SINS OF THE SIRENS

Edited By JOHN EVERSON (Dark Arts Books; 2008)

       The third release from Dark Arts Books, a
publisher specializing in sampler anthologies of genre
fiction.  SINS OF THE SIRENS contains stories by four
women authors--Loren Rhoads, Maria Alexander,
Mehitobel Wilson and Christa Faust--none of whose
work, I'll confess, I was previously familiar with.
I'm pleased to report that all contribute solid
writing of an adults-only variety. 

     Loren Rhoads begins the book with four tales
grounded in aberrant psychology.  In "The Angel's
Lair" a woman picks up a fallen angel in a bar--yes,
an actual angel; the gal for her part is a succubus
looking to seduce and devour the angel.  Good story,
done with an eye for gritty urban detail and sexual
explicitness. 

     Speaking of which, "Still Life with Broken
Glass", Rhoads's next story, is a satiric take on East
Coast art snobs flavored with X-rated levels of
lesbian erotica and grue.  But the most effective of
Rhoads' tales in my view is "Sound of Impact", a
short, sharp shocker that proceeds in ominous fashion
until an underlying secret is disclosed on the final
page that throws the preceding events into a new
light.  It's certainly not the first time such an
approach has been tried, but I've never read an
attempt quite like this one.

     Rhoads' contributions are, it turns out, the most
subtle of the entire book, which only grows steadily
more perverse.  Maria Alexander, who according to the
author bio works for Disney, is the next writer
featured, and has a more frank, down-and-dirty style
(cunt being a favored adjective).

     Alexander's "Pinned" is a wild ride that mixes
S&M and voodoo in eye-opening fashion; it's one of the
book's standout entries.  I found "The Dark River of
His Flesh", about loneliness and resurrection,
somewhat less interesting, although it contains some
arresting perversity.  So too "The last Word", in
which phantom entries in a man's diary instruct him on
how to run his life--and ultimately impart some really
bad advice!

     Mehitobel Wilson follows, contributing for me the
collection's most powerful block of stories.  "Heavy
Hands" is about what happens to a guy assailed by
invisible hands that act according to the desires of
those around him.  Creepy stuff.  "Close" is even
creepier--it has a voyeuristic hotel worker finding a
way to surreptitiously insert himself into a couple's
torrid lovemaking.  The result is a tale strong in
graphic detail, but which concludes on just the right
note of lyrical abandonment.

     "The Wild" tackles lycanthropy in a wholly
individual manner that's violent, sexual and poetic.
Then there's "Parting Jane", told in the form of a
journal penned by a nine-year-old girl trapped in a
hospital, where she's subjected to all manner of
horrific procedures.  The story represents virtually
everything you've ever feared about doctors and/or
hospitals, and is about as unnerving as they come.

     The final contributions are by Christa Faust,
whose three stories are grouped, appropriately enough,
from good to very good to great.  "Love, La Llorona"
features a woman, a DVD, a murder and a reasonably
satisfying twist ending.  The novella-length
"Firebird" centers on an addictive vampire-like
machine in a gritty future world--think BLADE RUNNER
meets CRONOS.  Finally there's "Tighter", about a
bondage-loving gal who finds total bliss when a guy
ties her up with live ropes; it's not until the end
that she discovers what those ropes are made of.  A
gross tale, but also an unforgettable one.

     "Tighter" also makes for a fitting conclusion to
the collection overall, which if you ask me represents
everything great about femme fiction: bloodletting,
psychosis, torture and perversion!  It will doubtless
offend serial misogynists and traditional feminists
alike, meaning it's a book right up my alley, and
hopefully yours too.