Addison Smith’s Parallel Worlds: Science Fiction and Fantasy is a collection of science fiction and fantasy short stories, flash fiction, and drabblesAddison Smith’s Parallel Worlds: Science Fiction and Fantasy is a collection of science fiction and fantasy short stories, flash fiction, and drabbles. Though some common themes emerge amongst the stories, there’s also a great amount of variety, ensuring that most readers will find stories they thoroughly enjoy within this collection.
Of the stories included here, I particularly enjoyed “Fancy and Fish Hearts,” which is a heart-rending tale of a couple growing apart, as reflected in a living fish one of them has crafted. This is one of several themes that runs throughout multiple stories, dealing with couples navigating change, often for the worse. Aquatic life, too, is a theme in several of the stories, and one that is dear to my own heart. I also enjoyed the drabbles, which I know is a difficult form to master, but Smith does a fantastic job in “The Hikaru Defense Project,” with shades of a post-apocalyptic world in which a consciousness is revived to fight again and again. In just 100 words, this story gives backstory and intense pathos. I also loved “Mittens and the Death Moth,” which rang all too true as a cat owner.
Whether you prefer your stories quick and bite-sized or slightly longer, you’re sure to find something you like in Parallel Worlds, and it’s likely you’ll find more than one that resonates with you!...more
Dragon Whisperer by Vanessa Ricci-Thode is the first book in the author’s Fireborn series. This first book introduces the reader to a fantastical worlDragon Whisperer by Vanessa Ricci-Thode is the first book in the author’s Fireborn series. This first book introduces the reader to a fantastical world of magic, dragons, and the people who communicate with them.
Dionelle is immune to fire, which makes her uniquely suited to communicate with dragons. Though her new husband, Reiser, fears for her safety, Dionelle is certain the dragons won’t hurt her, which is an accurate assessment of her talent. However, there is more afoot than meets the eye, and soon Reiser has to learn about what his wife’s job entails quickly in order to keep their farm and fortunes secure.
I really enjoyed the dragons portrayed in this book as somewhat inscrutable but also temperamental. It was a nice mix of ancient wisdom and occasional pettiness. The point of view shifts between Dionelle and Reiser neatly, showing each of these two characters hopes and fears. It’s a little bit of a spoiler, but I definitely had a preferred POV, and when that character was off screen for a chunk of the book, I found it a little disappointing at first. But the other character eventually started to grow on me.
If you enjoy female-centered fantasy novels that are epic in scope, check out Dragon Whisperer and its sequels....more
Sea of Souls by N. C. Scrimgeour is a gorgeous fantasy novel inspired by Scottish mythology and filled with family secrets and loads of heart-stoppingSea of Souls by N. C. Scrimgeour is a gorgeous fantasy novel inspired by Scottish mythology and filled with family secrets and loads of heart-stopping action and danger.
Isla Blackwood left her family’s home to become a sailor. But on learning that her mother has taken ill, accompanied by a cryptic letter from her mother, she returns home. She’s barely there and settled before things go from bad to worse, and soon she, her brother Lachlan, and their bodyguard Darce are running and fighting for their lives everywhere they go.
I really enjoyed this Scottish-inspired fantasy novel and the little touches of worldbuilding strewn throughout. The characters, too, are top notch, with complex motivations leading to very realistic characterizations. And while the conclusion of the story made it clear this is the first in a series, it still wraps up in a fairly satisfying way but leaving the door open for so much more. I can only hope that many of Isla’s friends and associates, especially the crew of the Jade Dawn, return in future books!
If you enjoy the sort of book that keeps you biting your nails over whether your favorite characters are going to be safe (but knowing full well this is the first book of an eventual series), Sea of Souls is the book for you. It’s got flavors of piracy and evil empires, but also great found family vibes and the sacrifices people make to keep their family, blood or chosen, alive. Sea of Souls comes out on Friday, August 5, 2023.
The author provided me an advance copy of this book for review consideration....more
The Crane Moon Cycle by J.C. Snow is a wonderful epic fantasy novel duology filled with queer characters, slow-burn romance, and a deep historical worThe Crane Moon Cycle by J.C. Snow is a wonderful epic fantasy novel duology filled with queer characters, slow-burn romance, and a deep historical world.
