[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, October 2nd & 9th, 2023

“Wingless, Weeping/Featherless, Floating” by Marisca Pichette (10/2/23)

“Black Are The Waters” by Ten Tzeng (10/9/23)

Reviewed by Victoria Silverwolf

The magazine begins the month with two stories set in fantasy versions of the modern world and featuring transformations involving the sea.

The narrator of “Wingless, Weeping/Featherless, Floating” by Marisca Pichette offers a lover the chance to temporarily become an aquatic being during an oceanside festival. Instead, the lover vanishes into the water, apparently permanently changed.

This synopsis may seem to reveal too much about the plot, but what happens is made clear very early in the story, which consists of multiple flashbacks. Thus, there is little suspense but much emotional appeal. The depiction of a world much like our own, but one in which people can acquire the characteristics of animals in various ways, is interesting. The title, and the fact that the story begins with quotations from two poems, may suggest literary pretentions, but the text itself is written in a less elevated style. This tale of love and loss may be a bit too long for its simple plot and theme.

In “Black Are The Waters” by Ten Tzeng, a young selkie woman refuses to participate in the mourning ritual, which lasts a full three months, for her recently deceased father. Her motive is obscure, but seems to be a combination of adolescent rebellion and the belief that selkie traditions have lost their meaning in a world which views them as tourist attractions. After some persuasion, she agrees to take part in the final rite of the ceremony, only to have an unpleasant encounter with an ordinary man.

The author appears to be exploring multiple themes, including lack of understanding between generations, cultural appropriation, and male supremacy. A section of the text that discusses traditional tales of selkies in a darkly satiric way makes this clear. The rest of the story is more of a study in the psychology of a young woman trying to find her identity in a chaotic world. The combination of social commentary and character study does not always meld smoothly, but makes for an intriguing work of fiction.

Victoria Silverwolf is married to somebody who had a birthday on the same day the second story was published.