Customer Reviews

Phoenix Tales: Stories Of Death & Life: Amazon Edition

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Breaking the boundaries between literary and genre fiction, Gregory Bernard Banks' Phoenix Tales: Stories of Death and Life is a stunning collection of short stories that confronts the meaning of life and death with beautiful bravery. Part science fiction, part philosophy, with a little horror thrown in, this collection should be on everyone's reading list.

Each tale is a wonder in and of itself, and combined into a collection, creates a dramatic and insightful tool with which to uncover our own thoughts and fears on the subject matter.

Banks opens the collection with "Escape Velocity," a telling and frighteningly pertinent story of the price of heroic life saving efforts when the government, not the people themselves, decide if they should be allowed to die. With "Touched," he delivers a futuristic Pinocchio tale involving a genetically enhanced boy who learns what it means to be human. While the stories have a strong science fiction bent, the reader always feels they are in a familiar place.

"An Elysian Dream" tells the story of a young woman who quickly discovers that paradise without freedom is nothing more than a prettier version of hell. A man learns it's never too late to make amends with the past in "Home Going." In the hands of another writer, these stories may have come out as either empty nihilist tales or shallow reaffirmations. But Banks has a knack of taking what might otherwise be considered morose story concepts and turning them into uplifting, insightful, and poignant life lessons.

With "Living with Mrs. Klase," an abused woman and her children find Christmas with a retired farmer and his wife, who suffers from Alzheimer's disease. "The Soul Man," a story involving a person who seems to be the savior of abused children, is part flash fiction, part poetry, and part modern myth.

There are seventeen stories in this collection and every one of them elicited strong emotions in me as I read them. These are incredible stories that need to be read.

Supernatural and fantasy ultimately sums up PHOENIX TALES: Stories of Death and Life by Gregory Bernard Banks. The author has created a selection of short stories that feed into the sci-fi futuristic storytelling of life and death. Each original story is told in a style that keeps your attention page after page until the finale of each story.

Examples of some of the selections are "Escape Velocity", which is about a man in a nursing facility who doesn't seem to get it right when dying. He wants to go home to be with his granddaughter, but it is forbidden. When he finally does escape, with her help, his quest is finally fulfilled to the astonishment of his granddaughter. "Touched" is about a little boy who was genetically created and is shunned by the people of his town. What many come to realize is that this young boy has much to offer then just being different. A very touching story that really goes deep to the heart of being judgmental and hurting someone for no apparent reason. "Living with Mrs. Klase" is another unique story that deals with a husband who will go to great lengths to please his wife who is suffering from Alzheimer. She wants to relive Christmas over and over again, playing the role of Santa's wife. When they help a young mother and her two children who are running from an abusive boyfriend and are stranded in the snow, their lives take on a new turn of events.

Each story has a moral base that reaches into the heart of understanding the role of everyone when life or death comes knocking at the door. Overall, Mr. Banks put together a collection of stories that definitely went beyond anything we would attest to as being in our day and time.

I approached the reading of this book very carefully because I wanted to really understand where the author's style and depth was going to take me. The character development, the futuristic terms and sci-fi scenarios flowed well with each storyline. Although some readers may not enjoy reading supernatural/fantasy stories, those that do will welcome this particular genre. Regardless, PHOENIX TALES by Gregory Bernard Banks is a one of a kind book anyone would enjoy reading. (RAW Rating: 3.5)

Reviewed by Kalaani
of The RAWSISTAZ™ Reviewers

Wow! These stories are moving, thought-provoking and fresh! They give you a new perspective not only on the way we look at death, but also, how we look at life! I experienced a range of emotions while reading them. Each time I'd pick one out as my 'favorite' short story, I'd read the succeeding one and would fall in love with Gregory's style of writing all over again. His descriptive way of revealing his characters and their surroundings left me spellbound. A must read for you! If you also want to get a sense of his humor and wit, 'A Cup Of Time' cannot be overlooked! They don't make writers like this anymore!

Sherry Brantley, Author of "Best of Friends," and "Choices-The Power is Within You."