Aili and Nora are preparing to ship out as military nurses, but before they do, they take opportunities to meet other queer women. In doing so, Aili meets an unusual woman and falls in love, only to have this woman vanish from her life. Finding her again involves an unreal world and plumbing the depths of their shared history. Along the way, they team up with other immortal beings with a shared and intertwined story of their own.
The two books in this duology span centuries, though they focus on two main time periods. The lengthy history, though, gives the tale a truly epic feeling. And the characters, though possessing varying degrees of immortality, feel very human and real, despite their long lives, which only adds to their complexity. The story is along the lines of a danmei (Chinese gay romantic fiction) with a very slow-burn romance with no explicit elements. This duology is great for fans of queer romance, historical fiction, and complicated, realistic characters!
The author provided me with a copy of this book for review consideration....more
Tea Leaves by Jacob Budenz is a collection of short stories with mostly queer protagonists and filled with a delightful surrealness across the variousTea Leaves by Jacob Budenz is a collection of short stories with mostly queer protagonists and filled with a delightful surrealness across the various worlds and characters of the stories.
I first became familiar with Jacob’s writing when he submitted the story “Seen” for DefCon One’s I Didn’t Break the Lamp anthology, which was one of the stories we selected for that anthology. I was pleased to see it reprinted here and love it even years after my first reading. Other stories I enjoyed in this collection included “Under Her White Stars,” in which a witch needs to apprehend another magic user, and brings his boyfriend along to help him. “And Then Again to the Next” is a somewhat tragic story of love across reincarnations and time, with a seeming non-linear format of the story that comes to fruition in the telling of it. Finally, I enjoyed “Borealis,” which I read as a dark modern twist on Sleeping Beauty with some substantial remixing of the supporting characters.
If you enjoy reading stories with queer protagonists who lead messy, human lives, with a dose of the surreal, check out Tea Leaves!
The author provided me with an advance copy of this book in exchange for review consideration....more
The Daughter of Doctor Moreau by Silvia Moreno-Garcia is a reimagining of The Island of Doctor Moreau, set in Mexico during a period of civil strife iThe Daughter of Doctor Moreau by Silvia Moreno-Garcia is a reimagining of The Island of Doctor Moreau, set in Mexico during a period of civil strife in the nineteenth century, and focusing on Doctor Moreau’s daughter and an overseer of his hybrid creations.
Carlotta Moreau has grown up with a strange sickness, but her father, Doctor Moreau, has kept her in good health through regular medication and keeping her calm. Alongside her, her father’s hybrid creations have also grown up, though some of them have begun behaving differently. Montgomery Laughton arrives as a new overseer for Doctor Moreau’s hybrid creations, putting into motion changes for all of the inhabitants and Doctor Moreau’s scientific research.
The setting for The Daughter of Doctor Moreau is gorgeously lush, though I hoped for a bit more connection between the historical events and the plot of the book. To me, it felt like the fraught political situation was more of a backdrop than a direct element of the plot, with a few small exceptions in the later portions of the book. The point of view characters are somewhat ignorant of the political situation except in the broadest terms, which may be the reason why these elements seem limited in the story. The characters of the book are the sort you will love to hate, as all of them are replete with flaws. Even the hybrid creatures have their foibles.
I think The Daughter of Doctor Moreau will appeal to fans of Silvia Moreno-Garcia’s writing, as well as those interested in a retelling of The Island of Doctor Moreau from an alternate perspective....more
Mermaids Never Drown, edited by Zoraida Córdova and Natalie C. Parker, is a wonderful collection of stories of a variety of creatures in the seas, incMermaids Never Drown, edited by Zoraida Córdova and Natalie C. Parker, is a wonderful collection of stories of a variety of creatures in the seas, including but not limited to mermaids. The stories range from humorous to dark, but frequently include fraught relationships between mothers and daughters, often as a part of generational differences.
