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Storming Area 51
Thirty-five awesome stories - one kick ass meme that started it all.
It started as a joke. Storm Area 51 they said. They can't stop all of us they said. But all laughter stopped when the U.S. Air Force mobilized the reserves and pulled out the big guns.
However, relentless mockery and derision by the media and the powers that be pushed the weebs and alien enthusiasts too far. What else were they supposed to do? They put on their big girl panties and showed up, determined to find out exactly what secrets were hidden behind the walls of the clandestine government facility.
Are you brave enough to buy this anthology today? If you are find out what the government wants to keep hidden.
C.J. Carella - Naruto Charge
J W Kiefer - Dark Mater
Walt Robillard - More to Carry
Michael Gants - Eminent Domain
Sarah A. Hoyt - Sunny Side Up
Alice Peng - Embasy City Delivery
Jamie Ibson - The Sage V'Sal
Tim Niederriter - Destinys End
Philip Ginn - Waterbenders in the Desert
Chris Winder - The Cricket
E. A. Shanniak - Stalking Death
Marisa Wolf - Home
Aaron Seaman - #Vaporize
Doug Burbey - Shift Work
Nathan Pedde - The Rise of the Ghids
Tim C. Taylor - Angel-51: Princess of Earth
Casey Moores - Sanity Check
J. R. Handley & Cisca Small - Love Finds Away
I. Ronik - Fallout - A Vapid Vixens Short
Michael J. Allen - Crashing the Party - A Scion Story
Alex C. Gates - Controlled Chaos
Declan Finn - Area 51 is Not Enough
IQ Malcolm - Kyle: Respawned
Milissa L. Story - Paradise Ranch
J. William Adler - Viva la Revolución
Joshua M. Young - Evan and Kyle Meet the Survey Cube
Sophie J. Shepherd - Nothing's Gonna Happen
Lawrence N. Oliver - Hangar Nine
Mel Todd - Routine Duty
Drew Avera - Storm the Gates
Philip K. Booker - Balancing the Scales
Tamsin L. Silver - The Trip Home
Robert W. Ross - Isabella's Campaign
Daniel Medrano - Hey Sweetie
R. Max Tillsley - Crickey!
931 pages, Kindle Edition
First published September 15, 2019
About the author
J.R. Handley
45 books263 followersJ. R. Handley is a pseudonym for a husband and wife writing team. He is a veteran infantry sergeant with the 101st Airborne Division and the 28th Infantry Division. She is the kind of crazy that interprets his insanity into cogent English. He writes the sci-fi while she proofreads it. The sergeant is a two-time combat veteran of the late unpleasantness in Mesopotamia where he was wounded. He started writing military science fiction as part of a therapy program suggested by his doctor to help with his brain injury. He found out he was actually pretty good at telling stories and hopes to entertain you as he attempts to excise his demons through these creative endeavors. In addition to being just another dysfunctional veteran, he is a stay at home husband, avid reader and all around nerd. Luckily for him, his Queen joins him in his fandom nerdalitry.
His website/blog is at www.jrhandley.com.
His website/blog is at www.jrhandley.com.
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Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
November 2, 2019
Wide Ranging Anthology
Like most anthologies, this has many good stories, a few great ones, and some not so good. Or I should say, not my cup of tea.
The meme about Storming Area 51 inspired this. Among my favorites are Daniel Medrano’s “Hey, Sweetie” and Michael J Allen’s “Crashing the Party”. “Area 51 is Not Enough” by Declan Finn is right up there as well, along with “Evan and Kyle Meet the Survey Cube” by Joshua M. Young and a lot of others.
This is a hefty anthology with 35 stories. There really is something for everyone.
Like most anthologies, this has many good stories, a few great ones, and some not so good. Or I should say, not my cup of tea.
The meme about Storming Area 51 inspired this. Among my favorites are Daniel Medrano’s “Hey, Sweetie” and Michael J Allen’s “Crashing the Party”. “Area 51 is Not Enough” by Declan Finn is right up there as well, along with “Evan and Kyle Meet the Survey Cube” by Joshua M. Young and a lot of others.
This is a hefty anthology with 35 stories. There really is something for everyone.
