A farmstead is threatened by a biohacked organic collective creature with plans to launch itself to Jupiter. This is an insanely inventive and rollicking story; I enjoyed how it throws one insane…
Tag: short story
“The Happy Medium” by Helen Marshall
A woman acts as a medium for the dead at a theme park while dressed in a mascot costume, and delivers devastating news from beyond that is outside of the park’s guidelines….
“Haunt Me” by Gemma Files
A young medium, who has come out of an especially grueling haunting with heightened powers, intervenes with an ancient, lovelorn spirit connected to an odd museum artifact. An interesting story of obsession…
“Useful Phrases” by Gene Wolfe
The owner of a bookshop finds a compelling and strange phrasebook for a mysterious language, and tries to connect with its native speakers. This is an interesting little story of loneliness and…
“Bettering Myself” by Ottessa Moshfegh
A teacher at a Catholic school leads a tawdry and desultory life, but seems unable to break out of her chaos. There’s something refreshing about how over-the-top and unrepentant the narrator is.
“To Sunland” by Lauren Groff
A young woman on her way to college travels by bus from her small town to a home for the mentally disabled on her way to college, burning bridges as she goes….
“Out of All Them Bright Stars” by Nancy Kress
A blue alien goes into a rural diner on a rainy night and offers gentle courtesy to a waitress. This story plays with prejudice and fear, bullies and oppression, in some interesting…
“The Cage of Sand” by J.G. Ballard
Three people live in the sand-covered ruins of a motel on Cape Kennedy, chased by wardens who are trying to contain a plant-killing Martian virus. This is a very Ballardian story, with…
“Super-Toys Last All Summer Long” by Brian Aldiss
An artificial boy tries, with the help of his AI teddy bear, to express his love for his human mother. This may not be the saddest story in science fiction – I…
“Abominable” by Carol Emshwiller
A party of men set out in search of women, who have apparently wandered away and whom none of them have ever seen in person. This feels like a satirical sibling of…