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

This is essentially a tale of corporate espionage and love. The main character seeks to take down the seven corporations that control their world. They connect electronically to an executive within one of these corporations who seems willing to help them. But is it a trap? On top of this, they are falling in love with the executive. As the story starts, they are planning to meet for the first time in person at a corporate event.

For all the potential in this story, it didn’t quite all come off. It is an excellent story. The world building is interesting and the love story in the mix really heightens the tension. But I felt that there was still more that could have come out of this story, though I am not quite sure what that is.

My rating: 4/5

Here we have an unusual presentation of the text. Rather than a straight story, it is presented as a transcript of a legal proceeding. Present are only the convicted defender, the defense attorney, the prosecutor, and the judge. The purpose of the secret meeting is for the defendant to tell her whole story, which she was prevented from doing in court. As the meeting evolves, the reader learns exactly why that happened and what the convicted murderer is seeking.

I appreciated that this story shows how the US court system can be abused to thwart justice for the rich and powerful. That was frustrating, as it was intended to be. It is a compelling read, one that raises a great many important questions. I highly encourage you to read it.

My rating: 5/5

In a pocket dimension, a privileged galactic prince spends centuries eating his way through an infinite buffet. That about says it all. But there is also so much more to this story. The prince starts at one end of an endless table and encounters every conceivable food in the universe. He cares for nothing but eating. In this dimension, he can do so without any physical consequence. The author hits on a surprising number of topics in this unusual story.

Feast, indeed! Here we have a feast for the gustatory senses. It is in turns humorous, extreme, and disgusting. Part of its appeal is that is seems to go on and on like the buffet. And it’s absurdity makes it one of the most unique stories I have ever read.

My rating: 4/5

In the first story of Lighstpeed magazine’s issue 183 (August 2025), the creator of a biological agent is touring a battlefield to observe the results of his invention’s use in war. It is designed to quickly hide the devastation in an effort to spare those living in the area from seeing the horrors of war. But there appear to be some unforeseen results.

This a haunting and creepy tale. The first person narration as a transcript of a recording is highly effective at putting us deeply into the story and helping us to see and feel what the narrator experiences. And it shows that sometimes when we set out to do good, things can go wrong in unexpected and horrible ways.

My rating: 5/5

I don’t really have much to say about this story. It really didn’t stand out to me in any way. It is the very brief tale of an orphan who has struggled through many things in their life and been sent on a one-way mission into a space anomaly. It is told in the second person, an awkward and difficult point of view that is hard to do well. It isn’t too bad here but didn’t really add anything to the story. And it isn’t a bad story. It’s just okay.

My rating: 3/5