The Train by Jeff Howe

The Train is the second story in a trilogy of short stories I call the Subway Series.  All of them are based
on my experiences in riding the "T" in Boston back in the early 1980s... to a point.  The descriptions
are uncannily accurate, but the plots are out of this world!  This is what some folks had to say about The Train:

By John W. Cassell

Jeff Howe rates right up there with Rod Serling as he takes you on what you may conclude is one subway ride too many!

He uses time so effortlessly...past, present, past again... Jason his protagonist seeks to take one last subway ride before moving to the Southwest...

A young fellow passenger appears out of nowhere and adds layers of dimension to the ride...past? present? past again?

There is no way you can describe this ride...you just have to experience it. Next train ride the talented writer Jeff Howe offers me will be taken at High Noon, but there is simply no way I regretted taking this one.

The man handles time like he owns it. I remember much more pleasant train rides in the linked book, Crossroads: 1969 yet I wouldn't have missed this one. As soon as you get back from your road trip Brother Howe, I hope you have some more stories in mind for us!

Jeff Howe has a great way of pulling you right into his story. I loved the Outer Limits and the Twilight zone when I was a kid and when I began reading this story I felt I had boarded this train right with the main Character Jason. This train ride takes Jason on a journey he slowly realizes is different from all the rest he has taken. This next passage is from an old man he meets on the train.

"Do you know that if you take an action, you will never know the results of not taking that action?" the elderly man smiled. "Your actions put into motion things that may or may not have been better left still. Be careful, young man where you place your foot as you take your next step. Ahhh, looks like my station is upon us."

Jason doesn't realize it but he has crossed over into another realm...,or maybe he already was there and never knew it. You decide.

Reviewed by Vickie (Tory Lynn, Author of "My Charming Protector")

This is the second work by Jeff Howe that I have read and I now count myself a fan. In this surrealistic train ride Howe proves himself a writer's writer, with each sentence being a pleasure of reading in and of itself, and not merely part of the means to plot's end. The author mixes suspense, reflection, stream-of-consciousness, along with O'connor-like observance to insure that the reader is always intrigued but held in limbo, never knowing where the train is going or where it will stop. Just like a train, it will cause you to speed up and slow down your pace with each fluctuation in prose, an device highly condusive to keeping the reader hanging on the edge of the seat. The ending is a possibly supernatural twist, or is it? Still as I am writing the review, I am pondering its depth, thinking that I've gotten it, but wondering if you've got something else that may have escaped me...

As I entered the train and started on the journey, I realised very soon after, that I had entered the twilight zone.

As I read, I wasnt sure at times if it was night or day as the shadows shifted from light to gray to black.

The chiaroscurist effects reminded me of some of my dreams, when I moved in time and space recurring on a single theme.

The young man riding the train was indeed confused and at times wasnt sure if he was dreaming or truly in real time.
The experience was in many dimensions and could be construed as a nightmare.
To set off on a perfectly sound adventure as a train ride, with the intention of going to a particular destination, but instead ending up in time and places unrecognizable and seemingly without human contact is not real, subways and trains are usually teeming with people.

When I was a child and would have dreams of being chased, I would in the dream blink my eyes three times and I would come awake sweating, having escaped whatever was in pursuit of me. In this story by Mr Howe, I wished very much that I could share this trick with Jason...but was he really sleeping? Was the trip real? I still am not sure.

Jeff Howe weaves a tale of intrigue in this story that leaves the reader pondering the powerful ending. It is a profond story with wonderful imagery and suspense. The reader is left to digest the meaning of the story, though it isn't spelled out for you. Use your mind, link the characters together and you'll be impressed with this masterful creation. A job well done. I recommend this story to those that like to use their mind.

Where author Jeff Howe really distinguishes himself is scene setting and mood. You start off thinking the protagonist is taking an ordinary train ride. Fifteen minutes later you're saying "get the number of that truck!" You literally don't know what hit you, You just know you've been hit...hard.

The ride and the fellow passengers seem to deteriorate by the minute, until with a chill down your spine you realize this is something quite different than what you first imagined. To pull off that illusion so superbly requires talent, lots of it.

Brilliant scene setting, beautifully orchestrated tension and fear. This train goes all the way after all. Bravo, Mr. Howe!

These are only a few of the reviews.  Come to Amazon to see the rest!