February 7, 2020
An excellent read
The short story formats is still alive. I do not recommend reading this book at bed time because you will lose sleep. William Aldlers story is particularly enjoyable
The short story formats is still alive. I do not recommend reading this book at bed time because you will lose sleep. William Aldlers story is particularly enjoyable
May 8, 2021
Well that was fun!
Such a fun theme, and such a wildly eclectic group of stories. The wide range here shows every possible approach, from mystery to noir, to Star Trek-esque utopianism, horror, action adventure, planetary sci-fi, pulp, mil sci fi, nerd wish fulfillment, the works. Now, it does get a little old after a while, especially on the meme and nerd-culture centric stories (I mean you can only do so much with Naruto runners, Jules, Chads, and Karens). There was only one story I thought badly written enough that I couldn't finish it. Sarah Hoyt's story was fun, as was Casey Moore's and other military veteran authors who did a much better job of getting the details right than others. The best stories in this really capture a great "Tales from the Darkside" vibe, ranging to "Tales from the Crypt" downstream to "Goosebumps" or "The Outer Limits" in tone and style. Like I said, lots of fun, and a good "alternate take' on one of the strangest social phenomena of my lifetime!
Such a fun theme, and such a wildly eclectic group of stories. The wide range here shows every possible approach, from mystery to noir, to Star Trek-esque utopianism, horror, action adventure, planetary sci-fi, pulp, mil sci fi, nerd wish fulfillment, the works. Now, it does get a little old after a while, especially on the meme and nerd-culture centric stories (I mean you can only do so much with Naruto runners, Jules, Chads, and Karens). There was only one story I thought badly written enough that I couldn't finish it. Sarah Hoyt's story was fun, as was Casey Moore's and other military veteran authors who did a much better job of getting the details right than others. The best stories in this really capture a great "Tales from the Darkside" vibe, ranging to "Tales from the Crypt" downstream to "Goosebumps" or "The Outer Limits" in tone and style. Like I said, lots of fun, and a good "alternate take' on one of the strangest social phenomena of my lifetime!
July 9, 2023
Wow this is a beast of a book. At a whopping 800 pages. I did not know anything about this anthology when I picked it up, other than that Declan Finn had contributed a story. I had read all of his novels over the last year and am now working through all the anthologies he contributed to. This is the second such anthology. I have also picked up 2 of the more recent Bayonet Books Anthologies #7 Fire for Effect and #8 The Monster Within because Finn had contributed, but I will likely pick up all in this series and give them a read.
According to the description of this volume, below, this is 35 stories created from a meme. It took me 10 days to work through this volume, and even they I read a couple of other works in parallel. By about the 15th story I needed a break from the collection. Not because it is bad but the number of stories about Karen’s, Kyle’s, greys, greens, lizard people got to be a bit much. I am pretty eclectic in my reading and the similarities was a little overwhelming, and I may or may not have dreamed about the great rush of area 51 to find out the truth and free aliens once or twice. But I can neither confirm nor deny that. The description of the volume is:
“Thirty-five awesome stories - one kick ass meme that started it all.
It started as a joke. Storm Area 51 they said. They can't stop all of us they said. But all laughter stopped when the U.S. Air Force mobilized the reserves and pulled out the big guns.
However, relentless mockery and derision by the media and the powers that be pushed the weebs and alien enthusiasts too far. What else were they supposed to do? They put on their big girl panties and showed up, determined to find out exactly what secrets were hidden behind the walls of the clandestine government facility.
Are you brave enough to buy this anthology today? If you are find out what the government wants to keep hidden.”
