For those who are new to it, StoryHack is an adventure magazine in the spirit of the pulps. No. 7 has just been published. I have enjoyed the previous issues of StoryHack but this one is maybe the best yet. That’s because, in my opinion, there is not a weak story in it. So we could call it Lucky 7 or we could call it the unremitting devotion of its publisher and editor, Bryce Beattie. Let’s just call it a “A Constellation of Wonders.”      

No. 7 leads with a fast-moving space conquest story, “Eyes As Blue As Metal” by Dominika Lein. Commander Sabyton has led the forces of his Eifrez race in a global assault on another world, using weapons of mass destruction. A warrior from a reptilian race, even he is slightly appalled by the total devastation wrought upon the planet. Lured to a secret alien research base, he discovers that the defeated Kadroic have been abducting other alien life forms. At this point “Eyes” goes into full-on pulp action, as Sabyton is betrayed by his own officers and has to shoot his way out of an ambush, accompanied by a kidnapped human woman. Fast-moving adventures ensue, with ray guns (versatile weapons in this story) and spaceships getting a lot of air time. The ending leaves open the possibility of another story featuring the commander.

Misha Burnett’s “That Summer’s Evening Long Ago” follows. It’s premium Burnett, with his trademark sassy dialogue, dry wit, and small disquieting insights into his character’s lives. Here a hard-boiled detective fights crime in an alternate world where Alchemy and Magic are as much a part of life as cars and revolvers. He is trying to catch a crooked magician who steals from people, then magics away their memory of ever having owned the item. It’s complicated by the fact that the crime is reported by a female “friend” of the cop. So there are a lot of male/female dialogue pieces that are alternately comic, ironic, misleading, sometimes all three at the same time. “Summer” starts as a police procedural (with magic) but there’s a twist and our characters find themselves in big trouble. The world-building here is unique and superb, it’s one part fantasy magic, one part modern Los Angeles alienation and one part pure Phillip Marlow. This is a Swiss watch of a story, full of beautiful tiny parts that mesh together perfectly. Loved it.

For those readers who would like more of Mr Burnett, I can recommend Endless Summer, a recent collection of his Science-Fiction short stories.  

David J. West’s “Titan Up” has Leon, a modern man born out of time. Leon longs for the world of Greek mythology, of heroes and gods. The good news is that Calliope, the Greek demi-goddess and muse, summons him through time to be her hero. The bad news is that Polyphemus the Cyclops is advancing on him in a rage, intending to tear his head off. The joy of this story is in the interplay between Calliope and Leon, as Leon tries to take down the giant Polyphemus and keep his head. This is a fun story, there are a few humourous riffs on the Greek myths, while staying true to its heroic theme. Stylish and charming.

“Song for Melianope” by Alexandru Constantin is a hell of a good story. In an unknown land, a mismatched couple, a bard and a sleazy monk, are thrown together trying to escape a war. As they walk through a strange dark forest Constantin gives us a swift summary of their plight. What seems to be a fantasy trope turns into a piece of American Gothic horror that can stand alongside the stories of Manly Wade Wellman or Clark Ashton Smith. Our duo finds a beautiful house deep in the forest. Inside they find warmth, appetising food, sumptuous ales, all served by the female servants of a mysterious aristocratic lady. Just when they decide things are looking up, a platoon of the murderous army forces its way into the house. They intend to execute the bard as an insurgent and a thief.  Dark, tense and full of foreboding, Constantin has a distinctive voice for this kind of horror.

“The Berserker’s Son” by Michael DeCarolis is set in a Howardian fantasy world, where magic and races of evil creatures abound. The Berserker journeys to meet a Lord of the city, to petition him with a strange request. But two races of evil creatures attack the city and the barbarian berserker has to choose between fighting for the city or trying to escape back to his village, to his wife and new-born son. There was a little too much use of hack and slash to advance the plot, for my taste. But what makes this story work is that it gives the Berserker real character and real motivations. DeCarolis hits the Conan mythology dead right. His barbarian is an intelligent, perceptive warrior, not the somewhat slow-minded slayers we so often see in the movies.

