Many science fiction adventure stories involve alien encounters, learning from them or fighting against them. Most of these involve some sort of “happy” ending where humans are triumphant in some way. This story is instead much more bleak. The crew of the Awassa are all doomed to die, consumed by a giant space creature that was thought to be a planet. Probing it has awoken it and made it angry. It expands, engulfing everything in its path. It is moving too fast to avoid. The crew is in its path. We follow the crew as they prepare for their inevitable end.

Despite the grim and predetermined outcome of this story, it does have some bright spots. It shows the community that exists on board, highlighting how each member turns to care when they realize their end is near. The crew also appear to be non-human with a variety of body forms and types. All in, this is an uplifting story of community, care, and strength in the midst of bleakness. A rather helpful message in our moment.

Length: 1,792 words (about 10 minutes)

My rating: 3/5

The Earth is devoid of humans who have all left the world they destroyed to find a new place to live. Left behind are two unique forms life—sentient drones and biomechanical animals. This story (whose world reminded me a bit of the 2008 movie WALL·E) centers on one of the drones who is doing a routine inspection of the launch complex nearby. An acid rain storm approaches and the plot involves her encounter with the “animals” in her attempt to avoid the killing rain.

I found this story a fascinating exploration of what life might be left and evolve after humans have left behind a ruined world. The drones are still guided by their programming and the biomechanical animals are intriguing. The author leaves out exactly how they came about. I wish there had been more of that. I was left wanting to experience and learn more about the world built here.

Length: 2,610 words (about 15 minutes)

My rating: 4/5

This story opens in Malaysia as the current prime minister is urgently shutting down an artificial intelligence that has become sentient. It then alternates location between Malaysia and London where mystererious “glowmen” start to show up, terrorizing the public. As the story unfolds, one starts to wonder if the AI is really shut down.

This is an engaging, easy read. It is a short story thriller that starts with a questionable ethical decision, exploring the dilemma that sentient AI might present. I enjoyed this story and expect we will start to see more and more like it.

Length: 5,290 words (about 25 minutes)

My rating: 4/5

On an asteroid that the narrator is working to help bring back to life as a habitat, this is tale of community, found family, and awkwardness in socializing. The narrator is an architect, the first sent on this project and working alone until others arrive. Someone appears to keep trying to prevent him from doing his work, but it is unclear why. He is challenged by being alone in his work as well as being socially awkward. But he slowly learns to overcome these obstacles to his success.

I found visualizing the plot a bit difficult. The author uses a lot of words I was unfamiliar with, which also repeatedly pulled me out of the story. In the second half, the story finally kicks into gear and I found myself enjoying it much more with a resolution that left me with a feeling of peaceful satisfaction.

Length: 8,890 words (about 35 minutes)

My rating: 3/5

The format here is of a narrator telling you a story. So, you are the one being asked to kill four people. But exactly who (or even what) you are is unclear for most of the story. This is by design. The story you are told is one of enslavement of sentient automatons made of paper. They have a short life at the end of which they are chopped up and put back into the machine that will birth a new automaton from the recycled material. The tale grows in suspense until just near the end with a very satisfying reveal.

The writing here is close to the action and can be somewhat unclear at first. This closeness, though, really engages the reader with vivid imagery and metaphor that are almost poetic. The characters are highly relatable in their experience. This is a wonderful tale of resisting oppression.

Length: 12,590 words (about 50 minutes)

My rating: 4/5

Calista is a young girl who has lost her mother. When she sees a sign for the Cyber Circus, she longs to go as she once did with her mother. When she asks her father, holed up in his office, he declines but says she can go herself. She does, disappointed and angry. There she connects with a sentient robot who tells her that he can take away the pain of her grief. Calista is immediately interested. What happens next is the crux of this emotionally intelligent story.

Wow! This one hits on all sorts of levels. The storytelling is immersive. The characters are real as is the pain they feel no matter how they express it. The author really explores what grief feels like and the longing to move past it that often accompanies it. But if there is a quick and easy way out of grief, what is its cost? Will it be worth it? This amazing story explores these deep and important questions.

Length: 7,210 words (about 30 minutes)

My rating: 5/5

Mix Transformers with UFC and you get an idea of the world in this first story of the September issue of Clarkesworld magazine. The main narrator, Fiona, tells the story of how she designs the death creatures that challenge the humans in their oversized mechanical fighting machines. All of this for a huge televised galactic audience. Fiona’s secret girlfriend is the number one fighter for whom she reserves her best designs. But what will happen when the management tells her that she needs to design to the same level for the other fighters? And who is the source of this revelation that management has come to? Fiona’s sister.

The writing is gritty and down to earth. The hard scrabble life shines through the prose as does the desperate need for love and connection that are challenged by the characters’ circumstances. Amidst all the darkness of violence, lies, and business dealing is a love story. Actually two love stories: one of lovers, the other of sisters. As you read it isn’t clear that either of them will survive.

Length: 5,830 words (about 25 minutes)

My rating: 4/5