TLDR: What to read, when you read the issue of Amazing Stories I just got published in.
Every scifi collection is a mixed bag. This issue (and the previous one) of Amazing Stories seems to emphasize positive, up-beat scifi of all flavors. I like that. There’s plenty of grim scifi out there. This is not it.
The Asteroid Contention by Marina J. Lostetter
– Tensions both external and emotional continue to mount in this exciting story packed with details that make the science fiction immediate and believable.
Republic of the Blind by Scott Huggins
– A unique society stands up to an oppressor who would eradicate diversity. This story drew me in with its quick pace and unique setting. Well-craft, with lots of twists and surprises.
Alison’s Bluff by Noah Chinn
– A fun twist on poker and espionage. I enjoyed this quick-paced and witty story. It also does a neat job hinting at a much broader world without leaving the poker table.
Trips to Impossible Cities by Sandra Kasturi
– My kind of poetry is a careening sled ride through banks of powdery images. Trips to Impossible Cities delivers just that. Good stuff.
Bold New Flock by Neal Holtschulte
– This is a charming little story, but it’s not what it could have been. If the author had written the story his wife had envisioned, readers would have been treated to a story delving into the unique aspects of a society that had emerged from truly avian psychology. Instead we got a story about human society in bird’s clothing. Still, it’s better than the author’s original idea of a rip-off of an episode of “The West Wing”, but with birds. Though the play on words in the title would have been great.
Haste Writing 