“Golden Echoes” by J.D. Cowan is pure pulp. A rip-roaring story of an insane would-be galactic dictator, a spy, a betrayed underling and a girl in danger. Throw in a reality-splitting device, spaceships, ray-guns, killer androids, cyborg assassins and some big explosions. This story doesn’t stop for breath and would punch you in the face if you tried to make it take one. Good pulp fiction fun!           

In “Third Time Lucky” by Mike Adamson, it’s 1941 and a Spitfire pilot in the Battle of Britain realises that he is the personal target of a very deadly German air-ace. This a beautifully crafted story. We get to understand the horrors of air combat close up. And the logistics of combat flying are shown to be as deadly as dog-fights. Adamson’s story is carefully constructed, his writing so lucid and clean that when you reach the final engagement, you understand perfectly what the two pilots are doing. Old-school, compelling story-telling.

I was really pleased to find a Caroline Furlong story “Scylla’s Lair” in this collection. I am a fan of Caroline Furlong’s work and how she slips quietly from everyday reality to fantasy horror. There’s a touch of the Roger Zelazny about her, and that’s high praise. Here, a Merwoman, Muriel, has done a deal with a devil, the “Scylla” of the title. Unfortunately for her, Scylla had always intended to betray the deal and has captured Muriel some time after. Muriel is now eight and a half months pregnant and Scylla has truly evil designs on Muriel and her soon-to-be newborns. There are some moments of real horror here. This is now my favourite Furlong story.

If you are interested in Caroline Furlong’s work I can recommend her story “Death’s Shadow” in Cirsova Magazine Issue 4.

“The Tombs of Osiris Prime” by Jason J. McCuiston is a classic Captain Future-type pulp story. On a strange alien planet, a distress call goes out to the Star Warden. An archaeological dig in a mysterious temple complex is in trouble. Star Warden, a combination of space cop and the Lone Ranger, zooms in to help. With the aid of his alien sidekick Quantum, he starts to unravel the mystery of a missing archaeologist. Just when success seems to be in sight, the story takes a sharp swerve, more trouble emerges and this time it’s epic. This could have been written in the 1930s (that’s a compliment). Good stuff.

This collection ends with the second of David Skinner’s stories about the beautiful Day triplets, Joyous, Happy and Lovely. Set on a Leigh Brackett-ish Mars, “An Uncommon Day at the Lake” (see what he did there…) gives us Happy and Lovely Day enjoying an excursion in an air-car along a canal. Happy, being a pain in the fundament, gets them in trouble with some unhappy vigilantes. Luckily Lovely’s boyfriend Ham Becker is along for the ride. Ham is the kind of two-fisted fella a girl needs in this kind of trouble. In the ensuing rumble, Ham and Lovely discover a clue to a hidden treasure. But this is Mars and there are also unhappy Martians….

David Skinner has really hit his Martian stride with this story. It’s much improved over the first Day Sisters story. He is more confident in his handling of his Red Planet, with its gangsters and lost Martian secrets. I enjoyed the first Day Sisters story but felt he had to shoehorn a lot of background into the story to make it work. In “Uncommon” he is more economical with his world building and the story moves quickly and smoothly. We learn a little more about the strange powers of the Day sisters and the ending is very satisfying, both emotionally and in terms of the story logic. I hope Mr Skinner writes some more Martian Day stories. I could happily read a book of these.    

In conclusion, another great collection of stories from StoryHack. Highly recommended!  

StoryHack No. 7 is available on Amazon.

John Gradoville lives and writes in a small town on the South Coast of Britain. A writer for many years, his first Science Fiction story “Ascension Star” was published in 2020 in Cirsova Magazine. He is currently writing a final edit of his crime novel The Price of Treasure, to be published in the autumn of this year. You can find him on Twitter.