#judith berman

[tediousreviews]

Asimov’s Science Fiction (August 1999)

Well it wasn't exactly a hiatus, but it's been a while since I've been reviewing the standard entries for this series. So lets jump right back in with Asimov's

A novella, two novelettes, and four short stories this time.

Novella

The Executioners' Guild, Andy Duncan

There's some mind-reading nonsense, but this is mostly just a slow and atmospheric tale about what's probably a technically legal lynching.

Novelettes

Fossils, William H. Keith, Jr.

A posthuman learns what it means to be human: suicidal recklessness.

The Window, Judith Berman

A young boy being kept as a pet by a flatulent alien overlord escapes and then returns to captivity.

Short Stories

Arthur Sternbach Brings the Curveball to Mars, Kim Stanley Robinson

The title is the story.

Suburban Ecology, Valerie J. Freireich

Your dog is lucky it's too stupid to realize that it's trapped in Hell.

Woman's Work, Tom Purdom

For want of some mold, Wilbur Wright died without a flyer. Women inherit the earth.

Also Imperial Japan appears to have conquered half the world during WWII? No word on Germany or the Soviet Union.

Into the Blue Abyss, Geoffrey A. Landis

Alien life in unexpected places, blah blah blah tenacity something something horizons. Also, 'My partner on this upcoming dangerous mission told me that she'd gleefully murder me if the mission actually found what it was looking for. I'll just ignore that and hope for the sweet release of death.'

Final Thoughts

It's Asimov's alright.