Posts Tagged: Kickstarter

First Lines: Unidentified Funny Objects 5

Unidentified Funny Objects 5 contains, again, a series of humours Sci-Fi/Fantasy stories. This time, my favorites were “The Trouble with Hairy”, in which David Gerrold explores using computer models to solve traffic congestion. Afterwards, they all agreed it had been a bad idea. Laura Resnick’s “The ? Files” is a gloriously convoluted X-Files/Star Trek/Wars/Doctor Who… Read more »

First Lines: Explaining Chtulhu to Grandma and Other Stories

Explaining Cthulhu to Grandma and Other Stories is a collection of short stories and flash fiction by Alex Shvartsman, editor of the Unidentified Funny Objects anthologies. It came to me as part of the UFO5 Kickstarter, and having read the titular story online already, I looked forward to diving in. Like the UFO series, Shvartman’s… Read more »

First Lines: Unidentified Funny Objects 4

At the time, I passed on the UFO4 Kickstarter, as I hadn’t read the previous three installments yet. By the time the UFO5 Kickstarter came around, I jumped at the chance to grab a couple of books, as I liked the concept. Unlike the previous editions, volume four had an overall theme: dark humor. What… Read more »

First Lines: Unidentified Funny Objects 3

Like its predecessors, most of Unidentified Funny Objects 3 was a hoot, and again, all over the place: In “Master of Business Apocalypse” (Jakob Drud) a company specialized in apocalypse prevention gets a new CEO. “Company Store” by Robert Silverberg deals with a colonist who kinda gets conned by the company that sent him into… Read more »

First Lines: Unidentified Funny Objects 2

Right after I finished reading Unidentified Funny Objects, I cracked open volume two. Figuratively speaking, of course, as breaking my e-reader would be a waste. Like the first volume, UFO2 contains a smothering of funny stories. Some favorites: “Class Action Orc” by James Beamon in which an imprisoned orc acts as a public defender for… Read more »