Welcome, travelers, to another stop in the Otherworld. As you may have been able to tell from earlier in the week, we are spreading joy by way of some old friends this week, the week before Christmas. While we spent some time in a LitRPG universe yesterday, we’re spending today in a veritable multiverse, courtesy of our friend, author Bryon Mayfield. We’ve already had the privilege of exploring one of his sci-fi anthologies, but today we get to jump into his latest. Read on to learn more about Universal Values.
A quintet of fantastic science fiction adventures awaits anyone who grabs hold of author Bryon Mayfield’s latest anthology, Universal Values. Each of these entries is a sturdy short, fully realized, as much as they are snappy. But so it must be, as Mayfield digs deeper than ever here, exploring the ethos of various alien species, giving them purpose, emotion, and explaining the logic to which things exist as they are. There are many different things that bubble to the surface of the stories in this latest book, and all of them are gripping and entertaining. Mayfield’s various worlds couldn’t be more different either, which is why the great strides he takes to make them feel lived-in are so powerful and impressive.
What compels people to do what they do? What are the driving forces that so utterly determine how they live their lives? Take faith, for instance. A person’s unwavering belief in something can be so strong that it fully determines the nature of their outlook on the universe. It can be a vehicle for benevolent acts, or a weapon to drive people to fanatical levels of brutality. Or maybe love is responsible for the actions people take. Love of a significant other, a group, an idea, or even love of the self. How about revenge, prejudice, or the desire to embrace individualism?
Whatever driving force an individual or group may choose to deem the most essential, at some point its repetition and the emphasis of its paramount importance transforms it into what can safely be referred to as a value. This anthology explores the aforementioned values, and others, in five independent stories, with the common thread of examining how people will adhere to their personal beliefs while in pivotal situations. Whether they be on an alien planet not all that dissimilar to Earth, under a dome on some unhospitable barren rock, or on a generational spaceship on a course to a new world, this collection of science fiction stories will demonstrate how the driving forces in people’s lives shape the very fabric of their existence.
Also, these stories will beg the question: Are the values in these alien settings so very different than the ones we hold dear on our own planet?
Or, are some values perhaps…universal?
There is a vivid immersion to Universal Values, as though the story is not being told, but related from memory. The author has a means to see into these various other worlds, and as varied as they are, describe details so eloquently that the places come to life as expertly as the plotlines. And though you only know them for a short while, the characters therein are easy to root for and hard to shake from your mind. Mayfield is a master of his craft, and a passionate storyteller to boot, so don’t hesitate. Check out Universal Values: A Science Fiction Anthology on Amazon today!
Michael DeAngelo
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