by Tom Stuckey

“The rest of the day passed quickly, as they always did, on the lighthouse. Only the days where there was trouble in the body or mind dragged, the barbs that tore, making everything a slow enemy.”

by Tom Stuckey

“‘What are you doing?’ Helena now ferociously scratched out the names of the books and wrote: These writers don’t know what they are talking about. We have seen the truth, and they are all liars!”

by Tom Stuckey

“Whilst the inhabitants took what they needed from it, humbly, for the short period of time they were there, eventually all became part of it forever, again.”

by Tom Stuckey

“She stood up, walked to the balcony, and before the guards had chance to grab her, she closed her eyes, her hands held out, and then let go…”

by Tom Stuckey

“With the attention, her rating skyrocketed until she was—in a matter of an hour—a VIG (Very Important Girl) and in the virtual rooms of the elite.”

by Tom Stuckey

“As the Valium was tapered down, Gary began to stir to his on-fire reality. He begged for drink, hallucinated, and shook horribly.”

by Tom Stuckey

“Cavemen now light fire at night, not to stay warm, but to burn it all down. It all seemed like a burning star from up here, hurtling into oblivion.”

by Tom Stuckey

“Don’t try to come back in here. You will be killed if you do. She is gone now and belongs to him.”

by Tom Stuckey

“Ted still fell into traps everywhere. They were mainly lain in the phone now, but also on the walls, in the books, and on the radio. They had become intrusive and clever, so clever…”

by Tom Stuckey

“Ted knew he would never see her again, but he would have a story to tell himself, from time to time, and that was something.”

by Tom Stuckey

“Lisa looked into his dark—almost black—eyes and saw sternness, yes, but she could recognize a glint of lust, just briefly, before he resumed his role of protector of his people.”

by Tom Starkey

“Some people came to the centre because they were physically very unwell, but most did because they had simply become too lost to come back to life.”

by Tom Stuckey

“James often saw that really they had more in common with the seasons and flowers, than of anything that had been indoctrinated by psychologists, religions and the media.”

by Tom Stuckey

“It was still law that any human remains had to be disposed of at a licensed facility, there was money to be made from the dead.”

by Tom Stuckey

“The single shot rang out and echoed, as birds left their places in the trees, and the drum stopped, and Bernard fell to the ground. That was the first death James had seen.”

by Tom Stuckey

“There was no apparent centre to the town, just rows and rows, and like bees they continued to build, almost in a natural and spontaneous way. A centre would come soon, it was inevitable, and a form of hierarchy, and then the rebellion.”

by Tom Stuckey

“That night James, on returning to his room along the hallway heard some noises coming from Henrys room, that could only be described as, indeed, feral. Henry and Gene had become lovers. Animal lovers.”

by Tom Stuckey

“It was controlling mum, shouting at reactive dad, and him hitting the boy, and in turn, the boy pulling the dogs tail.”