stories I’d be retelling in this alternate world.

By all accounts, “Coyote and the Great Sturgeon” has been a great success. Reviews of AlloAmericana frequently signal it out as one of the best stories in the anthology. You can buy AlloAmericana for $7.81 on Amazon. If it is any consolation, I didn’t get a complimentary copy. I had to pay for my own copy just like the rest of you. I must also shout-out a few of the other stories in the collection. “Hear That Cold Steel Cling” by Josiah Depaoli is a really great take on the story of John Henry, but set in a world where the South won the American Civil War. Josiah had some very nice things to say about my story. “Bunyan’s Progress” by Jared Kavanagh is a fun take on Paul Bunyan. “Honest and Loyal” by Alexander Wallace retells the story of George Washington and the cherry tree, but in a world where Washington fought for the British during the Revolutionary War. Really, I could keep going, but suffice it to say, the who collection is absolutely fantastic.

Alex also booked us all some interviews on a couple of podcasts he’s been on in the past. This was to help promote the collection, and let us all explain our process for crafting the stories. We were on episode 9 of The Alternate History Show with Ben Kearns. Our segment begins at 1:09:44. We were also on Living a Life Through Books with Dr. Shaznaz Ahmed. The episode was devoted entirely to all of us talking about our stories, and alternate history in general. Dr. Ahmed was really nice. I had a lot of fun. My only regret is that I couldn’t find the mute button when my dog Wolfie decided to sound the alarm because the scary UPS man rang the doorbell. Thankfully, nobody seemed to mind.

Speaking of interviews, I got interviewed by Sea Lion Press. Alex Wallace put in a good word for me. Sea Lion Press loved interviewing prominent figures within the online alternate history community. This blog of mine is moving on up in the world. Gary Oswald and I chatted about my experience as an audio drama critic, some of my favorite alternate history audio dramas, what I’ve got going on in the future, and, of course, AlloAmerica. It was a really great interview. I’m very proud of it.

I’ve also starting expanding into the world of voice acting. I got to play a small role in 19 Nocturne Boulevard’s segment on Kill FM 2: Fortune’s Favors [Side A]. For those who don’t know, Kill FM is an annual event where several audio drama creators unite to make a weird fiction variety show. The 19 Nocturne Boulevard segment begins at 38:25 and I’m the announcer guy who says “The North Star!” I also provided some crowd chants. A big thank you to Julie Hoverson for letting me be part of the 19 Nocturne Boulevard segment. I loved the concept of a dystopian future with genetically engineered mutant gladiators duking it out. And also, shout-out to Project Gnosis for their awesome segment at 27:45.

19 Nocturne Boulevard is an anthology show created by Julie Hoverson. She also hosts a voice acting cold reads group. The cold read group is very laid-back and non-serious. It’s a great way to practice your voice acting skills in a fun and relaxing environment. Usually, we read scripts from 19 Nocturne Boulevard, but sometimes we read scripts from other audio dramas. For example, we read from Life With Althaar. I’ve had the pleasure of playing the title character, and Althaar has been my absolute favorite role in the group. Not to brag, but everyone always seems to find my take on Althaar to be pretty hilarious. 

The group meets on Wednesday at 6 PM Pacific time, and Sunday at 1 PM Pacific time. I’m usually too busy to join the Wednesday meeting, and my day job at the Shreveport Aquarium often means I can’t make Sundays lately. Still, I try to come whenever I can manage. There’s no commitments, so feel free to join us for whenever, and for however long, you want. You can join the group with this link.

There is one other major voice acting role I’ve had. I’m particularly proud of this one. However, I’m not going to tell you what it is just yet. If you want to find out, you’ll have to wait for my next blog post. My next post is going to be an audio drama review. That’s the only clue you get.

And with that, I’ll see you all next time.

My First Publication with The Journey Into Podcast

As per usual, I'm late to announce this on this blog, but I have exciting news. My short story "Chain Reaction" won third place in the Journey Into Journey short story writing contest from the Journey Into Podcast. Twelve people entered, but only six people, counting me, submitted stories. We were each assigned a different song from the band Journey. The title of the song would be the title of our story, and we build the story around the title. We also had to include at least two phrases from the song, of at least four words each somewhere in story. The story could be about whatever we wanted.

Third, second, and first place included monetary prizes plus getting your story produced on the podcast. Third place is $5, second place is $10, and first place is $25. Of course, publication order is, third, second, then first. I won third place, and as far as I’m concerned, I got the best deal, since that meant I was first to get my story produced. The true reward, for me, was always to hear my story produced in full cast audio.

My story is called "Chain Reaction." And it’s a full cast production with all sorts of talented voice actors. Nick Griffalco and Arthur Hikma have entered a contest to win $100,000. They must be the final ones to get off a roller coaster. However, one night Nick hears the roller coaster talking to him. It wants him to be the prophet of a new religion based around roller coasters. Arthur thinks Nick has completely lost it. He is determined to get Nick to snap out it before he goes completely off the rails. It’s sure to be one wild ride.

We’ve got Norm Sherman from The Drabblecast as our main character Nick, and he nails the role so well. Well, this story probably wouldn’t be out of place at The Drabblecast. Dave Robison uses his deep authoritative voice to great effect as the Rollar Coster God, and Marshall Latham himself gives a surprisingly spot-on performance as Arthur. There were many other characters with minor roles, but voice actors who gave exception performances. For example, Rish Outfeild gives a surprisingly fun performance as minor character Sean. His right hand man Big Anklevich cameos as AJ, another minor character. Tena Kolakowski Actually sounds pretty close to how I imagine Gwen sounding. Meanwhile, Bria Burton does a respectable job as Arthur’s girlfriend Molly. Great performances all around.

Normally, I'd take this opportunity to tell you more about the behind the scenes aspects, but Marshall already took care of that. He read and recorded those bits himself as an author's note. He intended to include it with the story, but he forgot in his rush to get the story out. In hindsight, if I'd been smart, I'd have called the Journey Into Podcast voice mail number and left a message of myself reading the author's note, but it is what it is. 

However, I will include some bit I forgot to put in the author's note. For those wondering, no, Arthur and Molly's names aren't a Harry Potter reference. Molly was originally named Holly, after an internet friend I used to have. However, said friend and I had a bit of a falling out, and I liked the name Molly, so I made the somewhat lazy switch of name. I didn't remember what Mr. and Mrs. Weasley's names were until after the story had been published. 

One the flipside, however, the part where Nick says that all is one, and one is all, was indeed a reference to Fullmetal Alchemist. When it comes to how I imagined Nick sounding, I wrote his lines with Gray, from the Let's Play channel GrayStillPlays, in mind. However, I was still pleasantly surprised by Norm's narration. And hey, it's not every day that Norm Sherman himself narrates your story. Hmm, I wonder if that makes "Chain Reaction" and honorary Drabblecast story. It certainly wouldn't have been out of place at The Drabblecast. 

On a similar note, Arthur's last name was going to be Drakoni originally. However, I decided to change it at the absolute last minute. My twitter handle, as you might be aware, is ArthurDrakoni, and I was worried people might assume that Arthur was meant to be a stand-in for me. 

Also, there was one minor error. During the part where Nick says "I'll give three truths..." that was suppose to be Arthur's line. It my fault for not making that more clear, and I don't gold it against Marshall and the gang. 

But enough of all that. Go give it a listen now, and be sure to listen to the author's note too. This is very exciting progress, and I'm very pleased with the final result. 

The Audio File: Poe Theatre on the Air: Season 1

I am always happy to give reviews to podcasters who ask me, especially if they've enjoyed my previous reviews. I'm glad to do my past to help promote podcasts, and it often leads me to some truly undiscovered gems. That brings us to the podcast we're taking a look at today. We're taking a look at season one of Poe Theatre on the Air. 

