State of Disorder

When I had finished reading this excellent short story I kept asking myself one question, ‘How does Douglas Smith keep coming up with such imaginative stories?’ I may be repeating myself when I say, once again, that this author gives his shorter fiction everything a short story needs. We get fully realised characters with real emotions and real reasons for their actions. We get a setting that feels much larger than the story should have time to convey. We get a plot that has imagination and inspiration running through it from start to finish. State Of Disorder is, at its core, a story of vengeance but it’s also a tale of fantasy and time travel. The nature of the science fiction elements is so cleverly handled that we’re left wondering if it might just be possible. Then we move onto the story of Mackaby and how a perceived slight has brought vengeance upon not only him but the life he has led. Can it all be taken from him? Utterly brilliant. Another tour de force by Douglas Smith.