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A review by oleksandr
Meat and Salt and Sparks by Rich Larson
3.0
This is a short SF story, which is eligible for Hugo Award 2019. It was initially published by Tor.com.
The story follows an uplifted ape Cu, who works in NY Police. The mystery she and her partner Al Huxley should unravel is straightforward on a first sight. There are camera feeds that show a woman coming next to a man and shooting him in the head. However, it appears that the woman is ‘echogirl’, one of a newly fashionable pastime where one person ‘drives’ another. Unlike usual SF trope, it is not a pure mind control, but more like a cosplay.
It is hard to rate this story. On the one hand, it was quite clearly telegraphed early on, who could be the true mastermind behind the murder, so as a mystery it fails for me. On the other, the background story of the uplifted ape, the reason behind the murder and the finale are very well done and worth high ratings. I will gladly read other stories set in the same universe.
The story follows an uplifted ape Cu, who works in NY Police. The mystery she and her partner Al Huxley should unravel is straightforward on a first sight. There are camera feeds that show a woman coming next to a man and shooting him in the head. However, it appears that the woman is ‘echogirl’, one of a newly fashionable pastime where one person ‘drives’ another. Unlike usual SF trope, it is not a pure mind control, but more like a cosplay.
It is hard to rate this story. On the one hand, it was quite clearly telegraphed early on, who could be the true mastermind behind the murder, so as a mystery it fails for me. On the other, the background story of the uplifted ape, the reason behind the murder and the finale are very well done and worth high ratings. I will gladly read other stories set in the same universe.