[On May 10, 2021 Strange Horizons officially expressed its political support for Palestinian solidarity. The views of Tangent Online reviewers are not necessarily those of Strange Horizons. Fiction critiqued at Tangent Online is, as much as is humanly possible, without prejudice and based solely on artistic merit.]

Strange Horizons, February 3, 2025

“Hotel California” by Hsin-Hui Lin (Translated by: Ye Odelia Lu)

“Flying in the Dark Night” By: Mayumi Inaba (Translated by: Yui Kajita)

Reviewed by Chuck Rothman

The first issue of Strange Horizons this month features two translations of Asian stories.

“Hotel California” by Hsin-Hui Lin features a character who loves the Eagles’s song, and finds himself being caught in a hotel much like that one. He seems to be trapped there (“You can never leave”) and wonders if this is some sort of simulation, and even if he is a simulation. It’s an interesting situation, but the lack of emotion of the character makes it off-putting.

Mayumi Inaba authors “Flying in the Dark Night” where the character finds herself walking in the night, not knowing why. She then turns into a giant bird, guided by a mysterious voice. The story involves her learning to be human. It reads, however, like it’s just a strange dream.

I always like to see stories from non-English sources (Taiwan and Japan, respectively). These are interesting, but don’t really work for me overall.

Chuck Rothman’s novels Staroamer’s Fate and Syron’s Fate are available from Fantastic Books.