Poe Theatre on the Air is a production of the National Edgar Allan Poe Theatre. Each episode is an adaption of a different Edgar Allan Poe short story. While by-and-large faithful to the source material, the writers make sure to put their own spin on the stories. This largely relates to the framing device. The framing device is that you, the listener, are a guest at the asylum of Dr. Maillard. He has developed a radical new treatment to cure the mentally crippled, and he considers all of the inmates his children who have lost their way. Each of the inmates are the protagonist of a different Edgar Allen Poe short story, and they will be sharing their tales with us.

I share The Audio File and The Alt-Hist File over on the Audio Drama Lovers group over on Facebook. If you ever see me over there, feel free to say hi. Not to brag, but my reviews always seem to be reasonably popular with the other members, and I have gained a few fans. One of these fans, named Alex Zavistovich, reach out to me about a podcast he's involved with. Obviously, that podcast is Poe Theatre on the Air. I had a few reviews to take care of, but I agreed to give it a listen and review it later.

I'm glad that I did, because I was pleasantly surprised by what I found. The team is going for the shared universe approach with Poe's short stories. Even Dr. Maillard and his asylum hail from a Poe story. Specifically, he's from "The System of Doctor Tarr and Professor Fether." That was always one of my favorite Poe stories. Poe Theatre on the Air is a fully performed audio drama with actors, music, and sound effects. This gives it a key advantage over a podcast that would just read the stories. The language used in Edgar Allen Poe's writing is a bit archaic by modern standards, and that can be a stumbling block for a lot of people. By contrast, the dialogue and bits of narration Poe Theatre on the Air uses are more modern, while still being a bit formal when needed. This allows the listeners to really focus on, and enjoy, the content of the stories.

Of course, this could not work without a talented team of voice actors. Thankfully, Poe Theatre on the Air has quite the team of voices at its disposal. I should also mention that Poe Theatre on the Air has been featured several times on NPR. Okay, now that we've covered all of that we can delve into the individual stories.

Our first story is "The Tell-Tale Heart." You've probably heard of this one, but if not, it's the one about the person who kills the old man and is then haunted by the sound of his beating heart.

With our first episode, we see what I meant about the writers putting their own spin on the story. The original "Tell-Tale Heart" leaves a lot of quest in unanswered. We don't know the narrator's gender, or their relationship with the old man, or even the motive for the murder, beyond a hated of the old man's eye. As such, it leaves a lot of room for interpretation. So here, the narrator is a woman working at the inn the old man owns. Admittedly, I've never been the biggest fan of "The Tell-Tale Heart." I remembering linking it as a kid because of when I discovered it was used as the basis of that episode of SpongeBob where Mr. Krabs regifts some boots to SpongeBob; but the boots are very squeaky, so he steals them and hides them under the floorboard of the Krusty Krab. Then he is haunted by the squeaking of the boots until he confesses and eats the boots.

It was neat to discover that connection on my own as a kid. I studied the story in English class in middle school and enjoyed it. Then I got older, and the story just didn't hold the same charm for me. I guess it was because I'd seen it parodied and homaged so many times that I just wasn't as effective as it once was. Still, for what it's worth, I think I liked this episode more than the original story.

The second story is "The Black Cat." This story is about a man who's wife loves animals and has turned their home in a menagerie. However, he has never been a lover of animals, and he does not care for the black cat, despite how often it shows him affection. He pokes out the poor cat's eye, and eventually hangs it. He thinks his troubles are at an end, but then he brings home a new black cat for his wife. There's something hauntingly familiar about the new cat, and it drives the man insane.

I had not previously read the story, but I very much enjoyed this episode, and it made me want to seek out the original. I have a beloved orange tabby named Tiger, so I say the protagonist got what he deserved in the end. It is unclear when the stories are set. I assumed the 19th century, just like the originals. Certain details do back this up, such as the police being Irish. I mean, it's not impossible for a modern police officer to be Irish, but that was more of a cliche you tend to see in stories set in the past. Additionally, there's no references to any modern technology, which would back-up my original assumption.

It is interesting to compare and contrast this story with "The Tell-Tale Heart." Both stories feature unarmed narrators, though the podcast gives them names. Both stories involve the protagonists committing heinous acts because of an eye. And both stories have the protagonists thinking they've gotten away with killing, only to be haunted by the deceased. Well, that is, unless they've simply gone crazy. From what I've gathered, the protagonist hating animals was a slight deviation from the original, but I understand he was a bit of an unreliable narrator in the original story. The actor playing the protagonist gave an especially strong performance. All in all, an excellent episode.

The third story is "Morella." This story tells of a man who has married a woman named Morella. He married her for her brilliant and intellectual mind. However, she's developed an obsession with the occult, and he fears this may lead down a dark path.

This one wasn't bad, but it didn't especially blow me away. I could guess where this story was going about a halfway through. That's usually not a problem for me, but it worked against the story here. The part where the main a character is driven to madness and shouts "Morella! Morella!" was supposed to dramatic, as it shows that Morella has triumphed and driven him to despair, but it just came across kind of annoying to me. I will say it did make me wonder about when the series is set. The protagonist takes his daughter to be baptized by a priest, but the service comes across like an Evangelical megachurch service rather than anything from Poe's time. Anyway, moving right along.

The fourth story is "The Cask of Amontillado." This is another one you've probably heard of. It takes place in Carnival in Venice. Montresor is from a noble family, but is constantly picked on by his "friend" Fortunato. So, he lures a very drunk Fortunato into his family's crypt on the grounds that they will be tasting a fine amontillado. Then he bricks up Fortunato and leave him to die.

Like I said, you've probably encountered this story in English class at some point. I think I read this on in high school, but it might have been middle school. Either way, I wasn't terribly impressed, but I grew to like it better when I got older and reexamined it. It helped that William Joyce made a really good animated short film of it that I saw at a screening of his short films. He's the guy who made Rollie Pollie Ollie, A Day with Wilbur Robinson and Rise of the Guardians, among other things. Poe Theatre on the Air gave us an excellent adaption, and I've got no complaints.

The fifth story is "Berenice." First of all, you pronounce that as baron-nice-cee. It follows a bookish man who has a monomania for books. He loves to read books, but also to study the shape of letters, and the arraignments of words. His beloved cousin Berenice always tries to get him to come out and enjoy nature. Then she falls ill to an unspecified disease, that was probably tuberculosis, and dies. Are protagonist remains obsessed with he beloved Berenice, especially her lovely smile. He is determined that not even the grave shall keep them apart.

This was another story I wasn't familiar with, but now I kind of want to seek out the original. This is very much a story about the dangers of obsession and passions run amuck. I said the disease was probably tuberculosis because, nine times out of ten, that's what unspecified illnesses turn out to be in 19th Century stories. Also, I should point out that marriage between first cousins wasn't considered unusual in Poe's day, especially among the wealthy. Sometime else that wasn't considered unusual was premature burial. Many coffins had boards in them that could be pressed with the feet. This would ring a bell on the surface and alerted the cemetery watchman that someone needed digging up. It is also not uncommon to find coffins from that era with scratch marks on the interior of their lids.

The thought of being buried alive has always been something that sends a shiver down my spine. True, Berenice might not have enjoyed having her teeth yanked out by her crazed cousin, but it sure beats suffocating in a coffin six feet under. Well, that's my takeaway. Though, I concede that having teeth pulled without anesthetics is hardly a picnic. All in all, another great episode.

The sixth episode is "A Predicament." It follows a wealth woman named Madam Zenobia and her man sergeant Julius. They're on vacation in an unspecified European country. Madam Zenobia treats Julius quite poorly, but she's about to receive her comeuppance during a trip to a cathedral's bell tower.

This was another story I was unfamiliar with, but made me want to seek out the original. Never pegged Edgar Allen Poe as someone who'd write comedy stories, but I guess I was wrong. I can certainly related to Julius, as I too have a fear heights. Though I've never had to deal with anyone quite so demanding as Madam Zenobia. Really, she only has herself to blame for what happens. Just what was she expecting, sticking her head into the bell tower's inner workings?

