SHORT STORIES Karantha Fish - Amal Singh What is the value of religion and tradition if it prevents us from helping those we love? Perhaps the consequenSHORT STORIES Karantha Fish - Amal Singh What is the value of religion and tradition if it prevents us from helping those we love? Perhaps the consequences of transgression shall be enlightening. Ok
Longevity - Anya Ow If a person's life doesn't have freedom or meaning, then why continue living? Quality of life is more important than quantity. Changes in the short term are possible and must be balanced against the long term. Ok
All That We Leave Behind - Charlie Hughes A book club meets to go over their latest read, which none of them remember suggesting, let alone how they got the book. They read it, mournfully, but now none of them want to discuss it, but they must. They must. Meh
Twelve Aspects of the Dragon - Rachael K. Jones Teases a relationship with a fantastic creature. Blah
Meeting in Greenwood - R. K. Duncan A secret British agency composed of mystics travels through time and location using mythological means in order to stop the opposition. For this story it's American Lost Cause Goldwater Republicans who want to use Nixon to advance their hatred. Blah
The Pigeon Wife - Samantha H. Chung My first thought about this was whether it had any relation to the videogame Hatoful Boyfriend. Apparently it's based off of a Korean folktale. I don't dislike it, but I really don't understand the metaphor that is their social arrangement. Specifically, a woman buys/captures a pigeon that turns into a man that resentfully provides for her, often receiving nothing in return. Assumedly that has something to say about modern Korean relationships, but apparently the other Korean media I've seen didn't have anything I can relate to this to. When I tried to look up the original folktale, which seems to be the Snail Bride, I came across the concept of Gireogi Appa (goose dad), which was something I didn't know happened and was interesting. Meh
Los Pajaritos - Sam W. Pisciotta The Little Birds is about the protagonist creating an artificial sparrow, which are extinct, between remembering the decline and death of the love of their life, whose spirit animal was a sparrow, in a collapsed world. Meh
Pluto and Tavis D Work the Door - Brooke Brannon Yet another story where I don't know whether I understand what I'm reading or not. I assume this is meant to be magical realism with horror elements. Two young Hispanic males in Miami are accosted by a white woman in what they believed to be a safe space who wants to appropriate their life story. I don't know whether I understand the relevance of the ending or what it's meant to represent. I'm just left confused and unable to enjoy. Blah
Indigena - Jennifer Maloney A body horror story about humans and alien plant life. Blah
New Stars - Christopher Crews A father and his sons watch racing space ships controlled by AI, one of which is based upon his father, their grandfather, the last of the human pilots. Will AI be able to become heroes and inspirations to the next generation as humans once were? Meh
High Tide at the Olduvai Gorge - Kedrick Brown Alien humans conqueror Earth very easily. They proclaim equality through meritocracy for anyone Respectable, which in practice only means them. Meh
Prisoner 121 is Guilty - Renee Pillai A forbidden romance because of social caste leads to her lover's death. She awaits her own sentencing and out of guilt immediately pleads guilty and tells her story. The ending is a punchline to a dark joke. Ok
NOVELETS Portrait of a Dragon as a Young Man - J. A. Pak After losing a battle against far more experienced dragons, Faine, still in early childhood, finds himself being nursed back to health by a woman and his first love. He takes on human form and so begins the tale of his childhood, by which he means several centuries, among the local humans. Enjoyable
Fools and Their Money - Meighan Hogate An avian scavenger with perfect memory has severe problems with orienting himself in time. This makes for a rather fun framing device. The scavenger makes their money by guiding would-be heroes, but all often they're entirely disrespectful to him so he leads them to their demise, and loots their corpses. Enjoyable
