Review of Laurel Beckley, “Love and War Aboard the Peregrine Zircon”, Luna Station Quarterly 46 (2021): Read online. Reviewed by Sara L. Uckelman.
This was a lovely sweet wlw romance with the added bonus of more than one nonbinary character. With the addition of a dash of political intrigue and heartbreak, you’ve got a winner of a story here.
Review of B. Zelkovich, “That Which Illuminates Heaven”, Luna Station Quarterly 46 (2021): Read online. Reviewed by Sara L. Uckelman.
Are you looking for a very sweet, very cute queer romance set in space with a determined matchmaker AI? Then, oh, my goodness, is this the story for you! It was an utter delight from the first to the last, with just the right ending.
Review of Sameem Siddiqui, “Dancing with Ereshkigal”, Clarkesworld Issue 176, May (2021): Read Online. Reviewed by Myra Naik.
A poignant story that goes all over our solar system and spans goddesses, non-binary characters, low-gravity art forms, and dance. Our protagonist narrates the story as if they are speaking to Pyn, their spouse. The narrator has created, or rather been swept into, a different sort of life since they met Pyn. As we learn more about them, both individually as well as as a couple, we see things are different from what the narrator had initially believed. A moment of clarity reshapes much, so that the dance of the goddess makes more sense.
A lovely story, and I don’t say this just because I already have a weakness for goddesses in fiction.
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!
Review of Rocky Breen, “Skyboss”, Luna Station Quarterly 44 (2020): Read online. Reviewed by Sara L. Uckelman.
Camille has dreamed of going to the stars ever since third grade, and while a chance to cover the Strato Circus’s show in honor of the comet Stephan-Oterma isn’t quite the same thing, it’s still closer than anything else she’s achieved — but the assignment isn’t without its dangers, or its costs.
For being set in the future, there was a delightfully steam-punk feel to this story. It was also exceptionally realistic; every step of Camille’s journey into the stratosphere felt believable and relatable. This was a seriously gripping story which I really enjoyed.
Review of Amanda Baldeneaux, “Crab Pots”, Luna Station Quarterly 44 (2020): Read online. Reviewed by Sara L. Uckelman.
Skyla’s life is ordinary, mundane, and miserable — husband, two children, no more job once she had her children, doing all the parenting while her husband loafs amongst the crab pots. “Weekends always made her feel like a failure,” we are told, and it that sentence I, and I am sure many other readers will see themselves reflected. The most exciting thing in her life is the gift of a new bikini, and even that comes with demands. There’s no way she could wear it without at least getting waxed. “If her family would just leave her alone she could get everything done without falling behind” — another line that will hit close to home for many mothers.
It’s a cliche to say “everything changes when” but everything does change for Skyla when Gwyn, the optometrist’s office manager, invites Skyla and her sons to an anti-circus protest — after all, mermaids weren’t meant for captivity.
Review of Priscilla Kint, “The Legend of Emma Sondheim”, Luna Station Quarterly 44 (2020): Read online. Reviewed by Sara L. Uckelman.
Emma works in a timetraveling circus, the only life she’s ever known. No one ever leaves the building that houses the circus, because no one ever knows when the circus might decide to up and leave to another time, leaving them stranded where they are forever. But Emma is tired of being trapped, and willing to risk anything to escape.
I thought this was a novel take on the topic, and felt that Kint’s story captured the sinisterness of circuses exceptionally well.
Review of Piper, “The Dog and Pony Show”, Luna Station Quarterly 44 (2020): Read online. Reviewed by Sara L. Uckelman.
There were bits and parts of the story I really liked — the description “The reality-broken world was dangerous, with so many structures and safeguards failing, and so many people failed to manage themselves or cope or be kind in their new circumstances” felt very real in our post-Covid world — while other parts, especially towards the beginning, I found too disjointed and didactic for my tastes. It wasn’t until the very end of the story that the twist came that made this a distinctive circus story, rewarding the reader for their perseverance.
Review of Jennifer Lyn Parsons, “Silks”, Luna Station Quarterly 44 (2020): Read online. Reviewed by Sara L. Uckelman.
This was the third circus-themed story I’d read in this issue of LSQ, which prompted me to actually read the editorial — the entire issue is circus-themed, so maybe I should not have been so surprised to be reading so many circus stories!
I liked this one for its wlw storyline, but I felt it was rather lacking on actual story content.
Review of Lisa Gregoire, “To the Pole™“, Luna Station Quarterly 44 (2020): Read online. Reviewed by Sara L. Uckelman.
Content note: Animal cruelty.
This was a novel take on climate change fiction, with a humorous twist throughout, and a killer final line. I really enjoyed this story!
SFF Reviews