This story also deviates a bit from the original story. For example, in the original story, Julius was a black dwarf named Pompey, rather than an old white man. Obviously, that isn't exactly politically correct by modern standard, so I can understand why the team changed that. However, more importantly the ending if different. So if you don't want to know what happens, skip down to episode seven if you don't want to know.

Last chance, turn back now if you don't want to find out. You sure you want to keep going.

Well alright. Here we go.

In the original story, Madam Zenobia got decapitated by the clock's pendulum, but her head remains functioning independent of her body. In this adaption, however, the pendulum knicker her neck, but otherwise leaves her head intact. However, she believes that she has become a body without a head, and thus finds helpful in the asylum. Even without having read the original, I still found it an interesting twist ending. So well done on the part of the writers. Excellent episode all around.

The seventh story is "The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar." This story follows a hypnotist who believes it is possible cheat death by hypnotizing someone at the moment before death. His friend Ernest Valdemar agrees to be a test subject. But will Valdemar find himself facing something worse than death?

Alex recommended this as the best of the currently available episodes. I must say, it did not disappoint. This was a Poe story I meant to track down, but never did til now. You've got those elements of gothic horror, as is common in Poe's works. However, I'd also argue that this story is an early example of science fiction. We've got out protagonist trying make discovers and perform experiments using scientific means. Obviously, we now know that even the strongest hypnotism is no match for organ failure and blood loss. Still, remember that this story was written before germ theory caught on, and back when belief in the four humors hadn't quite died out. Poe was working with the information available to him. Gothic horror was important to the development of early science fiction. Just look at Mary Shelley's Frankenstein. In fact, many of Poe stories are just as much science fiction as they are horror.

Even disregarding all of that, it is still nonetheless a very entertaining story. Amusingly, when first published, some people mistook it for an actual account. Poe hadn't specified that it was a work of fiction. There is a strong theme about the dangers of meddling with the natural order, and dabbling in things mankind was never meant to mess with. A very common trait of both gothic and early science fiction stories. An excellent story that certainly lived up to its pedigree.

The eighth story is "The Oval Portrait." This story tells of an artist who fell in love beautiful young maiden whom he eventually married. He decided to immortalize her beauty forever by painting a portrait of her. There more to it, but that would be spoilers.

This is your last chance to turn back. If you don't want any spoilers, skip down three paragraphs to where it says "So that's all the episodes that have been released so far." You sure you want to continue?

Okay then, here we go.

So what's the big twist? Turns out the artist's bride was sitting so perfectly still because she'd died. He was so enraptured by his work, and her beauty, he failed to notice he was painting a corpse. Dr. Maillard really rubs this fact in his face. From this, we begin to see that Dr. Maillard might not be as benevolent as he claims to be. I saw the twist coming, but the story was still effective and well-written, so I still enjoyed the episode. Chalk another one up for great episodes from Poe Theatre on the Air.

The ninth episode is "A Descent Into the Maelstrom." It follows a man who used to work as part of a fishing crew in Norway. A big storm is on the way, and the crew must not stay at sea too late. Unfortunately, time gets away from them, and their boat gets sucked into a massive whirlpool. The story tells of how the man escaped from the maelstrom.

This was another story that surprised me. Didn't expect Poe to be the type to write high seas adventure stories. This is another of Poe's stories that is often considered an early form of science fiction. Not sure if I can quite see that, but again, science fiction was in its infancy during Poe's time. And I suppose the protagonist did use his reasoning skills to get out of his predicament. I will say the way the protagonist escape the maelstrom was pretty ingenious.

About the only deviation from the original is the framing device. In the short story, the protagonist is telling his tale to a mountain climber. Here, he's another patient at the asylum. The man insist that his hair turned white because of the stress of the adventure, and that he's actually thirty-two year old, as in the original story. Dr. Maillard, naturally, thinks the man is simply crazy. All in all, another excellent episode that made me want to seek out the original.

The eleventh episode is "The Raven." This one breaks the trend a bit, as it is adapted from a poem rather than a story. It tells of a man who is mourning the death of his beloved wife. Then, late one night, he is visited by a raven who seems to mock his despair.

This was an unexpected change to pace, but one that worked out quite well. Alex told me that he wanted to keep the show going, despite the Covid-19 pandemic, so that's how we got this episode. He played all of the role, though said roles were limited to the protagonist, the raven, and Dr. Maillard, but he played them quite well. This episode is the exact same quality as all the others. It was certainly a unique angle to turn a poem into an episode. It isn't told in verse, it is a standard episode like all the others, and that's what I love about it. Didn't expect to see poems get adapted, but I think I'd like to see more poems get this same treatment. "Eldorado" was always my favorite of Poe's poems. In fact...ah, but let us put a pin in that for now.

I must admit I always found "The Raven" to be a bit so-so as far as poems go. I've warmed up to it a bit more as the years have gone on. I've especially warmed up to it after listening to this episode of Poe Theatre on the Air. It helped that I'd recently watched a video recreating "The Raven" using characters from Thomas the Tank Engine. It was from The Stories of Sodor, a high-quality Thomas fan series. Anyway, this was another great episode from Poe Theatre on the Air. If they adapt other poems I'd suggest "Annabel Lee" and "The Conquering Worm" as ones that could be fun too. As for "Eldorado" well, you'll see about that in just a bit.

Episode twelve is "The Premature Burial." It follows a woman who suffers from catalepsy. Basically, it's a medical condition that causes her to go into a death-like trance, sometimes for hours on end. Unfortunately, she failed to tell this to her fiancé, and nearly wound-up getting buried alive.

I have previously discussed my own fear of premature burial. Though, unlike in Poe's time, at least the embalming fluids would kill me before I got put in the ground. So, I suppose that's a small comfort. This is another example of a story that deviated from the original out of necessity. For example, in the original the protagonist's gender isn't specified. Also, by the end of the original story, the protagonist gets over his/her fear of being buried alive. Obviously, this was not an option, as the protagonist had to wind up in Dr. Maillard's care. The protagonist also never got buried alive in the original. In fact, based on what I know of the original, it appears that Poe Theatre's adaption was created almost form whole cloth.

I must emphasize here that I haven't read the original story, so I don't know how much material the team had to work with. And none of my above comments are meant as a judgment. Judging the episode purely on its own merits, it quite an effective horror piece. You get a real sense of the dread and terror of being buried alive. We also get to see more of how Dr. Maillard abuses the patients. For example, when the woman goes catatonic, he places her hand on the flame of a candle just for the heck of it. Then, when she awakens, he lies and says that it is several hours later, and that he found her like that.

All things considered, another solid episode from Poe Theatre on the Air.

Episode thirteen is "Eldorado." The patient in this episode traveled to the Wild West in search of fame and riches. While there he met an eccentric cowboy named The Gallant Knight, who offered to take him on a quest to find Eldorado, the mythical lost city of gold. However, after many weeks their journey failed to bear fruit, and they received a visit from a mysterious shadow. But is all really as it seems?

I really enjoyed this episode, especially because I'm responsible for its existence. Remember when I suggested the poem "Eldorado" as a possible candidate for adaption into an episode? Well, Alex listened to that suggestion, and now here we are. I actually got to read the script, and listen to this episode, before it went live. But I waited to review it til you guys could enjoy it as well.

Well, first off, I'm amazed at how well this story lent itself to being adapted into a country music ballad. Our patient begins his story by performing the poem as a song, accompanied by guitar, and what an amazingly well-done song it was. Alex said that this episode was very much inspired by the gold fever genre of westerns. He said that it just popped into his head as soon as he read the poem. It just goes to show how creative Poe Theatre on the Air is with adapting the works of Poe. It is quite the well-written episode.

Of course, it wouldn't be Poe Theatre on the Air without some sort of twist. So this is your last chance to get off before we discuss that.

Last chance, you sure you want to continue?

Well okay, here we go.

