Jesus Christ, it gets hot in New Mexico. Although, it is summer, and I do live in the northern hemisphere, so I guess I shouldn’t be surprised. But I am a pale, pale man and numbers like the one on the cover terrify me.

Anyway, stories. We’ve got them. And they’re perfect for reading in the dark, air-conditioned corners of your domicile of choice. Or outside in the sun, if you’re one of those people.

Speaking of people, our first story, “Golden Hours,” comes all the way from Brazil, by way of California ex-pat Colleen Chen, and tells the tale of a man with a remarkable, if short-lived, gift. Next is the fairy tale retelling “Red,” by Christopher Owen, followed by the Catholic dogma retelling “Jesus’ Nephew,” by Joe Thompson. After that is the sad, creepy “Mammy’d Give Me Minds To Eat,” by Graham Tugwell, who wins the award for having the most porn star-like name we’ve ever published. And last, but certainly not least, is “Jolly Roger,” by Michael Sions, a story that expertly combines corpses, pirates, and insurance salesmen.

Now, if you’ll excuse me, I need to board up the windows before the sun realizes I’m in here.

The online version of this month’s issue is here, and the .pdf can be downloaded by clicking here.