All of the stories in this anthology were fantastic, but a number of them stuck with me long after reading. Maggie Tokuda-Hall’s “Shark Week” had the kind of snarky teenage narrator that I adore, making the story hilarious, but it was also heartwarming by the end. Darcie Little Badger’s “The Deepwater Vandal” imagines a world in which monstrous creatures of the sea are created by their emotions, and what happens when one such creature’s human daughter tries to bring her father back. “Storm Song” by Rebecca Coffindaffer and “Six Thousand Miles” by Julie C. Dao, which begin and end the book, respectively, are both wonderful stories of being true to yourself in spite of pressures from society and family. “The Nightingale’s Lament” by Kerri Maniscalco had a lovely interplay between two points of view, culminating in surprises for them both. And finally, June Hur’s “Jinju’s Pearls,” set in historical Korea, is a gorgeously written tale of a young woman sifting through lies from those around her to discover the truth.
Though I haven’t mentioned every story in the book, all of them were wonderful in their own particular ways. Some end triumphantly, while others end in tragedy, but each one explores sea creatures and their worlds and interactions with one another and humanity. If you’re a merfolk fan, check out Mermaids Never Drown!...more
Mothersound: The Sauútiverse Anthology, edited by Wole Talabi, is a collection of science-fantasy, shared-world/universe stories set in a universe creMothersound: The Sauútiverse Anthology, edited by Wole Talabi, is a collection of science-fantasy, shared-world/universe stories set in a universe created by African and African diaspora writers reflecting a combination of worldviews from throughout the African continent. The setting is also described as “Black Panther meets Wild Cards with all the rich spacefaring worldbuilding of Dune.” This first collection introduces readers to the world and its history through narrative, myth, and stories of the people living in this world.
Many of the stories I found most compelling were the ones dealing with the fallout of the destruction of Mahwé. Some of my favorites of these included “Xhava” by Adelhin Ijasan, which involved the AI that took over the moon Pinaa after the destruction of Mahwé, in the form of a letter from a parenting automaton to their child. Another was “The Grove’s Lament” by Tobias S. Buckell, in which a refugee from Mahwé makes a decision that impacts the planet of Wiimb-o, leaving the main character in this story to deal with the aftermath of that decision. Finally, I really loved Cheryl S. Ntumy’s “The Way of Baa’gh,” in which crab-like creatures who live on Mahwé before its destruction play an important role in that world’s fate. In addition to these, I also loved “Undulation” by Stephen Embleton, showing the ways in which history and the stories that come out of it and the truth are not always the same thing.
The collection ranges through quite long and some rather short stories, and while not all of them will be to everyone’s taste, I found the vast majority of them interesting and entertaining. I look forward to more stories set in the Sauútiverse!
A contributing author provided me with an advanced copy of this anthology for review consideration....more
Robotic Ambitions, edited by Lesley Conner and Jason Sizemore, is an anthology filled with stories of mechanical sentience.
In addition to Elliot Wink’Robotic Ambitions, edited by Lesley Conner and Jason Sizemore, is an anthology filled with stories of mechanical sentience.
In addition to Elliot Wink’s “A Still Life,” this anthology collected many wonderful stories. It’s hard to pick out only a few favorites in an anthology like this. I really loved Lyndsie Manusos’ “She Builds Quick Machines,” in which the main character is asked to build a machine for a fugitive and then one to defeat that previous machine … but not for the reasons you think. N. V. Haskell’s “Out There with Them” was a heartbreaking story of nanny bots and their fates when their programming goes astray. “Ark” by Liam Hogan, told from the perspective of a robot waiting for a perfect human to come along, blends humor with the darkness of this tale. Edward Daschle’s “Alice and Lucy” had an almost choose-your-own-adventure vibe to it as it told the story of twins when one of them is in a robotic body. Finally, “Intersecting Datafields” by Myna Chang had a delightful noir-esque cyberpunk setting and characters that I loved reading.
Anthologies are great for finding new authors you really like, as well as reading multiple takes on a common theme. Robotic Ambitions fits this bill on both counts!
The publisher provided me with an advanced copy of this anthology for review consideration....more
A Spoonful of Malaysian Magic, edited by Anna Tan, is a delightful anthology of short stories by Malaysian authors and featuring the legends and talesA Spoonful of Malaysian Magic, edited by Anna Tan, is a delightful anthology of short stories by Malaysian authors and featuring the legends and tales of Malaysia as elements of those stories. A handful of the stories are also themed around cooking and food, and others around family, though not all share these themes.
