REVIEW: “Possibly Just About A Couch” by Suzanne Palmer

Review of Suzanne Palmer, “Possibly Just About A Couch”, Clarkesworld Issue 205, October (2023): Read Online. Reviewed by Myra Naik.

An absolutely beautiful story of a couch. It just was, it always was. With shades of the iconic Douglas Adams, I loved every sentence, every description, and every transition in here.

I have previously reviewed and loved other Suzanne Palmer stories, so I already knew it was going to be amazing. It was even better than that.

A concise history and future of the universe as we know it, from an exceedingly interesting and unique point of view.

I have only good things to say: read it as soon as you can! It’s only a little more than 2000 words, and more than worth the time spent reading it.

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REVIEW: “Babirusa” by Arula Ratnakar

Review of Arula Ratnakar, “Babirusa”, Clarkesworld Issue 185, February (2022): Read Online. Reviewed by Myra Naik.

A beautifully engaging novella with so many elements, twists and surprises that I was reluctant to put it down whenever real life called.

Roop and Kabir are the brother-sister duo I never knew I needed in fiction. The richly layered portrayal of their relationship adds so much depth to the story.

I was especially impressed by the level of scientific detail, as well as the character’s well-rounded and interesting personalities. Would definitely recommend this story, especially if you’re interested in the idea of consciousness and individuality. Especially as seen through the lens of a human society farther advanced than us – one with the skillset to program and modify a human being.

This is going to be one of my most recommended stories for people wanting to explore the world of short SFF.

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REVIEW: “The Direction of Clocks” by Jess Levine

Review of Jess Levine, “The Direction of Clocks”, Clarkesworld Issue 185, February (2022): Read Online. Reviewed by Myra Naik.

Time-related stories strongly appeal to me, irrespective of actual plot. In this story, the protagonist travels in a starship solo, through time dilation. This means that she spent three years on the starship, while almost a century has passed in earth years. She left her friends, family, and relationship to escape through time.

**Spoiler:**
Once she reaches a space station, a stop on the way to continuing her journey rimward, she learns that relativistic journeys are no longer allowed, and she would have to spend the rest of her days on the space station.
**Spoiler ends**

Her journey of growth and self awareness make up a large part of the story, but I would have really liked it if the story explored more of her “why”, or how she grows through different situations. Or showcase her maturity. Not all characters need to be likable, so I’m not going to count that against this story.

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REVIEW: “The Old Moon” by John McNeil

Review of John McNeil, “The Old Moon”, Clarkesworld Issue 185, February (2022): Read Online. Reviewed by Myra Naik.

A robot who believes in spirituality meets a sentient plant that has faith in physics above all. An interesting concept, for sure.

The robot’s backstory gave quite a bit of depth to the story, and as a reader, I could understand their internal struggle to try and reconcile this new information with their existing belief system. Beliefs that had so far been taken for granted.

But knowledge brings power and sometimes the necessity of unfortunate choices. An unexpectedly emotional story.

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REVIEW: “Informed Consent Logs from the Soul Swap Clinic” by Sarah Pauling

Review of Sarah Pauling, “Informed Consent Logs from the Soul Swap Clinic”, Clarkesworld Issue 185, February (2022): Read Online. Reviewed by Myra Naik.

With an interesting concept of swapping your souls into other bodies, I was hooked from the beginning.

It was fun getting into the mindset of the technician, and the two swappers, RED and BLUE. While it was a good look into how people prioritize certain qualities and attributes, I ultimately felt it was an unjust and unfair conclusion, and I felt it could have been executed in a way that didn’t lead to one person getting misled into a disappointing existence.

Essentially, I liked the concept and prose, but not the unsatisfying conclusion that disregards the wishes of another human being on purpose, with no empathy shown towards their vision or goal.

