Author | Critic
“Mike Thorn likes to push his readers’ buttons in surprising ways. I’ve never read two stories by him that were really alike and yet there exists a quintessential Mike Thorn story. Shelter for the Damned is a prime example of his artistry.”
“I could probably sit here and write an essay on why I think Mike Thorn is an author to watch, why I think he takes a great deal of time and effort to make his tales accessible and relatable, and why I think his creative imagination is going to take the world by storm at some point.”
“No surprise here, but when Mike Thorn decides to go dark, it goes dark. It was great to see these stories snap and crack with the energy Mike is known for and we got to revisit a couple oldies, but goodies.”
“A list of favorite books is always more a snapshot of a moment in time than it is some unmoving, monumental thing: if you asked me to assemble this list ten years ago, it would look a lot different, and undoubtedly it will continue shifting as I continue aging and reading and aging and reading.”
“As a whole, Peel Back and See is probably my bleakest book to date, with only a few diversions into more playful genre territory (e.g. ‘Mr. Mucata’s Final Requests’, ‘The Furnace Room Mutant’, and ‘Virus’). For the most part, these stories are awash in the personal affective experiences of chronic depression, anxiety, psychological ruptures, post-postmodern despair, addiction, loss, grief, nihilism, pessimism, and suicidal ideation.”
“Author Mike Thorn returns to the Abyss for a wide-ranging discussion about depression, the perils of social media, and “Havoc,” the opening story from his latest collection, Peel Back and See.
Before we sink into Mike’s story, we talk a bit about Netflix’s Squid Game, parenting tips, online petitions to alter art, Alastair Reynolds, Dune (2021), final thoughts on Hunter Shea’s Faithless, You Season 3, Hostel, and more! (Recorded Oct. 24, 2021).”
“I tried to situate my narratives within the matter-of-fact nature of our dire contemporary circumstances: not only the pandemic and the disturbing realities it has revealed about our social structures, but also the increasing transparency of systemic corruption and oppression writ large, the unspeakable social/psychological ruptures created by social media, and the rapidly worsening climate emergency and other environmental catastrophes. This is a bleak book written during bleak times. What I have sought to do here is curate a sonic representation of its tone.”
Mike Thorn 