Review of Myna Chang, “Ten and Out,” Flash Fiction Online 151 (April 2026): 20-23 — Purchase here. Reviewed by Sara L. Uckelman.
This story was both perfectly formed in its flash fic form, and something where I would happily read the 300-page version of the same story. The characters could have been put into pretty much any genre or context, and I would have loved them just as much.
Review of David Farrow, “The Last Eleven Seconds,” Flash Fiction Online 151 (April 2026): 8-12 — Purchase here. Reviewed by Sara L. Uckelman.
Content note: War.
These eleven seconds last an eternity, and every second I took reading it, I wanted them to last even longer.
Review of Thoraiya Dyer, “You Are Invited to Our SPRING CELEBRATION”, Clarkesworld Issue 234, March (2026): Read Online. Reviewed by Myra Naik.
A story that’s beautifully wild and familiar at the same time.
One of those stories where you know the worldbuilding has been done so thoughtfully, yet the plot itself was not ignored in service of it.
I really enjoyed the narrator’s voice and personality; in my opinion it was the cherry on top that made the story what it is.
Such a pleasure to read.
Review of Bendix Ross, “Stevie,” Luna Station Quarterly 65 (January 2026): 103-129 — Purchase here. Reviewed by Sara L. Uckelman.
Far more than being a story of marine astrobiology, this is a story of a great bond of love between siblings. That was the hook that kept tugging me through to the very end.
Review of Sylvie Althoff, “Please Don’t Talk About Me When I’m Gone,” Luna Station Quarterly 65 (January 2026): 131-152 — Purchase here. Reviewed by Sara L. Uckelman.
Those who really like jazz will appreciate Althoff’s ability to pull more than twenty pages out of one improv session at a small bar on a far-flung planet. For those who could take jazz or leave it, this story is rather…long.
Review of Ashley Burnett, “Eva,” Luna Station Quarterly 65 (January 2026): 185-203 — Purchase here. Reviewed by Sara L. Uckelman.
Content note: Enslavement, prison, forced adoption, forced pregnancy.
I find that I am beginning to tire to stories where misogyny is baked into the core of the narrative — even if the narrative is one of release, and freedom, and vengeance, and retribution, of escape for the woman/women involved, I am increasingly longing for stories that imagine an entirely different way of existence.
Still, I understand the value in ones that take our world as it is, and show that we can resist, so I don’t want to speak too negatively of Burnett’s story; it’s just not the story for me, I guess.
Review of Marissa Lingen, “Person, Place, Thing”, Clarkesworld Issue 234, March (2026): Read Online. Reviewed by Myra Naik.
A story about a colony, with many subcolonies. One of those, the translator subcolony, interacts with the first humans they’ve ever come across.
They are all one, and they are all united. This story explores how these two very vastly different kinds of creatures interact.
It’s way more beautiful than that, I’m definitely not doing justice.
Such a pleasure to read.
Review of M. McNamara, “Squilla of the Flower Moon,” Luna Station Quarterly 65 (January 2026): 35-52 — Purchase here. Reviewed by Sara L. Uckelman.
Content note: Violence against women, sex work.
Bordello Bot Jenny was programmed with Level 14 curiosity, which left her unsatisfied with her intended purpose and longing for adventure. But the adventure she embarked upon wasn’t anything like what was advertised, which is how she ended up as a Bordello Bot.
This story was predicated on the violence and oppression of women and so of course the only solution available was also violent. I’m sure there are audiences for stories like this, but I’m not one.
Review of T. L. Xue, “The End of the World, Simon et al.,” Luna Station Quarterly 65 (January 2026): 15-22 — Purchase here. Reviewed by Sara L. Uckelman.
“End of the world” stories rarely contain anything new, insofar as there aren’t that many cataclysmic ways the world can end, so when this story didn’t give me anything new in terms of apocalypses, I wasn’t terribly disappointed. What this story had that was new was its framing, constructed along the lines of a scientific paper. I enjoyed that.
Review of David D. Levine, “Bend Like the Palm”, Clarkesworld Issue 234, March (2026): Read Online. Reviewed by Myra Naik.
This story is about a lot of things, and many of those are quite timely.
The worldbuilding was great. I find that a lot of times when the worldbuilding is good and you can tell the writer has spent quite some time on it, the plot suffers for it. As a reader, it makes me appreciate the world, but not the plot progression or the storyline. This story does not have these issues.
A thoughtful story with many good elements – a human story in a sci-fi setting, as good sci-fi stories tend to be.
SFF Reviews