NOVELLAS The Many Different Kinds of Love - Geoff Ryman with David Jeffrey On Enceladus, a moon of Saturn, an abiotic intelligence in the form of a research station has been tasked with finding life and prospecting for minerals. On its own, it would not be able to carry out its missions, so it has a vast sample of biotic memories to give it direction and meaning. Permissions however can only be granted from the biotics on Earth. The biotic memories have an exploration vessel named dolphin that travels around the moon mapping and investigating, which creates post-biotic memories. The story is narrated through the perspective of the research station, though biotic memories are also interspersed as well. This serves at least two purposes. One is to show how biotic and abiotic intelligences can complement and co-exist. The other is an interweaving of hard science fiction and emotional storytelling, showing that they don't have to be mutually exclusive and can co-exist within the same story. Maybe it shouldn't be, but I find this to be a great accomplishment. I don't know how well it will work for others, perhaps I was easily impressed by it, though that doesn't make it any less impressive for me. Highly Enjoyable...more
NOVELLAS Refugees - Robert Grossbach Literal illegal aliens, minuscule in size, seek asylum in Long Island from their government. A lengthy court case eNOVELLAS Refugees - Robert Grossbach Literal illegal aliens, minuscule in size, seek asylum in Long Island from their government. A lengthy court case ensues. Ok
NOVELETS The World, A Carcass - Rich Larson Her royal parents have died. She's fourteen. Now she must live with her uncle who wants to marry her off, which is where she meets a man called Nothing. A gothic fantasy story. Ok
Babylon System - Maurice Broaddus A story about for-profit prisons and their relation to slavery in the Albion colony of America. It's very much about religion and oppression. This was written to provide more information about a character, a Rastafari, from one of the author's steampunk novels. Ok
SHORT STORIES A Father's Hand - Stephanie Kraner A nice little post-apocalyptic story of a boy and his adopted father, a robot. Explores what it means to sentient in different ways and how to determine when it's time to let go. Ok
Dontay's Bones - Danian Darrell Jerry Afro-Futurism Hood Life filled with stereotypes, but it's okay because the author is Black. Maybe it's intended to be a depiction of lived experiences. It wasn't something I was able to enjoy. Blah
Goodwill Objects - Nina Kiriki Hoffman First word is "CDY", which later is Cody. I don't know if it's particular to the digital edition, but I've been noticing considerably more obvious errors like this in recent issues. It's distracting. A weird story about a strange relationship. This could be probably be easily repurposed as a creepypasta. A guy gets a package that has a plastic baby that talks to him. Meh
Severed Fruit - Pan Morigan A story about dying and being unhappy with the life that comes after death. Disillusionment for all follows. Somewhat reminiscent of A Christmas Carol, though of a tyrant rather than a miser. I appreciate the expressed sentiments. Unfortunately this is a only a fragment concerned with making a statement. Meh
Molly Whuppy - Corey Flintoff A take on a Scottish fairy tale that I hadn't heard of before. Blah
Drunkard's Walk - Jason Enge Apparently one of several stories about a drunkard wizard not doing well in life. Seems to be a mythology inspired sword and sorcery tale. Meh
The Plus One - Marie Vibbert A Mars habitat is a harsh place to live. I assume it's about the homelessness crisis in the US and the unwillingness of employers to not fully exploit their employees. It's certainly about devaluation and dehumanization, especially of those with mental health concerns. Also, it's a mystery about why someone died which leads to the practical concerns of speaking truth to power. Enjoyable
When the Water Stops - Eugen Bacon Several connected flash fiction polemics about a world where climate change has wrecked everything. I'm sympathetic to everything stated within, but I'd rather not read absurd caricatures and pure emotional appeal. Blah...more
NOVELETS The Music of the Siphorophenes - C.L. Polk A non-binary space pilot is starstruck by a female pop star who wants to listen to the singing of thNOVELETS The Music of the Siphorophenes - C.L. Polk A non-binary space pilot is starstruck by a female pop star who wants to listen to the singing of the siphorophenes, a sentient spacefaring species that are able to travel through the vacuum of space without a ship. After that's resolved, it shifts to being about emotional disclosure, which is facilitated by (view spoiler)[ mind-melding. (hide spoiler)] Blah
