Written by Steve Finbow — Sometimes love merges into obsession and sometimes reality seems a temporary condition. Nothing Matters explores just such times. X and Z, lovers for a time, are engaged in a chase. She is running from him, and toward something. He is running in search of her, but away from what he has done as well as strange characters that beset his quest.

We’ve never reviewed anything quite like it. This surreal, abstract story is told in two forms, a traditional prose format, as well as what is best described as a noir poem. While the prose is good, here the focus is on the poem. Reading the lines takes you into a dreamlike world, full of raw emotion and challenging words, phrases and structure.

On the surface, the story is of an alluring woman, who uses men to satisfy her urges, be they sexual or homicidal. They are pawns in her game. She is Z. Her most successful pawn, both lover and killer is X. But are they what they seem? The story twists in parts, conveying their history, and the chase, from both, often divergent, points of view.

Perhaps X does not recall their history correctly. Perhaps Z is lying to both the reader and herself. Perhaps it is all a fantasy born of a madness that exists in one or both of them. Readers should not expect all questions to be answered, but the ride is a thrilling and captivating one. It ranges across cities and deserts, California, Nevada, and a mysterious abandoned amusement park, New Babylon.

This shifting reality is populated with killers, sycophants, and shadowy figures, as well as monstrous creatures of both form and language. The story is challenging to be sure, but compelling as well. Readers should be prepared for a reading experience, not just a story. We’ve included the trailer below, to help give you futher clues as to what it’s like.

Snubnose Press
eBook/Kindle
£1.95

CFL Rating: 3 stars