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octavia_cade's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
medium-paced
4.0
This is an exceptionally well-curated collection, the first of its type, collecting together the best short fiction stories of the title. These are all reprints, as Year's Best collections tend to be, and I've read some of them before, but some were new to me.
My favourite was "Desiccant" by Craig Laurance Gidney, which was no surprise as it was also my favourite story in the vampire noire anthology Slay, edited by Nicole Givens Kurtz, which was where I first read it. "Desiccant" is a story of substandard housing, where the red dust that spreads over everything turns out to be more of an infestation than first suspected. It's a very original take on vampires, one overlaid with environmental justice, and I love it. A very close second place goes to a story I hadn't read before: "Giant Steps" by Russell Nichols, in which a woman eschews motherhood and her young daughter in order to be an astronaut. That's a very bare bones description, but I don't wish to spoil anything! Suffice to say, I was riveted.
As in any anthology, there's a very few stories that didn't much appeal to me, but the vast majority collected here were absolutely excellent, and all credit to Ekpeki for editing this volume, which is notable for its enormous range in story genre and theme. I look forward to this year's volume!
My favourite was "Desiccant" by Craig Laurance Gidney, which was no surprise as it was also my favourite story in the vampire noire anthology Slay, edited by Nicole Givens Kurtz, which was where I first read it. "Desiccant" is a story of substandard housing, where the red dust that spreads over everything turns out to be more of an infestation than first suspected. It's a very original take on vampires, one overlaid with environmental justice, and I love it. A very close second place goes to a story I hadn't read before: "Giant Steps" by Russell Nichols, in which a woman eschews motherhood and her young daughter in order to be an astronaut. That's a very bare bones description, but I don't wish to spoil anything! Suffice to say, I was riveted.
As in any anthology, there's a very few stories that didn't much appeal to me, but the vast majority collected here were absolutely excellent, and all credit to Ekpeki for editing this volume, which is notable for its enormous range in story genre and theme. I look forward to this year's volume!
blackmetalblackheart's review
4.0
This collection is a mix of science fiction, fantasy, and horror. Very few of the authors were familiar to me before reading the anthology. There are several 5 star short stories here. The few entries that did not work for me tended to be on the shorter side of things. Overall, an excellent selection of works with varied themes, styles, and perspectives.
entazis's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
4.0
This is a really good anthology, giving us stories covering a wide range of topics, settings, themes and motifs across the three main speculative fiction genres--fantasy, scifi, and horror. For me personally, where this book excels was with horror stories--there's a lot of chilling, atmospheric, dark stories whose ideas I just loved. But that's probably simply a personal preference for that genre.
The stories collected here are reprints from some well-known and notable speculative fiction magazines so you know you're for a good ride.
As is usually the case with anthologies, not all stories were for me, there's stuff I didn't like, but, as is also the case with anthologies, I found new, interesting authors that I definitely plan to continue reading and following.
I want to give a shoutout to some faves:
Things Boys Do by Pemi Aguda (such a fantastic dark story with beautiful prose)
The Many Lives of an Abiku, and The Goatkeeper's Harvest, both by Tobi Ogundiran (both excellent and dark with creepy children)
Desiccant by Craig Laurence Gidney (a terrifying way you could spin vampires that became so unterrifying last decade or so, to me, at least)
Dissasembly by Makena Onjerika (the writing, the topic, the idea, all of it hit me hard)
The River od Night by Tlotlo Tsamaase (another story about depression done beautifully)
This book also has my favorite story from another anthology: Egoli, by T. L. Huchu (Africanfuturism: An Anthology) which made me really happy.
The stories collected here are reprints from some well-known and notable speculative fiction magazines so you know you're for a good ride.
As is usually the case with anthologies, not all stories were for me, there's stuff I didn't like, but, as is also the case with anthologies, I found new, interesting authors that I definitely plan to continue reading and following.