Mannikin - Madeleine E. Robins A mother fearing for the life of her newly born boy asks a witch to cast a permanent illusion so that she can raise her son as a daughter. This causes problems later on in their life. This is entirely a plot device and not about sexual politics, which was surprising. It's basically a fable. Meh
In the Garden of Ibn Ghazi - Molly Tanzer According to the author this is a fictionalized account of the time when she thought she had read a story with this title but she wasn't able to find any evidence that it had ever existed. This left her with no choice but to write a story where the character discovers that the story exists and explains why she wasn't able to find it herself. She then becomes part of the story. Ibn Ghazi is a reference to the Powder of Ibn-Ghazi which is an event card that appears in the Call of Cthulhu: The Card Game Arkham Edition and was the inspiration for this story. Meh
Jack-in-the-Box - Robin Furth A journalist for Country Life magazine comes to Blackthorn manor. She's taken on a tour by a six-year old boy which becomes ever more macabre as she's exposed to the family's dysfunction. Ok
SHORT STORIES Crazy Beautiful - Cat Rambo AIs programmed to value art above all else go rogue. Meh
The Bletted Woman - Rebecca Campbell A rather morbid story. "Bletting is a process of softening that certain fleshy fruits undergo, beyond ripening." It ends with (view spoiler)[zombies (hide spoiler)], which is well, whatever. Ok
Our Peaceful Morning - Nick Wolven The animal revolution has begun. All animals shall be made sapient. There's a lot of sociopolitical commentary involved though it's also meant to be humorous. Ok
Minstrel Boy Howling at the Moon - B. Morris Allen A guy plays a harmonica which causes inexplicable events to occur. Meh
Character - Harry Turtledove A self-deprecating metafictional tribute to Peter S. Beagle. The character is aware he's a character in this story but there isn't anything he can do about it. Enjoyable
The Pizza Boy - Meg Elison He may be the last Pizza Boy. It's an extremely arduous task to make and deliver them when seemingly everything and everyone in space is trying to kill you and every single ingredient is exceedingly difficult to acquire. His ship is in disrepair and his family is dead. Ok...more
NOVELLAS The Dark Ride - John Kessel A story about Leon Czolgosz with additional material to be appropriate for inclusion. MEH
NOVELETS Interludes with theNOVELLAS The Dark Ride - John Kessel A story about Leon Czolgosz with additional material to be appropriate for inclusion. MEH
NOVELETS Interludes with the Gunwright - Jonathan L. Howard A story of a soldier and a Gunwright, both women, who just can't quit each other. OK
Bible Stories for Adults, No. 51: The Great Fish - James Morrow A mother and son are swallowed by The Great Fish and inside are biblical prophets and a few others. There's also a demiurge. MEH
SHORT STORIES Integral Nothings - Robert Reed Stories of those living through the "Blessings", which is an external force ostensibly developing Earth into Paradise. This may be message fiction, but I'm not quite sure who the message is for. Somewhat humorous in terms of schadenfreude. OK
The Diamond Family Glitters - H. Pueyo A Portuguese Jewish family living in Brazil have "brilliance", mostly assorted psionic powers, but some are more abstract. They've gathered to observe the passing of a relative, and perhaps their gifts as well. MEH
A Little Knife Music - Jenn Reese Moderately similar to Ken Liu's The Hidden Girl. It differs in that the protagonist is a teen assassin who has sex with his male partner and wonders if maybe the Princess would be better. OK
N-raptured - Justin C. Key A hilarious satire about saying the N-word. Woke Aliens, as the text says, carve the numbers of times a white person has said the n-word into their forehead. Seven strikes and that person becomes a rat. Yes, a certain "rat with orange tufts of fur over its eyes" makes an appearance. HIGHLY ENJOYABLE
Hard! - Van Aaron Hughes A father doesn't want his son to think he's a "weeb", maybe a mistype for dweeb because there's no indication that's what's actually meant, so he takes him to a curling game to meet his son's friends who he only knows from online games. Then it goes silly in a way that I wasn't amused by at all. Not my kind of humor in the least. BLAH
Litter Witch - Susan Palwick I usually don't like allegories. This wasn't an an exception. An abused teenager runs away into the woods and becomes a witch and recluse, but eventually wonders if there's more to life after a fateful meeting. BLAH
