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mikewhiteman's review
3.0
Tongue - Ashok K Banker ****
Disturbing and dispiriting, the wife in an arranged marriage relates how her marriage came about and how she has had to sell off all her "valuables" when her husband was out of work, as she tries to arrange a match for her own daughter. The SF aspects were somewhat well-worn and the narrative voice walked a line between realistic and caricature but the message came through strongly.
The Sun God At Dawn, Rising From A Lotus Blossom - Andrea Kail ***
The epistolary form here works quite nicely, as a reanimated Tutankhamun writes to a similarly-reanimated Abraham Lincoln about his struggles to live up to the expectation of a figure worthy of being brought back (even if only to be part of a museum exhibit). The length did start to drag, as the dreams and outside political exposition were revealed.
An Inflexible Truth - Christopher East **
Spends a lot of time establishing an expedition into a deserted Las Vegas, as a "Neutral News Institute" employee tries to track down a missing reporter. Some cringeworthy bluntness - "We're so neutral, we can't be bought", "Damn I respect you for being so neutral", etc. The ending was predictable but felt vague and unmotivated.
Swing Time - Carrie Vaughn **
Time-travelling rival thieves who move through eras by dancing is high-concept enough to grab attention but the interactions between them felt flat and, inevitably, the time travel conceit became muddied by the end, leaving an unsatisfying conclusion.
East Of Eden And Just A Bit South - Ken Scholes *
Feels like it came from a fill-in-the-blanks writing prompt - The story of "Cain and Abel" set in "A trailer park"! Smash two things together and call it good.
The Shining Hills - Susan Palwick ***
Essentially a debate over whether it would be better to escape into an unknown fairyland or stay in the world you know if you had the choice. The stories Niff and Seamus tell each other flesh things out and add some emotional heft to the eventual choices.
A Citizen In Childhood's Country - Seanan McGuire ****
While lost children are being kept in asylums until they reach 16 and return to the world as Found, one man helps them escape and return to being Lost before it's too late. Unsettling in parts before revealing itself, ultimately a sweet tale of holding onto childhood.
Ink - Bruce McAllister ***
Touching and sympathetic story of a young haemophiliac boy finding his place in a community as his military family moves around by collecting things. The connection between the old woman who gifts him a box of postcards for their stamps and the boy is sweet and the effect of his illness being cured gives a striking visual.
Steppin' Razor - Maurice Broaddus ****
Rich and fascinating alternate Jamaica with political conspiracy, assassination, and genetic experimentation. Strong and complex characters, actually got me interested in an ostensibly steampunk story, usually not a favourite.
Disturbing and dispiriting, the wife in an arranged marriage relates how her marriage came about and how she has had to sell off all her "valuables" when her husband was out of work, as she tries to arrange a match for her own daughter. The SF aspects were somewhat well-worn and the narrative voice walked a line between realistic and caricature but the message came through strongly.
The Sun God At Dawn, Rising From A Lotus Blossom - Andrea Kail ***
The epistolary form here works quite nicely, as a reanimated Tutankhamun writes to a similarly-reanimated Abraham Lincoln about his struggles to live up to the expectation of a figure worthy of being brought back (even if only to be part of a museum exhibit). The length did start to drag, as the dreams and outside political exposition were revealed.
An Inflexible Truth - Christopher East **
Spends a lot of time establishing an expedition into a deserted Las Vegas, as a "Neutral News Institute" employee tries to track down a missing reporter. Some cringeworthy bluntness - "We're so neutral, we can't be bought", "Damn I respect you for being so neutral", etc. The ending was predictable but felt vague and unmotivated.
Swing Time - Carrie Vaughn **
Time-travelling rival thieves who move through eras by dancing is high-concept enough to grab attention but the interactions between them felt flat and, inevitably, the time travel conceit became muddied by the end, leaving an unsatisfying conclusion.
East Of Eden And Just A Bit South - Ken Scholes *
Feels like it came from a fill-in-the-blanks writing prompt - The story of "Cain and Abel" set in "A trailer park"! Smash two things together and call it good.
The Shining Hills - Susan Palwick ***
Essentially a debate over whether it would be better to escape into an unknown fairyland or stay in the world you know if you had the choice. The stories Niff and Seamus tell each other flesh things out and add some emotional heft to the eventual choices.
A Citizen In Childhood's Country - Seanan McGuire ****
While lost children are being kept in asylums until they reach 16 and return to the world as Found, one man helps them escape and return to being Lost before it's too late. Unsettling in parts before revealing itself, ultimately a sweet tale of holding onto childhood.
Ink - Bruce McAllister ***
Touching and sympathetic story of a young haemophiliac boy finding his place in a community as his military family moves around by collecting things. The connection between the old woman who gifts him a box of postcards for their stamps and the boy is sweet and the effect of his illness being cured gives a striking visual.
Steppin' Razor - Maurice Broaddus ****
Rich and fascinating alternate Jamaica with political conspiracy, assassination, and genetic experimentation. Strong and complex characters, actually got me interested in an ostensibly steampunk story, usually not a favourite.
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