Short Fiction Review: March–April 2025
My favorite stories from March and April all lift up the importance of human connection in one way or another.
My favorite stories from March and April all lift up the importance of human connection in one way or another.
Even the most surreal fantastic elements of the book end up being employed in ways that eventually make some sense. But despite some familiar elements, their combination and development is unique and engaging. I wouldn’t quite call Harmattan Season an easy read, but it absolutely kept me interested throughout, and I was entirely satisfied with the ending.
Starting the novel, I was immediately drawn into the world and the folk nature of the story being told. As the human, I expected Thorn to be the center of the novel, but gradually began to appreciate Shimmer as the protagonist and character we would see adapt and grow through the adventure unfolding.
It’s a style of science fiction that may feel rather retro.² However, stylistically, the writing from Cambias does make The Godel Operation a throwback and calling back to relatively breezy and fun science fiction novels.
Mary and the other viewpoint characters are a lot of fun to follow through their adventures and evolutions, and Murphy’s insights into storytelling and explorations of the Victorian/Edwardian period are as entertaining as they are enlightening — Murphy examines historical horrors rather than glossing over them, but her characters overcome these challenges with verve.
This is a book not quite about the power of books and doors and going places by opening one, but instead, it is a twisting and intricately devised narrative of stable time travel loops. Brown has a lot of fun in the novel…