Harbinger

by Jack Skillingstead

Overview

Six years after a drunk driver kills his mother and brother on Halloween night, Ellis Herrick awakens to find himself changed by a mysterious power. For the next two centuries Ellis pursues answers to the riddle of his immortality, a journey that takes him from the irredeemable past to the far reaches of outer space - and ultimately to the innermost caverns of his wounded psyche. Harbinger is a novel of adventure, evolution, imperishable love, and the shifting nature of personal reality.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780982073032
Publisher:	Fairwood Press LLC
Publication date:	05/28/2009
Pages:	256
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.50(h) x 0.58(d)

About the Author

Jack Skillingstead grew up in a working class neighbourhood south of Seattle. He dropped out of college to work in a cannery in alaska, later travelling to Maine and then returning to the Pacific northwest. Skillingstead won a writing competition sponsored by Stephen King in 2000, and was a fi nalist for the Sturgeon award in 2004. He has published more than thirty short stories in publications including Asimov’s, F&SF and Realms of Fantasy. His work has also appeared in various Year’s Best volumes and Solaris Rising.

Editorial Reviews

Skillingstead's notable talent with short stories doesn't quite extend to this often disjointed debut. Disaffected teen Ellis Herrick has psychic visions of the future and a mystical bond with the girl he loves. After surviving a terrible accident, Ellis discovers superhuman healing abilities as well. An eccentric billionaire kidnaps the traumatized boy and requires him to serve as a one-man body parts factory for decades. Having lost everyone he cares about, Ellis allows the billionaire's great-grandson to continue using him in this obscene fashion until, finding a new love among colonists on a generation ship, he revolts with tragic consequences. At his best, Skillingstead gives off strong vibes of Philip K. Dick and Kurt Vonnegut, but readers will struggle to gain any kind of emotional connection to his depressed immortal protagonist. (Oct.)

Publishers Weekly

When he was a child, Ellis lost his mother and older brother in a car accident. Another car crash in adolescence endows him with miraculous powers that include apparent immortality and the ability to regrow body parts. Eventually, Ellis learns that he is a Harbinger, and his spiritual journey lasts for centuries as he shifts through time and space, discovering the outer world and his inner self. VERDICT Skillingstead (Are You There and Other Stories) re-creates the atmosphere of old-style Vonnegut and the ingenuity of Philip K. Dick in a tale that holds its greatest appeal for readers who enjoy contemplating eternal truths in fictional form.

Library Journal