Paulie - short story review

'Paulie' is a short story by M. A. Myers. I'm not sure when and where I got hold of a copy of this, but I've had it for a while and what better time to read a short horror story than in the spooky month of October!

'Paulie' opens with Alice, a mother of three, who recently moved from the city to a farmhouse. She is preparing dinner and waiting for her husband to return. Soon after everything is set, a most awkward and terrifying announcement is made on television and everyone is advised to stay indoors. The news anchor says that some sort of disease or symptom is affecting people and turning them into killers.

The short story is about 14 or 15 pages long on PDF. It starts at a fairly slow pace but following the announcement, the pace picks up immensely.

Paulie is the name of one of the characters in the story, and what I like about this story is the constant sense of mystery in what is going to happen and what is happening.

Myers gives vivid description of every character and detail in his story, so there is nothing lacking in that area; the reader can easily picture everything.

I liked how Alice is portrayed as a very strong character. In spite of pain, both physical and emotional, she struggles to go on and save whatever is left of her family.

What I did not like about the short story was the very long paragraphs used and the occasional repetition of words used to describe the horrors Alice comes up against, but otherwise 'Paulie' is an enjoyable read.

I was also curious, why this disease as I call it does not affect her of all people.

Note: Glad I finally got to read it – if I had received it as a free copy for a review, my apologies for taking so much time.