Quick Sips - Beneath Ceaseless Skies #278

Art by Victoriya "Anda" Shamykina

The second May issue of Beneath Ceaseless Skies features two stories very much about the abuses of monarchies and the hard work of pushing for systemic change in authoritarian situations. Because change is dependent on one person seeing other humans as people, as worthy of consideration. For those who have been raised in affluence, that’s not always an easy thing. So we find two stories where two very different characters have to face how they will deal with a future that could be full of blood and loss, and how they might minimize the damage. It’s an issue of sacrifice and blood, and it resonates with power, death, and hope. To the reviews!

Quick Sips - Shimmer #46 [part 2/2]

Art by Sandro Castelli

It’s happened. Shimmer Magazine has put out its final issue. And though the stories will be coming out on the site through April, I’m closing out my look at the giant final issue today. There are six stories, from authors old and new to the publication. And I have to say, for a publication that has always leaned toward contemporary fantasy, these stories show that Shimmer has always been into science fiction as well. Because a lot of these stories take on some classic sci fi tropes, from time travel to resurrecting dinosaurs to space exploration. These are stories full of ghosts, which is wrenching but appropriate. Firstly, because Shimmer has always been interested in ghosts, in hauntings. And secondly, because the publication might be gone, but its presence is going to be felt for a long time to come, a ghost full of words and worlds to revisit. A memory and a promise of magic and stars. And okay I’m not crying you’re crying. To the reviews!

Quick Sips - Beneath Ceaseless Skies #240

As always, it’s a nicely paired issue from Beneath Ceaseless Skies, with two novelettes that deal with men’s power over women. Which, hey, might not seem like the greatest of things to focus this many words on, but I love how these stories contrast, the different ways they show forward for men who realize that they are in power, and realize that their power gives them a unique standing over those they care about, those that they are supposed to love as an equal. The stories do a great job of defining these relationships, the men struggling with the amount of power their station gives them, with the certainty that they can act and not be stopped. In one of the stories, though, the man learns how to be an equal to his partner, to care about what she wants, and in the other the man decides he knows best for the woman he cares about, and though he does give her something she wants, it poisons the relationship they share. These are interesting takes on power and relationships, and I’m going to get to those reviews!

Art by Dimitrije Miljus

Quick Sips - Beneath Ceaseless Skies # 231

August at Beneath Ceaseless Skies starts out with blood and war and cruelty. With two stories that look squarely at corruption and the specter of overwhelming power and corruption. The two stories show very different scopes of a similar core conflict between...well, not exactly good and evil, though if you squint it might seem that way at first. More like between cruelty and compassion. Or between freedom and enslavement. The stories show just how similar these sides can be at times, in their methods and their results, and how it can seem incredibly pointless in the face of the limitations of hope. And yet both still leave room for the characters to strive for something they might never reach, that they will probably never reach, because in the striving there is something beautiful and rewarding and valuable. So yeah, let’s get to the reviews!

Art by Jordan Grimmer

Quick Sips - Beneath Ceaseless Skies #212

The two stories in this issue of Beneath Ceaseless Skies touch on the idea of oppression and resistance, ignorance and the beginning of understanding. Both feature characters in a dominant position. People who have others bound to them in some way, enslaved against their wills. But these characters don't full understand the situation, the true depth of it, until they take the time to listen, to explore, to question the status quo that they were comfortable with. Only once that happens, only once that step is taken, can healing begin. These are two very different stories, but they are nicely paired thematically, and I will just get to reviewing them! 

Art by Raphael Lacoste

Quick Sips - Shimmer #27 (October Stuff)

I have some mixed emotions about Shimmer this month. Firstly, it's good. Damn good. Secondly, it's short. Damn short. Which fills me with both immense joy and immense sorrow. Joy because this month is slowly (or not so slowly) killing me with all the fiction out. But sorrow because I want to read more of this. I want more stories like these. Dark and unsettling and yet focused on relationships that shine, that make me all warm inside. About the redemptive power of relationships in the face of loss, these stories to a great job hitting hard despite their short lengths. So to the reviews!

Art by Sandro Castelli

Quick Sips - Beneath Ceaseless Skies #166

Another fairly standardly-sized Beneath Ceaseless Skies with one short story and one novelette. And both with titles that describe a person and a place. From what I've seen of BCS I'm going to guess that was on purpose. They have a tendency to link their stories in some way, and these two seem chosen to compliment each other. In any event, time to review!

Art by Takeshi Oga

Stories:

"The Wizard's House" by Stephen Case (8107 words)

This story seems solidly fantasy, the start of something big, epic. It has the taste of most standard conventions, a boy finding an item of power, of being threatened by a newer, outsider force. Of having to make a deal to save his family. Of being attached to a different power. This could be any of a hundred different fantasy novels, and yet it's also an interesting and original setting. I really liked the idea of the new god, this thing full of eyes that is growing in power, that might have the power to effect not only the present, but perhaps the past. Interesting work, and I just love the world-building, the way everything flows together. It's an elegant story, and though it might be a bit standard in its approach, that doesn't make it bad or not memorable. I like the main character, like the Wizard's house and helpers. The visuals are neat and the magic and the history of the story seem real and layered. I would definitely read this book, read it because it seems fun and offers a world that I think would be fun to explore. There are hints of darkness, of things to come, but this is rather a tried and true boy entering into a fantasy journey kind of story. And it's well done, entertaining and complex enough to keep my interest throughout.

"The King in the Cathedral" by Rich Larson (5664 words)

A story about an exiled king determined to play games for the rest of his life, this one is also rather charming. When a woman is sent to "service" the king only to find out that he doesn't care for the company of women, routine is shattered when the woman reveals she's actually a member of a resistance movement sent to help the king escape and retake his throne. At first, though, the king is disinterested in such theatrics. To him, a king is a king, and while the current ruler might seem bad, he's similar to all those that came before and might come after. The king is much more content to simply keep playing games with his automation jailer, Otto. So the women readies herself to leave, which is certain death without a guide through the desert. The king ends up playing a game with Otto. If he wins, the automation will have to take the woman through the desert. But that's not quite all. Because the king does win, and Otto knows that if it accompanies the woman back to civilization, it won't be able to return. I liked the story, but there were parts I wasn't quite sure about. In some ways it seems to be saying that there is no difference in who rules. That kings are kings. On the other hand, it seems to be saying that kings who rule for their people, out of a genuine regard for them, make better rulers. But I don't know if the story really questions the rule of kings. There is still a sense that the king is the rightful, fated ruler, and in some ways he's stepping back into his role. That he would make a better ruler isn't really in question. That he should rule is, at least for me. But I did enjoy the story. It's fun and while I might have wanted it to tackle more, it's an interesting read.