Finbarr O’Reilly. The Last Boat-Builder in Ballyvoloon. (Clarkesworld Magazine #133 October 2017)
Very well told, and altogether a pleasure to read.
Aliette de Bodard. In Everlasting Wisdom. (Infinity Wars ed Strahan)
An interesting conceit, but the story whizzes through quickly.
Yoon Ha Lee. Extracurricular Activities. (Tor.com)
There was stuff I *really* did like – gender fluidity, non-CIS sexuality and flirting, but the undercover spy thing and the generally light tone of the story didn’t work for me.
Kathleen Ann Goonan. The Tale of the Alcubierre Horse. (Extrasolar ed Nick Gevers, PS Publishing 2017)
The story moves through the gears smoothly, starting as a traditional ship politics story and ramping us the tension and the scale and scope of the story nicely.
Karin Lowachee. Meridian. (Where the Stars Rise, ed Law/Mak)
A good read, although if you’d asked me after reading it what the theme of the anthology was from which it was taken, ‘Asian SF and Fantasy’ would have been a long, long way down the list of suggestions.
A.C. Wise. A Catalogue of Sunlight at the End of the World. (Sunvault: Stories of Solarpunk and Eco-Speculation. Upper Rubber Boot, August 2017)
Only the third story by Wise that I’ve read, and like the previous two it’s a good one.
Greg Egan. Uncanny Valley. (Tor.com August 2017)
An interesting WhoDunnit – not sure if there has been a DidIDoIt before?
Maggie Clark. Belly Up. (Analog July/August 2017)
Only the second story I’ve read by Clark, and they have both impressed.
Rachael K. Jones and Khaalidah Muhammad-Ali. Regarding the Robot Raccoons Attached to the Hull of My Ship. (Diabolical Plots, June 2017)
A reasonable story although not a standout for me.
Indrapramit Das. The Worldless. (Lightspeed Magazine #82, March 2017)
An excellent story from Das – go follow the link and read it.
Gregory Benford. Shadows of Eternity. (Extrasolar, edited by Nick Gevers)
There are some great descriptions of alien worlds, and an interesting conclusion, but the story didn’t quite rise to the level of some of Benford’s work.
Linda Nagata. The Martian Obelisk. (Tor.com)
One element of the story just a little too close to Andy Weir’s ‘The Martian’ for my liking, but otherwise well done.
Gord Sellar. Focus. (Analog May/June 2017)
I know I have a long-standing issue with many Analog stories, but I wasn’t particularly taken with this story, before finding out where it was published.
Sarah Pinsker. Wind Will Rove. (Asimovs, September/October 2017)
A generation starship story, which are few and far between these days.
Vandana Singh. Shikasta. (Visions, Ventures, Escape Velocities)
A good balance of space exploration science, AI musings, global climate change/disaster and societal impacts, and with a non-western setting.
Matthew Kressel. The Last Novelist (or a Dead Lizard in the Yard). (Tor.com)
There’s depth and warmth in the story, which makes it well worth the read and inclusion in this volume.
Nancy Kress. Every Hour of Light and Dark. (Omni, Winter 2017)
It’s a neat story, Kress as ever, handling the characters well.