Short Reviews of Short SFF
Review of J.V. Gachs, “Hubris’ Nest”, Luna Station Quarterly 45 (2021): Read online. Reviewed by Sara L. Uckelman.
What happens when a member of an immortal race has the temerity — indeed, the Hubris — to die? The answer in this amusing story is, it does not go particularly well! Gachs gives us a novel premise and a satisfying ending, a well-crafted tale.
Review of Marie Vibbert, “Second Hand Destinies”, Analog Science Fiction and Fact March/April (2021): 139–145 (Kindle) – Purchase Here. Reviewed by John Atom.
Tatiana is troubled young woman living with her brother and grandmother on a battered space-station that barely works. She is not the real Tatiana, but a tentacle creature – a symbiote/parasite – that has taken her form. Her brother and grandmother know this, but are happy to have her in their lives. One day, a damaged spaceship carrying a royal fugitive lands on their station, bringing all sorts of trouble for the unorthodox family.
Vibbert is great at establishing mood and this story is no exception. There are a few great moments in the story that create a rich and complicated universe in just a few paragraphs (or a few line of dialogue). However, after a rather tense climax, the author opts for a conveniently “happy” ending that doesn’t quite land, in my opinion. Still, this is very much a story worth reading.
Review of Charles Hand, “The Pond Who Sang”, Analog Science Fiction and Fact March/April (2021): 132–135 (Kindle) – Purchase Here. Reviewed by John Atom.
Due to a plane crash, a scientist’s revolutionary neural network device falls into a pond where it interacts with the local flora and fauna to become sentient. A perplexed musicologist who lives nearby attempts to understand the sounds that are coming from it.
“The Pond Who Sang” has a poetic quality about it that I enjoyed very much, even though I don’t think the artificial neural networks described in the story are accurate at all. Otherwise there’s little that stands out about this piece. It’s a nice little tale about nature, AI, and the fateful convolution of the two.
Review of James Van Pelt, “I Have Loved the Stars Too Fondly”, Analog Science Fiction and Fact March/April (2021): 129–131 (Kindle) – Purchase Here. Reviewed by John Atom.
Earth (or perhaps America) is starting to colonize the Moon, and the homeless are among the first to get there. It’s a chance to start fresh, though not everybody believes in this chance.
A thoroughly enjoyable story, even if it does not necessarily have a sense of direction. It feels more like a snapshot of a hypothetical future, rather than a proper narrative. Nevertheless, the snapshot that it presents is very compelling and the story makes a strong case for the humanity of its characters (e.g. the references to old poems by the main character, etc.). Despite the story’s brevity, there’s a lot of depth in Gregory’s character, whose optimistic view of the future leaves the reader hopeful. Much like a lot of us in these difficult times, he can’t help but see an end to his struggles in his new endeavor.
Review of Aimee Ogden, “THH*SH*THHH”, Analog Science Fiction and Fact March/April (2021): 78–79 (Kindle) – Purchase Here. Reviewed by John Atom.
Teller attends the funeral of a member of a near-immortal species, who died unexpectedly as result of of an accident. The rest of the species have a hard time coping with that being’s death.
The author employs a variety of linguistic tools to emphasize the “alieness” of the “THH*SH*THHH” species (such as different pronouns), which I found more distracting than immersive. By the end, the story doesn’t offer much to help the reader empathize with the alien’s struggle to accept death.
Review of Gabrielle Roselynn Dina, “The Dragon Hunter’s Daughter”, Luna Station Quarterly 45 (2021): Read online. Reviewed by Sara L. Uckelman.
An excellent story with the feel of a classic fairy tale.
Review of Jerry Oltion, “If a Tree Doesn’t Fall”, Analog Science Fiction and Fact March/April (2021): 69–74 (Kindle) – Purchase Here. Reviewed by John Atom.
During a camping trip in the woods, Vance discovers an antigravity device up on a tree. Thinking it as humanity’s solution to the climate crisis, he risks his life to collect it.
This is a simple and straightforward story, effective without relying on many bells and whistles. Vance’s excitement about the antigravity device and his herculean attempts to recover it from the tree are conveyed excellently by the author and create enough tension to make the reader care about the outcome. I’m not sure if Vance’s optimism about the device is warranted, but I doubt the author intended for the story to have any prophetic value. Overall, a delightfully entertaining read.
Review of Anonymous, “Blood Feathers”, Luna Station Quarterly 45 (2021): Read online. Reviewed by Sara L. Uckelman.
This is a story of a woman who is lost inside herself, lost inside the trapping of being a woman, being a mother, being “a support, a failsafe, for her family.” She doesn’t have time for friends, for hobbies, for anything more than a linear life of one thing after another. But there’s more to Ren’s life than that, and we the readers are given intermittent glimpses, as the unfamiliar breaks through the routine, as the fantastical interferes with the normal, as Ren herself tries to reconstruct the memories she once lost. It’s an eerie, unsettling story, smashingly done.
Review of Greta Hayer, “The Blinded God”, Luna Station Quarterly 45 (2021): Read online. Reviewed by Sara L. Uckelman.
I love a short story that can convince me it has an entire world built behind it in the very first sentence, and this story is one of those. A pure joy to read, from start to finish.
Review of Hayli McClain, “Heaven-Bound”, Luna Station Quarterly 45 (2021): Read online. Reviewed by Sara L. Uckelman.
College student Ann — disowned by her family, with no friends or connections, no one to miss her — goes off into the woods one night, intending to disappearing. Instead, she meets Percy, who is trying to pull down the moon, and all in the name of true love.
This was an absolutely adorable and delightful love story and I really enjoyed it!
SFF Reviews