Far Out: Recent Queer Science Fiction and Fantasy
Registered by GoryDetails of Nashua, New Hampshire USA on 8/4/2021
This Book is Currently in the Wild!
1 journaler for this copy...
I got this softcover LGBTQ+ speculative-fiction anthology at Barnes and Noble. Among my favorites:
"Destroyed by the Waters" by Rachel Swirsky focuses on an aging gay couple, one of whom has received a terminal diagnosis; they opt to go on a diving tour of their beloved and long-drowned New Orleans as a last trip together.
"Three Points Masculine" by An Owomoyela deals with transgender people in the military - with bias from an actual (though closeted) transman towards someone he assumes is pretending.
"The Deepwater Bride" by Tamsyn Muir delighted me - it's a mix of Cthulhu-mythos and (surprisingly) lesbian romance, set in a rather eldritch community where the narrator is a young woman from a family of seers who attempt to foretell the rising of the Deepwater Lord. Lots of fish and other sea creatures (especially those involving tentacles and/or slime) - mixed wth tidbits like the narrator having gotten Barbie's Dream Car for her 16th birthday.
"Otherwise" by Nisi Shawl, a post-apocalyptic adventure in which lovers Aim and Lo pick up a third - a man - whose presence may unbalance their relationship. Or... maybe not?
"Driving Jenny Home" by Seanan McGuire was inspired by an old English ballad in which a bereaved lover can't give up their grief. Here, the main character - who survived the car crash that killed her beloved Jenny - haunts the graveyard where Jenny is buried. And finds that Jenny herself can appear there once a month, but only for as long as it takes to drive her home... Jenny's attitude suggests that continuing to meet is wrong, but her beloved just can't let it go. A touching look at love, guilt, grief, and vengeance - and whether the ending is happy or tragic is an exercise for the reader.
"In the Eyes of Jack Saul" by Richard Bowen: this one's inspired by a real person, the late-19th-century Jack Saul, notorious for testifying in a couple of trials and for supposedly authoring (or at least contributing to) The Sins of the Cities of the Plain. In this story the character is placed in a world where the events of Oscar Wilde's Picture of Dorain Grey are real - and with Jack Saul as a behind-the-scenes force throughout...
"Né łe!" by Darcie Little Badger has a more whimsical setting: a not-that-adventurous veterinarian accepts a job on Mars, accompanying a shipment of forty Chihuahuas - and one husky. When there's a malfunction that causes the stasis pods to open, she has to spend much longer than expected trying to tend to all the animals while still traveling through space. Amusing tale with a romantic note.
"The Duke of Riverside" by Ellen Kushner is something of a prequel to her marvelous novel Swordspoint, looking at the meeting of nobleman-acting-as-impoverished-student Alec and casually deadly swordsman Richard St. Vier from the viewpoint of the residents of the raucous and rough neighborhood of Riverside.
"Calved" by Sam J. Miller is set in a somewhat dystopian future, where a man who spends most of his time away from home on difficult ice-harvesting trips tries to bond with his nearly-grown son on a rare visit back. He commits a horrific crime based on a misunderstanding, leading to a truly heart-wrenching conclusion - very poignant tale indeed.
"Destroyed by the Waters" by Rachel Swirsky focuses on an aging gay couple, one of whom has received a terminal diagnosis; they opt to go on a diving tour of their beloved and long-drowned New Orleans as a last trip together.
"Three Points Masculine" by An Owomoyela deals with transgender people in the military - with bias from an actual (though closeted) transman towards someone he assumes is pretending.
"The Deepwater Bride" by Tamsyn Muir delighted me - it's a mix of Cthulhu-mythos and (surprisingly) lesbian romance, set in a rather eldritch community where the narrator is a young woman from a family of seers who attempt to foretell the rising of the Deepwater Lord. Lots of fish and other sea creatures (especially those involving tentacles and/or slime) - mixed wth tidbits like the narrator having gotten Barbie's Dream Car for her 16th birthday.
"Otherwise" by Nisi Shawl, a post-apocalyptic adventure in which lovers Aim and Lo pick up a third - a man - whose presence may unbalance their relationship. Or... maybe not?
"Driving Jenny Home" by Seanan McGuire was inspired by an old English ballad in which a bereaved lover can't give up their grief. Here, the main character - who survived the car crash that killed her beloved Jenny - haunts the graveyard where Jenny is buried. And finds that Jenny herself can appear there once a month, but only for as long as it takes to drive her home... Jenny's attitude suggests that continuing to meet is wrong, but her beloved just can't let it go. A touching look at love, guilt, grief, and vengeance - and whether the ending is happy or tragic is an exercise for the reader.
"In the Eyes of Jack Saul" by Richard Bowen: this one's inspired by a real person, the late-19th-century Jack Saul, notorious for testifying in a couple of trials and for supposedly authoring (or at least contributing to) The Sins of the Cities of the Plain. In this story the character is placed in a world where the events of Oscar Wilde's Picture of Dorain Grey are real - and with Jack Saul as a behind-the-scenes force throughout...
"Né łe!" by Darcie Little Badger has a more whimsical setting: a not-that-adventurous veterinarian accepts a job on Mars, accompanying a shipment of forty Chihuahuas - and one husky. When there's a malfunction that causes the stasis pods to open, she has to spend much longer than expected trying to tend to all the animals while still traveling through space. Amusing tale with a romantic note.
"The Duke of Riverside" by Ellen Kushner is something of a prequel to her marvelous novel Swordspoint, looking at the meeting of nobleman-acting-as-impoverished-student Alec and casually deadly swordsman Richard St. Vier from the viewpoint of the residents of the raucous and rough neighborhood of Riverside.
"Calved" by Sam J. Miller is set in a somewhat dystopian future, where a man who spends most of his time away from home on difficult ice-harvesting trips tries to bond with his nearly-grown son on a rare visit back. He commits a horrific crime based on a misunderstanding, leading to a truly heart-wrenching conclusion - very poignant tale indeed.
Journal Entry 2 by GoryDetails at LFL - Main St. (263) Revive Recovery Center in Nashua, New Hampshire USA on Saturday, June 25, 2022
Released 1 yr ago (6/25/2022 UTC) at LFL - Main St. (263) Revive Recovery Center in Nashua, New Hampshire USA
WILD RELEASE NOTES:
Guidelines for safely visiting and stocking Little Free Libraries during the COVID-19 pandemic, from the LFL site here.
I left this book in the Little Free Library, which is along today's Pride parade route; hope someone enjoys it!
[See other recent releases in NH here.]
*** Released for the 2022 June Pride LGBTQ+ challenge. **
** Released for the Science Fiction challenge. **
I left this book in the Little Free Library, which is along today's Pride parade route; hope someone enjoys it!
[See other recent releases in NH here.]
*** Released for the 2022 June Pride LGBTQ+ challenge. **
** Released for the Science Fiction challenge. **