You ever get the feeling that the protagonist and the Gallant Knight are the same person? If so, you're absolutely correct. Oh, he went searching for gold, but Gallant Knight and the Shadow were all in his head. Now he's stuck in an endless loop repeating his story. Well, must admit that I did not see that coming. Poe Theatre on the Air certainly knows how to keep the twists coming. And all of this from a relatively short poem.

An excellent episode, and I'm glad I helped make it possible in my own way. I can't wait to see what they come up with if they adapt any of my other suggestions.

This next one isn't actually an episode of Poe Theatre on the Air. It's a two-part guest episode by The Coldharts, aka Katie Hartman and Nick Ryan. It an adaption of one of their plays titled "Edgar Allan." It follows the boarding school days of Edgar Allan Poe himself. He's high-strung, short-tempered, easily excitable, and more than a bit neurotic. Still, he believes that he is destined for greatness. His plans hit a snag when he encounters another boy who also happens to be named Edgar Allan. Despite this, the two manage to strike-up a friendship and even found their own secret society.

I should also add that this special is also an adaption of Poe's short story "William Wilson." This was a bit different, but this is to be expect. Still, different doesn't mean bad. I didn't expect songs accompanied by ukulele to work so well in a musical about Poe, but it did. And just to clarify, all of the songs great. "William Wilson" is semi-autobiographical about Poe's boarding school days in England. As such, it makes perfect sense to cut out the metaphorical middleman and just set the story during Poe's school days. The plot of the episode follows "William Wilson" closely, so I guess that's another story the writers of Poe Theatre on the Air can check off the list. The depiction of young Poe was neurotic, short-tempered, and easily excitable was amusing. Both of the actors did an excellent job.

All in all, a bit unusual, but certainly not unwelcome of a special.

We now return to our regularly scheduled program for a two-part story. Our twelfth story is "Never Bet the Devil Your Head." The inmate who weaves this tale is an obsessive author who constantly scribes away at all hours of the day. He tells of of an old acquaintance of his named Toby Dammit. Dammit is a boorish uncouth man prone to saying "I bet the devil my head..." This proves to be an especially bad habit one fateful night when he and the author travel across a covered bridge.

So, it would seem we have another humorous Poe story. As the saying goes, speak of the devil and he shall appear. So, watch what you say, because you don't know who is listening. When I hear that the author's friend was named Toby Dammit, I immediately thought of those SNL sketches where Eddie Murphy would play Gumby. Specifically, Gumby as a washed-up vaudeville star who would always say "I'm Gumby, damn it!" And yes, Toby did indeed have the last name Dammit in the original short story. I thought that part one ended at the perfect moment. They get to the bridge, and then a fiesta appears out of nowhere. Took me completely by surprise, and was all the more hilarious for it.

Not too much more to add, other than it was an excellent humors story adaption.

Our next adaption is "Hop Frog." Our inmate is a ballerina named Trippetta who suffers from dwarfism. She used to perform in one of the royal courts of Europe. It was here that she met a jester who also had dwarfism named Hop Frog. At least, that's what the nobles chose to call him. After taking year of abuse, Hop Frog decided to give the nobles a taste of their own medicine. He gave them a performance that none of them would forget.

This was a story I had encountered in the past, but I remember not caring very much for it. However, I very much enjoyed Poe Theatre on the Air's adaption, so good on them for that. Of course, I should have expected nothing less, given their excellent track record. There is some element of truth in this story. Many royal courts did indeed use dwarfs as a cruel means of amusement. The Russian court was particularly notorious for this. They often held mock weddings for the dwarfs of the court, among other things.

The episode follows the original story fairly faithfully up until the ending. So, if you don't want that spoiled, turn back now.

Everyone who wants out gone? Then let's get into it.

In the original story, Hop Frog's plan goes off without a hitch, and he and Trippetta escape to their home country. In the episode, however, Hop Frog accidentally gets tangled in the rope which pulls the nobles aloft to the chandelier, and gets set on fire along with them. Trippetta is traumatized, and that's how she come into the care of Dr. Maillard's care. Well, something like that had to happen. The original ending was too happy for either of them to wind-up in the asylum.

All in all, another solid adaptation.

Our next episode is another two-parter. It is "Fall of the House of Usher." Our inmate is a man named Richard who tells of a fateful trip he took to the home of an old university friend named Roderick Usher. The Usher were once a noble and respected family, but they, and their mansion, have seen better days. Still, Roderick and his sister Madeline find ways to stay entertained. But what shall happen when Madeline unexpectedly dies?

This was another story I'd been hoping would be adapted, and it did not disappoint. I encountered this story in my eleventh grade American Literature class. I had a really awesome American Literature teacher, and she helped me appreciated this story. For that matter, she helped me appreciated pretty much everything we studied. For example, one of the details I didn't initially pick up on is why the Ushers are so sickly. It's because their family tree doesn't have many branches. That is to say, they're severely inbreed. "Fall of the House of Usher" is considered a quintessential gothic tale. It is very atmospheric, and there's a strong sense of dread and gloom, as well as death and decay, to everything.

This is the third story Poe Theater on the Air has adapted that involves premature burial. Granted, that was a fairly common theme in Poe stories. As I've mentioned, Poe had a considerable phobia of being buried alive. Still, this story does make "A Premature Burial" feel redundant in hindsight. That's not to say "A Premature Burial" was a bad episode. To the contrary, I quite enjoyed it. Still, perhaps it's slot would have been better suited to a different story?

The ending of "Fall of the House of Usher" slightly deviates from the short story. In the short story, when the house finally falls it kills both Usher siblings. This gives the title a double meaning. It literally refers to the collapse of the house. However, Roderick and Madeline were the last members of their family, so the title also refers to the end of Usher bloodline. In the episode, Madeline survives and becomes an inmate at the asylum. This is interesting, as this marks the first story to result in two people being admitted to the asylum.

All in all, "Fall of the House of Usher" was well worth the wait. Another excellent adaption.

Our final episode for this season is "The System of Doctor Goudron and Professor Plume." It's the moment you've all been waiting for. We finally get to learn more about Dr. Maillard and his staff. How did he come up with his unconventional method to cure the mentally ill? What are the rest of the staff like? Where did the good doctor get his degree from exactly? All these questions, and many more, are finally answered.

Now, there might be some confusion about the title, so let me clarify. This story is indeed an adaption of "The System of Doctor Tarr and Professor Fether." However, in 1903 there was a French play that adapted the short story. Said play was named The System of Doctor Goudron and Professor Plume. This episode draws elements from both the original short story and the play, hence the title. So, with that out of the way, let's talk about the episode itself.

Overall, it was a good episode. I'd suspected for a while that this would be how the season would end. I guesses this episode didn't quite have the punch I thought it would. We've been with Maillard since the first episode, so he's almost like an old friend at this point. I also wonder if perhaps this should have been a two-part episode to give proper closure. The pacing felt a tad rushed. Though, I don't know if there would have been enough material to expand into two episodes. The episode hits pretty much all of the major plot points of the story. I guess, I built this episode up so much in my head, that there was just no way reality could live up to my mental image.

But that all having been said, I still enjoyed the episode. We also get cameos from several characters from previous episodes. Trippetta from "Hop Frog" was one I immediately spotted. I'd also like to explain something that gets lost on modern readers of this story. It is mentioned that a disproportionate number of patients at the asylum are women. In the 19th Century, one way a man could divorce his wife was if she was declared insane and institutionalized. This was considered less embarrassing than if they divorced the usual way. Given how sexist the 19th Century legal system was, this was, this was ridiculously easy to do. The unfortunate women who found themselves in asylums often got gaslighted to the point that they went genuinely insane.

Now we get into the bit about spoilers. So, if you don't want that, turn back now. If everyone who wants out is gone, let's get into it.

