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zoes_human's review
4.0
The Hundredth House Had No Walls
Laurie Penny
5 stars
A charming and humourous fantasy short that teases all the old tropes in an amusing way. Read with a smile on my face all the whole time and a few guffaws sprinkled liberally throughout. Reminiscent of the better parts of Xanth and utterly delightful.
The Vetting
Michael Cassutt
3 stars
A lawyer battling cancer finds a new perspective while vetting a Syrian man who has been detained by ICE
Zeitgeber
Greg Egan
3 stars
A significant portion of the population suddenly finds their sleep schedules jumped 12-hours out of synch. An interesting premise but the story didn't really feel like it went anywhere.
Water: A History
K.J. Kabza
4 stars
A woman in her twilight years bonds with a youth seeking a bright future. As she reminisces about her youth on Earth and her adulthood on this new planet, she wonders if she has regrets. Beautifully executed and thoughtful.
As the Last I May Know
S.L. Huang
5 stars
A nation once devastated by a powerful weapon of mass destruction sets in place an unthinkable restriction to prevent themselves from casually inflicting the same on others. Now at war, their leader and a member of the Order must face a horrifying choice.
In Xanadu
Lavie Tidhar
3.5 stars
Wishing for something, anything at all, to happen to relieve your boredom has always been a dangerous game. An exhilarating break in routine leads to a sad sad surprising discovery.
The Touches
Brenda Peynado
4 stars
In a world overrun by mutated viruses, can humans living in the virtual world survive without genuine touch? Fascinating universe, but I'm not quite sure what I think of the ending.
Preciousl Little Things
Adrian Tchaikovsky
5 stars
A woman fighting to improve her position in society makes a discovery that upends the worldview of her entire community.
The Time Invariance of Snow
E. Lily Yu
5 stars
A magical blend of physics and fairytales. One of the best short stories I've ever had the pleasure of reading.
Laurie Penny
5 stars
A charming and humourous fantasy short that teases all the old tropes in an amusing way. Read with a smile on my face all the whole time and a few guffaws sprinkled liberally throughout. Reminiscent of the better parts of Xanth and utterly delightful.
The Vetting
Michael Cassutt
3 stars
A lawyer battling cancer finds a new perspective while vetting a Syrian man who has been detained by ICE
Zeitgeber
Greg Egan
3 stars
A significant portion of the population suddenly finds their sleep schedules jumped 12-hours out of synch. An interesting premise but the story didn't really feel like it went anywhere.
Water: A History
K.J. Kabza
4 stars
A woman in her twilight years bonds with a youth seeking a bright future. As she reminisces about her youth on Earth and her adulthood on this new planet, she wonders if she has regrets. Beautifully executed and thoughtful.
As the Last I May Know
S.L. Huang
5 stars
A nation once devastated by a powerful weapon of mass destruction sets in place an unthinkable restriction to prevent themselves from casually inflicting the same on others. Now at war, their leader and a member of the Order must face a horrifying choice.
In Xanadu
Lavie Tidhar
3.5 stars
Wishing for something, anything at all, to happen to relieve your boredom has always been a dangerous game. An exhilarating break in routine leads to a sad sad surprising discovery.
The Touches
Brenda Peynado
4 stars
In a world overrun by mutated viruses, can humans living in the virtual world survive without genuine touch? Fascinating universe, but I'm not quite sure what I think of the ending.
Preciousl Little Things
Adrian Tchaikovsky
5 stars
A woman fighting to improve her position in society makes a discovery that upends the worldview of her entire community.
The Time Invariance of Snow
E. Lily Yu
5 stars
A magical blend of physics and fairytales. One of the best short stories I've ever had the pleasure of reading.
coskob's review
adventurous
challenging
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
This was a great anthology! There were at least two stories about pandemics/disease that hit WAYYYYY too close to home in 2020 but WOW I liked it. Also, I'm going to be looking up at least a couple of these authors and reading their other work based on this.
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