I want to give a shoutout to some faves:
Things Boys Do by Pemi Aguda (such a fantastic dark story with beautiful prose)
The Many Lives of an Abiku, and The Goatkeeper's Harvest, both by Tobi Ogundiran (both excellent and dark with creepy children)
Desiccant by Craig Laurence Gidney (a terrifying way you could spin vampires that became so unterrifying last decade or so, to me, at least)
Dissasembly by Makena Onjerika (the writing, the topic, the idea, all of it hit me hard)
The River od Night by Tlotlo Tsamaase (another story about depression done beautifully)
This book also has my favorite story from another anthology: Egoli, by T. L. Huchu (Africanfuturism: An Anthology) which made me really happy.
adrinthesky's review
adventurous
hopeful
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
soilacanread_'s review
5.0
Such an interesting selection of stories from lyrical to mysterious to occultish. There's a story for everyone!
evavroslin's review
5.0
*** Review copy from NetGalley for review consideration ***
The Year's Best African Speculative Fiction edited by the phenomenal Oghenechovwe Donald Ekpeki is a comprehensive volume of science fiction, fantasy, horror, and slipstream fiction that collects the best of what African and African-descended writers have produced in the past year or so.
For those wanting more exposure and to broaden their reading of African writers, this is one of the most extensive volumes with writers both new and established including Tamara Jeree, Russell Nichols, Tlotlo Tsamaase, and many more. Some of the "new-to-me" writers included Tobi Ogundiran, Michelle Mellon, Makena Onjerika, and several others, which enhanced my reading experience.
Some of my favourite authors included within these pages were the incomparable Sheree Renée Thomas, ZZ Claybourne, and Craig Laurance Gidney. Having devoured Thomas's works in her short story collection, Nine Bar Blues as well as SLAY, edited by Nicole Givens Kurtz, it was a treat to be able to revisit some of those pieces again by one of the best short story writers today, period.
Some of the standouts for me included "Things Boys Do" by Pemi Aguda, which read to me like a fable. Cruelty didn't begin to describe what the three boys subjected the protagonist to, and the story stayed with me long after I had finished reading it.
"A Mastery of German" by Marian Denise Moore seemed at first to be about a Black man who may have participated in the jazz scene in Germany at the outset of the Second World War and into the 1940s, but quickly veered into a science fiction direction with discussions of consciousness transfer technology. The protagonist faced pressure to take on a very lucrative but stress-inducing project further complicated by issues of genetics, ethics, and even the history of Henrietta Lacks. It was an incredibly disturbing tale, and very memorable.
"Are We Ourselves?" by Michelle Mellon similarly explored notions of consciousness transfer technology, and included an interesting spin on a futuristic concept of reparations. As with many of the stories in this volumes, things were definitely not as they seemed.
"The River of Night" by Tlotlo Tsamaase was an erotic horror but also disturbing and visceral; not for the faint of heart.
It's impossible to pick a favourite in such a strong body of collected works, but one of the pieces that had the most visceral impact for me was "The Front Line" by WC Dunlap.
"Because no one cares what happens to a Black woman's body?"
"...women like you..."
"You need to lose weight."
The first part of this story connected straight to a nerve for me. The second part was horrific and harrowing, chronicling a scene we have watched and absorbed multiple times, each one an instance of racialized violence from predominantly white law enforcement which should not happen in a just society.
Libraries and bookstores should most definitely acquire this fantastic volume of short stories, masterfully selected, and I hope that as many readers as possible discover the wonders within here.
The Year's Best African Speculative Fiction edited by the phenomenal Oghenechovwe Donald Ekpeki is a comprehensive volume of science fiction, fantasy, horror, and slipstream fiction that collects the best of what African and African-descended writers have produced in the past year or so.
For those wanting more exposure and to broaden their reading of African writers, this is one of the most extensive volumes with writers both new and established including Tamara Jeree, Russell Nichols, Tlotlo Tsamaase, and many more. Some of the "new-to-me" writers included Tobi Ogundiran, Michelle Mellon, Makena Onjerika, and several others, which enhanced my reading experience.
Some of my favourite authors included within these pages were the incomparable Sheree Renée Thomas, ZZ Claybourne, and Craig Laurance Gidney. Having devoured Thomas's works in her short story collection, Nine Bar Blues as well as SLAY, edited by Nicole Givens Kurtz, it was a treat to be able to revisit some of those pieces again by one of the best short story writers today, period.
Some of the standouts for me included "Things Boys Do" by Pemi Aguda, which read to me like a fable. Cruelty didn't begin to describe what the three boys subjected the protagonist to, and the story stayed with me long after I had finished reading it.