If you've read the story, you'll know that the big twist was that the doctors and nurses were all actually inmates who took over the asylum. However, as previously mentioned, many of the inmates we encounter have appeared in past stories. This certainly casts an interesting new light on previous episodes. Maillard is thoroughly convinced that the patients are all genuinely insane. I, however, assumed that, barring a few notable exceptions, they were all more or less telling the truth. Now, I'm beginning to wonder if Maillard might have been onto something after all. Granted, the man we've gotten to know isn't the real Maillard, but that's beside the point.

And so that was season one of Poe Theatre on the Air. It was an excellent first season, and I enjoyed every minute of it. I was very impressed by what I listened to. It will be a bit sad to leave the asylum behind. Alex said that, after nineteen episodes, he felt the show needed to go in a different direction. To that end, season two will adapt Poe's stories about the detective C. Auguste Dupin. I have full confidence in the team behind Poe Theatre on the Air, and I eagerly look forward to season two.

So there you have it. Poe Theatre on the Air is an audio drama that adapts the works of Edgar Allan Poe into a shared universe. It is an excellent podcast, and one that I happily recommend. Check it out today, you'll be glad that you did.

Well, I think that should do it for now. I will see you guys next time.

The Alt-Hist File: Clarkesworld, Strange Horizons, and Cast of Wonders

We're gonna do something a little different in this edition of The Alt-Hist File. I'm bring you not one, not two, but three podcasts worth of great stories. We've reached the point where I'll be reviewing multiple podcast in each post much like I do with The Audio File. Let's meet the podcast featured in this edition, shall we?

The first podcast we've got is Clarkesworld Magazine. Founded in 2006 by Neil Clarke, this magazine has won or been nominated for pretty much ever speculative fiction award out there. Almost all of Clarkesworld's stories are narrated by Kate Baker. The second podcast we'll be see is Strange Horizons.  It was founded in 2000 by Mary Anne Mohanraj and has since been led by editors such as Susan Marie Gropp and Niall Harrison. It has also won many awards and its stories are narrated by Anaea Lay. Not the most exciting descriptions, but as you'll see they both definitely have their merits.

The final podcast we'll be looking at is Cast of Wonders. It was founded in 2011 by Graeme Dunlop and Barry J. North. Cast of Wonders is a young adult podcast featuring stories of the fantastic, by which I mean science fiction, fantasy and everything else in-between. In 2016, Cast of Wonders became an official member of the Escape Artists network of podcasts. Cast of Wonders features narrators from all walks of life. It has also received multiple Parsec Awards, one of the highest honors in speculative fiction podcasting. 

Well, I think that covers intros. So, without further delay, settle in and let's begin...

Clarkesworld Magazine

"Gold Mountain" by Chris Roberson
Narrated by Kate Baker
Originally Published in Postscripts

This story is part of Chris Roberson's Celestial Empire series. It's set in a world where China kept its treasure fleet and went on to conquer most of the world. The bits of the world not under Chinese control or influence are part of the Aztec Empire. The story follows Johnston Lien, a woman whose grandparents immigrated to China from Vinland. She's visiting the city of Guangdong to research the construction of Gold Mountain, the world's first space elevator. To that end she's interviewing McAllister James, one of the original workers on Gold Mountain.

Okay, that description seriously sells this story short, but I don't want to give too much away. First a word on names; the names are rendered in the East Asian style of family name first and given name second. Now that we've got that out of the way, let's talk plot. McAllister tell of the absolutely inhuman conditions he and his fellow Vinlanders were subjected to by their Chinese employers. Not only that, but he also speaks of the considerable prejudice and bigotry they faced while trying to make better lives for themselves. The really sad part is, barring a few science fiction related bits, all of that really happened, but in our world it was the other way around.

For that matter, it is best to think of this story as a mirror image of our own world. Chris has said that this was what he intended, and he hopes that the story gives readers new appreciation of the trials and tribulations of immigrants throughout history. He has more than succeeded in that regard. Even in the darkness there a glimmers of hope, such as Johnston, that show that the Vinlanders have been able to survive and even thrive despite the odds. This was my first exposure to the Celestial Empire series, which grew out of the Sidewise award winning short story "O One", and I can't wait to find more.

This story is mostly told from a male perspective, but Kate still manages to pack quite the emotional punch nonetheless. It's an alternate history take on the immigrant’s tale that will keep you thinking. Very much recommended.

"Fade to White" by Catherynne M. Valente
Narrated by Kate Baker
Nominee for the Nebula, Hugo and Sidewise Awards

This story takes place in either the 1950s or 1960s after a nuclear war occurred in the late 1940s or early 1950s. It's unclear who fired the first shot, or who exactly the United States was fighting, but frankly it's kind of unimportant. What is important is that the world has become severely irradiated and society has been forever changed. The story is told from the point of view of a girl named Sylvie and a boy named Martin who are about to come of age. As part of this process they, and everyone else their age, will be tested for fertility. Failing this test has potentially dire consequences.

Another summary that doesn't do nearly enough justice, so let me elaborate. You know that war I mentioned? Well it's going on, and men who flunk the fertility test get conscripted into it. The fertility test itself has some potentially eugenic undertones, as blacks and Asians are automatically disqualified. Polyandry has become necessary to keep society together due to all the men who've died in the war and the general fertility crisis. Throughout the story we get glimpses of the various advertising campaigns used by the government to distract people from how terrible the world is.

Wow, this was a powerful story. You really get the sense that this isn't just a world that's dying, but a world that is potentially on its way out. Some of the most poignant moments were the little bits of off-hand information. For example, it's mentioned that there are more Japanese in Utah than in Japan. This story is a nice example of atompunk. What is atompunk you ask? Atompunk is anything set in the future as envisioned by the 1950s, but with a more cynical twist. It's closely related to Raygun Gothic, but that tends to be more idealistic. To give one example, Fallout is atompunk, while Buck Rodgers and The Jetsons are Raygun Gothic.

The general feel of this story can best be described as an atompunk take on The Day After or Threads. Like I've mentioned before, the world building in this story is absolutely breathtaking. What's also breathtaking is how well Kate's narration captured the emotions of this story. Given how many award nominations it received, and more than earned, do I really need to tell you I recommend it?

"England Under the White Witch" by Theodora Goss
Narrated by Kate Baker
Featured in The Year's Best Dark Fantasy and Horror 2013

In this story 1940s England is invaded and conquered by an ethereal empress who commands power over ice and snow. At first it seems that things will be just fine, but it soon becomes apparent that England may never see spring again. Resistance groups pop up, but they face considerable challenges from the empress' wolves, secret police and even certain trees.

There are probably some of you scratching your heads wondering how this story exists. As long as the words Aslan, Narnia and Pevensie never appear in the story then no copyrights or trademarks have been violated. Since they don't...well, there you go. Personally, I think it worked out better for not having a group of meddling kids and their lion god swoop in to save the day. It was much more effective to leave the fate of this frozen world undetermined.

The imagery and descriptions are absolutely stunning. This story can very much be viewed as an allegory for what it's like to live under a dictatorship. There's initially new opportunities for the disenfranchised, a cult of personality, rewriting of history and the arts, secret police and other totalitarian staples all with a magical twist to them. For the third time in a row we have a great Kate Baker narration with this story.

It's a powerful story about magical totalitarianism that you won't want to miss.

"A Sweet Calling" by Tony Pi
Narrated by Kate Baker

This story is set in Ancient China and follows a candyman named Tangren Ao. He has the power to project his consciousness into the candy animals he crafts by calling upon the legendary animals of the Chinese Zodiac. He soon finds himself having to play detective after his friend Lun gets framed for a fire monkey attack in the market place.

I was always fascinated by the Chinese Zodiac when I was a kid, which can probably be blamed by my obsession with the Jackie Chan Adventures series. As such this story had a certain appeal to me. It was a nice touch that the main character preformed magic through candy. I guess you could say he was a...candymancer. Huh, huh? Okay, back to the review. I liked how the system of magic was described as well as the way the spirits were written. Tony is definitely a writer I'll keep an eye out for in the future.