The contributors in the collection are:
Aaron Seaman
Alex C. Gates
Alice Peng
C.J. Carella
Casey Moores
Chris Winder
Daniel Medrano
Declan Finn
Doug Burbey
Drew Avera
E. A. Shanniak
I. Ronik
IQ Malcolm
JW Kiefer
J. R. Handley & Cisca Small
J. William Adler
Jamie Ibson
Joshua M. Young
Lawrence N. Oliver
Marisa Wolf
Mel Todd
Michael Gants
Michael J. Allen
Milissa L. Story
Nathan Pedde
Philip Ginn
Philip K. Booker
R. Max Tillsley
Robert W. Ross
Sarah A. Hoyt
Sophie J. Shepherd
Tamsin L. Silver
Tim C. Taylor
Tim Niederriter
Walt Robillard
And the stories are:
Naruto Charge - C.J. Carella
Dark Mater - J W Kiefer
More to Carry - Walt Robillard
Eminent Domain - Michael Gants
Sunny Side Up - Sarah A. Hoyt
Embasy City Delivery - Alice Peng
The Sage V'Sal - Jamie Ibson
Destinys End - Tim Niederriter
Waterbenders in the Desert - Philip Ginn
The Cricket - Chris Winder
Stalking Death - E. A. Shanniak
Home - Marisa Wolf
#Vaporize - Aaron Seaman
Shift Work - Doug Burbey
The Rise of the Ghids - Nathan Pedde
Angel - 51: Princess of Earth - Tim C. Taylor
Sanity Check - Casey Moores
Love Finds Away - J. R. Handley & Cisca Small
Fallout - A Vapid Vixens Short - I. Ronik
Crashing the Party - A Scion Story - Michael J. Allen
Controlled Chaos - Alex C. Gates
Area 51 is Not Enough - Declan Finn
Kyle: Respawned - IQ Malcolm
Paradise Ranch - Milissa L. Story
Viva la Revolución - J. William Adler
Evan and Kyle Meet the Survey Cube - Joshua M. Young
Nothing's Gonna Happen - Sophie J. Shepherd
Hangar Nine - Lawrence N. Oliver
Routine Duty - Mel Todd
Storm the Gates - Drew Avera
Balancing the Scales - Philip K. Booker
The Trip Home - Tamsin L. Silver
Isabella's Campaign - Robert W. Ross
Hey Sweetie - Daniel Medrano
Crickey! - R. Max Tillsley
There are several excellent offerings in the volume. And there is not a dud in the collection. Which with 35 stories is impressive. As usually there is one or 2 that just do not connect or fire for the reader. However that was not the case this time. I do not believe I have read stories by any of contributors other than Finn previously. But A few books have been added to my wish list after reading this. And that is part of what I love about anthologies being exposed to new authors and new series. A few of the pieces in this work link to other series, some called out in the title some in the introduction to the story or the authors bio after the story. There is no Editor listed in this volume, at least not the eBook edition. The cover lists it as the “Florida Man Special Edition” but there is no information on that. I could not even find a website for Bayonet books to link to in the review. Some standout stories were Dark Matter by JW Kiefer, Embassy City Delivery by Alice Peng, The Sage V’Sal by Jamie Ibson, Home by Marisa Wolf, Kyle: Respawned by IQ Malcolm, Paradise Ranch by Milissa L. Story, Routine Duty by Mel Todd, The Trip Home by Tamsin L. Silver, Isabella’s Campaign by Robert W. Ross, and Declan Finn’s Area 51 Is Not Enough. Finn’s story is set well in the future of his Live at First Bite Series that I had just finished. It was great to connect with the characters again. And Kyle: Respawned is like a scifi Groundhogs day. But ever with the stories that I really like, I still cannot think of one that I would say nah ‘don’t give it a read’.
This is an excellent anthology, 35 great stories. And if the other anthologies from Bayonet Books are as good I am in for hours of excellent reading ahead. I can easily recommend this anthology filled with stories of Kyles Karens, greenies, greys and all sorts of stories in between.
According to the description of this volume, below, this is 35 stories created from a meme. It took me 10 days to work through this volume, and even they I read a couple of other works in parallel. By about the 15th story I needed a break from the collection. Not because it is bad but the number of stories about Karen’s, Kyle’s, greys, greens, lizard people got to be a bit much. I am pretty eclectic in my reading and the similarities was a little overwhelming, and I may or may not have dreamed about the great rush of area 51 to find out the truth and free aliens once or twice. But I can neither confirm nor deny that. The description of the volume is:
“Thirty-five awesome stories - one kick ass meme that started it all.
It started as a joke. Storm Area 51 they said. They can't stop all of us they said. But all laughter stopped when the U.S. Air Force mobilized the reserves and pulled out the big guns.
However, relentless mockery and derision by the media and the powers that be pushed the weebs and alien enthusiasts too far. What else were they supposed to do? They put on their big girl panties and showed up, determined to find out exactly what secrets were hidden behind the walls of the clandestine government facility.
Are you brave enough to buy this anthology today? If you are find out what the government wants to keep hidden.”