The stories in this anthology were wonderful, but a few stood out especially for me. “Visitor in the Night” by Zufar Zeid includes a forgotten goddess and the gorgeous stories she recounts. Rowan C’s “Taxation” depicts a fantasy-style society in which monthly taxes to the central government are a significant plot point, while also showing a family unit comprising four adults in two couples and the children of one couple (which I really love as a version of a family not seen as much in Western fiction). Sharmila Ganesan’s “Remembering How to Cook” is a beautiful tale of magical food and memory and family. “Up in Flames” by Stuart Danker is a cute twist on dreams and prophecy as they intersect in a young person who wants to be a wizard no matter what. Finally, “The Fiery Tale of Embun and the Prince” by Julia Alba, about an orphan girl and the prince who saved her, combines beautiful prose and a powerful message about expectations and normalcy.
Though I haven’t mentioned all of the stories in this anthology, every one of them is equal parts exciting and moving. If you’re wanting to expand your reading horizons into a culture you may know little about, A Spoonful of Malaysian Magic is a fantastic starting point!
The publisher provided me with an advance copy of this anthology for review consideration....more
Skin Thief by Suzan Palumbo is a collection of dark and atmospheric stories, the majority of which have been previously published in major speculativeSkin Thief by Suzan Palumbo is a collection of dark and atmospheric stories, the majority of which have been previously published in major speculative fiction magazines. The stories contain a variety of themes including family (particularly sisters, but also mothers and daughters) and Trinidadian culture.
Stories I really loved in this collection included “The Pull of the Herd,” in which a shapeshifter who has left her people tries to help them. I found “Her Voice, Unmasked” a gorgeous steampunk story that felt to me like a retelling of or inspired by The Phantom of the Opera. The novella, “Kill Jar,” was a lovely take on a not-quite-human daughter and her very human father. Though one of the darker stories in the book, “Laughter Among the Trees” had such a wonderfully realistic relationship between sisters that I thoroughly enjoyed it, even when I reached the inevitable ending. Finally, “The Bride” wove urban legend and longing together in a perfect way, and again had a great sister relationship that I could relate to.
If you’re looking for a collection of dark fiction, most of which takes place in a world not all that different from our own, check out Skin Thief for these and so many other wonderful stories!...more
Resurrections by Ada Hoffmann is a wonderful collection of speculative fiction stories and poetry, ranging through a variety of themes and lengths. MaResurrections by Ada Hoffmann is a wonderful collection of speculative fiction stories and poetry, ranging through a variety of themes and lengths. Many of the pieces feature neurodiverse and/or queer characters, either explicitly or implicitly.
The collection as a whole is brilliantly assembled, with many of the stories arranged in such a way that they seem to be commenting on one another. My favorites were wide ranging in terms of genre and tone. Although I’m not familiar with the opera, “Variations on a Theme from Turandot” is a lovely opening to the book, creating an internal conversation on actors, characters, and choices. “As Hollow as a Heart” is a fascinating variation on the story of Bluebeard. The method of telling “The Herdsman of the Dead” is everything I wanted in a story told in second person (though with a very clear “you” in mind), exploring the idea of temporarily dying in order to find joy, and the twist at the end tied the whole thing together perfectly. Finally, “The Scrape of Tooth and Bone,” a sort of steampunk-inspired story about paleontology, was filled with wonderful characters, twists, and dilemmas.
As is the case with any collection, readers are sure to find some stories that delight them, and the options abound in Resurrections.
The publisher provided me with an advance copy of this collection for review consideration....more
Rosalind’s Siblings, edited by Bogi Takács, is an anthology of stories and poetry about scientists of marginalized genders, inspired by the erasure ofRosalind’s Siblings, edited by Bogi Takács, is an anthology of stories and poetry about scientists of marginalized genders, inspired by the erasure of Rosalind Franklin’s scientific discoveries and inspirations. The stories and poetry are wide ranging across genres and themes, though all with the central core of science and gender.
Favorites of mine in this collection were “Collecting Ynes” by Lisa M. Bradley, which combines a catalogue of plants with the magical realism story of a woman and her life in relation to these varied plants. I also really enjoyed Cameron Van Sant’s “LDR,” a slightly surreal story of a transmasc astronaut on Venus. Finally, “Singing Goblin Songs” by Leigh Harlen was a lovely tale of a botanist and non-binary lepidopterist figuring out what was going on with odd moths with the help of a local little girl.
