CROWS AND SILENCES by Lucius Shepard

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Look what came in the mail! Crows and Silences is a collection of four novellas by Lucius Shepard with an introduction by yours truly. As the dust jacket says: 

A combination of misfortunes prevented Lucius Shepard from breaking out into the literary world beyond SF and his elevation to the Pantheon of writers remains always just a breath and a wish away In the meantime, here are four tales of people hoping to survive the daily trauma of their lives. All caught in a world of crows and silences and trying to make the best of it.

 

The book comes from Subterranean Press and it’s both beautifully and solidly made. The cover and an interior illustration are by Aurélien Police, and the title is taken from the text of one of the novellas within. The four novellas are "Kalimantan," "Skull City," "Louisiana Breakdown," and "Colonel Rutherford's Colt." If you’re a fan of Lucius’ work, you want this book.

 

Issued in an edition of 500 numbered hardcover copy. You can buy  one here. Or go to Subterranean Press and wander about, wistfully browsing, here.

 

And if you want a frustrating taste of the introduction I wrote...

 

Here’s how it begins?

 

          Let’s start with a story. Lucius Shepard was headed home, drunk, at three in the morning. This was when he was living in a bad neighborhood in Staten Island. A derelict came stumbling out of the darkness toward him and Lucius reached for his wallet to dredge out a couple of bucks. But then the man stuck a gun in his face and pulled the trigger.

          Click.

          No bullet.

          Pulling the gun back, the man stared down at it in astonishment and giggled.

 

And the story goes on from there. SPOILER ALERT: Lucius Shepard lived. Though not, alas, to the present day.

 

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