Review of Melissa Schnarr-Rice, “What the World Takes,” Luna Station Quarterly 22 (2015): Read online. Reviewed by Sara L. Uckelman.
This was an extremely vivid and extremely sad post-apocalyptic story. It was quite a bit longer than many LSQ stories, but it drew me in from the very start and kept me wanting to read more.
Review of Megan Patton, “The Reluctant Author,” Luna Station Quarterly 22 (2015): Read online. Reviewed by Sara L. Uckelman.
This story was absolutely, brilliantly, deliciously creepy. Have you ever struggled with writer’s block? Do not read this story.
Review of Grace Chan, “He Leaps for the Stars, He Leaps for the Stars”, Clarkesworld Issue 178, July (2021): Read Online. Reviewed by Myra Naik.
I do love futuristic fiction where the protagonists are really sweet and a little different from the usual science-oriented folks. This piece of speculative fiction was set in a future where people have soma projections of themselves and can go wherever they please, without actually going anywhere.
Yennie lives exactly such a life, and he’s a musical star on the rise. But does he want the success because he wants it himself, or because he was genetically selected and predetermined to want it?
Freedom, but not really. Happiness, but maybe not truly. Privacy, not even a pretense of. But hope, friendship and love finds a way.
Review of Heather Kamins, “Feasting,” Luna Station Quarterly 23 (2015): Read online. Reviewed by Sara L. Uckelman.
This started off a sweet little story about a ghostly tea party, but it took a rather more sinister turn about halfway through. Just creepy enough to count as horror, but not so creepy as to be too scary to be enjoyable, if you’re not a horror fan.
Review of Karen Osborne, “Promises We Made Under A Brick-Dark Sky”, Clarkesworld Issue 178, July (2021): Read Online. Reviewed by Myra Naik.
Just beautiful. This issue starts off strong and how! Our narrator is a strong, courageous woman and contributes greatly to the beauty of this story.
I’ve said beauty twice already, and I realize that this story really is deserving of that adjective, though the description of the world and the lives lived within it are often anything but.
Osborne’s vivid imagery and fresh descriptions add a different texture to the story, and her clever use of language reveals all in due time. A stark world, a type of God, fear and mistrust, love, code and prayer, and above all, hope.
Review of Cristina Jurado, “Embracing the Movement”, Clarkesworld Issue 177, June (2021): Read Online. Reviewed by Myra Naik.
A fantastical tale of a strange sort of first contact. Things don’t go the way you may anticipate. There’s delicious buildup about existence in outer space and the different kinds of lives people live. It also features a very creepy payoff.
Different sorts of living spaces, structures and communication types exist in our universe. We have barely begun to understand this universe, and stories like this throw that fact into sharp relief.
A subtle queasiness exists throughout the story. If you enjoy feeling creeped out, this one will be right up your alley.
Review of Steve DuBois, “Warlord,” Flash Fiction Online 87 (2021): Purchase here. Reviewed by Sara L. Uckelman.
Content note: Cockroaches.
Ever since childhood, Kobi has been attended by a horde of bloodthirsty, talking cockroaches. Now, the presence of cockroaches isn’t generally something that will get me all het up for a story, but I’m not so creeped out by them as to stop reading. I read “Warlord” in a state of mixed horror and amusement — on the one hand, cockroaches, on the other hand, as far as Kobi’s concerned, they’re Cinderella’s mice. Which is hilarious. To sum it up: This story is quite the ride.
Review of Isabel Lee, “Your Brother’s Touchestone,” Luna Station Quarterly 47 (2021): Read online. Reviewed by Sara L. Uckelman.
It’s never a good sign when I start reading a story going “ugh, 2nd person POV. I hope it’s not too awful…” While it was by no means awful — LSQ doesn’t publish awful stories! — it was not, in my opinion, a story that was improved by the use of the 2nd person POV. I would have loved to have read a version of this story told in a more traditional format. Because the basic premise — Hana’s little brother Phillip has a tendency to disappear, literally, leaving her to pick up the pieces — was cool, and there were some very sweet and touching moments in it, and a twist near the end that I didn’t expect.
So, if you’re not like me and don’t mind 2nd person POV stories, definitely read this: I think you’ll like it.
Review of Susan E. Rogers, “The Keeper”, Luna Station Quarterly 47 (2021): Read online. Reviewed by Sara L. Uckelman.
Content note: Death.
This was a lovely little story about the passing down of collective memory from one generation to the next — every family needs to have someone who is the Keeper of their memories. There was very little truly speculative about the story, but I didn’t mind; sometimes it’s okay to just have a good yarn, without overburdening it with fantastical elements.
Review of Yukimi Ogawa, “The Shroud for the Mourners”, Clarkesworld Issue 177, June (2021): Read Online. Reviewed by Myra Naik.
Beautifully written, and set in a hauntingly different world. I enjoyed the glimpses into the different kinds of people there, both human and Android.
Two craftspeople work at a pattern atelier – helping patterned people deal with anomalies in their intricate skin patterns. They get involved in a sort of medical mystery. The source turns out to be unexpected and sentimental.
Another tale that follows this issue’s theme (based on my personal inference) of identity and the different ways it can manifest.
The whole situation occurs due to differences in how your identity decides how exactly things pan out. A thoughtful tale that will stay with you.
SFF Reviews