REVIEW: “Everything Is Idaho” by Eliza Sullivan

Review of Eliza Sullivan, “Everything Is Idaho,” Luna Station Quarterly 58 (2024): 213-234 — Purchase online. Reviewed by Sara L. Uckelman.

It’s an apocalyptic story, but one that feels very “samey”. We don’t know any details about the apocalypse, such as what caused it; we just know the aftermath, and it feels as if it could be any apocalypse. Maybe this makes the story universal, allowing the reader to fill in the gaps and adapt it how they wish; or maybe it just makes it underdeveloped and vaguely defined.

So if this is a vague and ill-defined post-apocalyptic story, why read this one, as opposed to any other one? I’d say, read it for the brothers’ relationship that is central to the story — that part was good. And also unbearably sad.

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REVIEW: “Who We Are” by Ana Wesley

Review of Ana Wesley, “Who We Are,” Luna Station Quarterly 57 (2024): 70-100 — Purchase online. Reviewed by Sara L. Uckelman.

This was a beautifully rich story (almost novelette/novella length, though I’m not sure of exact wordcount) — full of intriguing characters set against a well-constructed backdrop, the sort of story that feels like the prelude to a full-blown trilogy. And honestly, if Wesley is planning one, I’d read it.

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REVIEW: “Cedar Glen” by Alicia Adams

Review of Alicia Adams, “Cedar Glen,” Luna Station Quarterly 57 (2024): 222-239 — Purchase online. Reviewed by Sara L. Uckelman.

This story had an eerie, slightly surreal quality to it — you can tell from the start that something is wrong even if you can’t tell what. It sort of feels like the two characters are the only people in the world who missed the memo about Covid lockdown.

We never get any answers, just a growing sense of doom. It was gripping, and really sad.

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REVIEW: “A Pound of Flesh” by K R Samp

Review of K R Samp, “A Pound of Flesh,” Luna Station Quarterly 57 (2024): 246-257 — Purchase online. Reviewed by Sara L. Uckelman.

Oooh, this was a good story. First, the basic premise: Sometimes the witch is the one who is cursed rather than the one who curses — amusing and clever, right? It starts off with all the basic haunted-house tropes, but not too many that the reader gets bored or irritated. And then there are a hint or two dropped so that there’s a point where I suddenly sucked in my breath and went “OH, I know what kind of story this is!”, and then gulped in the rest avidly to see if I was right or not.

AND I WAS. If you want a joyful, glorious, witchy, trans-positive story, read this.

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REVIEW: “Lost Souls” by Rae Maybee

Review of Rae Maybee, “Lost Souls,” Luna Station Quarterly 57 (2024): 240-245 — Purchase online. Reviewed by Sara L. Uckelman.

There was something about this story that really took me, sucked me in and made me love it, even though a lot of its external trappings are things I don’t ordinarily like. Maybe it was the combination of 2nd person with the subjunctive — instead of the narrator telling me how I do feel, they told me how I might feel — if only I did the right things, went the right places, asked the right questions. So this story allowed me to inhabit a “what if,” which is, honestly, what we want our stories to do.

It was short, it offered me a few minutes escapism, and it delivered on that — equal parts fairy tale and a tale of how we’d want people to respond in the actual world. All in all, it was really good stuff.

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REVIEW: “Souls on the Open Plane” by Remy Welch

Review of Remy Welch, “Souls on the Open Plane,” Luna Station Quarterly 57 (2024): 176-195 — Purchase online. Reviewed by Sara L. Uckelman.

This story, told through alternating diary entries, introduces us to Lyre, a human scientist on an expedition space ship, and Bob, a Ragak who works in her lab. The entries are distinctive in voice in a way that conveys Bob’s alien-ness very effectively, and there is a rich sense of development. This was a strong debut publication for Welch — I look forward to reading more by her!

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REVIEW: “The Fish Who Dreamt of Dragons” by Lilia Zhang

Review of Lilia Zhang, “The Fish Who Dreamt of Dragons,” Luna Station Quarterly 57 (2024): 156-175 — Purchase online. Reviewed by Sara L. Uckelman.

Xinyue is the last member of the Crescent Moon sect — more than that, she is the Crescent Moon sect — and while other warriors discount her at first, her prowess earns her fame as she travels the world. When a fisher village is beset by a deadly spirit, Xinyue meets Wanyue and takes on her first disciple. Xinyue and Wanyue then travel together, until Xinyue’s fame catches the attention of the emperor and fate catches up with her — a fate that only Wanyue can rescue her from.

I don’t get to read much Wuxia in English — so I really enjoyed this!

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