“When You (Don’t) Get Better” has the cantor and voice of a creation story, it's poem with a how-we-came-to-be narrative that has a serious, urgent tone and that carries with it some semblance of a (dark) fairy tale. Remember Rage, the cocktail inspired by the poem, is a building storm of pear & apricot with ginger and lemon and floral heat buried beneath.

Cocktails for Lesser Known Monsters of the 21st Century, written by Kim Fu and published by Tin House, are as unique as the collections stories and include caviar and sleep aids. The collection itself is a blunderbuss blast of modern anxious, existential issues presented in twelve speculative fiction short stories that oscillate between genre, from sci-fi and fantasy into horror and even finding their way into a whodunit mystery and erotica.

“testify” by Dr. Eve L. Ewing is the dose of hopeful energy you didn’t know you were in need of, & with assertive positivity each line of the poem swells & expands until you’re enveloped and embracing the small beauties found in your days, thankful. Get Lifted, the cocktail inspired by the poem, is a bright and floral drink with chamomile-infused Reposado Tequila and perfect for toasting to the everyday joy in your life.

“Shit Face” by Amy Lynne McKenzie, and published online at The Kenyon Review, is a maximalist dervish hellbent on whirling you towards it’s clever emotional twist and what remains after the dust settles is a story that gobsmacks and wounds, leaving you blindsided by the unexpected but well-earned turn of events. Devil’s Night is a Daiquiri of sorts that uses a compound syrup made from Daily’s Strawberry Daiquiri, and a Habanero Tincture brings some sweet heat to mix

“A Duck Walks into a Bar”, written by Joshua Bohnsack and published at AGNI, is a feel-good story about a mom, her autistic son, and a classic joke that defies the literary story’s all too common interest in the darker side of people. The cocktail inspired by it, Quackers & Juice, is also light in nature. A riff on a Garibaldi, this cocktail uses Apple Juice, Vermouth, and Goldfish-Infused Gin.

“Study Abroad”, written by Cassie Burkhardt and published online at Rattle, is a bittersweet reminder why we look back through the windows of our memory, and its cocktail is an espresso martini that replaces vodka with cognac, creating a bold, cherry-spiced core around which crème de cacao, cherry heering, and chocolatey amari are wrapped.