Death is inevitable.
Everything that lives, dies.
This fact is one of humanities most feared commonalities.
Like life, death has many forms. For every person that breathes, thinks, loves and hates, there comes an ending equally unique.
Author: Gregory Bernard Banks, takes his readers on a tour of the multifaceted experience of death. A literary feast served up in courses that spans the gamut from the powerfully poignant to the seductively sublime.

Some of societies staunchest beliefs are called into question.
Who has the right to die, and when can they make that choice? Should the 'state' hold power over life and death? Can life go on for too long?
While raising other, stranger questions.
What rights to life does a clone possess?

Science Fiction, Horror, Fantasy and straight up human drama. There's a bit here for everyone. Each story masterfully crafted with characters achingly real.
An examination of death that brings the reader to a better understanding of life.
What would you do if your nurses would not allow you to die? How would you cope if the 'voices' instructing you to kill, just wouldn't stop? Who would you seek out if your inability to forgive was keeping you from passing over?

Short stories, each one transformative and touching.
It will be a pleasure to read them again.

Book Review:

"Phoenix Tales" Stories of Death & Life
by Gregory Bernard Banks


There have been many reading milestones in my life, works from the masters such as J.R.R.Tolkiens Trilogy, Mark Twain's "The Adventures of Tom Sawyer & Huckleberry Finn, Ernest Hemmingway's "Old Man & The Sea, Edgar Allen Poe's "The Raven" and others. In the past year from more contemporary genre writers such as Stephen King's "Everything's Eventual" Lisa Carey's "Love in the Asylum", Dan Brown's "The Da Vinci Code" & Frank Peretti's "This Present Darkness". Also from lesser known under read authors like Lee Garrett's, "The Awakening," David Gardiner's "The Rainbow Man & Other Stories," Terry Lloyd Vinson's "Half Past the Witching Hour & Mary E. Rose's sci-fi thriller "Link Detonator."

And now the work of Gregory Banks author of "Phoenix Tales," Stories of Death & Life. For those who haven't read this author I admit this review only touches the surface, it is a body of work that is nothing short of amazing. What makes it so is the writer's ability to craft stories that capture your imagination, touch your heart and soothe your soul in the process. This collection of seventeen stories explores a difficult theme, a theme of death but does so with grace and the skilled competence of a master story teller.

In "Fireflies" the author weaves a haunting tale of a man torn by grief and guilt over the loss of his wife & daughter. Like a firefly that lights up the night then fades into darkness--he struggles to keep his sanity and is on a certain path to suicide until a voice from his past offers a simple solution. The surreal quality of the narrative in this story lends itself well to the state of mind of the main character. The symbolic use of the firefly playing against the tragic circumstances Mr. Dunn found himself in was nothing short of brilliant as was the resolution of love and hope offered the reader at the end of the story.

In "The Soul Man," the shortest piece in this collection but no less powerful than the others, Mr. Banks once again delivers a poignant tale. It is a story about child abuse as seen through The Soul Man's eyes whose mission it is to save children. It is also a stinging moral indictment of a society that too often ignores the cries of innocents. The ending is bittersweet but the message is loud and clear.

In "Heartbeats" justice & retribution get the last laugh on an unrepentant serial killer, a death row inmate named Bobby Hardy. This killer of children is about to get a reprieve from his sentence, due to some legal technical fiasco. But the hearts of child victims beat loudly in the corridors of hell as Bobby soon finds out. The dialogue between the priest and the guard was cleverly employed to reflect their theological and philosophical differences. I haven't seen dialogue used this effectively in a long time. As for the children and the condemned man the reader is left to decide if the end justified the means. For me in this case it did.

"A Time for Rest" is a gripping bone chilling tale of a mentally challenged woman, caring for her already dead child. She is also waiting the return of her husband who has become the victim of a nuclear blast that has wiped out the city of Lincoln, Nebraska. Alone with her thoughts and unknowingly dying from radiation poisoning, she makes an inevitable decision. The narrative consists of the woman's last thoughts. The writers voice in this story has a commanding power, a jaw dropping account of a world gone mad.

