mostly harmless books

The Del Rey Book of Science Fiction and Fantasy almost missed its encounter with me, thanks to the incompetents at the post office. Fortunately, after postponing a trip and pleading with a lady, my precious envelope was rescued from the “to be returned” pile.. and boy, was it good timing. I was about to embark on a long train ride, so any book would’ve been welcome; but this proved to be more than “any book”.

I haven’t exactly read many anthologies, but most have been half-hit, half-miss. In this case, the misses were just a few.

The customary story by story review/opinions follows.

Jason Stoddard - The Elephant Ironclads. This seemed to require some knowledge of US history and geography, so I don’t think I got it all, and since I don’t want to give the plot away I won’t say much. Dinetah is a small country (?) somewhere on the border between the US and Mexico, which became independent with the aid of the legendary Elephant Ironclads. Two local (Native American) boys want to make a better life for themselves. I liked the glimpses of culture you could get - for example, the Dine gods live in the earth and look to the sky.

Lucy Sussex - Ardent Clouds. Not really fantasy, unless you consider two events connected; nevertheless, I enjoyed the story very much. My favorite aspect was probably the new love the main character (almost) finds (although it might shock some people, I think it’s very well potrayed). Plus, chasing volcanos sounds like a very interesting job.

Christopher Rowe - Gather. This is a weird one. I’m not sure I liked it. It’s incomplete. I read it twice and found new clues. It’s frustrating to not learn any answer. But… it’s part of a series of stories of a reconfigured Kentucky; I am dying to read more and I haven’t been able to find any. The story itself didn’t impress me that much, but the world seems absolutely fascinating. When Rowe publishes a collection of stories set in this world, I am so buying it.

Elizabeth Bear - Sonny Liston Takes the Fall. I don’t care about boxing, I’d never heard of Sonny Liston before, I don’t feel like re-reading the story. Not my cup of tea at all.

Nathan Ballingrud - North American Lake Monsters. Even though it does have a supposed monster, it’s a tale of relationships - father-daughter, husband-wife. I didn’t really understand what the monster had to do with anything, and what happened in the end.

Carol Emshwiller - All Washed Up While Looking for a Better World. Weird. In a bad way. I’d read her novel Carmen Dog before and I had the same reaction. I can’t put my finger on it, but I didn’t like any of them - but didn’t dislike them either. It’s probably the unusual mix of the real world with something that looks familiar, but isn’t, with no attempt to explain it. A woman wants to run from her life and go to a remote island, but what she finds there is not what she was expecting. The character acted in ways I just didn’t get.

Maureen F. McHugh - Special Economics. The only story set in China, a country I don’t find particularly interesting. It reminded me of Geoff Ryman’s Air, probably because the Asian setting and two characters that shared a similar profession. This vague resemlance aside, the story is very… rewarding. Two girls screw the system without any special skills. I just wonder how speculative it is… I can see most of the events happening today.

Richard Bowes - Aka St. Mark’s Place. A bit confused about this one. A guy whose work involves tracking down runaways. A boy who can partially see the future. And a girl, of course. Plus the way their lives keep intersecting. Interesting, but something was missing.

[Part 2]

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• Same cover, more stories
• Wastelands - part 3
• A couple of podcasts
• Some great stories and an ugly cover
• The Del Rey Book of Science Fiction and Fantasy - part 2