Wild Geese - Lavie Tidhar In this "post-post-cyberpunk", as its described, two friends and a sentient wise-cracking van go on a wild goose chase in the Gobi desert, but this goose isn't an animal. OK
The Piper - Karen Joy Fowler A charismatic military recruiter, the piper, tricks young men into joining his army of probably Danes to invade probably England. The unnamed male protagonist is expected to marry the prettiest and nicest girl, but he plans to marry the disabled girl because he'd be useful to her. He really wants to marry his friend Henry though, because he has such big thoughts. OK
You Make the Best of What's Still Around - Paul di Filippo A satirical exposé of Best-of-the-Year anthologies. ENJOYABLE...more
NOVELETS The Bahrain Underground Bazaar - Nadia Afifi An old woman is constantly experiencing in VR the memories of those who committed suicide in prepaNOVELETS The Bahrain Underground Bazaar - Nadia Afifi An old woman is constantly experiencing in VR the memories of those who committed suicide in preparation from her own death from cancer. One of the dead fascinates her and she becomes obsessed. In the end she decides that, (view spoiler)[ life is worth living despite suffering and she wants to live it to fullest and to the very last moment with her family. (hide spoiler)] OK
La Regina Ratto - Nick DiChario Three rats begin talking to the unbelieving protagonist and give him their terms of cohabitation. They become great friends. He then becomes involved with a Queen Rat and the story takes a turn for the strange to where I don't know if it was metaphorical or literal. MEH
How to Burn Down the Hinterlands - Lyndsie Manusos A female blacksmith is very angry and for valid reasons. I felt like I was reading fanfiction. BLAH
The Glooms - Matthew Hughes The seventh Baldemar story. He had thought his adventuring days were all behind him, but the past and wizards have a way of catching up in ways unsuspected. OK
A Tale of Two Witches - Albert E. Cowdrey This was dark. It would have been a lot darker if the events were described rather than having been said to have happened. This story was a content warning overload which I thought about listing but I'd rather not. The protagonist is an older woman with a sixth sense investigating a missing children case. OK
A Civilized and Orderly Zombie Apocalypse per School Regulations - Sarina Dorie Exactly what it sounds like for this 6th grade class. In this world zombie attacks seem to be a regular occurrence. Ending Spoiler: (view spoiler)[ No one survives (probably). Much cannibalism ensued. (hide spoiler)] OK
SHORT STORIES The Homestake Project - Cylin Busby Beware what lurks deep within the Earth. (view spoiler)[ Parasitized by creatures miles below the surface. (hide spoiler)] BLAH
On Vapor, Which the Night Condenses - Gregor Hartmann The latest in a series of interconnected stories. Once again a murder in the far future must be solved, this time involving an atmospheric fragrance artist. ENJOYABLE
The Silent Partner - Theodore McCombs An antique dealer finds more than he bargained for in an elderly woman's house. BLAH
Skipping Stones in the Dark - Amman Sabet An AI on a generation ship decides the fate of its passengers and those who want to be individuals who aren't devoted to the collective are dealt with. MEH...more
NOVELLAS Of Them All – Leah Cypess This is the 3rd cynical fairy tale from this author. Upon her birth, Princess Margarete was visited by a fairy who stNOVELLAS Of Them All – Leah Cypess This is the 3rd cynical fairy tale from this author. Upon her birth, Princess Margarete was visited by a fairy who stated, "You will be beautiful only to those who wish you harm." Would Margarete ever find someone who would love her without thinking she's beautiful? Margarete also has a tendency to cultivate hatred so that others will think she's ever more beautiful. I continue to find myself surprisingly pleased by these stories, though less surprised now that this is the third time. ENJOYABLE
NOVELETS The Shadows of Alexandrium – David Gerrold In the Alexandrium everything that exists, could have existed, and never could have existed are available for viewing by tourists. All possibilities exist, they only wait for you to create them from your imagination. However, be careful what you imagine, because the consequences may be all too real. OK