These are only a few of the marvelous stories in Rosalind’s Siblings. I enjoyed the whole anthology, though these stories stood out above the rest for me personally. If you like reading about scientists regardless of gender, this is an anthology well worth picking up!...more
The Embroidered Worlds anthology, edited by Valya Dudycz Lupescu, Olha Brylova, and Iryna Pasko, collects speculative fiction stories from Ukranian anThe Embroidered Worlds anthology, edited by Valya Dudycz Lupescu, Olha Brylova, and Iryna Pasko, collects speculative fiction stories from Ukranian and diaspora authors. A number of the stories are translated from Ukranian and reprinted in English for the first time, allowing English-speaking readers to get a taste of speculative fiction from Ukraine they may never have encountered before.
My favorite stories in the anthology were all translations of Ukranian stories. Myroslava Hornostayeva’s “The Stray Streetcar (A ’90s Businessman’s Tale),” originally published in 2009 and is translated here by Konstantin Boulich, is an unusual tale of a streetcar that seems to appear when someone needs to get out of a pinch, but it always takes something from them in return. Eerie and haunting, I liked the echoing at the beginning and end of this story.
“The Rainbow Bridge” by Irina Pasko, originally published in 2020 and translated here by Hanna Leviv, had a setting that felt a bit more historical to me, as a servant of a woman and her daughters dealt with changes in the household and his feelings for one of the daughters. This is another story where the end of the story echoes the beginning, though in a nearly identical way that might catch some readers unaware.
Finally, Halyna Lipatova’s “The Last of the Beads,” originally published in 2017 and translated here by R.B. Lemberg, was a satisfying story of revenge by a young woman against the people who had destroyed the lives of her people. Though the main character’s fate is sealed from the first paragraph of the story, the ending still came as a surprise to me!
There are many other stories that I didn’t mention here that also caught my attention, and other readers may resonate better with other stories. I found some of the storytelling techniques very different than what English-speaking readers are accustomed to, and these trended through a good number of the translated stories, suggesting that these techniques may be more common for Ukranian authors. Nonetheless, all the authors, translators, and editors should be commended for taking on such a large and important project!...more
Clara Ward’s Be the Sea is an amazing sci-fi novel filled with found family, lost friends found again, stories, and dreams. Set in a world where climaClara Ward’s Be the Sea is an amazing sci-fi novel filled with found family, lost friends found again, stories, and dreams. Set in a world where climate change has occurred but been mitigated in places, it has a fairly cozy storyline and an eclectic cast of queer and disabled characters.
Wend, a marine scientist, barters their way onto a boat with Viola (a photographer and the boat’s owner) and her nephew Aljon (who cooks and helps out with the boat) on their way to Hawai’i. Wend is there to test a theory about dreams and birthdays, and they tells stories to Viola and Aljon to attempt to get their point across. When the group arrives in Hawai’i, they find that several events on their voyage have turned into much more than they seemed. As they reconnect with lost friends and found family, Wend and the others navigate what those events mean for their respective and joint futures.
The general storyline of Be the Sea is fairly cozy, though the repercussions of some events could be seen as having a greater impact on the world in which the characters live. However, those repercussions are not particularly prominent within the story, placing this on the cozier side of sci-fi. There are, however, a number of content warnings for the book (listed here), which are worth noting before you commit to this book.
If you enjoy optimistic stories that take into account the realities of our world but present innovative solutions, you’ll enjoy Be the Sea.
The publisher provided me with an advance copy of this novel for review consideration....more
Addison Smith’s Darkling Dreams is a collection of drabbles–stories of exactly 100 words. The themes in these stories are often dark and sci-fi, but tAddison Smith’s Darkling Dreams is a collection of drabbles–stories of exactly 100 words. The themes in these stories are often dark and sci-fi, but they show an incredible mastery of the drabble format in their breadth and scope of approaches to this tricky length.
I was familiar with some of Smith’s drabbles through other publications, like the devastatingly perfect “The Hikaru Defense Project” included here, in which a likely clone, one of a long line, is brought into service. Other stories in this collection were new to me. I particularly liked “Three Dates with an Alien Brood Mother” for the way in which the three dates provided the structure of the story, each summed up in very few words. “Transmogrification and You” was a drabble in list format that told the story in faint hints about what had led to the need for this list. I also loved the space mermaids of “With Hands of Grappling Steel,” and I found “For Our First Date I Dress in Red” contained a surprising twist that I didn’t expect. Pulling off a twist in a drabble is a hard task indeed, but this story nailed it!
