The Lazarus Murder: a Purgatory Station story

The Lazarus Murder is the first story I ever wrote in the Purgatory Station series. The stories chronicle the adventures of several chaplains on a station far from Earth—so far away, in fact, that the light that shined on Earth at the time of Jesus has yet to reach the station. In this universe, Earth has been brought in the Qian Commonwealth as a protected world. Father Dennis Flynn is a Catholic chaplain out on this station which is so far away from everything that humans have called it Purgatory Station.

This story appeared in Amazing Stories magazine in the summer of 2000, and has not been reprinted until now. Clearly it’s a murder mystery and one of the annoying sort where the victim doesn’t want to remain dead. While that would seem to obviate the whole murder thing, the victim insists charges should be pressed, and Father Flynn works to get to the bottom of what’s really going on.

There are five stories that have been published in this universe:

The Lazarus Murder (Amazing Stories, Summer 2000)
Keeping Score (Guardsmen of Tomorrow edited by Martin H. Greenberg and Larry Segriff, DAW, 2000)
Least of My Brethren (Sol’s Children edited by Jean Rabe and Martin H. Greenberg, DAW, 2002)
According To Their Need (Visions of Liberty edited by Mark Tier and Martin H. Greenberg, Baen Books, 2004, reprinted in the omnimus edition Freedom! from Baen Books, 2006)
Serpent on the Station (Space Stations edited by Martin H. Greenberg and John Helfers, DAW, 2004)

The stories run roughly in chronological order of publication, save that Keeping Score predates the others by about fourteen years. It takes place during a war in which the Qian found humans rather useful; but by the time of the other stories, peace reigns and former enemies have become allies.

There are other stories I want to tell in the universe, and being able to publish them directly makes writing them far more probable. There are some stories you write for love, and others you write for money. It’s best when you can write for both.

Just hit the link above to purchase The Lazarus Murder. It costs $2 and runs just over 8800 words in length.