My Name Was Tom – Tim Powers In a superstructure ship where people don't remember that they don't remember, a man explores hoping to find both his lost love and the legendary bridge where the captain resides. An intriguing story whose sense of hiraeth I was inadequately able to empathize with, but I enjoyed anyway. It reminded me of a few other moderately similar stories of exploring a mysterious location. It may be self-referential, Tom is only a letter away from Tim. Ending sentence: (view spoiler)[I hope to at least not go forward. (hide spoiler)] ENJOYABLE
The Fairy Egg – R.S. Benedict The story alternates between the narratives of the wife and husband. The wife is trying to do everything she can to make their lives better and displays quite a bit of ingenuity. However, the husband (view spoiler)[ posts in the relationships section of symposia (reddit) about his woes to an unsympathetic audience. One user tells him to come a different section where he will be with like-minded fellows of the manosphere. Thus begins his decline into madness, which is exacerbated by being obsessed with videos from a guy who seems to be a mix of Jordan Peterson, Alex Jones, and various other similar figures. He begins spending almost every waking hour watching videos and discussing with others who affirm his ideals. This could have been just as easily been about the current state of 4chan. (hide spoiler)] I looked for reactions to this story and found two. One said it was "nasty" and "something I didn't need to read" and the other said "the parallels between New Age and male 'empowerment' madness make the story stand out." Maybe it was just me, but the magical realism in this story seemed superfluous and unnecessary and probably would have done better if played straight, but without these concessions it couldn't have appeared in the magazine I suppose. While it's moderately provocative, I don't think it's going to garner much reaction by those who would be offended by it, if only due to lack of exposure. ENJOYABLE
SHORT STORIES Weeper – Marc Laidlaw The 10th story in 25 years for these characters. The two primary characters are a bard whose whose hand turned to stone and a gargoyle whose hand turned to flesh. OK
Do AIs Dream of Perfect Games? – Angie Peng A "we live in a simulation" story discovered through baseball. OK
The Martian Water War: Notes Found in an Airlock – Peter Gleick This is his 1st published SF story, at 70 years old. You may have heard of him before for his work in environmental studies and activism, especially in terms of water resources. You may also have heard about his brother, James Gleick. The title is self-explanatory and briefly chronicles the events that led to it. It's a recapping of events rather than the events themselves, so it's entirely telling and no showing. This may have been better served by doing a story about near future Earth rather than Mars. MEH
Little and Less – Ashley Blooms A girl with dead parents in a dead world is living out in the woods, setting traps to injure rather than kill, as both animals and people are grateful to her when she rescues them. BLAH
The Cry of Evening Birds – James Sallis A wife requests for a service to erase part of her husband's memory in the hope that by doing so, he'll be able to move on with his life. BLAH
The Dog and the Ferryman – Brian Trent A dog appears before Charon at the River Styx. Confusion ensues and he realizes that no one has died for centuries. To find out what this means he goes to the world of the living to discover why this is. OK
This World Is Made for Monsters – M. Rickert This is M. Rickert 25th appearance...one of our most prolific contributors these past twenty years Aliens arrive in a town and then they hold an annual alien festival. Years go by and the younger generation sees no value in it. It's basically a "Ok boomer" story written by a baby boomer. BLAH
Keeping up the ISBNs, or, Mary Sue, C'est Moi - Paul Di Fillipo The beginnings of a dystopia where individualized self-help and self-insert books become one and the same and are filled with extremely effective product placement to where the reader adopts the lifestyle acquires the material possessions of the protagonist which somehow leads him to Living His Best Life but it's implied at the end that his fate will soon have a far darker turn. MEH...more
NOVELLAS Chisel and Chime - Alex Irvine A story about hitobashira, which is human sacrifice to appease the gods for protection after something has been NOVELLAS Chisel and Chime - Alex Irvine A story about hitobashira, which is human sacrifice to appease the gods for protection after something has been built. OK
