The author interview this time is with Ann Leckie, author of
Ancillary Justice (reviewed here on
2nd August last year) and its sequel Ancillary Sword (currently in my reading pile). The review of the
sequel, which incorporates a comparison with the original, is interesting since
it sounds rather different in approach, so I may have to accelerate that one up
my priority order, if it can find its way past all of the others....
Other book reviews did not prompt me to add any more to my
"must buy" list (I am becoming increasingly selective, given the way
my reading pile keeps growing faster than I can shorten it). The film and DVD
reviews are as entertaining and informative as usual, although thanks to my
recent efforts to actually travel to a real cinema to watch films in their
natural habitat, I have already seen some of the ones featured here.
An interesting addition to the usual contents is an
interview with artist Wayne Haag, who has worked on many films as well as
providing covers for Interzone over
the past year. Some insights into a normally obscure corner of the film
industry.
Now to the short stories, of which there are just five this
time.
Nostalgia by
Bonnie Jo Stufflebeam, illustrated by Richard Wagner. Dysfunctional people in a
future dystopia, trapped by their drug addiction in an apparently endless
cycle.
An Advanced Guide to
Successful Price-Fixing in Extra-Terrestrial Betting Markets by T. R.
Napper, illustrated by Warwick Fraser-Coombe. The hero of this one is a not
entirely sane gambling addict who follows obsessive little rituals such as
varying the treads of the stairs which he steps on, imagining that alien
gamblers are placing bets on which he chooses. Until reality crashes into his
imaginary world to dire effect, forcing him into drastic action to save the
day. A likeable story, filled with wry humour.
The Ferry Man by
Pandora Hope, illustrated by Ben Baldwin. For ninety percent of the story this
appears to be a non-genre tale about the grief of a recently widowed old man
who turns to an unusual therapist for comfort, but the ending veers off into
mythological fantasy.
Tribute by
Christien Gholson, illustrated by Richard Wagner. A glimpse of an
incomprehensible world in which a more or less normal human culture – apart
from a predilection for sacrificing children to their god, that is – coexists
with what seems to be one of the "gods", who doesn't have a clue what
is going on.
Fish on Friday by
Neil Williamson. A short story which consists entirely of one side of a
telephone conversation, in which an earnest minion of an independent Scottish
state tries to persuade a recalcitrant elderly woman to eat more fish, along
the way revealing some of the bizarre priorities of the ultimate "nanny
state".
I frequently complain about the downbeat mood of stories
published in Interzone, so must raise
a cheer that there are no fewer than two amusing stories in this issue.
No surprise that they are my favourites by a wide margin. Williamson's tale is
a little gem, using the comic possibilities of only hearing one side of a phone
conversation to good effect, as the reader enjoys imagining the other side.
Napper's story reminded me of the kind of really good tale that used to appear in
anthologies decades ago when a neat story structure, dry humour and a
satisfying ending were far more common ingredients of SFF than is the case
today. More like these, please!
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