Review of Lindz McLeod, “On the Wing,” Flash Fiction Online 126 (March 2024): 18-20 — Purchase here. Reviewed by Sara L. Uckelman.
Content note: Infidelity.
It felt a bit like this story was a dare, to see how many bird metaphors and bird images McLeod could fit into one story. There were a lot: all tastefully and effectively used, but leaving me wondering, why all the birds.
(Originally published in Bear Creek Gazette, 2022).
Review of Jennifer Popa, “Make an X, Then Another,” Flash Fiction Online 110 (November 2022): 16-18 — Purchase here. Reviewed by Sara L. Uckelman.
It’s always a bit curious coming across a non-speculative story in Flash Fiction Online, because I’m never sure which rule to follow, namely, the rule that we review spec fic here, or the rule that we review every single story in an issue here; I’ve opted to follow the latter rule here. What I love about spec flash fic is the craft of fitting in an entire world into a single story; literary fic doesn’t need to build a world before a story can be told, it can simply rely on the reader’s knowledge of their own world. Because of this, Popa’s story felt as if it were much longer than it actually was — you can just tell a lot more story when it’s not speculative. As a result, even though this was one of the shorter pieces in the issue, it was still a satisfying, if non-speculative, read.
Review of Susan Taitel, “Can Someone Tell Me What Kind of Moth This Is?,” Flash Fiction Online 110 (November 2022): 12-14 — Purchase here. Reviewed by Sara L. Uckelman.
This story was billed as horror, but it mostly made me laugh (especially the ending, brilliantly constructed). However, if you have a fear of moths, maybe avoid this one!
Review of Dafydd McKimm, “The Flamingo Maximizer,” Flash Fiction Online 110 (November 2022): 8-11 — Purchase here. Reviewed by Sara L. Uckelman.
Someone must have fucked up at the zoo,
is a great opening line, and also a clear and succinct description of the premise of the story. Someone has fucked up, and now there are flamingos, bright and pink, across the grey backdrop of Wales.
Equal parts funny and sweet, just a little bit terrifying and a little bit thought-provoking, this was a bright gem of a story in a doldrum day.
Review of Jennifer Hudak, “The Weight of It All,” Fantasy Magazine 83 (September 2022): 10-18 — Read online. Reviewed by Sara L. Uckelman.
Content note: Disordered eating.
Maybe this is a ghost story; I don’t know. Maybe it’s a story about someone who only wants to be other than they are — I don’t know that either. But there was something peculiarly longing in this story that caught hold of me right in the initial lines, and kept me wanting more.
[And considering that I’d left this story towards the end of the issue to read and review because of its length, getting close on to 5k when I’ve been struggling, struggling to read fiction lately, this really is a testament to the power and quality of this story.]
This story is an absolute triumph.
Review of K. S. Walker, “How to Join a Colony of Sea-Folk, or Other Ways of Knowing,” Fantasy Magazine 83 (September 2022): 21-25 — Read online. Reviewed by Sara L. Uckelman.
Sometimes I read a story and it just isn’t for me. That’s what Walker’s story — of waiting for lost love to return from the sea, of seeking a route to the sea to find them — was, unfortunately. This was, I think, primarily because the structural and narrative choices made prevented me, rather than helped me, connect to the characters. So it felt more like a chore to read than a story.
Others who don’t share my structural and narrative preferences may enjoy this more.
Review of Samantha Murray, “This Blue World,” Fantasy Magazine 83 (September 2022): 19-20 — Read online. Reviewed by Sara L. Uckelman.
Ghost stories aren’t usually my thing; stories told in 2nd person POV aren’t usually my thing. Yet Murray’s 2nd-person-POV-ghost-story was EXACTLY my thing, one of those wonderful surprises that shows you just how the flexibility of language can result in something so enjoyable.
Review of Jen Brown, “The Probability of One,” Fantasy Magazine 83 (September 2022): 6-8 — Read online. Reviewed by Sara L. Uckelman.
This was quite a complex story for how short it was; I started it, got lost, had to start it again, got distracted, started again before I really go stuck into it. It feels like it skirts the barrier between very clever and unreasonably opaque. I’d rather not decide for myself, but encourage everyone to give it a go. At the very least, it’s short, and if you reach the end still confused, it’s okay — it’s short. And even at the end there’s something that leaves me thinking “I wish I understood more.”
The author bio says that Jen Brown writes “otherworldly tales about Black, queer folks righteously wielding power.” For that reason alone, I’d read this story.
Review of Sharang Biswas, “I Kissed a Dragon,” Fantasy Magazine 83 (September 2022): 29-30 — Read online. Reviewed by Sara L. Uckelman.
This poem had some nice turns of phrases, but overall I felt like it was lacking in substance, with just a few too many stereotypes.
Review of Angel Leal, “The Hole is the Beginning,” Fantasy Magazine 83 (September 2022): 27-28 — Read online. Reviewed by Sara L. Uckelman.
This lovely poem touched me, particularly some of the lines towards the end:
These children may not feel connected,
but it’s their otherness that connects them.
It’s about motherhood and otherness and how in the best of worlds the children we love, we love whoever they are.
SFF Reviews