Steve Berman (1) (1968–)

I really love the set up of this story! It has many of the classic coming-of-age tropes, but it revisits them with a queer ghost story twist. Our narrator is a shy, quiet teen who works at a vintage clothing store and has yet to experience a romantic relationship. One night while walking home he chances upon the ghost of a dead high school boy, and a supernatural bond is formed. The ghost becomes his first crush, his first kiss, his first lusty encounter. He's falling in love, but the ghost may have more sinister motivations...

Berman does an excellent job capturing the naive awkwardness of young love/lust, and the turmoil of emotions that one experiences in their teenage years. So many moments in the story had me flashing back to my own high school years (especially those mentions of Hot Topic haha), and the characters are very realistic and believable. The narrator and most of the supporting cast are written with a great sense of empathy and sensitivity to their hopes and fears.

Though it's a love story of boy-meets-ghost, I honestly wasn't expecting many scares. While it's true that much of story focuses on the drama, there are some parts that are quite dark and, to my pleasant surprise, quite terrifying. When the relationship between the narrator and the ghost takes an unexpected turn, I was constantly on edge, skin crawling, for the next moment the ghost would pop up and what would happen next. And that scene with the baby doll and the bounding thing in the cemetery? Creepy stuff.

My only complaint is that the story meanders a lot, especially in the middle and second half. I didn't necessarily mind all of the subplots, but the book loses some momentum and I kept wanting to get back to the main story line. Thankfully it returns at the end for a climax that is tense and emotionally charged.

Vintage has great characters, a unique plot, and an underlying creepiness that rears its head in several scenes. I really enjoy Berman's writing style. It is easy to fall into the story and the head of the narrator. Despite some tangents, the overall story is compelling and deeply moving. Certainly a recommendation for fans of ghost stories, coming of age, and queer representation in literature!

Thanks to the author for sending me a copy in exchange for an honest review!… (más)

I am not crazy about this particular collection of Heiresses of Russ, but there are two stories I did find to be of particular interest and to be really, really, really good (spectacular, actually!!) still making the buy completely unregrettable: "Love in the Time of the Markov Processes" by Megan Arkenberg and "The Tip of the Tongue" by Felicia Davin.

For both stories, I feel like using "wow" is way too inadequate. The great thing about anthologies is that there is almost always something for everyone and if you are lucky enough you will find that one beautiful story that makes the entire collection worth it all.

This sentence from "Love in the Time of the Markov Processes" reminds me of why I like speculative fiction so, so, so much: "The universes are infinite, but that does not mean that all imaginable worlds exist. There are no two-sided squares. But perhaps somewhere she loves me, or someone like her loves someone like me."… (más)