** At the risk of a spoiler, I can only hope I misunderstood what happens to RED.

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REVIEW: “You’re Not the Only One” by Octavia Cade

Review of Octavia Cade, “You’re Not the Only One”, Clarkesworld Issue 185, February (2022): Read Online. Reviewed by Myra Naik.

A very emotionally resonant story, and one that deserves to be read slowly and savored.

Set in the nebulous future, the story revolves around an astronaut and his friend, both dealing with their own disappointments. What I loved about this story was their sympathy for each other, and how they provided each other with space and dignity to handle grief in their own way.

I liked how the author portrayed in the children in this story as people capable of feelings, empathy, and curiosity. I genuinely believe that children are capable of a lot, and sometimes as adults we forget what it was like to be a child with questions and the burning desire for knowledge and understanding. I have rarely seen this level of respect for emotion and dignity in writing. For this alone, I want to read more of Cade’s work.

More than anything else, however, what I loved was how community-minded all the characters in the story were. For me, it was a dazzling display of humanity, and it felt both sad and natural that it would take a massive catastrophic event on a global scale for people to develop compassion towards each other. The people in this story truly understood that we’re all in this together. In this life, on this planet, in the decisions we take.

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REVIEW: “The Plasticity of Youth” by Marissa Lingen

Review of Marissa Lingen, “The Plasticity of Youth”, Clarkesworld Issue 185, February (2022): Read Online. Reviewed by Myra Naik.

Jess is pregnant, and going to her scheduled doctor visit. She is stopped because of a raven that decided to eat her tires. Her daughter, when born, seems to be a bit different, but healthy. Over time, we learn that it’s not just tires; it’s just not ravens. A lot has started to charge.

I really like this type of story, where the world sort of changes without it having been done by humans. The humans are simply trying to navigate this world, just like everyone and everything else does.

It was strongly emotional, and I say this in the best possible meaning of the phrase.

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REVIEW: “The Massage Lady at Munjeong Road Bathhouse” by Isabel J. Kim

Review of Isabel J. Kim, “The Massage Lady at Munjeong Road Bathhouse”, Clarkesworld Issue 185, February (2022): Read Online. Reviewed by Myra Naik.

A well-structured story about Jinah, who works at the bathhouse. She has the ability to see and scrape off the scales on her clients’ bodies – scales that show the effect of choices.

These translucent scales turn opaque over time, at which point they cannot be scraped off, signifying the calcification of the choices they make.

At one point in the story, Jinah needs to make a choice. Does she think scraping off her own scales would be worth it?

An insightful, well written story. The characters have a lot of depth, too.

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REVIEW: “For Whom the Psychopomp Calls” by Filip Hajdar Drnovšek Zorko

Review of Filip Hajdar Drnovšek Zorko, “For Whom the Psychopomp Calls”, Clarkesworld Issue 184, January (2022): Read Online. Reviewed by Myra Naik.

This story can be described by one of the few words that comes up in the story via the psychopomp: melancholy.

A story that keeps you on edge in a variety of ways. My only (minor) issue is that the human sometimes reacts in a heightened manner to things. A tad unrealistic, but then again, nobody’s perfect and maybe this particular human is like that? So, not really an issue with the story, just that aspect of the characters personality.

The writing style itself was on point for the kind of story it was. The great pacing added a lot, too.

Highly recommended. The ending is particularly heartbreaking.

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REVIEW: “Learning to Hate Yourself as a Self-Defense Mechanism” by Andrea Kriz

Review of Andrea Kriz, “Learning to Hate Yourself as a Self-Defense Mechanism”, Clarkesworld Issue 184, January (2022): Read Online. Reviewed by Myra Naik.

The narrator’s friend made a virtugame that featured their relationship. It also included a slightly fictionalized version of the narrator, a hurtful one at that.

You know that moment when you discover that someone you thought of as a friend just thought of you as a means to an end, a joke, or perhaps both?

That’s what our narrator faces, and then makes a choice. An insightful story into interpersonal relationships, especially with people who think of you in a much different way than you think of them.

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