Strange Horizons, January 30, 2012

“The Chastisement of Your Peace” by Tracy Canfield

Reviewed by Jo-Anne Odell

In “The Chastisement of Your Peace” by Tracy Canfield, our heroine follows her doppelganger back to an alternate universe.  It’s one of many, too many.  They destabilize one another.  That’s where Jenny Sirico comes in.  She removes the weak ones, and kills off the offenders.

At least, that’s what I think the story is about.  It’s confused and disjointed, and I’m really not sure.  I’ve read some tales from Tracy Canfield I enjoyed.  This wasn’t one of them.  I felt I had to dig through the words to piece together some meaning.  If you’d rather play with language than read a story, this might have some appeal.  If you’re interested in the concept of competing alternate universes, the TV series Fringe does a far better job.