My friend and fellow blogger John M. Floyd is a master of a certain type of very short story. Typically there is a puzzle and a single clue the reader should be able to figure out. Think Encyclopedia Brown for grown-ups. John gets a lot of these stories into Women's World, a market I have, alas, never managed to breach.
This western crime story reminds me of those, although it isn't a solve-it-yourself kind of story. In fact, it takes quite a way in before you realize the puzzle that is being solved. (That's the cleverest part of the tale.)
So what's it about? A lawman and his assistant are bringing a suspect back to town when they get into big trouble. And in a situation like that, who do you trust? That, as Wild Bill Shakespeare said, is the question.
Hey Rob: Thanks for the reference to another great story by John M. Floyd, who is up to his usual shenanigans. The name of Jack Fountain, who appears to have fooled his captors, only to be duped like the rest of us, is suspicious in and of itself. Check the initials. Who do you trust? 'J'ohn 'F'loyd or 'J'ack 'F'ountain? Yours truly, Toe.
ReplyDeleteDear Rob: Thank you for recommending and providing the link to "Newton's Law." As you stated it is another of his "mystery within a mystery" stories. I agree that John Floyd is a master at this sort of thing. But you're slouch yourself, you know. Yours truly, Toe.
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