Strange Weather

Four Short Novels

By: Joe Hill

Narrated by: Joe Hill, Wil Wheaton, Kate Mulgrew, Stephen Lang, Dennis Boutsikaris

Length: 14 hrs and 35 mins

Publisher's summary

A collection of four chilling novels, ingeniously wrought gems of terror from the brilliantly imaginative number one New York Times best-selling author of The Fireman, Joe Hill.

"One of America's finest horror writers" (Time magazine), Joe Hill has been hailed among legendary talents such as Peter Straub, Neil Gaiman, and Jonathan Lethem. In Strange Weather, this "compelling chronicler of human nature's continual war between good and evil" (Providence Journal-Bulletin), who "pushes genre conventions to new extremes" (New York Times Book Review), deftly expose the darkness that lies just beneath the surface of everyday life.

Snapshot, performed by Wil Wheaton, is the disturbing story of a Silicon Valley adolescent who finds himself threatened by The Phoenician, a tattooed thug who possesses a Polaroid Instant Camera that erases memories snap by snap.

A young man takes to the skies to experience his first parachute jump...and winds up a castaway on an impossibly solid cloud, a Prospero's island of roiling vapor that seems animated by a mind of its own in Aloft, performed by Dennis Boutsikaris.

On a seemingly ordinary day in Boulder, Colorado, the clouds open up in a downpour of nails - splinters of bright crystal that shred the skin of anyone not safely under cover. Rain, performed by Kate Mulgrew, explores this escalating apocalyptic event as the deluge of nails spreads out across the country and around the world.

In Loaded, performed by Stephen Lang, a mall security guard in a coastal Florida town courageously stops a mass shooting and becomes a hero to the modern gun rights movement. But under the glare of the spotlights, his story begins to unravel, taking his sanity with it. When an out-of-control summer blaze approaches the town, he will reach for the gun again and embark on one last day of reckoning.

With an afterword from Joe Hill, read by the author.

Masterfully exploring classic literary themes through the prism of the supernatural, Strange Weather is a stellar collection from an artist who is "quite simply the best horror writer of our generation" (Michael Kortya).

©2017 Joe Hill (P)2017 HarperCollins Publishers

A Mixed Forecast, mostly dreary weather

An odd mix of an interesting scifi, a supernatural fantasy, dragged out crime drama and a boring apocalyptic future.

These short novels drag on for longer than necessary. They are VERY loosely tied together by weather elements. The first story is a twilight zone-esque story, well read by Wil Wheaton, that has some unique ideas. The second is a long crime story involving a mass shooting at a mall during a forest fire, with generic racism and some very stereotypical characters. The third story had potential, about a skydiver having a very hard time getting to the ground, and while it has some inventive character interactions, the ending takes a weird twist and ends very quickly. The final, and my least favorite, story involves a woman surviving in colorado after stranger weather kills most of the citizens. This should have been a good setup for a great location and quest, but the main character, and everyone she meets, is annoying and I couldn't care for any of them to survive, I just kept waiting for it to be over, not a great sign of an engaging story.

Overall, 1 entertaining tale, 1 good concept, 1 okay crime story, and 1 miss.

book review

I have read several of mr. Hill's books for some reason I just cannot get into his style of writing I do not compare him with his father that would not be fair. I'm sure he's very good in his own right it's just not for me

mixed bag

found a gem (snapshot) a bomb (aloft) a gritty social commentary (loaded) and a post apocalyptic mish mosh (rain) in this collection.

Fans of Twilight Zone/Outer Limits will Enjoy

The stories remind me of updated versions of classic Twilight Zone and Outer Limits episodes; and maybe a bit of Tales From the Crypt. The first, third, and fourth stories were great, IMO. But the second, Loaded, was a little unfocused.

Very Strange Indeed

Would you listen to Strange Weather again? Why?

I liked it, and i did listen to each of the stories. But, at the end, I thought better titles for the 4 stories are:
"IOS Was Written by Deamons"
"If People Weren't Crazy We Wouldn't Need the 2nd Amendment"
"Genesis: In The Air Tonight- 38:6-10"
"Nice Girls don't Twist the Heads off Puppies"

Interesting collection of stories.

I enjoyed all 4 stories but was dissapointed in a few endings. I really hoped Snapshot would go a different way but .. Loaded was very in sync with current issues , but a bit political. Alofts ending was my biggest let down. I think so much more could have been done. Rain was my favorite. The readers did an excellent job. Kate Mulgrew is awesome and I would listen to her read a washing machine manual. Wil Wheaton is also fantastic . I find actors add so much more when reading a story. overall a good listen .

Wow! Perfect writing and great narrators.

I just finished the 2nd novella and I'm completely blown away. I liked the first story but the 2nd gave me the chills. I almost couldn't finish it though. I was literally to the point of giving up on the characters. All hope lost and then BAM. I ever saw that ending coming. The final moments of the 2nd novella and in particular the last line... There's just no way to describe it without spoiling it. Hill is by far one of the best writers on the planet and I've never heard of him before (back under my rock). Anyway this book is a MUST listen for anyone (adult that is). I... I... Wow! Just listen to it. You'll see!

Very good set of four novellas

"Loaded" was truly terrifying since it could be so real. So hard to listen too but because it was do terrifying. I understand the political problems people have with it but it is a balanced story with a point neither one way or the other. "Rain" was great too. A classic sci-fi terror. "Aloft" was weakest. Will Weaton made "Snapshot" with a great performance.

decent

really likes the first two books and then felt the last two kind of went no where

great

this held my interest from story to story. a must listen! the voices were suited for each story