6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Wandering Off the Well Walked Path, January 10, 2007
This review is from: Transgressions, Vol. 2: The Things They Left Behind / The Ransome Women (Mass Market Paperback)
TRANSGRESSIONS is a series of short stories from popular authors edited by Ed McBain. This volume in the series contains two stories: one from Stephen King and one from John Farris.
King's story, "The Things They Left Behind" is the shorter of the stories. Scott Staley called in sick to his job as a claims adjuster in the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001. It was a decision he questioned almost everyday after. Almost a year later, in August 2002, a box containing personal items of people he worked with in the tower shows up in his apartment. He doesn't know what to do with the items. Then one night the voices start. It's enough to drive a sane person crazy. Scott tries to give the items away, but he always ends up back with them. Somehow he has to figure out what to do with the items, stop the voices, and ease his guilty conscience.
The second story, "The Ransome Women" is by John Farris. This story is basically a psychological suspense story. Echo Halloran is a young and beautiful starving artist/art critic, trying to forge her way in New York. Echo's favorite artist is the reclusive John Ransome, a portrait painter who only paints pictures about twice a decade. Echo catches the eye of Ransome and he wishes to hire her for a year as his next model. Becoming a Ransome woman could be the break of a lifetime. However, Ransome is a shady figure with a mysterious past and the fate that meets each of the former Ransome women is one that Echo tries desperately to avoid.
Of the two stories, I found "The Ransome Women" to be the more exciting. Not that I didn't like "The Things They Left Behind," because I did. In style that story resembles some of King's best works, such as DIFFERENT SEASONS, THE GREEN MILE, THE COLORADO KID, and THE LONG WALK. I enjoyed reading it. However, I liked reading "The Ransome Women" more even though it is four times longer than "The Things They Left Behind." The story begins rather slow, but quickly picks up pace. As a whole, it reminded me of the 1944 movie starring John Carradine and Jean Parker, BLUEBEARD. True to the title of the series, both stories are welcome transgressions.
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Volume 2 - Misleading, May 16, 2007
This review is from: Transgressions, Vol. 2: The Things They Left Behind / The Ransome Women (Mass Market Paperback)
I have not yet read either story - but very much look forward to it. I do have a complaint, however. I ordered the hardcover version of "Transgressions" and before receiving it also ordered "Transgressions Vol 2."
Well, the two stories in "Transgressions Vol 2" are contained in the hardcover "Transgressions," which also includes many other short stories.
So don't make the same mistake I made!
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5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great King, March 4, 2007
This review is from: Transgressions, Vol. 2: The Things They Left Behind / The Ransome Women (Mass Market Paperback)
"The Things They Left Behind" is very simple and very moving. It is perhaps the best King I have read in 10 years. His talents were put to good use in this one. It took me back to 2001-2002 when we were pulling together and before we went back to business as usual, shooting our own wounded.
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