Backlash: A Novelette [Kindle Edition]

Nancy Fulda (Author)

Book Description

A novelette by Nebula Nominee Nancy Fulda.

Eugene Gutierez lost his wife, his pride, and part of his sanity during an undercover anti-terrorist operation in South America. When Eugene finds a cryptic message in a restaurant fortune cookie, he thinks his daughter's boyfriend is pulling a prank.  The truth is far more complex, involves time travelers from Eugene's future, and will offer Eugene a final chance to restore his broken family.

Originally published in Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine, this novelette was listed in Tangent Online's 2010 recommended reading list and received an Honorable Mention in Gardner Dozois' The Year's Best Science Fiction.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Nancy Fulda creates deep relationships within her characters, deeper than your normal father / daughter connections. Love, commitment, anger, frustration, resentment.... Backlash is an adventure that you will not regret jumping into.

From the Author

Backlash was inspired, in part, by watching a friend from college struggle with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.  I'd never considered before what a profound effect our personal history can have on us, or how drastically past events can influence our future.
 
Backlash isn't a story about PTSD.  Far from it.  But emotional trauma does feature heavily in the storyline, and the novelette explores the idea that family relationships can rise above the level of knee-jerk reactions.
 
I started writing this story with no idea where it would end up.  I'm pleased that I got to experience the events along with the characters, and delighted at how well they maintained their composure at gunpoint.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• File Size: 191 KB
• Print Length: 34 pages
• Simultaneous Device Usage: Unlimited
• Sold by: Amazon Digital Services, Inc.
• Language: English
• ASIN: B004Q9TIPY
• Text-to-Speech: Enabled
• X-Ray: Not Enabled
• Lending: Enabled
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #641,327 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Riveting May 21, 2011

By Maria Schneider

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

I've read some of Nancy Fulda's short stories before; this one is every bit as stellar. Backlash grabs your emotions and doesn't let go until the last page. I felt the pain, the desperation, the hope. These characters want to survive and you'll be right there with them, hoping for a miracle. *Highly* recommended. It's a long short story (novella), a thrilling page-turner that isn't like any time-travel I've ever read.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Wow! What a story May 27, 2011

By Annie B TOP 1000 REVIEWERVINE™ VOICE

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

Backlash is not my typical reading, but thanks to a friend I heard about this novella and decided to give it a try. I'm so glad I did. This story may be short, but it is jammed packed with action and emotion. It's also very well written and flows great. It's very fast paced which I like and was definitely in the mood for. I also really liked the characters and found it easy to follow them in their alternative world. I also found that unlike many stories I read, this one felt complete when it ended. Yes, I definitely want to know more about these great characters, but I was thoroughly satisfied by the story as a whole.

If you need something quick to read and like sci-fi or want to try sci-fi, or need to read something a little different for a change of pace, this is the story for you. I will definitely be reading more stories by this author. Overall great story and a great price!

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Spy Thriller Short Story with Everything May 22, 2011

By April Amberdrake

Format:Kindle Edition

This may be a short story but it certainly has all the good elements you look for: a complete story arc with enough hints about backstory to not make it feel isolated. Good characters you can cheer for and cringe for and a plot that keeps you riveted until the end.

More About the Author

Nancy Fulda is a Hugo and Nebula Nominee, a Phobos Award winner and a Vera Hinckley Mayhew Award recipient. She is the first (and so far only) female recipient of the Jim Baen Memorial Award. Her short story "Movement" recently received a Readers' Choice award from Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine.

Praise from Reviewers:

"As engrossing and brief and clever as a Twilight Zone episode, Fulda's story hooks your attention from the first sentence and stays with you long past the startling, yet fitting, end." -- Tangent Online

"The Breath of Heaven -- essentially a retelling of the HAL 9000 story, but with a very different outcome -- with its intricate examination of directives was a quite plausible updating of the classic three laws of robotics, and in some ways outshone both Asimov and Clarke in the way the story unfolded." -- Pearson Moore, Sift Book Reviews

"Movement is an award-caliber story, and clearly a major breakthrough in the career of Nancy Fulda." -- Aaron Hughes, Fantastic Reviews Blog