Beneath Ceaseless Skies #163, December 25, 2014

Reviewed by Michelle Ristuccia

“Alloy Point” by Sam J. Miller follows a fugitive running from the metalman determined to execute her for the crime of loving a man below her status, a Base Metal. As Ash confronts frostbite and starvation in the wilderness, she discovers much about her magic and her society. A solid story about pushing the limits of endurance and of belief.

In “Until The Moss Has Reached Our Lips” by Matt Jones, a group of children on an island escape a monsoon by digging up their ancestors’ coffins and using them as boats. As the story progresses, the child narrator reveals the supernatural circumstances and crisis leading up to their escape. This morbid and graceful tale is about fate and the foolhardiness of denial.

Michelle Ristuccia enjoys slowing down time in the middle of the night to read and review speculative fiction, because sleeping offspring are the best inspiration and motivation. You can find out more about her other writing projects and geeky obsessions by visiting her blog.