Black Cat Weekly #197

This is an Apple Books audiobook narrated by a digital voice based on a human narrator.
This issue, we have our usual eclectic mix. Acquiring Editor Michael Bracken has a new Ecuadoran story by Tom Larsen. We have more original shorts by Michael Haynes, Paula Messina, Simon Kewin, John Leahy, and Veronica Leigh. And classics by Elizabeth Burgoyne Corbett (who originally wrote as “Mrs. George Corbett”), Ray Cummings, and James H. Schmitz. And there’s a brand new solve-it-yourself puzzler from Hal Charles, too.

Feel free to read every word, or you can pick and choose. It’s up to you. There’s no right or wrong way to read Black Cat Weekly. One thing I can guarantee: you’ll find something here that’s to your taste.

Here’s the complete lineup—

Cover Art: Stephen Hickman

NOVELS

The Adventures of Dora Bell, Detective, by Elizabeth Burgoyne Corbett

A lady detective solves cases police dare not touch…

The Sea Girl, by Ray Cummings

An underwater world holds a civilization that threatens humanity!

NOVELLA

“The Beacon to Elsewhere,” by James H. Schmitz

A hijacked shipment of alien material opens doors best left closed…

SOLVE-IT-YOURSELF MYSTERY

“A Roll of the Dice,” by Hal Charles

Can you solve the mystery before the detective? All the clues are there!

SHORT STORIES

“The Lost Innocence of Ernesto Guillén,” by Tom Larsen [Michael Bracken Presents short story, Ernesto Guillén series]

Some crimes demand justice beyond the law’s reach.

“Prank Frank,” by Michael Haynes

A harmless prank escalates into something darker…

“The Little Girl,” by Paula Messina

A house full of ghosts hides a family secret…

“The Destruction of Gianthome,” by Simon Kewin

When the giants vanish, who’s left to guard ancient secrets?

“After the Dulling,” by John Leahy

When the sun begins to dim, where can you run for safety?

“Two Against Time,” by Veronica Leigh

Some encounters transcend time itself. But why?