Publisher's Synopsis
The author of the suspenseful alternate history novels, Defying Conventions and Fit for Freedom, brings you this collection of short fiction, including a never-before-published short story and an all-new novella. Through genres as diverse as historical fiction and dystopian sci-fi, Joseph W. Knowles' writing highlights themes of truth and freedom.
Life on the frontier of the Montana Territory may be beyond the reach of the government, but a small community decided that didn't mean there couldn't be order and civilization. In "The Six-Sided Cabin of Calhoun County," read how one man took that group's determination to heart, and tried to resolve a conflict over land ownership in an unexpected way.In Soviet Russia, the Party expects conformity and the state demands obedience. In "Allegiance Owed," one man must decide where his true allegiance lies--no matter what it might cost him.
Join Commander Augustus Mason and his new mission specialist, Virginia Tucker, on board the ship Adventure. "The Search" for extraterrestrial life continues in this science-fiction short story with a surprising twist. In an imagined future, "The Lottery" asks just how people can be pushed in service to a "greater cause" and how they will react. Return to rugged Montana as Jim McCarter must face down another dilemma in "The Cats of Calhoun County." Ride along on "Another Day in the Life of Agent Manny Martinez, " as he and his partner punch the clock at the IRS in a humorous look at the business of tax collection. What is justice? Is humanity really meant to expand beyond the reaches of our own solar system? The power plays and intrigues of geopolitics take to the stars in "The False Infinite," a novella. From a young prosecutor in the halls of earthly justice to humble scientists on faraway planets, readers will meet characters who are power-hungry and those who are idealistic as the story builds to a surprising conclusion.
