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cheye13's review
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.0
Beginning Materials: I very much appreciate including the brief nonfiction essays that contextualize the terms and concepts of survivance and two-spirit from (presumably?) Indigenous authors.
Aliens (5★): I suggest checking in with Indigenous & trans reviews, but I (cis) loved it. The perspective is challengingly limited, told through the narrator's benevolent ignorance, but I love that the real story can be glimpsed between the lines.
Legends are Made, Not Born (4★): A bit short for my taste, but beautiful.
Perfectly You (4★): great story, great concept. I felt something missing, but can't put my finger on it.
The Boys Who Became the Hummingbirds (4.5★): The imagery and style of this one is beautiful.
Né Łe! (3★): Felt more like a YA novel than a short story, despite its completeness.
Transitions (4.5★): This is exactly the kind of story I was anticipating from this collection. I wanted more of it.
Imposter Syndrome (3★): A bit complex to follow. Loved the pace & concept, but couldn't get a mental grip on it. I'd like it better as say, a novella.
Valediction at the Star View Motel (3.5★): I wanted a little more of the speculative element in this one, but the character work was great.
Parallax (5★): can't say I grasped this entirely, but I think I got the gist, and the form is gorgeous. The rhythm is entrancing, I adored it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence
Moderate: Blood, Animal death, and Racism
Minor: Addiction, Alcoholism, Car accident, Deadnaming, Death of parent, Drug use, Excrement, Grief, Medical content, Physical abuse, Police brutality, Sexual content, Transphobia, Xenophobia, Bullying, and Body horror
Most warnings apply primarily to "Imposter Syndrome," which is the most hard-scifi (focusing on aliens/space/robots/etc.) and largely allegorical. The animal warnings apply to "Ne Le" (the main character is a vet) and relate to dogs and chickens.spinesinaline's review
challenging
dark
hopeful
inspiring
medium-paced
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
A very enjoyable short story collection! Find my full review at spinesinaline.wordpress.com
Love Beyond is a collection of LGBTQ+ sci-fi stories written by Indigenous authors from a range of identities (not all identify as LGBTQ+ themselves but many do). I was excited to come across a number of names I recognized who I’ve been meaning to read (David A. Robertson, Cherie Dimaline, Darcie Little Badger to name a few).
I wouldn’t normally call myself a sci-fi fan, though at times I think I do enjoy it more than fantasy, but I really enjoyed the stories in this collection. It’s also one of the first short story collections that’s not been a mixed bag for me, where I’ve enjoyed each story even if I liked some better than others. The nice thing is that there’s variety in these stories for whatever your interest in the genre is. There are some that lean heavily into sci-fi with extensive technical descriptions (admittedly not my favourite), while others felt closer to literary fiction with sci-fi elements.
My favourites were in the collection were “Perfectly You” by David A. Robertson (about a VR experiment gone wrong), “Né łe!” by Darcie Little Badger (puppies in space! as wonderful as it sounds!), and “Aliens” by Richard Van Camp (which felt the least sci-fi-ish of the bunch). Some stories I loved, some I liked, some I feel I need to read a few more times to really grasp its meaning but a great collection all-around.
Love Beyond is a collection of LGBTQ+ sci-fi stories written by Indigenous authors from a range of identities (not all identify as LGBTQ+ themselves but many do). I was excited to come across a number of names I recognized who I’ve been meaning to read (David A. Robertson, Cherie Dimaline, Darcie Little Badger to name a few).
I wouldn’t normally call myself a sci-fi fan, though at times I think I do enjoy it more than fantasy, but I really enjoyed the stories in this collection. It’s also one of the first short story collections that’s not been a mixed bag for me, where I’ve enjoyed each story even if I liked some better than others. The nice thing is that there’s variety in these stories for whatever your interest in the genre is. There are some that lean heavily into sci-fi with extensive technical descriptions (admittedly not my favourite), while others felt closer to literary fiction with sci-fi elements.
My favourites were in the collection were “Perfectly You” by David A. Robertson (about a VR experiment gone wrong), “Né łe!” by Darcie Little Badger (puppies in space! as wonderful as it sounds!), and “Aliens” by Richard Van Camp (which felt the least sci-fi-ish of the bunch). Some stories I loved, some I liked, some I feel I need to read a few more times to really grasp its meaning but a great collection all-around.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence
Moderate: Bullying, Homophobia, and Racism
Minor: Death
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