This month is a nice mix of authors I’ve read many times before and new-to-me authors. My ten favorite short science fiction, fantasy, and horror stories that I read in May cover stories of finding hope in what feels like the ruins of your life, stories of terror and brutality, and stories that twist and turn like a deer trail in the misty woods.
“6 Must-Have Sentient Spellbooks (and How to Find Them)” by Alexei Collier
Structured as a sort of listicle about six spell books, this piece by Alexei Collier is a great way to kick off this month’s spotlight. Each spellbook builds on the last, imbuing knowledge and secrets to its finder. Collier’s writing is lush yet cozy, the story equivalent of getting caught in a spring rainstorm while on a walk through a meadow of wildflowers. This was my first time reading Collier, but it won’t be my last.
Worlds of Possibility (April 2023)
“The Fall” by Jordan Chase-Young
“Blue earthshine and bare sunlight soaked the forest of the Moon. The trees stood in silence, white as bone. They, like the animals that dwelled here, had been shaped long ago to survive without atmosphere.” Chuel explores the surface of the Moon, taking photos of its strange creatures. She has a frightening encounter with a being that may or may not be real and that definitely shouldn’t be on the Moon. The worldbuilding here was exceptional. It felt like a snapshot of a much larger story, one I would be excited to read.
Clarkesworld (May 2023; issue 200)
“Goodnight, Virginia Bluebells” by Elena Sichrovsky
Kaitlyn’s father has defined the borders of her life. He was a serial killer who spent most of her life behind bars. After he’s executed she’s finally free of him…isn’t she? Does she want to be? What comes next? She realizes too late that the answer she finds isn’t the one she wants. Kaitlyn’s version of hope is not like everyone else’s but it’s there, like a beating heart in an open chest cavity.
Nightmare Magazine (May 2023)
“The Grocery Store” by A. Reid Johnson
This very short story is strange and sad. It made me groan when I got to the ending, not an angry groan but the one that usually comes right after someone’s given you some complicated news you’re not sure how to process. It’s too short for me to really tell you anything about it other than it’s a first person POV of our narrator going about their daily activities. But it’s the ending that is the real kick in the teeth.
Radon Journal (issue 4)
“A Kiss to Build a Dream On” by Cynthia Gómez
I lived in Oakland for several years and still have friends there. Oakland doesn’t get nearly enough love, literary or otherwise, and since Cynthia Gómez often writes speculative stories set in that incredible, challenging city, I always make the time to read them. Set in the postwar period, “A Kiss to Build a Dream On” is the queer Latinx historical fantasy you’ve been waiting for. It’s a light story, about a queer man called Eddie who finds both love and fear at a magical clothier, but beneath the surface is a deep well of emotions. It’s the kind of story that puts the pride in Pride.
Tree And Stone (May 2023; issue 1)
“The Mausoleum’s Children” by Aliette de Bodard
Thuận Lộc returns to her childhood home, the place she barely escaped from, the place that will use whatever force is necessary to keep her this time. She wants to rescue two people she left behind, but deep down she really wants to rescue herself. Although she physically left, her soul still feels trapped there. A powerful story about freedom, resilience, and finding yourself.
Uncanny (May 2023; issue 52)
“On the Mysterious Events at Rosetta” by Fawaz Al-Matrouk
A story built out of correspondence about French explorers breaking into a tomb. When the Frenchmen die brutal deaths, the innocent Egyptian man who was with them is blamed for it. Fawaz Al-Matrouk takes the stale, pretty offensive trope of ancient Egyptian mummy curses and turns it back on its colonial inventors. Although the main characters in this correspondence are French colonizers (and the Englishman who compiled and translated the letters), the center of the story is the Egyptian man caught between two intractable forces.
Fantasy & Science Fiction (May/June 2023)
“Place of Four Winds” by Gabriel Mara
“Place of Four Winds” is the story of a father whose daughter died too young and the woman who finds herself in a haunting landscape of monsters and storms. They call to each other, him from the land of the living and her from the land of the dead. They cling to each other, unwilling to let the living keep living and the dead do whatever it is the dead do. It’s a lovely read with gorgeous poetic prose. I also appreciated the structure such as the rapid-fire sentence-length paragraphs and how most of them begin with pronouns (“She hears”, “His cheeks”, etc.). It makes the act of reading as interesting as the story itself. And oh my god, have you seen the cover of this issue? Stunning! I want a print of it so badly.
The Deadlands (May 2023; issue 25)
“Such an Honor” by Sarah Gailey
After years of striving and success, Leonard has finally achieved his greatest victory: the Ganymede Lifetime Achievement Award for Excellence in Composition. Like all his other trophies, this jewel will not sit on his mantle to be ogled by visitors but will be embedded in his body. Sarah Gailey has this way of writing where you’re not quite sure if it’s horror or science fiction but it also kinda doesn’t matter because whatever it is it’s giving you the creeps. There’s an air of looming dread around the whole thing, so that by the time you get to the final gory reveal at the end you’re both surprised and ready.
Sunday Morning Transport (May 7, 2023)
“Wanted: Bone-White Skull-Patterned Lace Trim” by Kelsea Yu
About a third of the way through this story, I was confused why a bittersweet story about a soon-to-be single mother repairing an old stroller she found on the street was on PseudoPod. Then came the twist and yeah, that’s why it’s on this particular site. This one snuck up on me. It’s unsettling and uncomfortable in the best possible way.
PseudoPod (May 14, 2023; #865)
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), instagram (@bookjockeyalex), and their blog (bookjockeyalex.com).
