Review of Millenium Sunset by Kedco Studios

Short Stories

There are several quite clever stories in Millennium Sunset, Beginning with “Alex and the Great Escape,” which strings along the reader with a definite sense of involved mystery in the circumstances, and a delightful twist at the end. Unfortunately, and this occurs in a few places in the anthology, the links were not checked prior to manufacturing, so in this story, the return to Index button does not work, and the Complete Works of William Shakespeare section is likewise invalid.

Betty Bimbo and the Harpies by K. Vernon Davis is a delightful tale mixing old world mythology with Futurism, elaborating the God’s and monsters as creatures sent from the future and created awry due to an accident. It involves the heroine, Betty, who must return through time to fix these anomalies, and her companion, Jayson. The narrative is clear and descriptive, and the story entertaining in a sort of abstract
possibility methodology. While the Story could do with some syntax trimming, and make use of more scientific terms, it describes the environment vividly enough.

Overall, the Short Stories are entertaining, and cover a diverse blend of subjects and genres. There are impressionistic works detailing the minuscule aspects of existence, those dealing in magic and the occult,
and Sci-fi/fantasy works. The one thing lacking in this Anthology is a backbone of nonfiction storytelling.
While one can certainly get a sense of the author’s preferences in literate context, there are no works to really ground one to the artists, and every story seems written in the third person. A bit of diversity in this
could have benefited the book invaluably.


Poetry

Unfortunately, there are some discrepancies in opening, such as the first poet in ‘Honorable Mentions,’ with ecstasy misspelled twice and politically once in Alyson Lowther’s first poem Rose Doctor. The Second poem is altogether better with

“you bill my heart
although it's broke
you scrutinized my countenance
and always take advantage of me
when I'm tired and prevoked

your words: like a gimlet
come falling down on me
you requisitioned I give you everything”

While granted, provoked is likewise misspelled, the actual diction is far superior to “The Rose Doctor.”
David Mac Kinnon’s poem “Why I Hate Politics” is in itself much better, as is Deborah Hinds “A Letter from Heaven” in which she writes.

“Dear Son,
I have taken all the tears you cried, and made them as showers on a field of wild flowers
And I led you to a place alone, so you know this is between you and me.
It was I who grabbed hold of the sun at midnight,
and made it a light for the world to see”

Here one can virtually feel the angst of loss, and palpate the mythologic premise of “grabbed hold of the sun at Midnight.”

Likewise, Richard Vargas has a fine sentiment in “Unity,” first defining in simplicity the meaning of unity.

“Unity. Togetherness
as one. To confine
and trust in what
is begun.”

then giving an affirmation of the path upon which to tread.

“Unity
let's share our
thoughts and plant
new seeds.”

While one could desire some additions of punctuation, the premise is simple
and easily digested.

Other Features

As with all of Kedco’s Books, there are numerous graphics and photographs available royalty free. Furthermore, there are numerous works from Emily Dickinson, William Shakespeare, Burroughs, and one from H. G. Wells. These benefits certainly make the book more valuable, and since it is sort of a Reader’s Digest on CD, it’s fine to see some infamous authors to sate ones literary appetite upon.

In summary, while the CD has some definitive pitfalls in the editing and proof checking, the quality of the works is consistent. It is not a ground shattering collection, granted, but it does hold enough merit to warrant the minimal purchase price.

Star Rating 3/5

Suggested Works

Viesta Barker- Poetry Pages
Pinky Andrexa-Poetry Pages
Lisa Prior- Short Stories
Joseph Trucino-Short Stories

Emily Dickinson-Books