It's short, sweet and to the point. I recommend it.

"A Gift in Time" by Maggie Clark
Narrated by Kate Baker

This story follows a man named Mouse who has the ability to travel through time. He's been trying to win the affections of a rich fellow named Ezra Levitz, who has a fascination with the past. Mouse is determined to use his power to win Ezra's affection.

Yeah, not the best summary, but it is a great story. Clarkesworld typically doesn't accept very many time travel stories, so when they do it's almost guaranteed to be good. I liked how Mouse had to keep trying because everything he brings to Ezra looks so recently made it comes off as a forgery. It was also interesting how most of Mouse's time travel investments failed because the banks he used failed. At times it felt like the story was commenting on such get-rich-quick type stories.

The times Mouse visits were all great, though when he went to the Thirty Years War and encountered Count Tilly my initial thought was "it's the guy from the 1632 series!" Yeah, I gotta put more actual history into my reading rotation. It was also nice to see another homosexual romance represented among the stories.

A story about love and time travel. I happily recommend it.

"Manifest Destiny" by Joe Haldeman
Narrated by Kate Baker
Originally Published in The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction

This story is set during the days of the Mexican-American War and follows three Americans from various walks of life who become spies for Mexico. They'll be granted land and Mexican citizenship if all goes well after the war. However things don't go quite as they planned.

This story is historical fantasy, but of a decidedly magical realism variety. There are a few blink-and-you'll-miss-it hints of fantastic goings on, but for the most part it reads more like a historical fiction short story. Perhaps the magical realism is fitting, given that the story does take place primarily in Latin America. You really don't see to many stories set during the Mexican-American War, so this story was a rather refreshing change of pace. Then again, most American History textbooks spend, at most, a paragraph or two on the entire war, but I digress.

Many of the characters have sympathetic motivations for their action, and I liked how the story touched on some of the injustices and inequalities going on in America at the time. If you're a fan of Westerns you should enjoy this story. A story about an often neglected historical era. Very much recommended.

"Rolling Steel: Pre-Apocalyptic Love Story" by Jay Lake and Shannon Page
Narrated by Shaun Farrell and Mur Lafferty

This story is set in a world where the United States and Canada fell apart in the 1930s and 1940s due to technocracy movements. By the present day the many fractured nations of North America are entangled in multiple wars. The story follows a man and a woman who are traveling and doing their part for the wars.

Yeah, this one didn't really do it for me. The first problem I had was that the alternate history elements were really more for backdrop than any particular relevance to the story. Actually, it didn't even fell like even that much. This story could easily have been set in the near future and it wouldn't have made any difference to the plot. The other main reason was that, well, I didn't feel the characters were very engaging. That's not to say I thought the story was particularly bad, just that it wasn't very engaging to me.

Shaun and Mur do a pretty good job with the narration, but not enough to make up for the lackluster story. This story was from the early day when Clarkesworld hadn't quite found its footing and before Kate took over the narration. I didn't care for this one, but maybe it'll be more appealing to you. It's at the very least worth checking out.

"The Long Haul" by Ken Liu
Narrated by Kate Baker
2014 Sidewise Award Winner

This story takes place in a world where the Hindenburg disaster never happened. As a result, airships never became discredited as a mode of transport, and continued to flourish. By the present day, airships are making a comeback as a more eco-friendly, and fuel efficient, alternative to airplanes. The story follows a reporter who is interviewing a couple who work on a long haul cargo airship.

This was a well-written story, as per usual with Ken Liu. Though, I'm not sure how realistic it is. Airships were on the way out way before Hindenburg. They had a nasty tendency to crash and/or explode. Plus, since they were large and slow-moving, they made easy targets during war. Still, it is fun to imagine what it would be like if airships were still widely used. For what it's worth, some people have proposed reviving airships specifically to be more fuel-efficient and eco-friendly. I'd imagine that might come at the cost of speed, but I digress.

The husband and wife make for an interesting pair. She was just a peasant girl in China until he met her during a haul. They each take shifts running the ship for six hours with the other sleeps. At best, they'll only meet for a few minutes each day. Their conversations, and arguments, can last absurd amounts of time. Their relationship isn't the most romantic in the world, but they make it work. Hey, at least they get more personal time together when they arrive at their destination.

Another excellent story from Ken Liu that I'm more than happy to recommend.

"The Creature Recants" by Dale Bailey
Narrated by Kate Baker

This story takes place in a world where Creature From the Black Lagoon actually happened. The Creature has moved to Hollywood to become an actor. He's done reasonably well, with a movie deal depicting his life, but he can't shake his feels of emptiness and dissatisfaction.

One of Dale's talents as a writer is that he takes various B-Movie plots and ideas, and uses them to make emotional and meaningful stories. From the description, this story might sound humorous, or even a little crazy, but it works. It has depth and emotion to it. The Creature begins to wonder if he's truly happier with he new-found self-awareness. Was he, perhaps, happier when he was just hunting for fish and swimming in the Amazon? It's a great story. What else can I say?

I think you know that I recommend this one.

"Teenagers from Outer Space" by Dale Bailey
Narrated by Kate Baker

This story takes place in the 1950s in Milledgeville, Ohio. Aliens have arrived on Earth via a dimensional rift, and they've come to peruse the American Dream. They open-up business, join the work force, and their kids attend the local schools. The story follows a teenage girl named Nancy Miller as she navigates high school and observe society change and react to the aliens.

One of the recurring themes of Dale's stories set in the 1950s is about what a repressed and repressive time the 1950s were. This story very much taps into the desire for great freedom many women felt during the 1950s. The aliens were, well, truly, alien.  What I mean is, they were described looking like more than just people with funny costumes, like you'd see in most 1950s sci-fi B-Movies. It is a very emotional story that carries a whiff of nostalgia, but also acknowledges the underlying contradictions and hypocrisies of the 1950s. The only real issue I had was towards the end, where we suddenly get a rather heavy-handed pro-immigration. Overall, I'd say I'm fairly pro-immigrant, but I can't understand why people are opposed to mass immigration; especially working class people who might not be in favor of it. As such, it always annoys me when stories strawman those opposed to immigration as being bigots and racists. Still, over it is still a good story.

A story repression, longing for freedom, and the American Dream. I say give it a try.

"A Man Out of Fashion" by Chen Quifan
Narrated by Kate Baker
Originally Published in Science Fiction World
Translated by Ken Liu

This story follows a man named Du Ruofei. He participates in a program to be cryogenically frozen for 300 years. He awakens to find a world completely different to anything he's known. The story follows him as he becomes a celebrity and attempts to navigate the brave new world of the future. Along the way, he finds himself in the middle of a political revolution.

The summary isn't much, but I promise that this is a good story. It is always interesting to explore Chinese science fiction. Chinese writers have a lot to say, but they have to be weary government censorship boards, and of potential consequences of drawing the Chinese government's ire. Consequently, there's a lot of constraints Chinese writers have to deal with. For example, time travel to the past, especially to escape a repressive present, is forbidden. You can criticize past government regimes, to an extent, but criticizing the current one is a major no-no. Well, you can, you just have to be creative about how you do it.

It is mentioned that this story was heavily edited when translated into English. Perhaps to be more true to the author's original intent? Anyway, Du Ruofei finds himself in a world of advanced technology, but also one that is emotionally shallow and more than a tad hedonistic. Materials science is much more advanced, but space travel isn't much better than what we currently have. Sadly, that seems depressingly likely given how uninterested the world seems in manned spaceflight as of late. His assistant, of sorts, is named Jingjing. He chides her for having a name only given to pandas, but I've know a Jingjing or two. Also, apparently pandas, among other animals, are extinct in the future. Du Ruofei does discover that there are people who are dissatisfied with the state of the future, and he does become swayed by their ways. Ah, but I mustn't spoil the ending.

A story about a man making his way in the future. I recommend it.   

