Up to the Challenge

Bestseller Snyder (the Study series) enchants with an array of sci-fi, fantasy, and horror stories—14 drawn from nearly two decades of previous work and two original to this collection—united by protagonists who overcome steep odds to discover inner wisdom. The reprint “Mongrel” finds a homeless teenager nursing back to health an injured dog that is really an alpha werewolf in a war with another pack. In its new sequel, “Mongrels,” the teen, who is now a wolf herself, uses her newfound power to get revenge on her pedophile former foster father. Snyder links her background in meteorology with the other original story, “Cursing the Weather,” in which a servant learns from a weather wizard to reject superstition and embrace science. In “Dr. Time,” a scientist must prove her temporal Relocator Device works before her grant money runs out or her sociopathic competitor sabotages her work. “Godzilla Warfare” follows a soldier who must defuse an unexploded planet-killing bomb during a civil war between Earth and a colony world. Set in the same world, “Brand Spanking New” has a newbie courier deliver a message while being pursued by data pirates. Snyder vividly portrays the compassion and courage of her sympathetic characters and reveals their humanity and fortitude through taut and gripping speculative plots. This is a treat. (Self-published)