NOVELETS Save, Salve, Shelter - Essa Hansen Pasha is a collector trying to save the genetic profiles of as many species as possible, which will buy her a spot in the final spaceships leaving Earth with the last remaining humans, but that is only secondary to saving as many live animals as possible. She feels much more comfortable with animals than with people and effects of DNA corruption are far less evident to her than she believes. ENJOYABLE
Air of the Overworld - Matthew Hughes The continuing adventures of Baldemar. OK
Banshee - Michael Cassutt Chinese scientists have perfected transitioning humans into whatever what they want to be. The 64 year old male protagonist is the program director for a private spaceship company. His daughter has transitioned into a (view spoiler)[velociraptor (hide spoiler)] and neither he or her mother know how to feel about it. Most of the story is office politics. In the end (view spoiler)[transitioning becomes accepted by society and the discrimination against them is greatly lessened and only astronauts who have transitioned into forms suitable for long-term spaceflight are allowed (hide spoiler)] OK
Falling Angel - Albert E. Cowdrey Male and female duo investigate the supernatural in L.A. BLAH
SHORT STORIES Elsinore Revolution - Elaine Vilar Madruga, translated by Toshiya Kamei Female AI protagonist escapes the AI patriarchy. BLAH
The Key to Composing Human Skin - Julianna Baggott Let's use viruses to create propaganda rashes on people! Even better, let's use the virus to (view spoiler)[project their memories so that no one can hide anything from anyone (hide spoiler)] OK
Interlude in Arcadia - Corey Flintoff Male Feminist thinks himself to be a Good Ally but because of Misunderstandings that shouldn't happen because he's a College Professor of Greek and Roman Literature and thus above reproach his day goes very wrong. MEH
Three Gowns for Clara - Auston Habershaw A cynical pastiche of fairy tales. ENJOYABLE
The Nameless - Melissa Marr Men are rapacious wolves and all women must violently stand against them. BLAH
The Leader Principle - Rahul Kanakia Corporate influencers have taken over and many people give everything they have for nothing in return due to their parasocial relationship. OK...more
NOVELLAS Come the Revolution - Ian Tregillis Maklobellathistrogantus, mab for short, is a mechanical (robot) of the guild of the Brasswork Throne. Set iNOVELLAS Come the Revolution - Ian Tregillis Maklobellathistrogantus, mab for short, is a mechanical (robot) of the guild of the Brasswork Throne. Set in roughly the 1700s or 1800s Netherlands. A story of mechanical slavery. It's a prequel to his The Alchemy Wars trilogy. The story reminded me a lot of Detroit: Become Human. ENJOYABLE
NOVELETS Kikelomo Ultrasheen - Dare Segun Falowo Hairdressing sure is magical. BLAH
The Last Legend - Matthew Hughes A promising young boy has dreams of greatness but lives a life misery. Will he ever be able to achieve his dreams? OK
Hacksilver - Elizabeth Bear A man who went a-viking returns after eight years to his family home, to find much has changed. This is much more legend than fantasy. ENJOYABLE
Death on the Nefertem Express - Brian Trent The Nefertem Express is a treaded vehicle heading ever westward to avoid the dawn that incinerates everything. This is its first run. Five passengers are aboard and one of them intends to murder all the others, but who is it? OK
SHORT STORIES The Million-Mile Sniper - S.L. Huang An analysis of an omnidoc (movie) that informs the reader of the differences between the dramatization and actual events. MEH
Red Sword of the Celiac - John Possidente A review of a fictional novel trilogy about an immortal monster protagonist that eats people. OK
Say You're Sorry - Amman Sabet Our world as it is except that saying "Sorry" can cause immediate and inexplicable calamity. MEH
A Solitary Crane Circles Cold Mountain - Gregor Hartmann Lili is a sociophysicist developing the ideal society for a generation worldship that will take 400 years to reach its destination without any of the 18,000 passengers in stasis. The setting is China in maybe a century or two hence, with a world in chaos, and a culture ruled by what would currently be considered as social justice eco-terrorists. HIGHLY ENJOYABLE
A Feast of Butterflies - Amanda Hollander Strange modern fairy tale of a constable searching for a Judge's son and a girl who eats butterflies. BLAH
Hungry is the Earth - William Ledbetter Alien berries infects their hosts so they can spread across the galaxy and be planted on every planet. BLAH
