REVIEW: “A Thousand Tiny Gods” by Nadia Afifi

Review of Nadia Afifi, “A Thousand Tiny Gods”, Clarkesworld Issue 179, August (2021): Read Online. Reviewed by Myra Naik.

Technology has grown to the extent that nanobots are used for preventative medicine as well as cosmetic treatments.

As with all new tech, there are feelings of general and vague mistrust among the common public, but one much-loved and popular wife of a high-ranking minister is trying to change that perception.

With Manal, our protagonist and a senior programmer for the nanobots, she works towards acceptance. In the process, Manal becomes a stronger, more determined person as well.

A tightly paced story of power, vulnerability, and realizing that real change takes time.

myra naikLeave a comment

REVIEW: “Osteography” by JL George

Review of JL George, “Osteography” Cossmass Infinities 5 (2021): Read or purchase online. Reviewed by Sara L. Uckelman.

I found this a confusing read, constantly having to scroll back up to connect names to characters, referents to pronouns; it took me more than two pages before I discovered that “Shardon” is the name of a settlement, not of a person. I think I could have enjoyed this more if the set-up and structure had been clearer from the start.

Sara L. UckelmanLeave a comment

REVIEW: “The Quickening and the Canker” by David Cleden

Review of David Cleden, “The Quickening and the Canker” Cossmass Infinities 5 (2021): Read or purchase online. Reviewed by Sara L. Uckelman.

When “quantum scale weirdness [rises] up to poison the macro-scale world”, things do not go well. That’s the setting/premise for this story, that quantum fluctuations give rise to the quickening, which in turn is linked to the canker, both of which can only be identified, or stopped, through observation. There are too many possibilities until one definite reality is observed.

I really enjoyed this innovative take on quantum uncertainty.

Sara L. UckelmanLeave a comment

REVIEW: “Ornithomancy” by Elizabeth Hinckley

Review of Elizabeth Hinckley, “Ornithomancy,” Luna Station Quarterly 48 (2021): Read online. Reviewed by Sara L. Uckelman.

Tirza has won a lottery place in the next emigration to Sumeria and is unhappy about leaving her father behind, so she goes to an ornithomancer for advice (Ornithomancy is sort of like tarot, but with birds instead of just cards — but unlike ancient Greek divination, doesn’t involve any entrails.) The advice she gets forces her to confront her relationship with her father, in a way which I found extremely personal and touching and very real. Not every person is cut out to be a parent; not every person is very good at being a child. And yet, Tirza and her father find, in the end, a way to make it work. I liked the raw edges of this story, and its hopeful ending.

Sara L. UckelmanLeave a comment

REVIEW: “Candide; Life-” by Beth Goder

Review of Beth Goder, “Candide; Life-”, Clarkesworld Issue 179, August (2021): Read Online. Reviewed by Myra Naik.

A hauntingly beautiful story. The August issue starts off strong!

Seva is a lovely person – a focused, determined, and talented musician. One day, she experiments with a different form of art called emotion capture, one that she has no training or practice in.

Self-doubt is but a natural part of the process of learning something new, but having people who support you goes a long way. Here, it goes in the other direction. But strength comes to us in many different ways, and so it does for Seva as well.

A story about different types of art, trust, self worth, emotions, feelings, and the particular feeling of taking a leap of faith.

myra naikLeave a comment

REVIEW: “Indulgence” by Tammy Salyer

Review of Tammy Salyer, “Indulgence,” Luna Station Quarterly 21 (2015): Read online. Reviewed by Sara L. Uckelman.

This is a post-apocalypse story, in which the end of the world was heralded by the introduction of biotags, embedded under the skin of every person, containing their identity and all their health information. These biotags are scanned during food purchases, so that permission can be granted for the individual in question to purchase that particular food. It’s a great story premise: Enormously creepy because it is so damn believable that this could happen at some point in the future, and the way things unfold is all so plausible. And despite the premise the story is based on, one of the other great things about it is its enormous dose of body positivity.

Sara L. UckelmanLeave a comment

REVIEW: “Last Nice Day” by Rich Larson

Review of Rich Larson, “Last Nice Day”, Clarkesworld Issue 178, July (2021): Read Online. Reviewed by Myra Naik.

Our protagonist fancies himself a character out of a book. From the very beginning of the story, you can see that he narrates things, and has an internal dialogue with the reader. As a fictional character, he is a transparent and well-informed one. He talks about flashbacks, narrative styles, supporting characters, and Chekhov’s gun.

It transpires that he also has a subself – he’s a type of agent, a government- trained operative. One who has secret missions. His subself is the one who handles that bit, but to what extent has he been affected by this? Is the pretense at being a fictional protagonist his way of coping? Or is it something else entirely?

There are many elements at play here, and the vivid descriptions add a enjoyable layer to the story.

myra naikLeave a comment

REVIEW: “The Falling” by M V Melcer

Review of M V Melcer, “The Falling”, Clarkesworld Issue 178, July (2021): Read Online. Reviewed by Myra Naik.

The world is falling, and there is a race against time and a “monster” in the sky that’s coming to devour the world.

The engineers try as hard as they can to save the world, but the most they have been able to do is delay the inevitable. After a few years our narrator then becomes an engineer and works to make the world safe, even while trying to escape the clutches of the solar system devouring monster.

This world works on points allotted to everyone, based on which they can live and work in particular rings. It’s not a very pleasant way to organize a society, but people have accepted it. And just like humanity in general, here too there is a streak of happy abandon, even while being acutely aware of the grave possibilities.

There are secrets, classified information, and terrible choices for people to make, and the narrator makes their own choice at the end.

myra naikLeave a comment

REVIEW: “Daughter of the Sun” by A.E. Ash

Review of A.E. Ash, “Daughter of the Sun,” Luna Station Quarterly 21 (2015): Read online. Reviewed by Sara L. Uckelman.

Dr. Lian Leandros is the only one left alive on the crippled space ship Aldebaran. Once she has sent out a distress signal, there is nothing left for her to do but wait.

It’s a premise that sets a story up for nothing happening: And yet, even though very little does happen in it, the way Ash brings the reader into Leandros’s world, helps us to understand her mind, is compelling and enjoyable, and in the end extremely beautiful.

Sara L. UckelmanLeave a comment