I must have been in a weirdly contradictory mood when I read for the August spotlight, because my ten favorite short science fiction, fantasy, and horror stories are all over the map. We have found families, grumpy decapitated heads, strange animals, lonely protagonists, and wry comedy.
“Coalescence” by Simo Srinivas
I wasn’t expecting a story about a cat piloting a sentient spaceship, but here we are. After the captain disappeared, the ship, unable to function without a pilot, grabs the first conscious thing it can find: her pet cat. Their relationship is rocky at first as the ship and a feline feel each other out. There’s some action and a little bit of adventure, but it’s mostly a slice-of-life story about two friends and their growing found family.
Worlds of Possibility (August 2023)
“The Ferryman” by Fernanda Coutinho Teixeira
“You are the ferryman. You have no memory of being anything else…The river always takes you where you are meant to go.” Dark, haunting, and a little sad, “The Ferryman” is a tale about an entity who takes the spirits of those who can pay across the river to whatever comes next. The Ferryman believes the task is their sole reason for existing, but over time begins to wonder if it might just be a job. Maybe there’s something else out there for them?
The Deadlands (August 2023; Issue 28)
“First Report of an Un-typeable Insectoid Species from a Human Cadaver at the Anthropology Research Facility” by Jason P. Burnham
Written like an academic journal article, this piece is very creepy. Not scare you out of your seat horror, but the kind I like best where looming dread surrounds and smothers you. Jennifer, a scientist at the University of Knoxville’s Anthropological Research Facility—aka, she works at a “body farm” where they study decomposition—watches the development of a strange creature emerging from a cadaver. No one understands what’s happening, least of all Jennifer, but whatever it is, she’s unable to extract herself from its lure.
The Maul (Issue 3)
“Five Things That Go Through Your Mind After the Masked Killer Decapitates You with an Axe and Your Still-Living Head Has a Few Seconds of Consciousness Left to Gaze at Your Twitching Body” by Adam-Troy Castro
Speaking of horror that isn’t terrifying, Adam-Troy Castro! The plot is exactly what the title describes: five thoughts of the latest victim of an axe murderer as their head rolls away from their body. I loved all the winks and nods to horror movie tropes. Five stars.
Nightmare Magazine (August 2023; Issue 131)
“It Comes Through Us” by Koji A. Dae
“Doesn’t it feel good to be noticed? Needed? We don’t feel at all. We were never needed. Or wanted. We want you.” If you’ve read a lot of short speculative fiction, you’ve probably read a story with the royal we POV and a body with a legion of personalities inside that Koji A. Dae uses here. But she has a chilling twist at the end that brought the story from familiar to exciting. Our narrator (narrators?) was lonely before meeting “You.” You accepted them for who they were, but you’ll regret it soon enough…
Three-Lobed Burning Eye (July 2023; Issue 39)
“Mooncakes” by Sherry Yuan
Werewolves! Immediately yes, immediately yes. Chloe is a werewolf, but she’s also a woman meeting her boyfriend’s family for the first time. And it just so happens that they’ve invited her to the Mid-Autumn Festival, which always takes place on a full moon. I think you get the idea. Sherry Yuan took a fun premise and added so much depth and truth to it by centering it on the Chinese Canadian and Chinese immigrant experiences and cultural traditions.
Translunar Travelers Lounge (August 2023; Issue 9)
“My Dear, My Love” by Davida Kilgore
“It takes a Black woman to tell the truth about another Black woman, whether she likes that woman or not.” A stunning fantasy tale set in the South Side of Chicago. Coraliene and Medea, aka Ma’Dear, grow up together, thick as thieves. Boys are drawn to Medea, and to keep them in check she turns to root magic. Liene, drawn to Ma’Dear, watches from the shadows, her love desperate to be acknowledged even as she knows it never will. The playful girls grow up into strong women, and no amount of bad husbands or toddling children can break them apart.
Fantasy Magazine (August 2023; Issue 94)
“On a Smoke-Blackened Wing” by Joanne Rixon
Another “we” story this month. Joanne Rixon’s near-future story is split into two perspectives: Avie, a child with an interest in birds, and “WE”, an ever-expanding flock of birds. Avie has several charming encounters with birds, extinct and otherwise, while her overworked father ignores her. Meanwhile, every human-made thing that enters the sky is somehow turned into a bird. A weird, wonderful little story that makes its point without too much underscoring.
Diabolical Plots (August 2, 2023; #102A)
“Partial Transcript from The Great Brexit Baking Show” by Rich Larson
Despite the departures of the three best cast members (Mary, Mel, and Sue, obvi), challenges that skirt a little too close to racism for my taste, and a steady downward decline in quality, The Great British Baking Show still holds a place in my heart. Rich Larson skewers the hell out of it with this near-future take where pro-UK/anti-everyone else sentiment has infected the show. In this funny story written in screenplay format, Larson delivers a heaping plate of holograms, drones, robots, fervent yet undeserved patriotism, and an amuse-bouche of climate crisis for flavor.
Bourbon Penn (August 2023; Issue 30)
“Where the Wind Blows” by Jennifer Hudak
While working at a grocery store, our narrator meets a wayward traveler. They take the visitor in and give them work. During their brief time together, a connection forms, but more than that, our narrator discovers something about themself they didn’t expect. A story of searching for community. What I liked the most about this story was the ending. It’s a real “is the glass half empty or half full” scenario. For me, it’s one of settling for loneliness, but for you it might be the hope that comes with freedom. Gives new meaning to the line in Charlotte’s Web by E.B. White “Wherever the wind takes us. High, low. Near, far. East, west. North, south. We take to the breeze, we go as we please.”
Flash Point Science Fiction (August 25, 2023)
Alex Brown is a Hugo-nominated and Ignyte award-winning critic who writes about speculative fiction, librarianship, and Black history. Find them on twitter (@QueenOfRats), bluesky (@bookjockeyalex), instagram (@bookjockeyalex), and their blog (bookjockeyalex.com).
