Here are some of the short fiction works we read this week that we wanted to share with you.
“The Black Cat” by Edgar Allen Poe (1843, free online at Poe Stories, Kindle version)
I recently stumbled upon PoeStories.com and am pleased with the find. A Poe a day may well keep boredom at bay. The website helpfully gives descriptions of each story. I chose this one for the enticing simplicity of the summary: “a horror story about a cat”.
This is indeed a horror story about a cat,
March 21st, 2016. Katie Burton, Tadiana Jones and Kat Hooper | George MacDonald | Short Fiction | SFF Reviews | 5 comments |
Here are some of the stories we read this week that we wanted you to know about. This week we continue focusing on 2015 Nebula-nominated short fiction, along with some other stories that caught our attention.
“Madeleine” by Amal El-Mohtar (2015, free on Lightspeed magazine, Kindle magazine issue), nominated for the 2015 Nebula award (short story)
Madeleine is in therapy after the death of her mother from Alzheimer’s. She and her therapist, Clarice, are discussing the loss of her mother and the odd side-effects from a clinical trial for an Alzheimer’s drug that Madeleine has taken part in.
March 7th, 2016. Kate Lechler, Katie Burton, Tadiana Jones and Kat Hooper | Amal El-Mohtar, C.S.E. Cooney, Catherynne M. Valente, Greg Bear, Philip Pullman, Sam J. Miller | Nebula Award, Short Fiction | SFF Reviews | 4 comments |
The Miniaturist by Jessie Burton
Jessie Burton’s debut novel, The Miniaturist, was undoubtedly a hit. I bought it because I was in an airport rush and it was winking at me from its bestseller, front row spot on the shelves. The Miniaturist’s popularity does not surprise me. It is an enjoyable read, packed with intertwining mysteries that tease throughout. I imagine a lot of people have fond memories of doll’s houses and were enticed by this aspect of the story,
January 14th, 2016. Katie Burton and Tadiana Jones´s rating: 3 | Jessie Burton | Edge, Stand-Alone | SFF Reviews | 5 comments |
The Bloody Chamber: And Other Stories by Angela Carter
Angela Carter’s style is rich and dense. Her short stories are the most sumptuous of literary feasts. In The Bloody Chamber Carter reworks a number of fairy stories and folk tales, from “Little Red Riding Hood” and “Beauty and the Beast” to “Puss-in-Boots”. But Carter never intended to do “versions”. She created brand new stories using the basic premise of the originals as her starting point. In her formidable hands the familiar elements of the tales are moulded into an altogether different beast.
January 13th, 2016. Katie Burton´s rating: 5 | Angela Carter | Short Fiction | SFF Reviews | 10 comments |
The Screaming Staircase by Jonathon Stroud
LOCKWOOD & CO. is Jonathan Stroud’s second four-part outing. It follows on from the success of his BARTIMAEUS sequence (which comes highly recommended here at FanLit). Stroud specialises in alternate versions of London for children. In BARTIMAEUS it was a London of djinn-conjuring wizards. This time London is troubled by deadly ghosts. The Screaming Staircase is a pacey, exciting introduction to Stroud’s new London, but it lacks the sense of magic and humour that made BARTIMAEUS such a winner.
January 11th, 2016. Katie Burton´s rating: 3.5 | Jonathan Stroud | Children, Horror | SFF Reviews | 2 comments |
Crystal Mask by Katherine Roberts
Crystal Mask is the second book in Katherine Robert’s ECHORIUM SEQUENCE. Unlike Song Quest which I first read as a child, Crystal Mask was new to me. I can’t help wishing I had encountered it as a child because I would have been far less fussy about the plot. Adulthood has come with a propensity to pick holes as you will discover if you are minded to read on.
November 16th, 2015. Katie Burton´s rating: 3.5 | Katherine Roberts | Children | SFF Reviews | no comments |
There is so much free or inexpensive short fiction available on the internet these days. Here are a few stories we read this week that we wanted you to know about.
“If You Were a Dinosaur, My Love” by Rachel Swirsky (2013, free at Apex Magazine)
Rachel Swirsky‘s “If You Were a Dinosaur, My Love” is tiny in size but remarkable in strength, a real pint-sized gem. It is no wonder the story won the 2013 Nebula short story award ― anyone who can pack such a punch into so few words knows what they are doing with them.
November 9th, 2015. Katie Burton, Jana Nyman, Kate Lechler, Tadiana Jones and Kat Hooper | Andre Norton, Rachel Swirsky | Short Fiction | SFF Reviews | 5 comments |
Perfume: The Story of a Murderer by Patrick Suskind, translated into English by John E. Woods
If you are anything like me, then Perfume: The Story of a Murderer will prove a most tantalising title. And, if you are anything like me, you will not be disappointed upon delving inside. This is a story of human nature at its most despicable and scent at its most sublime, a heady combination of depravity and olfactory beauty.
Published in 1985, Perfume fast became a best-seller in Patrick Suskind’s native German.
November 3rd, 2015. Katie Burton´s rating: 4.5 | Patrick Suskind | Horror, Stand-Alone, World Fantasy Award | SFF Reviews | 7 comments |
There is so much free or inexpensive short fiction available on the internet these days. Here are a few stories we read this week that we wanted you to know about.
Grand Jeté (The Great Leap) by Rachel Swirsky (2014, free at Subterranean Press)
“Mara, please wake up. I’ve made you a gift.” But gifts can be complicated: often there are strings attached, and the giver may not be completely in tune with the desires of the recipient… may, in fact,
October 19th, 2015. Tadiana Jones, Jason Golomb, Katie Burton, Marion Deeds and Kate Lechler | John Scalzi, Rachel Swirsky | Nebula Award, Short Fiction | SFF Reviews | 1 comment |
Song Quest by Katherine Roberts
I read Katherine Roberts’ Song Quest (book one of the three-book ECHORIUM SEQUENCE) as a child when it was first published in 1999. A few years later it was the first book I ever cajoled an unsuspecting customer into buying during my Saturday stint at the local bookshop. It is one those books that has stayed with me and I indulged myself with a re-read partly for stroll down memory lane and partly because I do not think it has received the attention it deserves.
October 1st, 2015. Katie Burton´s rating: 3.5 | Katherine Roberts | Children | SFF Reviews | 4 comments |
Pretty challenging book. Cut by half, speed up the cadence. Trying to figure out the plot, the main point of…
Thanks for the kind words, Marion! Coming as they are from a professional writer, they are much appreciated!
Wonderful review, Sandy.
The "body count" bothered me a bit less because being dead seemed more like an inconvenience than anything else... unlike…
Detailed, thoughtful review, Bill. I'm going to read it for two reasons. First, Karen Russell wrote it, and second, it…