Tales of the Lucky Nickel Saloon, Second Avenue, Laramie,
Wyoming US of A
A Story Collection
by Ken Rand
A nominee for the Utah Center for the Book's 2003 Speculative Fiction Award.
"Have you ever heard a cockroach fart, or felt someone sigh like the cold breath of a graveyard? Ken Rand has the most vivid descriptions, the most picturesque language of anyone I have read for a very long time. His verbs, nouns and evocative imagery pop every detail into the reader's mind's eye with zest and humor. I laughed aloud at least once in every chapter as this master storyteller presented the regulars of the Lucky Nickel Saloon with western dialogue that rings true, spices the story and lends the mind's ear the perfect timbre for the tale. His characters are real people each distinguishable from the other as black is from white.
"'He looked to be no more than a suggestion of a man, something somebody thought up and then decided "nevermind" halfway through.' How can you not picture the skeletonized man through this phrase? Chapter by chapter the reader is drawn into the lives of the patrons of the Lucky Nickel and their incredible visitors, though eccentric, they were still believable under the pen of the genius of story teller Ken Rand. A definite 6 on a scale of 1 to 5 where five is the highest score, I would highly recommend this book no matter what your favorite genre, Rand will give you a new favorite to enjoy."
— Billie A. Williams
Author of Death by Candlelight
"This here mini-collection chapbook's more entertaining than bobbing for apples in a vat of rabid squirrels. More laughs than a mime's mental state, and more chuckles than a crateful of Skittles raining onto your driveway. That is, it's funny stuff."— Chiaroscuro
"Every story in the Lucky Nickel is an absolute delight! They're all funny and witty, and Ken Rand has a knack for writing 'Old West' dialect that consistently rings true. It's everything an aficionado could hope for in a collection of F&SF 'bar tales.'"— Lambda Sci-fi
"...the most interesting bar in the West."— The Denver Post.
"The classic American tall-tale device is king here. Ken Rand offers a welcome change of pace in terms of historical fantasy."— Locus
"Ken Rand's Tales of the Lucky Nickel Saloon is cleverly written, imaginative, and highly entertaining. It's fiction of an entirely new flavor."— Kevin J. Anderson
Coauthor: Dune: The Butlerian Jihad