"Martian Blood" by Allen M. Steele.
Narrated by Kate Baker
Originally Published in Old Mars

This story takes place in a world where Mars is a habitable planet; just as it was believed to be before the Mariner probes proved otherwise. The story follows Jim Ramsey. He works as a tour guide in the Martian wilderness. He has been hired by a professor named Omar al-Baz. Dr. al-Baz wants to test the genetics of the Native Martian aborigines, and how they relate to the genetics of humans. When Dr. al-Baz makes a startling discovery, Jim must make a decision that could decide that fate of the Native Martians.

Overall, this was a very fun story. Worlds where Mars and Venus are habitable planets are one of my favorite alternate history scenarios. The imagery is very evocative. You get a real sense of the desolate beauty of the Martian landscape. You also get a sense of why Jim fells more at home there than in the more civilized parts of Mars. I should have mentioned before that the Naive Martians refer to themselves as Shetan, which means people in their language. I found their culture written and realized quite well.

While I did enjoy the story overall, I do have to object to the ending. So runaway now if you don't want it spoiled. If those who want put are gone, let's discuss the ending.

Turns out Shetan DNA is identical to human DNA. Jim fears that this will lead to an influx of settlers as more researchers arrive. This, in term, might lead to the Shetan getting colonized and forced off their lands. He deliberately loses Dr. al-Baz get separated in a dust storm, leaving him to die, and destroys all the tests and samples. He does mention that humans and Shetan have come into conflict in the past, but I don't buy is reasoning. True, there would be those who would try to manipulate the Shetan, but also many who would rally to their defense. Plus, what if another researcher get a hold of some Shetan blood? Better to get the research out, and use it as a please to recognize the rights and humanity of the Shetan. 

Still, despite the somewhat shaky ending, overall it is an excellent story. I happily recommend it.

"The Yorkshire Mammoth" by Harry Turtledove
Narrated by Kate Baker

This story takes places in a world where Ice Age megafauna survived into historic times. The story follows a vet in England as he helps to treats some wooly mammoths. 

I wanted to like this story, I really did, but it just didn't work for me. Despite having a great premise, it just fell flat and came off as rather dull. It was as though the story never built up enough steam to reach critical mass. Kate's rather monotone narration certainly didn't help matters. Regrettably, I must give this story a thumbs down.

Strange Horizons

"The Lucky Strike" by Kim Stanley Robinson
Narrated by Anaea Lay
Originally Published in Universe 14
Hugo and Nebula Award Nominee for Best Novella

This story takes place in 1945 just before the atomic bombings of Japan. The Enola Gay has exploded during a test flight and so a new crew has had to be selected for the critical mission. Frank January, the mission's pilot, isn't sure he's willing to unleash such a destructive force upon innocent civilians. What consequences will his actions have?

Sometimes time is not kind to a story. Such is the case here. The bombings of Dresden and Munich aren't controversial. We recognize they were necessary to defeat the evil of Nazi Germany. Despite Imperial Japan being just as bad, and in a lot of ways worse, than the Nazis, this story wants us to sympathize with them. It wants us to sympathize with the monsters who committed the Rape of Nanjing and the Bataan Death March, and who enslaved Koreans women as sex slaves, among other crimes against humanity. Apparently, this story would have us believe that the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki were worse than all that. If Japan has surrendered after the first bomb, maybe we could have that conversation. But they didn't. For that matter, many of them wanted to keep going even after the second bomb. The damage wasn't even that different to a convention fire bombing. Main difference was that it was accomplished with a single bomb. If nothing else, this story demonstrates why we need to teach more about the War in the Pacific. 

Such a shame, I usually like things written by Kim Stanley Robinson. Regrettably, I must give a thumbs down. Don't waste your time.

"The Suitcase Aria" by Marissa Lingen
Narrated by Anaea Lay

This story is set in 1780 Berlin and follows a young opera singer named Udo. He is a castrato with the ability to perform magic through his songs. He's going to need all the song he can manage to handle the nix that's been harassing the opera house.

So a few terms we ought to cover before moving forwards. A nix is a type of Germanic water spirit. A castrato is a type of high pitched opera singer, and in the past they typically consisted of boys who were castrated before reaching puberty. A suitcase aria is a song that would be sung by a traveling opera singer. Now that we've got that out of the way let's talk about the story.

It's often said that music is a kind of magic, and this story just took that one step further. It was a nicely constructed system of magic. I personally would have liked to have heard a bit of singing with this story, but at the same time I can understand that this would be hard to translate into text. Also, hats off for using an obscure mythological creature rather than something more obvious like a siren.

A story about the magic of music and those who make it. Well worth your time.

"Rib" by Yukimi Ogawa
Narrated by Anaea Lay

This story takes place in Japan during the Tokugawa Shogunate and follows a skeleton woman who feeds on men's souls. She's recently found herself caring for a young boy named Kiichi. Together they're teaming up to steal back a hair stick that belonged to Kiichi's mother from a heavily guarded temple.

There's a bit more to this story, you'll have to read/listen to find out more. I really loved how snarky and sarcastic the skeleton woman's dialogue was. As you should know by now, I am always eager to learn about new mythological beings, and so it was with this story. It was also nice to see a story set in Tokugawa Japan that was about something other than samurai. Without giving much away I can tell you that the ending is really heartwarming. As for why this story is titled Rib, well, you'll just have to find that out for yourself.

A fun little story with a touching ending. I happily recommend it.

Cast of Wonders

"Kulturkampf" by Anatoly Belilovsky
Narrated by Hans Fenstermacher
A Cast of Wonders Original

This story takes place during a steampunk version of the Franco-Prussian War where musical symphonies are used a weapons of war. The story told as a series of letters sent by Richard Wagner as he creates symphonies as his contribution to the Prussian war effort.

Every year the staff of Cast of Wonders each select a story they feel was particularly worthy of praise. This story was Barry J. North's pick for 2013, and I can easily see why. It was a great touch to play bits of Wagner's symphonies as the story was read. They really do sound like they could be used as weapons of war. I haven't seen too many stories about the Franco-Prussian war, and this was a nice change of pace from the typical Victorian Britain setting of many steampunk stories.

As for the narration, I thought Han's did an excellent job. It's a great musical steampunk story you won't want to miss.

"The Haunted Jalopy Races" by M. Bennardo
Narrated by Alasdair Stuart
A Cast of Wonders Original

This story is set in a small American town during World War II and follows the yearly race of the spirits of two teenage boys who died in a racing accident. Each year they grow into increasingly caricatured versions of who they were in life; the hero is practically a knight in shining armor and the villain has a flaming skull. But is the story really all that it seems?

What I liked most about this story is the way it deals with how we collectively handle death. All too often we remember idealized versions of who the deceased were rather than who they actually were in life. That's why I personally oppose the notion of never speaking ill of the dead. This story really did a great job of commenting on that sort of mentality by introducing a supernatural spin.

In terms of narration I thought that Alasdair did a great job. A story about how we remember the dead. Very much recommended.

"Above Decks" by Terry Ibele
Narrated by Phil Lunt
A Cast of Wonders Original

This story takes place in a steampunk version of Canada and follows a boy from Rupert's Land who works on an airship. He joined thinking it would be a life of adventure and sightseeing, but he spends most of his days shoveling coal below deck. One day, however, he decides to break free.

Okay, so this is a steampunk story with an airship, but I promise it's a good one. I liked how this story focused on the potentially less than glamorous aspects of steampunk and the Victorian era. It was also a nice touch the upper classes considered mechanical augmentation to be fashionable. Towards the end of the story, even despite all of the horrors, you get a sense of awe and wonder for how amazing airships must have been. On the other hand, you get a long look at 19th century labor conditions as well.

Overall Phil did a good job with the narration, though at time he made the captain sound a bit like Yosemite Sam. All in all a pretty good story that's worth your time.

