Lightspeed Magazine January 2015 a recap.

Generally I'd have to say that I enjoyed this issue.

Some of the stories felt more like Soft SF which I'm less thrilled by.

That said I never found myself wishing I'd not read a story or wanted to give up one one.  All of them had interesting subjects.  The two highlights of the issue, for me, were The Choice by Paul McAuley and More Adventures on Other Planets by Michael Cassutt

Find the links to each story below

Ad Astra.

Beautiful Boys by Theodora Goss:
http://eric-the-mailman.blogspot.ca/2015/02/beautiful-boys-by-theodora-goss.html

He Came from a Place of Openness and Truth by Bonnie Jo Stufflebeam:
http://eric-the-mailman.blogspot.ca/2015/02/he-came-from-place-of-openness-and.html

More Adventures on Other Planets by Michael Cassutt:
http://eric-the-mailman.blogspot.ca/2015/02/more-adventures-on-other-planets-by.html

Men of Unborrowed Vision by Jeremiah Tolbert:
http://eric-the-mailman.blogspot.ca/2015/02/men-of-unborrowed-vision-by-jeremiah.html

The Choice by Paul McAuley:
http://eric-the-mailman.blogspot.ca/2015/02/the-choice-by-paul-mcauley.html

The Choice by Paul McAuley

12/100

Set in post-apocalypse Scotland after the melting of the ice caps and after aliens have found earth and live among us in the ruins.

I often find these types of stories intriguing but often depressing; only because I very much want to live in the "shiny" future not the "grubby" one. 

Here we find two teen boys going on an adventure to see an alien sea-craft accidentally beached in some shallow water nearby. 

There is some perfectly incorporated world-building making the story incredibly rich.  In the spotlight you learn that there are many other stories set in this world. 

There are some ramifications to the boys' trip that make this a most satisfying read. 

One thing I must commend Lightspeed Magazine for is providing author spotlights and interviews.  I just love DVD extras and it is most welcome to find it in a print publication.

Highly recommended.

The author's website is here:   http://www.omegacom.demon.co.uk/index.htm

This was included as an ebook exclusive and is only available if you purchase the issue.
http://www.lightspeedmagazine.com/issues/jan-2015-issue-56/

This story was first published in Asimov's February 2011 issue.

Asimov's February 2011

Paul McAuley

Men of Unborrowed Vision by Jeremiah Tolbert

11/100

This was an interesting riff on the Occupy Wall Street protests. With a healthy dose of conspiracy theory.

Was it interesting?  Yes.

Was it science fiction?  Not even close.

Time to be fair - It was a really good story.  I found the characters interesting and I liked the friction between Mara and Adam.  It tackles the notion of inequality by taking a closer look at the people who participate in political protests.  There is even a nod to those folks who believe the government is trying to control our minds with "chem-trails", the CONtrails (short for condensation) that you sometimes see from overflying aircraft.  It is here that the story probably qualified as SF.

Yikes!  The government is out to get us.

The real trouble I had with the story is that it was published in a science fiction magazine.  So the difficulty I'm having lies with the editor and not the author.  I'm always happy when an author makes a sale but, as a reader, I question if this even qualifies as soft SF.

Opinions may vary.

Jeremiah Tolbert's web page is here:   http://www.jeremiahtolbert.com/

The story is available to read online here:
http://www.lightspeedmagazine.com/fiction/men-unborrowed-vision/

Lightspeed Magazine is here:  http://www.lightspeedmagazine.com/

Jeremiah Tolbert.  Love the hat.

More Adventures on Other Planets by Michael Cassutt

10/100

This may have been the best SF story from this issue.

It was a real nuts and bolts exploration of Jupiter's moon, Europa. Set in 2026 it takes what we know about the Mars rovers to the next level. 

The two main characters were flawed and believable; rough personalities; failed marriages; tempers flaring, it all made for an authentic setting.  I also liked how the author personified the rovers; just like today each rover was given a name but, interestingly, they developed "personalities' of their own. 

From top to bottom this was a believable and touching look at the future of planetary exploration. 

If you liked The Martian by Andy Weir then you'll like this too. 

Excellent.

NOTE:  If you want to follow the real world attempt to explore Europa go to the NASA website and learn about the Europa Clipper Mission.  http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/missions/europa-clipper/

Europa Clipper

Michael Cassutt does not have his own web page; his Wikipedia entry is here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Cassutt

The following picture of Michael Cassutt was lifted from the Tor Books blog:
http://torbooks.co.uk/2013/07/29/david-s-goyer-michael-cassutt-the-heaven-series-interview/

Lightspeed Magazine:   http://www.lightspeedmagazine.com/

Michael Cassutt

He Came From a Place of Openness and Truth by Bonnie Jo Stufflebeam

9/100

This whole thing started out as a YA teen angst kind of story that turned into an alien abduction with a twist.

I'm not sure if I liked it or not.  I've discovered, this past year, that I am not a fan of young adult fiction - since I'm nearly 50.

What I ultimately found disappointing was how it all ended.  I would rather have the author utilize some of the alien awesomeness she introduced instead of going for a cheap happy ending.  It's strange really, you would think this ending, which is kind of different, would work but, somehow, it just fell flat for me.

I decided - I'm still not sure if I like it or not.

I've spent a lot of time thinking about this story.

Maybe that's the point.

Bonnie Jo Stufflebeam's website is here:  http://bonniejostufflebeam.com/

You can read her story here in the Lightspeed Magazine website:
http://www.lightspeedmagazine.com/fiction/came-place-openness-truth/

Bonnie Jo Stufflebeam

Beautiful Boys by Theodora Goss

8/100

This was a fun story.

How often have we seen a perfect human specimen; either in a magazine add, television or in public?  Sometime we shake our heads and mumble, "That person must be from another planet."

What if that is the case. 

There was an ease to the writing that allowed me to instantly relax into the story. 

I liked it.  But ...

Was it really science fiction?

Well, maybe.  (Up next - a mini rant.)

Science fiction has drifted so far away from its origins, for so many years, that the term is becoming difficult to pin down.

It is appropriate that Beautiful Boys was first published in Asimov's which has become the gold-standard magazine in genre blurring.  Asimov's had done more to damage Science Fiction than any other publication out there.  I have personally found that all they manage to do is confuse readers.

There is an old saying; "Good fences make good neighbours" (Most notably attributed to Robert Frost's poem, The Mending Wall.  This is also true of genre fiction - if you stay true to the tropes and characteristics of your particular corner of fiction you can create excellent stories.  Some genres blend exceedingly well together: Private Eye with SF comes immediately to mind but others don't.  Blending literary fiction (where plot is dirty word) does not mix well with SF and neither does fantasy.

One can argue that Star Wars is a blending of Fantasy and SF, what with swords, monsters and The Force.  Which, I guess is true, but it's the Science Fiction that ultimately dictates the world.  It is filled with space, planets, star-ships and technology.

Years ago, The Twilight Zone created it's own niche by blending genres. Call it Weird fiction.  Beautiful Boys, while very good, belongs in the Weird category.

You can find Theodora Goss here:  http://theodoragoss.com/

Lightspeed Magazine can be found here:  http://www.lightspeedmagazine.com/

Asimov's Magazine can be found here:  http://www.asimovs.com/

Theodora Goss

Asimov's August 2012