Short Story review – Saturnine, In Her Head, Out of Time

About a year ago, I reviewed Ray Hecht’s debut novel, South China Morning Blues. He’s written other stuff too, like a couple of short stories here and there, and his personal blog where he talks about life in China. Full disclosure, he sent me this story for free when I offered to read it and talk about it. Normally I don’t talk about short stories on this blog, but I’m making an exception here. Because this was written by a fellow blogger and I’m not used to talking about short stories, I won’t be giving a review score.

Saturnine, In Her Head, Out Of Time is a dramatic short story with a touch of science fiction. Saturnine is a recent graduate from University who’s suffering from an event she found traumatic. I won’t say anything too specifically, but it’s about a former boyfriend who seemed to just disappear. She just wants to know what happened and to say goodbye.

While surfing the internet one night, she stumbles on a new company that can give people a time travel-like experience. They can try to relive important moments in their life, but no matter how hard they try, the eventual outcome will be the same. For a while these sessions only make things worse, until near the end of the story she comes to a harsh but important realization.

It’s a very dramatic story for its length, answering the most important questions while still leaving enough open for interpretation. The idea behind the time travel experience is a fascinating one, and it doesn’t sound all that far-fetched. I think Saturnine, In Her Head, Out Of Time is still available for free on Kindle Unlimited if you’re a member of that service, or you can buy it for about $1. If this kind of dramatic story with a slight sci-fi angle interests you, this is well worth the price.

You can check out Hecht’s written work here and his blog here.