The Potion and Other Perilous Libations

The Potion and Other Perilous Libations by Matias Travieso-Diaz

"Would you give up your mind and perhaps your freedom

to add more months to your life?"

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This is the ultimate question posed in the title story of this collection of dark tales with settings around the world and times from the distant past to the terrifying future. We are taken to realms as remote as a bloody afternoon of games in the Roman Colosseum and as close as the addled mind of a drug addict, with characters and situations made more dreadful by being entirely plausible.

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A warrior watches his captors appease the gods with human sacrifices during a solar eclipse; a man trades his smile for a night of pleasure during Venice's Carnival and tries to recover it; a pre-Columbian man from a city threatened by Aztec conquest seeks assistance from a cryptid, who offers help at a steep cost.

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We'll learn that no matter the time period or the location, horror is a part of every culture and is universal. It reminds us that anyone's life can be at risk, whether by accident, by chance, or personally chosen.

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So perhaps the question changes: What would you give up to survive these horrors? Or would you want to survive at all?

"Mr. Travieso-Diaz continues to distinguish himself as one of the leading short story writers in the United States. Although these stories sometimes can be frightening, their reflections and arabesque details also make them thoughtful and unique. I highly recommend The Potion and Other Perilous Libations, either as a well-earned treat for oneself or as a present for a sophisticated friend." ~ Alex Ferrate, peer review