The contributors in the collection are:
Aaron Seaman
Alex C. Gates
Alice Peng
C.J. Carella
Casey Moores
Chris Winder
Daniel Medrano
Declan Finn
Doug Burbey
Drew Avera
E. A. Shanniak
I. Ronik
IQ Malcolm
JW Kiefer
J. R. Handley & Cisca Small
J. William Adler
Jamie Ibson
Joshua M. Young
Lawrence N. Oliver
Marisa Wolf
Mel Todd
Michael Gants
Michael J. Allen
Milissa L. Story
Nathan Pedde
Philip Ginn
Philip K. Booker
R. Max Tillsley
Robert W. Ross
Sarah A. Hoyt
Sophie J. Shepherd
Tamsin L. Silver
Tim C. Taylor
Tim Niederriter
Walt Robillard
And the stories are:
Naruto Charge - C.J. Carella
Dark Mater - J W Kiefer
More to Carry - Walt Robillard
Eminent Domain - Michael Gants
Sunny Side Up - Sarah A. Hoyt
Embasy City Delivery - Alice Peng
The Sage V'Sal - Jamie Ibson
Destinys End - Tim Niederriter
Waterbenders in the Desert - Philip Ginn
The Cricket - Chris Winder
Stalking Death - E. A. Shanniak
Home - Marisa Wolf
#Vaporize - Aaron Seaman
Shift Work - Doug Burbey
The Rise of the Ghids - Nathan Pedde
Angel - 51: Princess of Earth - Tim C. Taylor
Sanity Check - Casey Moores
Love Finds Away - J. R. Handley & Cisca Small
Fallout - A Vapid Vixens Short - I. Ronik
Crashing the Party - A Scion Story - Michael J. Allen
Controlled Chaos - Alex C. Gates
Area 51 is Not Enough - Declan Finn
Kyle: Respawned - IQ Malcolm
Paradise Ranch - Milissa L. Story
Viva la Revolución - J. William Adler
Evan and Kyle Meet the Survey Cube - Joshua M. Young
Nothing's Gonna Happen - Sophie J. Shepherd
Hangar Nine - Lawrence N. Oliver
Routine Duty - Mel Todd
Storm the Gates - Drew Avera
Balancing the Scales - Philip K. Booker
The Trip Home - Tamsin L. Silver
Isabella's Campaign - Robert W. Ross
Hey Sweetie - Daniel Medrano
Crickey! - R. Max Tillsley
There are several excellent offerings in the volume. And there is not a dud in the collection. Which with 35 stories is impressive. As usually there is one or 2 that just do not connect or fire for the reader. However that was not the case this time. I do not believe I have read stories by any of contributors other than Finn previously. But A few books have been added to my wish list after reading this. And that is part of what I love about anthologies being exposed to new authors and new series. A few of the pieces in this work link to other series, some called out in the title some in the introduction to the story or the authors bio after the story. There is no Editor listed in this volume, at least not the eBook edition. The cover lists it as the “Florida Man Special Edition” but there is no information on that. I could not even find a website for Bayonet books to link to in the review. Some standout stories were Dark Matter by JW Kiefer, Embassy City Delivery by Alice Peng, The Sage V’Sal by Jamie Ibson, Home by Marisa Wolf, Kyle: Respawned by IQ Malcolm, Paradise Ranch by Milissa L. Story, Routine Duty by Mel Todd, The Trip Home by Tamsin L. Silver, Isabella’s Campaign by Robert W. Ross, and Declan Finn’s Area 51 Is Not Enough. Finn’s story is set well in the future of his Live at First Bite Series that I had just finished. It was great to connect with the characters again. And Kyle: Respawned is like a scifi Groundhogs day. But ever with the stories that I really like, I still cannot think of one that I would say nah ‘don’t give it a read’.
This is an excellent anthology, 35 great stories. And if the other anthologies from Bayonet Books are as good I am in for hours of excellent reading ahead. I can easily recommend this anthology filled with stories of Kyles Karens, greenies, greys and all sorts of stories in between.
August 4, 2021
Great stories.
March 28, 2023
The first story, 'More to Carry' by Walt Robillard is one of the snappiest and cleverest stories I've ever read. Bought the book on its strength alone. The depth of the characters and tension of the story are built with such subtle strokes, using an incisive economy of language that manages to just keep you right in it.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews