Tor.com, April 2021

“Annie Without Crow” by Michael Swanwick

Reviewed by Mike Bickerdike

“Annie Without Crow” by Michael Swanwick

A time-travel fantasy, “Annie Without Crow” is a slightly frustrating short story in which a time-travelling ‘Peer of Creation’, Annie, travels to the Christening of a princess, the future queen Elizabeth I. There, she meets the young poet Shakespeare, and puts a ‘geas’ on the young Elizabeth and other ladies never to sleep with a man who is their inferior. The plot and events in the story are told in an historical style and without much, if any, explanation. Many readers may find it frustrating trying to decipher exactly what is happening and why—I certainly did—though things become clearer by the end of the tale. Ultimately, the story had less depth than I hoped for given its obtuse presentation, and with its rather disconnected storylines (Shakespeare is unnecessary to the plot) and gratuitous profanity, this fantasy was not especially appealing

More of Mike Bickerdike’s reviews and thoughts on science-fiction can be found at https://starfarer-sf.com/