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Reviews
Uncanny Magazine Issue 17: July/August 2017 by Julia Rios, Michael Damian Thomas, Lynne M. Thomas
mermahoney's review
4.0
Read "Worshipful Society of Glovers" Mary Robinette Kowal. Imaginative and poignant.
And I really hate how GR is removing the stand-alone pages for short stories and sinking them into the complete magazines like this.
And I really hate how GR is removing the stand-alone pages for short stories and sinking them into the complete magazines like this.
mikewhiteman's review
3.0
How The Maine Coon Cat Learned To Love The Sea - Seanan MacGuire **
Structured as a bedtime story told to children and has the feel of a fairytale telling the origin of the titular cats. Charming and sweet in that way but a bit too light to really get into.
A Nest Of Ghosts, A House Of Birds - Kat Howard ***
Unusual sort of ghost story where a woman inherits her grandmother's house, twenty years after her death, and finds it full of birds. Beyond the central image and some family reconciliation/understanding as framing, there's not much going on but it's all nicely done.
The Ache Of Home - Maurice Broaddus ***
Puts a magical twist on a gentrification parable, as a woman bargains with the owner of an upscale food shop planned to open in her neighbourhood. A nice sense of the place and community and Celeste's plant-based magic but quite heavy handed throughout as well.
The Worshipful Society Of Glovers - Mary Robinette Kowal ****
A more literal fairy story following a young journeyman glover trying to advance in his craft of making specially patterned gloves which are then ensorcelled by brownies for various purposes - beauty, strength etc. He struggles to support himself and his sister, who suffers regular seizures, while knowing he has the skill to help her, albeit against the strict rules of the guild. There were layers and complexities to this that I loved but I also wanted them to be given more time to come out and develop.
I Built This City For You - Cassandra Khaw ***
An obsessive lover making a grand gesture to win back their ex, writ large and given a horror flavour. Possibly just formatting or possibly on purpose to blur the lines between them, but the dialogue with the Company's representative and the protagonist was often confused. Liked the take on a deal with the devil and it gets suitably creepy towards the end.
Packing - T Kingfisher **
Short piece, mostly dialogue, as a narrator describes the animals which must be packed up or left behind when the "new seasons" come. Vague and just didn't have the impact it felt like it was going for.
Children Of Thorns, Children Of Water - Aliette De Bodard ***
A neat self-contained story that fits within De Bodard's larger Dominion Of The Fallen world. Two water dragon spies attempt to infiltrate the House of the Fallen and become caught up in a magical attack. Gets across the personal and wider loyaties of Thuan and Kim Cuc and the political/magical situation of their Paris but mostly makes me want to read more of this world. The House Of Shattered Wings is on the TBR.
Structured as a bedtime story told to children and has the feel of a fairytale telling the origin of the titular cats. Charming and sweet in that way but a bit too light to really get into.
A Nest Of Ghosts, A House Of Birds - Kat Howard ***
Unusual sort of ghost story where a woman inherits her grandmother's house, twenty years after her death, and finds it full of birds. Beyond the central image and some family reconciliation/understanding as framing, there's not much going on but it's all nicely done.
The Ache Of Home - Maurice Broaddus ***
Puts a magical twist on a gentrification parable, as a woman bargains with the owner of an upscale food shop planned to open in her neighbourhood. A nice sense of the place and community and Celeste's plant-based magic but quite heavy handed throughout as well.
The Worshipful Society Of Glovers - Mary Robinette Kowal ****
A more literal fairy story following a young journeyman glover trying to advance in his craft of making specially patterned gloves which are then ensorcelled by brownies for various purposes - beauty, strength etc. He struggles to support himself and his sister, who suffers regular seizures, while knowing he has the skill to help her, albeit against the strict rules of the guild. There were layers and complexities to this that I loved but I also wanted them to be given more time to come out and develop.
I Built This City For You - Cassandra Khaw ***
An obsessive lover making a grand gesture to win back their ex, writ large and given a horror flavour. Possibly just formatting or possibly on purpose to blur the lines between them, but the dialogue with the Company's representative and the protagonist was often confused. Liked the take on a deal with the devil and it gets suitably creepy towards the end.
Packing - T Kingfisher **
Short piece, mostly dialogue, as a narrator describes the animals which must be packed up or left behind when the "new seasons" come. Vague and just didn't have the impact it felt like it was going for.
Children Of Thorns, Children Of Water - Aliette De Bodard ***
A neat self-contained story that fits within De Bodard's larger Dominion Of The Fallen world. Two water dragon spies attempt to infiltrate the House of the Fallen and become caught up in a magical attack. Gets across the personal and wider loyaties of Thuan and Kim Cuc and the political/magical situation of their Paris but mostly makes me want to read more of this world. The House Of Shattered Wings is on the TBR.
alexanderp's review
3.0
This was an interesting story. Well written, although I'm not sure I was sold on the pacing. I did enjoy the actual prose and the world building. The idea of following craftsmen who make gloves was very interesting.
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