I have mentioned before that I rarely read anthologies cover to cover-which begs the question of why I buy them in the first place. The answer is that I want one-perhaps two-of the stories within, and that I want that one story bad enough to pay for content I know I am likely never to read.

You can imagine how happy I am on those occasions when two or more of the stories in the same anthology resonate with me. These are two such stories, originally published in 2007 in the Wild Thing anthology by Berkley. (more…)