Mix Tape No. 1 - J.D. Mader

So Christmas is only a week away, and you don't even have time to read a short story? Is that what's troubling ya, Bunky? Well, then. How about some flash fiction?

J.D. Mader does this feature on his blog on Fridays. He calls it, "Two minutes...go!" The idea is to set a timer for two minutes, open a vein, and let the words pour out of you onto the virtual paper in the comment section of the blog. Mader himself opens the festivities with his own offering, and usually contributes a few more as the day goes on. They are always intriguing and often amazing.

Here in this short volume, Mader has collected 16 flash fiction gems, at least some of which had their beginnings in "Two minutes...go!" His work is dark and often profane (the "parental advisory" sticker on the front cover is there for a reason), but it's so worth checking out. Save it, maybe, for some dark day in the winter months to come.

And feel free to stop by Unemployed Imagination some Friday and see what we're up to. Maybe even try your own hand at some flash fiction. It'll only take two minutes.

Saving Drake: a Romance - JD Mader

Happy Valentine's Day, everybody.

Romance isn't in Mader's typical wheelhouse -- he usually writes gritty noir stuff. So as you might expect, Saving Drake isn't your typical romance.

Rachel meets Drake at a party. They hit it off immediately, but Drake is gun-shy about relationships -- the love of his life died in a car wreck with him behind the wheel. But Rachel is patient, and slowly, Drake comes around. Only then does she realize what she's gotten herself into with him. Then she must decide whether she loves him enough to help him conquer his demons.

Mader calls Saving Drake a "real love story," and in many ways, it is. Both characters are awash in imperfections -- as is Rachel's best friend, a randy woman who decides to conduct her own investigation into Rachel's new guy. Drake's problems with alcohol seem realistically portrayed, and the love story between the diner owner and his wife is poignant and perfect.

Two things, though. Well, three. First, I wish Clyde had made at least one more appearance later in the book -- it would have driven home Drake's anguish about his dead love that much more. Second, while the romance genre pretty much requires a "happily ever after," I wanted at least a hint that it might not be all smooth sailing for Drake and Rachel from here on out. And finally, there's a lot of alcohol in this book. A lot of alcohol. If it's a problem for you, you've been warned.

For me, though, those are all minor quibbles. The prose is stunning, as always in Mader's work; the relationships are realistic and believable; and on the whole, I very much liked Saving Drake.