REVIEW: “Mrs. Robinson” by Veronica L. Asay

Review of Veronica L. Asay, “Mrs. Robinson,” After Dinner Conversation 3, no. 12 (December 2022): 5-25 — Subscribe here. Reviewed by Sara L. Uckelman.

(Note: After Dinner Conversation pairs spec fic stories with philosophical reflection questions. In some reviews, I’ll engage with the questions; in some, I won’t.)

This was a proper Gothic tale, hitting the right notes of ludicrousness and horror, and providing a suitable setting for the moral quandary that Asay wanted to interrogate. The final reflection question paired with this story, “To what extent should we judge Benedict or the narrator by modern values given that they were working within the unjust rules of inheritance and prejudice of their time
period?”, is one of the more interesting questions that have been asked concerning the stories I’ve read in this issue, and I suspect is one that would lead to lively conversation.

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REVIEW: “Lev’s Pawn Shop” by Megan Neary

Review of Megan Neary, “Lev’s Pawn Shop,” After Dinner Conversation 3, no. 12 (December 2022): 83-91 — Subscribe here. Reviewed by Sara L. Uckelman.

(Note: After Dinner Conversation pairs spec fic stories with philosophical reflection questions. In some reviews, I’ll engage with the questions; in some, I won’t.)

For a journal that is ostensibly about engaging with philosophy and philosophical questions, I’ve been surprised at how big a role religion (mostly, pretty conservative Christianity) has played in the stories in this issue. This isn’t because I think philosophy and religion are antithetical to each other, but rather because I think they are not the same thing, and when I’m promised one and I get the other, that’s worth noting. I wonder what this story might have been like if instead of Lev being motivated by Bible passages, he’d read Mill on utilitarianism, or Kant on deontology, or Aristotle on virtue, and that had been what changed his behavior.

But, I enjoyed this story of redemption more than I enjoyed some of the others in this issue, so thumbs up for that.

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REVIEW: “Everyone’s Gay in Space” by Julie Sondra Decker

Review of Julie Sondra Decker, “Everyone’s Gay in Space,” After Dinner Conversation 3, no. 12 (December 2022): 109-131 — Subscribe here. Reviewed by Sara L. Uckelman.

(Note: After Dinner Conversation pairs spec fic stories with philosophical reflection questions. In some reviews, I’ll engage with the questions; in some, I won’t.)

I found this story to be a rather blunt take on the central moral issues involved — childbirth, abortion, disease, eugenics. I also found it to be full of judgement, unhappy relationships, and homophobia. The overall lack of nuance made the whole story feel very heavy-handed, and didactic, and that made it not particularly enjoyable to read. No one likes to feel that they are being moralized at.

There was also not nearly as much space gayness (gaiety?) as I expected, given the title of the story.

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REVIEW: “Sacrificing Mercy” by Henry McFarland

Review of Henry McFarland, “Sacrificing Mercy,” After Dinner Conversation 3, no. 12 (December 2022): 93-107 — Subscribe here. Reviewed by Sara L. Uckelman.

(Note: After Dinner Conversation pairs spec fic stories with philosophical reflection questions. In some reviews, I’ll engage with the questions; in some, I won’t.)

This story centers on issues of reason vs. faith, science vs. religion, and handles them in a rather direct fashion without much nuance. I found Mike, the narrator, unbearably judgemental; the few flashes of self-reflection that he demonstrated (“showing my rage would make it harder to persuade her”, p. 93) never seemed to actually effect any real change in behavior. It was no real surprise to find out he was also a lying bastard.

The only character I felt any sympathy with was Mike’s wife, Jenny; I don’t agree with her decisions, but she at least didn’t give in to the manipulation from her husband and mother, and when she realized how she’d been betrayed, she got herself out of the toxic situation she was in.

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REVIEW: “Gig Economy” by Ali MacLeod

Review of Ali MacLeod, “Gig Economy,” Luna Station Quarterly 64 (December 2025): 173-193 — Purchase here. Reviewed by Sara L. Uckelman.

I absolutely love how MacLeod plays with the reader’s knowledge of how apps like Uber work to give us enough idea of what’s going on while simultaneously making us wait a couple of pages before we find out just what kind of gig the narrator is involved in — a reveal which I found positively delightful, a real “I’m going to enjoy this story!” moment.

And I was right. It was so warm, and sweet, and funny, and it pulled at my heart-strings in the very best of ways. I loved it!

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REVIEW: “Diving Into the Wreck” by Sierra Bibi

Review of Sierra Bibi, “Diving Into the Wreck,” Luna Station Quarterly 64 (December 2025): 155-170 — Purchase here. Reviewed by Sara L. Uckelman.

20 years ago, on a dive, Sonja lost her camera — and her sister. Now, on another dive, she has found a camera; it couldn’t possibly be hers, from so long ago, and having found it, she couldn’t possibly also find her sister.

There’s a bit of horror in this story, and a bit of fantasy too, and a lot of old memories, raw grievances, and desperation, and an ending I did not expect.

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REVIEW: “Magical Thinking” by J. Amanda Ferry

Review of J. Amanda Ferry, “Magical Thinking,” Luna Station Quarterly 64 (December 2025): 73-93 — Purchase here. Reviewed by Sara L. Uckelman.

Content note: Serious childhood illness.

Where’s the border between magic and science? It’s a hard enough question for an adult to answer, much less for a 9yo like the story’s narrator, Rainbow (even a “catastrophically precocious” 9yo like Rainbow). I was a bit nervous upon starting the story, because 1st person POV where the narrator is a child often goes awry; but Ferry handles the balance between making Rainbow be a child without being childlike exceptionally well.

In many respects, this is a stark, harsh, and sad story. But it was also utterly gripping — one of the best in this issue.

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REVIEW: “Big Sister” by Jang Ami, translated by Joheun Lee

Review of Jang Ami, Joheun Lee (trans.), “Big Sister,” Luna Station Quarterly 64 (December 2025): 235-258 — Purchase here. Reviewed by Sara L. Uckelman.

Content note: Death.

There’s something about the classic fairy tale style that seems to transcend cultures — I was surprised at how familiar the archetype of this story (originally written in Korean) felt, even while none of the characters or elements or tropes were themselves familiar. It made the story both comforting and eerie; and with the final twist being saved for the very end, it kept me hooked until the final page.

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