Carrying a Torch

Christopher Lukas arranges his wonderful short stories into three sections: "Lust and Love," "Love and Loss," and "At Close of Day." Although the stories are not linked by character or by action leading a progress, the sections suggest such a progression for human experience. We lust for what we wish to have, and, in the process discover love. And, having found love, we find also loss. The separation from love, both tragic and heroic, prepares us for our own "close of day." Lukas shows us through his fiction how we make the journey in human, sensitive, personal terms. There is much that is beautiful about these stories, and warmly comforting. Where, "as things are now, this is definitely the place for me to be" ("Angels of Mercy").