Next up in short fiction reviews is the October issue of Clarkesworld Magazine. Here are my brief reviews of each story.
“Possibly Just About A Couch” by Suzanne Palmer: An indestructible couch created at the beginning of the universe lives through all of history. It makes its way through the creation of the rest of the universe, all the species on earth including man, and continues to the heat death of the universe when the cycle starts all over again. An interesting way to look at cosmological history. (My rating: 3/5)
“The Blaumilch” by Lavie Tidhar: A person on Mars trying to make sense of his life abandons the Mars That Never Was in VR for the real world where he digs for the simple pleasure of digging. It ends well but feels disjointed before that. I like that the main character abandons all the color and interaction of VR for the plain physicality of the real world. (My rating: 3/5)
“Down To The Root” by Lisa Papademetriou: A woman on a communication satellite travels to the home world of her co-worker. He is Cercian whose people are functionally immortal, their lives being circular. A touching story of friendship across cultures. (My rating: 4/5)
“Such Is My Idea Of Happiness” by David Goodman: A redeye yearning to qualify for promotion to get away from the Brights is approached by a mysterious woman who is neither a Bright nor a redeye. They are redeyes because they sleep just enough to be able to work while drugging themselves to stay awake. The woman is part of a revolutionary group that is free of the Brights and their system. The story feels like the first chapter of a book that I’d be interested in reading. (My rating: 4/5)
“De Profundis, a Space Love Letter” by Bella Han: A man living in an age of AI storytelling discovers a library on another planet and becomes a writer who seeds storytelling AI. I really wanted to like this more. Unfortunately, some of the text felt flowery without conveying much. I loved the idea. Also the conclusion was a bit muddled for me. (My rating: 3/5)
“Post Hacking for the Uninitiated” by Grace Chan: A cybernetic woman fights against a hacker attacking her from the inside out. Another story that feels lifted from the beginning of a novel. I would have liked a little more resolution at the end. Has the feeling of a thriller. (My rating: 4/5)
“Rafi” by Amal Singh: A young woman finds a seed among ash that grows into a proto-person (Rafi) who helps the people of Raman Sector remember themselves. Dissent is not allowed and is quickly squashed, but in the end Rafi’s actions cause a change in the people. A very unusual story that starts our feeling a bit like a parody of something but ends with a strong sense of meaning. (My rating: 4/5)
“Timothy: An Oral History” by Michael Swanwick: The best story of the issue. In a world made up of only women, a scientist secretly creates a male woman, and all hell breaks loose. The women who long for men are considered sick freaks. It is a fantastic story turning our gender norms on their head to examine them. (My rating: 5/5)
One 5-star story and an overall average for the issue of 3.75 out of five stars. Not as strong as some previous issues, but still worth subscribing to and reading.