In "An Old Friend" another of the shorter pieces in the collection, the author offers a beautiful heart- rending account of two children Lindsey and Dani who are best friends, with the setting for the story taking place at a hospital where Dani is dying from old age. Dani's illness is the result of a rare genetic disorder, not mentioned in the story but readers soon become aware how & why the story is so appropriately titled. The storyline shines as a connection is made between the innocence of childhood & how it can sometimes even overshadow the finality of death.

The five stories summarized in this review as previously stated only begin to touch the surface of this remarkable piece of work. In many collections I've read over the years authors have attempted to place their strongest stories first or in some cases last. I think with this collection Mr. Banks would be hard pressed to place his stories in any particular order or rank. Each story while different from the others maintain a consistent
standard of excellence throughout. Phoenix Tales will connect with readers on many levels, each story in this collection shares one thing in common, they are all exquisitely written. You can take it or leave but one thing for sure you will never forget it... because Gregory Bernard Banks in my opinion will someday be included in the ranks of the literary greats. "Phoenix Tales" Stories of Death & Life will hold a prominent place on my bookshelf for years to come! I recommend this book without reservation.



Robert Anthony Montesino
Editor
Speculative Fiction Centre
Author of the "Mind Monsters Collection"

I read this before it was published, and have now bought it, I can't wait for it to arrive so I can read it again. It is a truly stunning collection, they are all good stories, but my favourite is: "Touched", a story of a "different" young boy who is trying to fit in. His learning curve is brilliantly described and the reader really feels for him, it was very well done, poignancy interlaced with touches of dry humour. An excellent book, which should be read by all.

I normally don't read short story collections, but this one was definitely worth reading. The stories are extremely well-written and engaging. The subject matter - life and death - is something that many readers aren't necessarily comfortable confronting as the focal point of their reading, but the author focuses on the spiritual and emotional aspects of it, and a number of the stories are indeed very thought-provoking.

If I had one quibble with the book, it's that I would have enjoyed seeing some of the stories fleshed out into novellas or full-fledged novels. I submit that as a tribute to the author's character and plot development, rather than a flaw: his writing draws you in to care about the characters and become sufficiently curious about each story that you'd like to read more.

Finally, while the stories are told within a science-fiction paradigm, readers who don't normally venture down the sci-fi path - but who are looking for something more evocative than a typical novel (in whatever genre) - should consider checking out Phoenix Tales: you'll likely enjoy it!

In Phoenix Tales, Gregory Bernard Banks has created alternate worlds of time and space, with life and death as a common denominator. Speculative fiction better describes the genre of this book than does science fiction simply because the stories are steeped in very human reality.

Banks is a masterful story teller with a vivid imagination. I enjoyed all the stories in this book and was unable to decide on a favorite. Aside from the pure entertainment value, Mr. Bank's stories explore social and cultural issues with a fresh and sometimes unusual point of view.

Phoenix Tales-Stories of Death & Life is a good read; highly recommended.

Phoenix tales by Gregory Bernard Banks was a gift of time. I enjoyed reading a book that alternately gave me time to enjoy a little repast as well as provoke a thoughtful interlude. My favorite story was Living with Mrs. Clause, but then I was always a child at heart and love anything that has to do with Christmas. I can't wait until it's my turn to play Mrs. Clause.
I highly recommend this book. Besides taking you away from everyday worries, It makes you focus on the important things in life.
Thinking about life and death will bring home the importance of living life to its fullest and what death is worth if you give it freely for another.
Thanks for the enjoyable read.
Sondi

Phoenix Tales by Gregory Banks is an eclectic collection of death and rebirth short stories.

These death stories come in all shapes and sizes. Among many other topics, there are stories centering around cloning, apocalyptic events, and voodooism. They show characters dealing with regrets and consequences, acting out revenge, cowering in fear, and even embracing the end of this life. Some stories are funny, and some are poignant. One story even rhymes. Another is told from the perspective of the dead person at his funeral.

And they're very good stories, filled with conflicts, packed with drama, exploring love and hate and joy and sorrow. Banks's character studies show how versatile he is -- his stories gave me bunches of new perspective on how people live with death.