Refuge is full of characters hungry to share their stories with you. Though their stories are not full of flowers and happiness, their personal accounts of the horrors they’ve come to expect from within their boundaries still deserve to be told.
This collection of 6 short stories follows on from The Refuge Collection Volume 1. Steve Dillon and Co bring together 4 standalone takes and 2 that form part of bigger plot lines. They are written in such a way that, while it would help to have some knowledge of what to expect from Refuge, it’s not damaging to the bigger picture to enter into the world later in the series. Proceeds from the purchase of the eBooks go to the Sanctuary Australia Foundation, directly supporting refugees escaping their own horrific tales.
Within the fictional town of Refuge, a group of individuals, largely forgotten by society, have found themselves locked away in its borders. Some remember how they got there, a number of them don’t. All of them have become entangled in a web of seedy characters, ghosts and spirts, and people of authority looking to exert their power in horrific ways.
The collection opens with Steve Dillion continuing a story he began in Volume 1. The Empath’s Tale (part two) follows Joe the Empath and his ‘head full of hornets’. Joe is on a desperate journey to find his lost wife, and on the way, we get to meet some of the more sleazy residents of the town.
Noel Osualdini and The Ghost in the Water brings us to a new resident of the region, and her home that seems to be inhabited by water spirits. Or is it just a resident cat? Or Father Millar?
Dillion is back as the author of Next Door’s Noisy, and introduces two of the younger residence of Refuge. Trapped between two walls…or worlds…they bond through the barriers that have been put between them. But what happens when the walls are threatened?
Plato’s Cave follows, written by Brian Craddock. Set inside the Refuge pub, aptly named The Frog, the Mayor’s bodyguard is on the warpath. The only way out appears to be by acquiring the local transvestite’s outfit; but just whose clothes are these?
The fifth story is written by Paul Kane who brings us The Pi’s Tale. Refuge visitor, Mikey, is in search of a lost child. The Private Investigator must battle through thugs, gunman and police to find the missing child, but finding him proves to be more terrifying than the search. The only solace comes from a new friend, Daisy, who provides relief, friendship and morbid curiosity.
The series concludes with the disturbing first part of The Priest’s Tale, by Steve Dillon. Father Millar is seeking the powers and knowledge held within the church, and Father Mandy only serves to stand in his way. Money, prostitutes, murder, and the book is still missing, but is the book the only secret that’s hidden in the churches of Refuge?
All six of these short stories are disturbing but engaging at the same time. Adapting to the different styles of writing does take some time, despite them being edited by the same person. The flow of the stories doesn’t always run true, so the concentration of the reader is relied upon to ensure plot lines aren’t lost.
Lots to enjoy and lots to think about.
Reviewed by Amie Kendall
Twitter: @AmieJK80
Rating out of 10: 8
Sales of The Refuge Collection support the Sanctuary Australia Foundation and the UK’s Refugee Action.
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