If you enjoy reading stories that are quite brief but leave you thinking about them long after you’ve read them, check out Darkling Dreams!
The author provided me an advance copy of this collection in exchange for review consideration....more
The Hitherto Secret Experiments of Marie Curie, edited by Bryan Thomas Schmidt and Henry Herz, is a speculative fiction anthology that blends historicThe Hitherto Secret Experiments of Marie Curie, edited by Bryan Thomas Schmidt and Henry Herz, is a speculative fiction anthology that blends historical fact about Marie Curie’s life as a young woman and fantastical, science fiction, and horror elements to present new and intriguing experiments a young Marie might have undertaken.
Most of my favorite stories in this anthology were among the darker fantastical pieces. “Marya’s Monster” by Alethea Kontis presents Marie Curie with a literal monster under the bed, and their conversations about the nature of fear are both thought provoking and charming. “Shards of Me” by Lissa Price has another girl steal Marie Curie’s body, but between Marie’s cleverness and a family game, she’s able to take it back. Finally, while “Retribution” by Christine Taylor-Butler has Marie going down a quite dark path, the revenge she extracts while doing so is deliciously satisfying.
If you’re a fan of Marie Curie and want to learn more about her early days while also enjoying fictional depictions of those days, I definitely recommend The Hitherto Secret Experiments of Marie Curie. The stories within are generally young adult appropriate, though many involve death (the death of Marie’s mother and sister are mentioned in a majority of the stories), either in a limited mention or widespread throughout the story. There are also many reminders of the attempted Russian erasure of Polish culture, language, and heritage, against which Marie and her family fought....more
(This review originally appeared at HistoryThatNeverWas.com)
Awaken the Daughter by Jeremy Flagg is an alternate history superhero novel. It is the fir(This review originally appeared at HistoryThatNeverWas.com)
Awaken the Daughter by Jeremy Flagg is an alternate history superhero novel. It is the first book in The Dawning of Superheroes series, part of the larger Children of Nostradamus world, and it is filled with delightful historical detail and great characters you will love to root for as they work to save their associates and the city as a whole.
Eleanor sees visions of the future, but she doesn’t know how to control them. She’s always worried that her power is more of a curse, maybe even demonically inspired. But in 1940s New York City, she begins to learn that perhaps she is not the only person with powers of this sort, and maybe they can help her use her powers for the greater good. But first, she’ll have to stop the person attacking and killing people like her.
Eleanor is a wonderful protagonist, perfectly flawed and believable. The supporting cast of characters are also carefully rendered and fleshed out, making the entire world quite plausible, even with the idea of superpowers and villainy floating around. If you enjoy other female heroes with strong personalities, sometimes in historical settings, like Agent Carter, Captain Marvel, and Wonder Woman, check out Awaken the Daughter and its sequels for a new hero to cheer for!...more
(This review originally appeared at HistoryThatNeverWas.com)
The Killing Grounds by Joan Tierney is a dark near-contemporary novella, set in a dystopia(This review originally appeared at HistoryThatNeverWas.com)
The Killing Grounds by Joan Tierney is a dark near-contemporary novella, set in a dystopia that doesn’t look too different from our own world. It’s an often grim look at the haves and have-nots, while dealing with issues of memories, family, and small communities.
Bina works for a passenger transportation company, but her world and job are upended when her co-workers are attacked by a passenger. Her co-workers kill the passenger in self-defense, but soon find out he was a notorious serial killer who had been based out of Bina’s hometown. Back in said hometown, Bina reconnects with her family members and learns more about her mother’s disappearance.
The story in The Killing Grounds is quite dark and does not shy away from that darkness in the slightest. There are murdered and mutilated female victims of a serial killer, plus implications of sexual assault. The latter are not particularly graphic but remain unsettling. A good deal of that aspect of the book was, I think, intentionally vague, which lead to the need to read between the lines to understand one major aspect of the story. Overall, though, the story flows well, the characters are fascinating (if not necessarily universally likeable), and Bina finally finds the answers she’s spent her life looking for....more
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