Toxic

A little while ago, I submitted a story to an anthology called Toxic. They wanted tales about real world poisons and (surprise!) toxic materials.

I wanted to do something a little different than usual. You know those "cozy mystery" books? The ones that usually feature a busybody amateur sleuth going about some quaint township and solving a dastardly murder at the local cookie shop? Other staples of the genre include helpful animal sidekicks, often a big, fluffy cat, and an extra quaint pun in the title that makes you want to vomit knitting yarn and freshly baked cookies. I'm pretty sure that it's legally mandated that all grandmothers have a few cozy mysteries sitting around.

That's where my story "Miss Blinkers Solves the Case" comes in. It starts out as a super cozy mystery. However, some fun facts about strychnine means this journey on the Orient Express derails somewhere in the deep, dark woods south of Ookyspookyville.

It's available for purchase in physical format here. So far, that's the only place and format it seems to be available in.

Here's the official blurb for the book straight from Migla Press:

Beware what you eat, beware what you drink, yes, even what you touch. Danger can lurk where you least expect it. All it takes is one mistake and what awaits is an agonizing death. One sting, one bite from the most innocuous creature and before you know it your breathing becomes shallow, your heart erratic. Your mind clouds, everything becomes feint. Death is the result, you lowered your guard. This is the epitome of these covert substances which exist within the world. Whether in nature, or made by man, toxins exude the mystique of danger, of a silent horror which can infect and destroy from the inside out. However the real question is whats to fear more, the substances themselves, or those willing to use them?