[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, November 13, 2023
Reviewed by Victoria Silverwolf
The protagonist of “Nextype” by Sam Kyung Yoo is a medical student at a future time when examinations take the form of simulated operations performed in virtual reality. Those who can afford them have neural implants that provide an enormous advantage over other students without such devices.
The main character has the most advanced and most expensive neural implant, putting her at the top of the list of students. She does not realize that it has also removed her memory of something very important in her life, at the direction of her parents.
The author creates a plausible high-tech future while also telling a story with great emotional power. The characters are efficiently and vividly portrayed. A plot which could easily devolve into sentimentality instead offers the perfect balance of sadness and hope, without melodrama.
Victoria Silverwolf ate three different kinds of pizza in one meal recently.