There are some authors which I love reading their short stories and there are some authors which I love reading their longer prose. Lebbon doesn't really fall into either category. He has had excellent short stories, novels and novellas. Unfortunately he has also had stories that have been not been as interesting. Sometimes he knocks it out of the park and I'm flabbergasted. Simply awestruck. Other times he does a good job, I'm entertained and that's about it. In these cases, I've kept the analogy going and compared it to an infield hit. A good job but not as good as you would have like. His writing is poetic and stirring. It can be engrossing and amazing. He will do more than just entertain; he will get his ideas under your skin and make you think. The stories might not always be great but when they are, you know that you just read a masterpiece! While choosing my favorites from the book, I realized that most of them focused on a father's love for their child or spouse. Coincidence? My favorites from this collection are below.
"Last Exit for the Lost" - A father receives some packages from his daughter and must face the darkness inside.

"Kissing at Shadows" - A man's love for his wife continues even beyond the apocalypse.

"Pay The Ghost" - A father gets some limited closure to his daughter's disappearance while also facing some hard truths about life and love.

"The Horror of the Many Faces" - A Sherlock Holmes story with a undertones of H.P. Lovecraft.

"In Perpetuity" - This is the home run of the book. The grand slam. It's a heart wrenching tale of a father's love for his son and what he would do to prove it. It grabbed me from the start and squeezed my emotions the whole way. This one easily made the purchase of the book worthwhile.

"The Evolutionary" - A chance to see how important the individual can be to nature moving forward. ( )