“Life Support” by Karen Zey

Issue 15 / Fall 2018   The hum and swoosh of the ventilator echo constantly in the small room in the ICU. My 37-year-old husband, Michael, lies as if asleep—his eyes closed, his face rosy and serene, his injury invisible. A thick, white bandage swathes his head....

“The Perfect Grandmother” by Ariella Neulander

Issue 15 / Fall 2018   I was determined to be a model grandmother. Less than two years ago, my charming but guarded and somewhat anxiety-prone son, Zach, finally married Becky, his gem of a girlfriend. And three months ago, they had their first child. When they...

“Horse Play” by Kelly Kiehl Davis

Issue 15 / Fall 2018   At first, none of them said anything to one another. They never said anything to their wives either, or their sons when the sons came to the fathers, terror in their eyes, we did not think it would be like this. The fathers did not know...

“Shoving” by Jon Epstein

Issue 15 / Fall 2018   When I received my high school aptitude tests results, smuggling drugs wasn’t one of the vocations listed. “Honey, we’re home!” I was startled awake by Danny yelling when he and Steve entered the hotel room; smells of exhaust fumes, fresh...

Book Review: “The Vatican Princess” by C. W. Gortner

The Vatican Princess Author: C. W. Gortner Ballantine Books, 2017 ISBN: 978-0-3455-3399-9 $17.00           Innocent or Femme Fatale?: The Plight of Lucrezia Borgia in C. W. Gortner’s The Vatican Princess Review by Rita Bourke The year...