Skein of Shadows is not the only work under the Wandering Mens' belts - far from it! In fact, earlier this month, Davis Riddle enjoyed his first official print publication - as part of a smart and compelling short story anthology of "Southern Speculative Fiction" called Southern Fried Wierdness.
Featured below is a gripping summary of Davis' short story within this anthology, entitled "Refuge":
The freedom and solitude of the mountains called out to Mike Feriday, a siren's beckon that he rarely could refuse. Only with hard rock beneath his feet and the clean air in his lungs could the computer programmer truly feel himself. With his loyal dog, Molly, Feriday would take to the trails which lead through the mountains and recharge his soul. Yet the stony peaks and deep ravines could only be taken as they were, often cold, always hard, and never forgiving. But that was why he loved them, why had had to return to them; not to conquer them, but to meet them on their own terms. What they gave back to him was something he could never measure but was worth more than any amount of gold.
But in his most recent hike, Feriday finds himself warding off a strong winter's storm, which began as rain, then freezing rain, followed by snow. Cold and wet, the programmer is forced from the mountains and into the shelter of a seemingly abandoned farmhouse nestled in a wooded valley. Inside, he finds the possessions of the previous owner, who seemed to have suddenly abandoned his home, leaving everything behind. As if time had left the house and its possessions thirty years in the past. Feriday begins a journey into the life of unknown people, a journey which leads to discovery of kinship he would never have expected, and a new respect for the silent titans which brought him there in the first place.
Want to read more? If so, be sure and pick up a copy of Southern Fried Wierdness 2007, which features not only work from Wandering Man, Davis Riddle, but ten additional authors as well!
Southern Fried Weirdness 2007: An Annual Anthology of Southern Speculative Fiction
Gathered together inside the pages of this anthology is an eclectic collection of both new and established writers representing the very best in Southern speculative fiction. From the fantastic to the terrifying, from the mind-blowing to the comical, this anthology has something for everyone.