"A Mastery of German" by Marian Denise Moore seemed at first to be about a Black man who may have participated in the jazz scene in Germany at the outset of the Second World War and into the 1940s, but quickly veered into a science fiction direction with discussions of consciousness transfer technology. The protagonist faced pressure to take on a very lucrative but stress-inducing project further complicated by issues of genetics, ethics, and even the history of Henrietta Lacks. It was an incredibly disturbing tale, and very memorable.
"Are We Ourselves?" by Michelle Mellon similarly explored notions of consciousness transfer technology, and included an interesting spin on a futuristic concept of reparations. As with many of the stories in this volumes, things were definitely not as they seemed.
"The River of Night" by Tlotlo Tsamaase was an erotic horror but also disturbing and visceral; not for the faint of heart.
It's impossible to pick a favourite in such a strong body of collected works, but one of the pieces that had the most visceral impact for me was "The Front Line" by WC Dunlap.
"Because no one cares what happens to a Black woman's body?"
"...women like you..."
"You need to lose weight."
The first part of this story connected straight to a nerve for me. The second part was horrific and harrowing, chronicling a scene we have watched and absorbed multiple times, each one an instance of racialized violence from predominantly white law enforcement which should not happen in a just society.
Libraries and bookstores should most definitely acquire this fantastic volume of short stories, masterfully selected, and I hope that as many readers as possible discover the wonders within here.
laurareads87's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
This is a fantastic and wide-ranging collection including stories of science fiction, fantasy, and horror. Editor Oghenechovwe Donald Ekpeki has truly done a wonderful job in bringing together diverse themes – parenthood, grief, gentrification, technological change, scientific ethics, racism, guilt, sacrifice, environmental destruction – in a range of genres and styles. The majority of authors included in this collection I had not read before; I am thrilled to have discovered quite a few authors whom I absolutely must read more from. Inevitably with an anthology, I enjoyed some stories significantly more than others; some stories I found too short. Overall, I enjoyed this collection very much and highly recommend it. Some of my favourite stories included:
“Things Boys Do” by Pemi Aguda – disturbing horror as three men find reason to be afraid of their newborn sons.
“Giant Steps” by Russell Nichols – the reflections of a scientist on an incredible solo space voyage. A favourite in the collection for sure.
“A Mastery of German” by Marian Denise Moore – a thought-provoking story raising issues of epigenetics, the transferability of memory, and medical ethics. An absolute favourite.
“Disassembly” by Makena Onjerika – a woman who can come apart and rebuild herself. Thought-provoking; another favourite.
“Egoli” by T.L. Huchu – an elderly protagonist reflects on all the changes she’s experienced throughout her lifetime.
“And This is How to Stay Alive” by Shingai Njeri Kagunda – a moving story of grief and guilt after the suicide of a loved one.
“Red_Bati” by Dilman Dila – the story of a robotic dog with more awareness than those around it realize it has.
Thank you to NetGalley and Jembefola Press for providing me with an ARC in exchange for this review.
“Things Boys Do” by Pemi Aguda – disturbing horror as three men find reason to be afraid of their newborn sons.
“Giant Steps” by Russell Nichols – the reflections of a scientist on an incredible solo space voyage. A favourite in the collection for sure.
“A Mastery of German” by Marian Denise Moore – a thought-provoking story raising issues of epigenetics, the transferability of memory, and medical ethics. An absolute favourite.
“Disassembly” by Makena Onjerika – a woman who can come apart and rebuild herself. Thought-provoking; another favourite.
“Egoli” by T.L. Huchu – an elderly protagonist reflects on all the changes she’s experienced throughout her lifetime.
“And This is How to Stay Alive” by Shingai Njeri Kagunda – a moving story of grief and guilt after the suicide of a loved one.
“Red_Bati” by Dilman Dila – the story of a robotic dog with more awareness than those around it realize it has.
Thank you to NetGalley and Jembefola Press for providing me with an ARC in exchange for this review.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Murder, Death, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Racial slurs, Fatphobia, and Blood
Moderate: Gun violence, Homophobia, Transphobia, and Racism
Minor: Sexual assault
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