Widow’s Dozen

Eleven stories portray a world rocked by a bizarre disaster that plays havoc with natural laws. Whether that world is ours, an alternate world, a combination of the two, or something else entirely, depends on who is narrating, and when. The stories are divided by three sections set “Before,” “Otherwise,” and “Too Late.” The opening “Fetch” is straightforward enough, about an unbalanced, neurotic friendship that ultimately ends at the behest of a malevolent service dog. From there the works either grow increasingly strange, such as when mysterious unseen elites make “A Visit to the Second Floor” of their lodge, or are plotless mood pieces like the portrait of a barber-phrenologist in “Seven Clues.” The final off-world tale, “Between Moons,” uses “meta-Earths” to tie bits and pieces of the stories and their characters together or shred the connections between them, with a somewhat stumbling attempt at a twist ending. This collection could prove a hard read for readers looking for more traditional fiction, but will attract those willing to indulge anchorless experimental prose. (Sept.)