Lightspeed “The Lord of Mars” by Meghan McCarron
“What Else, What Else, in the Joyous City?” by Sadoeuphemist
“How to Win Against the Robots” by Katherine Crighton
“A Dish Best Served Cold, or, An Excerpt from the Cookbook of the Gods” by Oluwatomiwa Ajeigbe
“Domestic Disputes” by Naomi Kanakia
“Un-Pragmagic: A Tyler Moore Retrospective” by Spencer Nitkey
“Finding Love in a Time Loop: A How-To Guide” by Leah Cypess
“You Knit Me Together in My Mother’s Womb” by Paul Crenshaw
Reviewed by Mike Bickerdike
“The Lord of Mars” by Meghan McCarron is an SF novelette set on the red planet. Small privately-owned colonies exist on Mars, run as feudal states. In one such colony, the Queen has a small, indentured workforce that struggles to survive, attempting to grow food to enable self-sufficiency. While most workers seek a way out of their servitude, one is torn between loyalty and changing the status quo. The ideas are quite good here, and the speculation of private enterprise leading Mars colonisation rings true. The tensions do not build as satisfactorily as they might however, leading to a story that ultimately seems a little flat.
“What Else, What Else, in the Joyous City?” by Sadoeuphemist is fantasy flash fiction, which packs a lot into its short narrative. This is essentially a reworking of Le Guin’s classic story “The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas,” even including a line that recreates this exact title, though with an acronym for the town’s name. Several different methods of childhood treatment, neglect and suffering are outlined as different political systems in neighbouring towns, all used to support distinct philosophies. It’s thoughtful, but with less focus than Le Guin’s tale, it has less impact.
“How to Win Against the Robots” by Katherine Crighton is SF flash fiction that revisits the existential themes of The Matrix films and works by Philip K. Dick. The idea that life is in fact an artificial construction is perhaps nothing very new, but nonetheless the tale is surprisingly fresh, offering a little twist at the end.
“A Dish Best Served Cold, or, an Excerpt from the Cookbook of the Gods” by Oluwatomiwa Ajeigbe is an entertaining fantasy novelette. Tradition has it that a god of fate and trickery killed the other gods—his brothers and sisters—but in telling this tale, he reveals what really happened to them. While this is quite a good read, there is perhaps too much that is explained to us, and not enough revealed less directly through the plot. Moreover, the explanations become increasingly fantastical as the tale unfolds, which challenges the story’s internal consistency to some degree.
“Domestic Disputes” by Naomi Kanakia is an SF short story that light-heartedly explores the need for equality in relationships. A famous heroine is travelling with her more mundane husband to the centre of the universe to face an implacable foe. But what if her husband is more than they think? This short piece is engagingly written and offers a thoughtful idea within its jokey veneer.
“Un-Pragmagic: A Tyler Moore Retrospective” by Spencer Nitkey is inventive fantasy flash fiction. A magician’s greatest works are presented as art in a gallery, with each short section reading as an information card beside each piece. This is a clever idea, using a novel structure, and the underlying story told through the pieces is also of a satisfying whole; recommended.
“Finding Love in a Time Loop: A How-To Guide” by Leah Cypess is a further piece of SF flash fiction, and it’s an entertaining short read. In a world where ‘timeloops’ are common (think Groundhog Day), a female blogger provides advice for ‘loopers’ in how to land a man. This is off-beat, inventive and written in a bright, fun tone. Also recommended.
“You Knit Me Together in My Mother’s Womb” by Paul Crenshaw is described as a fantasy short story, though it certainly has SF elements. In a future world with draconian laws preventing both contraception and abortion, some women avoid childbirth by simply prolonging their pregnancy, by years in some cases. The ideas in the story are good, and the ramifications of extending pregnancy are well-conveyed in what is an engaging tale. The speculative elements here straddle the SF and fantasy genres in a way that’s somewhat reminiscent of Ballard’s short fiction. Recommended.
More of Mike Bickerdike’s reviews and thoughts on science-fiction can be found at https://starfarersf.nicepage.io/