Zed-26 was the first of the story lines that I read.  The first installment (And To All A Good Night) was my first encounter with Second Person Narrative, which simply means that the character is addressed with second person personal pronouns such as "you".  It’s not commonly used, and it was refreshing to see it here.  The second-person style also lent the writing a unique rhythm and flow, which served to be very engaging as a reader. 

In the second installment, the story shifts into the more traditional third person narrative.  It starts off a bit slow as the author establishes the scene, but it gradually gains momentum, especially towards the rather surprising and mildly disturbing end.

The third installment is gritty and grey, vaguely reminding me of the noir style because of the bleak, almost hopeless edge in both the writing and the plot.  The next chapter continues where the previous one lets off and finishes with a cliff hanger. 

As of yet, I’m not sure how the first two chapters tie in with the main narrative, but I am anxious to find out.  The author has crafted a tangible, interesting, and imaginative world in the Zed-26 series.  My one complaint is that the author sometimes lingered a little too long on describing the surroundings of a scene, but it didn’t bother me too much.

I was hesitant to read The Quest For Justice because I expected the typical, Arthurian knighthood code of honor kind of thing, but I was pleasantly surprised.  The story is lighthearted and tongue in cheek with unexpected plot developments.  I recommend reading that at the very least.

I was particularly impressed with the writing throughout all the stories:  it is sharp, clear, and to the point.  It engaged me as a reader and drew me into the stories. 

I look forward to more.

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I can see glimmers of promise in Dirigible Ditties. Every now and again as I’m reading it, I’ll see something that’s right, something good enough to make my head shift gears. I become interested in the story and start enjoying myself. Unfortunately that only lasts a few moments before another long sequence of exposition or stunted dialogue presents itself.

The opening for the Zed-26 storyline (And to All a Good Night) is very brave. Second-person perspective is a tough thing to pull off, and I’ve only ever seen it done well on a handful of occasions. I’m sad to say this isn’t one of them. It jumps around a lot, telling instead of showing, and somehow manages to leave out half the narrative, often forcing me to re-read sentences and puzzle out meanings in order to keep following the story. Plot-wise it’s interesting although confusing—even at the end of it I still didn’t fully understand what it was about.

The second story (Mind Moves Mass) was entirely different, more like an old sci-fi novel from the 1950s, and it made me do something I really hate to do: skimming over parts of the story. Absolutely nothing happens in this for 75% of the length of the story. I read page after page of rather clunky scenery descriptions, internal monologue without plot or emotional content, and awkward dialogue before I tuned out.

There are decent ideas in Dirigible Ditties. The world-building and some of the plot elements could really work, but it all needs a lot more polish before it can shine.

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