By Christopher Gooch

The mystery story is an art. I won't claim to know how to perfect it, though I've written quite a few mystery stories on my own. Furthermore, I'm biased, but I'll try to review as fairly as possible.

I've rated the stories on a five star scale. Five stars being the best, that is. Anyway, on to the reviews.

"Overtime Opportunities" by Patrick J. Lambe.
Rating: 4 stars
Patrick J. Lambe's story, "Overtime Opportunities," in the recent issue of Shred of Evidence, is told from the first person perspective of a guy in charge of a construction trucking company. (Or something like that; anyway, it's irrelevant to the story.)
The main character has been selling construction stuff at a discount rate under the table and doing "overtime opportunities" whenever the owners of a construction house would be away for a while. Despite the sometimes strong language (which I don't particularly like), the story is a stellar four out of five stars. Lambe can write, he can plot, and he can be subtle. The ending was subtly written and had that little bit of irony that pushed it over the top. It's may be a little drawn out, but it's a well-written story worth reading.

"Misty's World" by Victor Gischler.
Rating: 2.5 stars
"Misty's World" by Victor Gischler, author of Gun Monkeys and Pistol Poets, appeared in the recent issue of Shred of Evidence. It's about a woman, Misty, who wants to get out of the gutter, get braces, and move to California. Her boyfriend thinks he can come up with a lot of cash, but Misty puts it off as another of his get-rich-quick schemes.
The story is noir to the core. It's written in first person, present tense, which suited the story well. It may be that I just don't like noir much; either way, I didn't really enjoy the ending. I was rooting for Misty-Gischler is a good writer and had me pitying her-but the ending didn't have that extra bit of something that would have made it better, in my opinion. And, did I say I'm not really into noir? If you're into noir, it's a great story; and if you're not, prepare to be depressed.

"Material Witness" by Mark Agee.
Rating: 4 stars
Mark Agee's "Material Witness" in this month's Shred of Evidence is a fresh take on the classic cloak-and-dagger spy story. The story is told in first person by a former FBI agent who is now involved with a true crime TV show. He gets a visit from the FBI shortly after 9/11. Susan Reddington, an FBI Special Agent in Charge, explains that his help is needed in getting a potential terrorist to turn himself in. The story, while longer than most, is chock-full of realism. Mark Agee's bio never mentioned anything about working for the FBI, but I wouldn't be surprised if he did. The characters and setting are well-drawn; the plot is sufficiently tricky, though I managed to guess it shortly before the main character did. The last sentence is full of irony - something I always strive for in my own stories. The only thing I didn't like was the strong language - but that didn't detract from the story.On the whole, this story is well worth reading.

"A Man's Gotta Do" by Patricia Harrington.
Rating: 3 stars
Patricia Harrington's story, "A Man's Gotta Do", was published in the recent issue of Hardluck Stories. In it, the main character and his wife have moved out to California. He's a handy man, so he goes to work for a motel in return for housing. Unfortunately, I can't really describe any more without giving away the story. Regardless, Harrington's story is well-written and has a unique style. I like the subtle way she handles the whole thing and the ending of the story is suitable. However, for whatever reason, it just didn't grab me enough.

"Five Thousand, Cash" by Charles Richard Laing.
Rating: 4.5 stars
Charles Richard Laing's "Five Thousand, Cash" was published in the most recent issue of the new Detective Fiction Online. Despite the title of the publication, the story doesn't involve a detective, but rather, a man anxiously awaiting the arrival of a loan shark. When the loan shark arrives, things don't go exactly as planned… Laing's short story-just over a thousand words-has both surprise and irony. Stanley Ellin, master of the mystery story, has said that both surprise and irony is needed in a good story. "Five Thousand, Cash" has both in a relatively short story. Furthermore, the characters are sharply contrasted and the setting painted clearly. If there's no other story you read for a while, make this one it.

"Validation" by Stephen D. Rogers.
Rating: 3 stars
Stephen D. Rogers' "Validation" in Thrilling Detective is a story about a private detective who is hired to do a background check. The potential employee he's checking out is a janitor for Adrea, a director of human resources. Why, the detective asks, does she want him to check out a janitor? Wouldn't that be a waste of his time? While the story is well-written, the plot and ending seem to be lacking something. Perhaps it has something to do with the short length; regardless, it seems more like a "slice-of-life" type story. Don't get me wrong. Stephen shows his talent at writing strong conversation that drives the story. The plot just seemed a little thin.

"The Mean Man" by A. Christopher Drown.
Rating: 3 stars
"The Mean Man" by A. Christopher Drown appeared recently in Shots. The story concerns a mean man named Zero out to kill someone. Apparently Zero has killed before and now he's followed a balding professor out to the desert, but he wasn't prepared for what happened next. The characters and setting are fully developed and surprise is definitely present, but the ending didn't live up to my expectations. There wasn't any real irony about it either. Regardless, A. Christopher Drown has written a good story with a twist-I just didn't like the twist.