The Man I Love - James Patrick Kelly The protagonist runs a bar he inherited from his uncle. It's only open on Mondays. All its patrons are ghosts. OK...more
NOVELETS Spirit Level - John Kessel Guy sees the ghost of his ex-wife even though she's alive and other supernatural happenings as well as various interNOVELETS Spirit Level - John Kessel Guy sees the ghost of his ex-wife even though she's alive and other supernatural happenings as well as various interpersonal problems. BLAH
All Hail the Pizza King and Bless His Reign Eternal - David Erik Nelson See post image/magazine cover. A pizza oven is possessed by a demon and they have to fight it. Includes uxoricide, cannibalism, mental illness, Seinfeld, Bitcoin, and other stuff. OK
'Omunculus - Madeleine Robins A wealthy nobleman hires an engineer to develop an automaton that can speak like a human and learn. He identifies it as female, because it is subservient to him. A woman's liberation story follows. OK
The Monsters of Olympus Mons - Brian Trent The exhibits at the Martian Museum of Colonial History are far more than what they seem. OK
SHORT STORIES Knock, Knock Said the Ship - Rati Mehrotra A Lunarian refugee and a spaceship AI who tells jokes may be the only chance they have when their spaceship is boarded. ENJOYABLE
Last Night at the Fair - M. Rickert An aged woman laments her loss of innocence and childlike wonder, but perhaps there's a way to regain it one last time. BLAH
Bible Stories for Adults No.37: The Jawbone - James Morrow Biblical fanfiction more or less. BLAH
Madre Nuestra, Que Estas en Maracaibo - Ana Hurtado Grandmother is dying. Daughter doesn't want her to. Granddaughter says she wants to. Conflict ensues. BLAH
A Bridge from Sea to Sky - Bennett North An orbital elevator is in disrepair and due to government malfeasance this leads to events that no one expected, perhaps least of all the protagonist who sets them into motion. ENJOYABLE
Crawfather - Mel Kassel A family has hunted a massive crawdad for many generations and it has become an annual tradition to do so, even though from time to time family members die. This year it goes differently. I couldn't help but to think about Crawmerax the entire time. OK
The Staircase - Stephanie Feldman Contemporary urban legend silliness that is meant to be unsettling but falls flat for me. BLAH
The Shape of Gifts - Natalia Theodoridou Bird researchers fall in love with each other at their remote outpost. However, one of them isn't what they seem and tragedy unfolds. OK...more
NOVELLAS Byzantine - Holly Messinger A young boy and an ifrit use each other in the last days of Constantinople. ENJOYABLE
NOVELETS Stepsister - Leah CypesNOVELLAS Byzantine - Holly Messinger A young boy and an ifrit use each other in the last days of Constantinople. ENJOYABLE
NOVELETS Stepsister - Leah Cypess A quite darkly amusing continuation of Cinderella taking place 5 years after she marries the Prince, now the King. The protagonist is the King's brother. ENJOYABLE
Birds Without Wings - Rebecca Zahabi A horror story about monsters that steal the bodies of others. Very similar to Shucked - Sam J. Miller which ran in the same issue as her previous story, which I quite disliked. MEH
Who Carries The World - Robert Reed I want to enjoy Reed's various Great Ship stories and novels, but I can't and it's unfortunate. This particular one is about a nigh invincible immortal, most people are now, searching for a girl he had last seen 12,000 years ago. MEH
SHORT STORIES Hornet and Butterfly - Tom Cool and Bruce Sterling A jumbled and nonsensical mess of a cyberpunk story set in a raft refugee city and then mainland China. It's unfortunate because I've enjoyed some of Sterling's short fiction. BLAH
Eyes of the Forest - Ray Nayler Humans settle on a new planet, but the surface's flora and fauna are too deadly so they live underground. Those who dare brave the surface are called Wayfinders. ENJOYABLE
Warm Math - Rich Larson Two men are in an escape pod which needs to lose a lot more mass for one of them to survive. One man is in an escape pod and he needs to lose a lot more mass if he's to survive. MEH
An Indian Love Call - Joseph Bruchac Since 1971, Bruchac has published more than 120 books. Guy makes a potion which attracts a female bigfoot to him and demands they find her a mate or else. MEH
In the Eyes of Jack Saul - Richard Bowes This is both historical fiction and fanfiction of The Picture of Dorian Gray. OK
Another Fucken Fairy Tale - M. Rickert A 98 year old woman meets a very rude female fairy. OK...more
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