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The Cogs of Catastrophe
Paperback
Series: The Screw Turns, Book 2
Science FictionGeneral Fiction
Publisher: Humphrey Archer
Published: Mar 6 2026
Pages: 150
Weight: 0.40
Height: 0.35 Width: 5.50 Depth: 8.50
Language: English
Be careful what you wish for... because in these tales, you just might get it.
From Humphrey Archer comes The Screw Turns - Vol. 2, (105 pages and 25 stories) a darkly comic and deliciously macabre anthology where everyday annoyances, petty cruelties, and whispered wishes collide with the cold mechanics of fate. No ghosts. No magic. No monsters-unless you count the ones living inside us. Still, death waits patiently in every story, ready to turn the screw at exactly the wrong moment.
In this second volume of Archer's satirical tragedies, healthcare workers, administrators, janitors, vampires, police officers, and ordinary people find their lives warped by the unpredictable dominoes of chance. Inspired by real OSHA incidents, cultural superstitions, and the irresistible irony of human behavior, each tale unwinds into an ending that is as inevitable as it is unexpected.
Meet a petty HR tyrant undone by a fleeing cat and a flying water bottle.
A budget-slashing COO who learns that the pen truly is mightier than the sword.
A burglar struck by Cupid's arrow-quite literally.
A bully who gets crushed by far more than criticism.
A janitor who discovers black mold isn't the deadliest thing in the restroom.
A vampire coven contemplating hormone therapy.
A marketing director with diamonds on the soles of his feet... and glass in his veins.
A procurement wizard undone by the gray market.
A neurosurgeon who finally learns gravity always wins.
And many, many more.
What binds them all together?
A single misstep. A thoughtless wish. A moment of spite or carelessness.
And the merciless, perfectly believable machinery of real-life danger.
Darkly funny, bitingly observant, and frighteningly plausible, The Screw Turns - Vol. 2 is perfect for readers who love:
- Satire with teeth
- Final Destination-style inevitability
- Monkey's Paw twists without the supernatural
- Medical, industrial, and workplace realism
- Tragedy wrapped in humor
- Karma-swift, ironic, and occasionally catastrophic
With stories originally published in Physician's Weekly, plus several brand-new and previously unreleased tales, this anthology offers a binge-worthy collection of misadventures, miscalculations, and meticulously engineered downfalls.
Turn the page.
Make a wish.
See what happens next.
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