Apex Science Fiction & Horror Digest: Winter 2006
Apex Science Fiction & Horror Digest: Winter 2006
Sorry, folks. Meant to post this a couple days ago when I actually finished the issue, but I've been sick. Still sick, actually, but it's time to post and move on.
What an interesting cover. I say this cause I had this at work with me, and it got quite a few stares. :) Very appropriate though for Jennifer Pelland's story!
"Madness Blows the Winds of History"
by Tom Piccirilli
It took me a little while to get into this story, but that may have more to do with my own personal preferences than anything, because I prefer getting character first before getting my setting. So that's me. I was glad to recognize the Vietnam references and possible parallels (I was reminded, during the jungle scene, of Apocalypse Now). The idea of the story is interesting, though a bit tragic, and a little bit disturbing, that the Ledge would give the protagonist what he wants, even though what he wanted was the wrong thing. Still Thompson's explanation about guilt made sense, and the solution did too, though I worried, at the end, with the mention of the suit and the need to hear the song, if Tobalt wasn't going to fall victim to the same cycle all over again…
"Blood Baby"
by Jennifer Pelland
This is a creepy little story with a distinct fairy tale vibe to it. I got a little tripped with up the technology levels of this world, but I liked the Blood Baby, I liked what the Spirit represented, and I liked the ending. The protagonist grew and changed, and that's always a plus in short stories, and even in such a short piece, Pelland challenges accepted views and roles for women. Good stuff to stew over, and again, yay with the creepiness.
"A Place of Snow Angels"
by Matt Wallace
My only complaint with this piece was that it wasn't nearly long enough. The world, situation, and character intrigued me, and I wanted more. As it stands, it's a good short, with an end that really made me think: a kid with that much power, who clearly doesn't want what he's been told he should. I want more of that story!
"Genesis Six"
by Shane Jiraiya Cummings
Weird piece. I'm really glad this wasn't an alien pregnancy, but I was really worried for most of the story. And I didn't catch on to the fact that it was darkness they were running away from, not right away, anyhow, but I may be dense. I liked the description of the angels at the end, and of the little girl's eyes. The mother's reaction at the end bothered me a bit, since the mother brought her child to the father: surely she knew what would happen? And the angel's speech at the end was a bit preachy, though intriguing: it was interesting to see what side these angels were REALLY on.
"The Death Singer"
by John B. Rosenman
Cool concept with the death singer, though I'm a little confused about the details of the climax. The protagonist was given the cure after the death singer touched him. It would've made more sense, in my mind, to have the death singer touch him after he got the cure. But of course, I'm still questioning the entire cycle premise, because the death singer didn't appear to heal the main character (though maybe it did and the main character thought the other thing was the cure). Maybe death singers don't allow people to die if they haven't lived for anything? Don't know. There seemed to be a Christian message here too, but maybe that's because of my background. But if it IS there, I think it's a bit too blatant. The death singers themselves are a cool concept, I just wish it'd been explored a bit more.
"Mommy, Daddy, and Mollie"
by William F. Nolan
Creepy! What else is there to say about this? I saw the ending coming, so no surprise there. Nolan nails down the child's voice almost too well in terms of punctuation, but yeah. Creepy.
"Last Chance Morning"
by Timothy Waldron Semple
What a prick of a narrator! I can't say the ending surprises me, though I would've liked to know what he got imprisoned for, cause that might've prepared me a bit. The character was a bit too tame until the break-out. His actions didn't surprise me, but even so, he could've been a little more consistent in the beginning. I feel sorry for the aliens though.
"Babble"
by M.M. Buckner
Great story. Buckner has a solid writing style, and I was fascinated with the various stories of Horn Hill. Talk about a great ending too. My only nitpick was that both Frank and the narrator somehow ended up in the same Chicago bar (and they both grew up in Tennessee), and that I was never really sure how old these men were. That's okay-a nitpick, like I said. Some prose in this tale.
The title doesn't seem to fit though...I mean, I know that Frank babbled about this stuff, but it doesn't seem quite the right title for the heart of the piece. That's just me.
"Temporal Spiders, Spatial Webs"
by Lavie Tidhar
Interesting, but weird story. I'm still scratching my head over what exactly Spider's purpose was. The story definitely caught my interest with The Music, which I immediately translated as the Music of the Spheres, thanks to my music education. But I don't think that's what Tidhar was going for, and if it was, then I'm very perplexed, because Spider seems to nest within the solar system. And if it's not (and it appears that it's not), shame on us for assuming the obvious guess instead of going with the story. :-/
ANYWAY: after reading this story twice (I felt I was too ill to really grasp it the first time), I want to say this is a story about human expansion, and that The Music is really communication and networking, and that Spider's kids are taking what's there and expanding said network. But the last paragraph, the italicized one, even makes me doubt that. Maybe if I read this story a third time, in perfect health, I'd get it, but right now, the story seems to be reaching a bit too hard for poetry. And again, I keep getting flustered over The Music. Human communication or the Music of the Spheres? I know it's the former, but I'm still irked, and the last paragraph doesn't help.
"Incarnations of Immortality"
by Steven Savile
Well, at least I've read one of the three pieces preceding this one. I kept wondering just how much more of this piece would be significant if I'd read the first two parts. I gathered that the ending was essentially word-for-word with the beginning of the first part (that's not hard to figure out), and it's a rather kind of Momento moment. But what dissatisfies me with this story, and again, I might not feel this way had I read the other two installments, was the lack of explanation for what was going on. Temple suddenly understands, but I as a reader don't (again, could be that I only have half the story). I'm still on the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse theory, though that wouldn't explain the cyclic nature of the whole thing. So there's obviously more to it, and I just have to trust it really does come together if all installments are read. The writing is good, poetic prose in a way, but I would like to see a story that's completed unrelated to Temple, in order to get a better grasp of this author and his capabilities.
"Worlds"
by Aaron Gudmunson
Poetic and frightening: this is a wonderful piece of flash fiction. I very much enjoyed the imagery of it, that inner monologue, and that ending. Great work.
Let's see...total score, which is skewed because I was sick while reading this issue and my brain wasn't working... 5/11. Not too bad. Bucker's was my absolute fave of this issue, and I'm glad I already have a book of hers on my shelf to read (moreso, I'm glad I liked her short so I don't dread reading the book!). And since I waited a while before reading and reviewing this sucker, I wouldn't be surprised if Issue #9 finds its way to my mailbox shortly...
Next up: I'm currently reading Word Painting: A Guide to Writing More Descriptively by Rebecca McClanahan, but I'm sick and the book's boring me, so I might cheat and read something completely fun. :)