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dsnake1's review against another edition
4.0
An Indefinite Number of Birds by Kurt Hunt - 2.5 - I'm really not sure how this ended up in Fantasy Magazine. You have to stretch pretty hard to get this one to even Magical Realism. It's a story of obsession and a flailing partnership, and while it's not bad, per se, it definitely felt out of place in Fantasy magazine and it let down my already tamped expectations.
If These Walls Whispered What Would We Hear? by Aynjel Kaye - 3.5 - Now this one fit me a bit better. It's a bit cosmic, a bit romancy, a bit gothic. It's flash fiction, so all of those are more scents than flavors, if that makes sense, but it's an enjoyable bit of fiction.
Things Might Be Different If We All Lived Underwater by Kerry C. Byrne - 3 - I like a lot of what this poem says, but all in all, it didn't hit a home run for me. It's good, worth your time, but maybe just not quite for me.
softening, come morning by Hal Y. Zhang - 4 - I liked this one a lot more. Can I tell you why? Not really. I'm still learning why I like some poems and not others. This was fun, though.
Umami by Anya Ow - 4.5 - I really liked this story. It reminded me a lot of [a:Ken Liu|2917920|Ken Liu|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1400610835p2/2917920.jpg]'s [b:Good Hunting|51726401|Good Hunting|Ken Liu|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/book/50x75-a91bf249278a81aabab721ef782c4a74.png|59376675] in some of the best ways. The ancients are struggling with humanity's progress, and an unlikely partnership works together to try and solve that issue. If you read anything from this issue, read this one. In fact, remember this one come nomination time.
Tiny House Living by Kristiana Willsey - 4 - This started kind of cute. Then it quickly and rapidly descended into the depths of horror. It was stellar.
All The King's Women by Meg Elison - 3 - I haven't read any Stephen King, especially [b:It|830502|It|Stephen King|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1334416842l/830502._SY75_.jpg|150259], so I'm not sure if this essay hit home for me in any real way. Also, there are spoilers for It in the essay, just a heads up.
Overall, I like this collection of works better than November's. A lot of November's was fine, too, but Umami was excellent and many of the supporting stories were just a knock above.
If These Walls Whispered What Would We Hear? by Aynjel Kaye - 3.5 - Now this one fit me a bit better. It's a bit cosmic, a bit romancy, a bit gothic. It's flash fiction, so all of those are more scents than flavors, if that makes sense, but it's an enjoyable bit of fiction.
Things Might Be Different If We All Lived Underwater by Kerry C. Byrne - 3 - I like a lot of what this poem says, but all in all, it didn't hit a home run for me. It's good, worth your time, but maybe just not quite for me.
softening, come morning by Hal Y. Zhang - 4 - I liked this one a lot more. Can I tell you why? Not really. I'm still learning why I like some poems and not others. This was fun, though.
Umami by Anya Ow - 4.5 - I really liked this story. It reminded me a lot of [a:Ken Liu|2917920|Ken Liu|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1400610835p2/2917920.jpg]'s [b:Good Hunting|51726401|Good Hunting|Ken Liu|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/book/50x75-a91bf249278a81aabab721ef782c4a74.png|59376675] in some of the best ways. The ancients are struggling with humanity's progress, and an unlikely partnership works together to try and solve that issue. If you read anything from this issue, read this one. In fact, remember this one come nomination time.
Tiny House Living by Kristiana Willsey - 4 - This started kind of cute. Then it quickly and rapidly descended into the depths of horror. It was stellar.
All The King's Women by Meg Elison - 3 - I haven't read any Stephen King, especially [b:It|830502|It|Stephen King|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1334416842l/830502._SY75_.jpg|150259], so I'm not sure if this essay hit home for me in any real way. Also, there are spoilers for It in the essay, just a heads up.
Overall, I like this collection of works better than November's. A lot of November's was fine, too, but Umami was excellent and many of the supporting stories were just a knock above.
foomple's review against another edition
4.0
This rating is for Umami by Anya Ow
I love mythic fiction, especially when the myths are new to me, and am especially into bargaining mythical creatures.
I love mythic fiction, especially when the myths are new to me, and am especially into bargaining mythical creatures.
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