Fiction. LONG RIDE YELLOW is the debut novel from two-time Journey Prize Finalist Martin West. The novel explores the limits of sexual desire and willfully prods the veil at the edge of reality. Nonni is a dominatrix who likes to push the boundaries; she is also easily bored. Her disdain for all that is conventional and "vanilla" launches her on a journey of personal discovery: first via the local swingers' scene, then through the world of clandestine S&M clubs, and on to more adventurous and dangerous "private" diversions. She eventually pushes the envelope so far that she attracts the attention of alien beings she refers to only as the "Woodenheads." They do strange things to her, alchemic things, as she is slowly transformed into wood and steel and electricity. You won't soon forget Nonni; she won't let you. Praise for CRETACEA AND OTHER STORIES FROM THE BADLANDS: "... Martin West's impressive debut short story collection ... readers will encounter echoes of Flannery O'Connor and Barry Hannah." —
Foreword Magazine
"the 11 tales in Martin West's debut collection ... often surprise with strange, startling images." —
Alberta Views