"The Authorized Biography" (Part 1 and Part 2) by Michael G. Ryan
Narrated by Brian Rollins
A Cast of Wonders Original   

This story follows a man named Tim Toonby. He has just written what he hopes will be the Great American Novel. One day he discovers a book claiming to be his biography. It tells of how Tim become a best selling author, but his son gets shot at one of his book signings. Tim must decide he must change the future, but at what cost?

Overall, I greatly enjoyed this story. The writing is very well done, the characters are compelling, and the story is great. That having been said, I can't help but feel that this story is misplaced. Perhaps this story would be more at home at Escape Pod. Our protagonist is a middle-aged man contemplating the death of his child. Not saying young adults can't relate to that, but I am saying an adult would probably get this story better. This does tie in to something I've been feeling for a while: Cast of Wonders is suffering from an identity crisis. It runs YA stories, but never seems to know if it wants to appeal to adults or teens/tweens. In fact, at times it almost seems to be ashamed of the fact that it is a young adult podcast. Certainly leans a bit too much into the "YA can be more than just love-triangles and dystopia!" mentality at times. The current way Cast of Wonders seems to define YA and middle age is: "If you feel embarrassed for reading it, it's middle grade; if it's just respective enough to be read in public, it's YA."

Still, credit where it is due, at least weren't any trigger warnings,mor other patronizing tags. I'd complain about how annoying politically correct and woke Cast of Wonders has gotten, but that's a can of worms for another day. Still shaking my head over that time they include trigger warning because a story had spiders in it. Anyway, back to the review.

Tim certainly does his best to change his son's fate, but money and fame are certainly tempting. Also, at one point he takes his dog to be put down, even though it breaks his heart, because otherwise his wife will have an affair with the he vet. Uh, he should have taken the dog anyway. Pets are often incredibly scared during their final moments, and frantically search for their owners of the owners aren't there. Also, while his books sound interesting, they are about a man going on a journey of spiritual and religious enlightenment and discovery. I'm not so sure how well that would sell in these increasingly secular days. I will say that Brain did an excellent job with the narration.

Categorization aside, this is still an excellent story that I happily recommend.

"The Isle of the Dancing Dead" by Rick Kennett
Narrated by Barry Haworth
Originally Published in The Fifth Book of After Midnight Stories

This story appears to take place in the 19th century in a British colony. I'm not quite sure where specifically? Africa possibly? Or perhaps North America? At any rate, two paranormal investigators named George and Monty are on the case. The coffins within a crypt have been moving about, despite the tomb being sealed tight. The locals claim it is the spirits of the dead moving the coffins, but might there be a more rational explanation?

This story reminded me of the tales of Thomas Carnacki the Ghost-Finder by William Hope Hodgson. He was like a supernatural Sherlock Holmes. What made Carnacki so effective was, though he was prepared to deal with ghosts, he was also open to the possibility that there was a mundane explanation for the goings on. At least half the time, this turned out to be the case. I liked that this story takes the same approach. Apparently, this story has been translated into multiple languages, and is often used in classes teaching English as a second language. Barry did an excellent job with the narration.

A story of skepticism and the supernatural, and one that is very much recommended.

"Below the Serapeum" by Kelsey Dean
Narrated by Alethea Kontis
A Cast of Wonders Original
Featured in Cast of Wonder's Banned Books Week

This story takes place in a fantasy world not too different from Ptolemaic Egypt and the Roman Empire. Halena is an apprentice working at the Great Library. The library was recently destroyed by a fire started by the soldiers of Epiria. As such, her work mostly consists of preserving books and helping raise funds for a new library. Unfortunately, Epiria is preparing for another invasion of Masser. She must stand strong against the coming dark times.

Overall, I did enjoy this story. It is nice to see a fantasy story taking inspiration from the classical world for a change. The Great Library of Alexandria was one of the great losses of history. What wonders might there haven been on those shelves. We know that Homer wrote a sequel to The Odyssey titled The Telegony, and possibly even more epic poems. We also know that Sophocles wrote a fourth Theban play, and possibly more. Sadly, these and many other works have been lost to the sands of time. It is both fun and frustrating to speculate on what we might have had if the Library hadn't burned.

I did like that Halena's aunt and mother encouraged her to see the humanity in the children of Epiria. Further more, they even encourage her to see the humanity of Epirian soldiers. They speak of how the soldiers are merely following orders, and the blame should be placed on the Epirian emperor. This isn't a rout most stories would take, so I applaud Kelsey for doing so.

Now, I must criticize this story for having a bit too much parallelism at points. For example, the temple the character work at is called a Serapeum. In real life, there were temples consecrated to the Ptolemaic god Serapis, and often included libraries and places of learning. However, in the story the temples are consecrated to the fictional goddess Minosega. As such, calling them Minosegeum would have been more appropriate. Calling them Serapeum would be like having a Roman centurion speaking in a Texan accent and dropping lines about BBQ. Perhaps it would have worked better as a piece of historical fiction. I'm just saying, Escape Artists really should add historical fiction to the genres they cover. Also, Epiria sounds a bit like empire, as in Roman Empire. A bit on the nose there.

Still, overall not too bad of a story. Alethea's narration is certainly great.

A low fantasy retelling of the Library of Alexandria. I say give it a try.

There Are No Marshmallows in Camelot by Christian McKay Heidicker
Narrated by Marguerite Kenner
A Cast of Wonders Original

This story follows a little girl named Leticia Andrews who discovers the great wizard Merlin is trapped in her play house. Merlin has been thrust forward in time following a battle with the evil sorceress Morgan La Fay. At first Leticia thinks that it'll be great and that she'll get to learn magic, but what will happen if Merlin doesn't get back to Camelot in time?

The historical accuracy of the King Arthur legends is highly debatable, to put it succinctly. At the very least it's agreed that Merlin probably was real; especially since he and Guinevere were from previously unrelated Welsh legends. Similarly, Lancelot was from an unrelated French ballad, so that cast doubt on him. Still, there might be just the tiniest grain of truth buried in there, and this story had time travel so I decided to roll with it.

It was a cute little story. I liked the notion that you can find magic in your every day life if you know the right places to look. The conversations between Merlin and Leticia were fun and I liked the way magic was described. I also enjoyed the bits that follows Leticia later in her life as she searches for sources of magic. It was a nice little touch that tied everything together.

As I've mentioned in the past, every year the crew of Cast of Wonders select stories that they thought were particularly outstanding for a special honor. This story was Alexis Goble's pick for 2015. It is always a joy to hear Marguerite Kenner narrate a story, and this was no exception.

A fun little story about time travel and marshmallows. I recommend it.

The Great Game series by James Vachowski
Narrated by Barry J. North and Graeme Dunlop
A Cast of Wonders Original

This story follows...well, we never really learn his name. We do learn that he used to serve in the British army during the early 20th century and went on many fantastical adventures for king and country. From finding flying carpets in Persia to discovering the lost city of Iram in Arabia. The stories are framed as him recounting his adventures to students doing research at a library.

This one's going to be a group review since there are seven stories in the series. Overall I'd say these stories were a bit hit and miss. A couple were reasonably good pastiches of Victorian adventure stories, a couple started off good before running out of steam, and a few were just kind of meh. I guess that's kind of my biggest issue with these stories. They had interesting concepts, but for the most part they failed to realize their potential. Don't get me wrong, there we a few gems here and there, but overall I didn't find this collection of stories particularly memorable.

The stories are almost all narrated by Barry, though Graeme did narrate one of them. They both made valiant efforts, but it wasn't enough to salvage the stories which didn't work. I didn't quite care for these stories, but I'll say they're at least worth checking out. Who know, maybe you'll like them.

Conclusion

So we've reached the end of the list and I hope you've had a good time. You know I always want to say something deep and meaningful in these concluding segments, but I never do. Oh well, maybe someday I will. For now, just take a moment to reflect on all the good stories we got to discover, and look forward to the next time that we will get to do this. Let us look forward to all the stories we will discover in this new year together. Until then, I will see you guys next time.