REVIEW: “No Laughter in a Vacuum” by Anna Clark

Review of Anna Clark, “No Laughter in a Vacuum,” Flash Fiction Online 143 (August 2025): 12-15 — Purchase here. Reviewed by Sara L. Uckelman.

Ellen — described by her ex-girlfriend as a personality vacuum all the way down — secures a job that exploits this: She absorbs other people’s social defects so they can more successfully navigate their lives. As we (the readers) get to see what social defects it is that her clients choose for her to erase, the story becomes a more and more uncomfortable read.

On one level, this is a story of masking, and it’s such a real and raw and realistic story of masking, I almost wanted to put a content note at the start of this review, not necessarily to warn people off from the story, but at least to warn them of it. I think the ending is intended to be happy one, but I was too caught up in what came before to find any joy in the resolution.

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REVIEW: “Kolumbo 1619: Choose Your Own Adventure” by KÁNYIN Olorunnisola

Review of KÁNYIN Olorunnisola, “Kolumbo 1619: Choose Your Own Adventure,” khōréō 4, no. 4 (2025) — Read online. Reviewed by Sara L. Uckelman.

Content note: Racism, police brutality, murder.

This is a “choose your own adventure” through systematic racism in early 20th C America, over and over and over again. It’s the sort of story that never in a million years could I have ever written, because it is so far removed from my own (privileged!) experiences: I can only ever hope to get a glimpse of understanding of these experiences by reading about them. It’s a tough read, but I’m glad I had the opportunity to do so.

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REVIEW: “The Secret” by Fumio Takano, trans. by Sharni Wilson

Review of Fumio Takano, Sharni Wilson (trans.), “The Secret,” khōréō 4, no. 4 (2025) — Read online. Reviewed by Sara L. Uckelman.

Roughly a hundred years into the future, the division between the haves and the have-nots has become even further entrenched; this story is the story of two “have-nots” on opposite sides of a century who have each ended up making a living for themselves in an unexpected way. What connects them is the Mistress, who holds an unexpected secret.

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REVIEW: “The Trauma Tourist” by Christos Callow Jr.

Review of Christos Callow Jr., “The Trauma Tourist,” khōréō 4, no. 4 (2025) — Read online. Reviewed by Sara L. Uckelman.

Content note: Suicide, torture simulation, cultural appropriation.

The capitalist idea of turning trauma into a source of income isn’t one that feels very far-fetched at all, though I confess to wondering a bit about the psyche of the people who would actively choose to consume such a product. But that’s precisely why it makes such a great idea for a story!

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REVIEW: “Recitations” by Jacob Baugher

Review of Jacob Baugher, “Recitations,” Flash Fiction Online 142 (July 2025): 8-11 — Purchase here. Reviewed by Sara L. Uckelman.

Sometimes all an author has to do to win me over is provide me with one great phrase. As soon as I read “as if thoughts and prayers were an actual sacrifice” (p. 9), I knew that Baugher could do practically nothing to ruin his story for me. But even without this masterful piece of wordcraft, I’d’ve still enjoyed this beautifully imagined story.

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REVIEW: “This Island Towards Which I Row and Row, Yet Cannot Reach Alone” by Jennifer Lesh Fleck

Review of Jennifer Lesh Fleck, “This Island Toward Which I Row and Row, Yet Cannot Reach Alone,” Flash Fiction Online 141 (June 2025): 8-12 — Purchase here. Reviewed by Sara L. Uckelman.

I love it when a title is almost an entire story in itself.

I love it even more when the story that goes with the title is not at all what I thought it would be, and yet the title is exactly right for the story.

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REVIEW: “Fatherhood” by Vrinda Baliga

Review of Vrinda Baliga, “Fatherhood,” Luna Station Quarterly 62 (June 2025): 227-240 — Purchase here. Reviewed by Sara L. Uckelman.

Content note: Pregnancy after infertility; pregnancy complications (positive outcome); eugenics.

Dr. Mishra’s entry into fatherhood isn’t at all what he hoped it would be: First, unexpected complications result in an emergency c-section for his wife; then, there’s a surprise inspection at work. Unfortunately, the research that his lab conducts and the child who will hopefully soon be coming into the world are intimately connected, and not necessarily in a good way! This is a story of administrative paperwork and interfering relations, of science fiction becoming fact, and of a whole new form of fatherhood. Even though I could see pretty close from the start where the end was going to be, this was still an enjoyable read.

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REVIEW: “Our Last Celebration” by Susan Webster

Review of Susan Webster, “Our Last Celebration,” Luna Station Quarterly 62 (June 2025): 215-225 — Purchase here. Reviewed by Sara L. Uckelman.

Content note: Euthanasia.

There was something about this story that didn’t sit right with me, that felt a bit “off”. I couldn’t help but read about the celebration and wonder: How rich did one have to be, in this post-apocalyptic setting, to get to have a last celebration? (Rachel drives a BMW, so: rich enough, at least!) What about all the others — the young cadet who guards the gate, the two women whose responsibility it is to ensure the celebration is a success? What will happen to them? Do they ever have the chance to escape for a celebration, or are they fated to only serve the ones who are rich enough?

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