“Letters from an Imaginary Country”, a Theodora Goss collection, 2025 Tachyon Publications

The short: I finally read the most recent collection by Theodora Goss, “Letters from an Imaginary Country”, 2025 Tachyon Publications. It includes a great Introduction by Jo Walton, six…

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“The Big Book of Science Fiction and Fantasy”, Ellen Datlow editor, 2025 Open Road Integrated Media

The Short: I just read The Big Book of Science Fiction and Fantasy, Ellen Datlow editor, 2025 Open Road Integrated Media (a re-issue of the 2008 Del Rey/Ballantine The Del Rey Book of Science Ficti…

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The Lydia Duluth stories by Eleanor Arnason

The Short: I love the Lydia Duluth stories by Eleanor Arnason, although they have not been collected yet. Lydia Duluth is a location scout for an interstellar movie company; interesting things happ…

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Is MyShake Useful?

The Short: In my non-expert but also non-lay opinion, the MyShake app and its underlying ShakeAlert system are useful to me.  It is useful and even essential for improving my personal saf…

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Pride and Prejudice Reverberates

The Short: After reading five pastiches of Jane Austen’s novel Pride and Prejudice including several works of speculative fiction, I ended up rereading Pride and Prejudice as well for the fir…

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“The Best of Ian McDonald”, 2016 PS Publishing, and a Bit More

The Short: The Best of Ian McDonald, 2016 PS Publishing, came out in two different editions of SF/fantasy/horror, a deluxe edition with twenty-one stories and one with ten stories. My e-book versio…

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Is the Golden Age of the Novella Over?

The Short: I continue to think that the novella (17,500 to 40,000 words) is the perfect story length for speculative fiction, and I’m not the only one. Looking at one aspect of how healthy an…

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My Water Costs Too Much! What can I do?

I have been seeing more than a few posts recently on Nextdoor (a neighborhood-centric network and social media and whatnot) recently by people in my area who are outraged by how much their water is…

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“Dark Matter: A Century of Speculative Fiction from the African Diaspora”, Sheree Renée Thomas editor, 2000 Aspect/Warner Books

The Short: I finally read Dark Matter: A Century of Speculative Fiction from the African Diaspora, Sheree R. Thomas editor, 2000 Aspect/Warner Books. It includes 29 works of short fiction and seven…

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“Uncertain Sons and Other Stories”, by Thomas Ha, 2025 Undertow Publications

The Short: Uncertain Sons and Other Stories, by Thomas Ha, 2025 Undertow Publications, is an impressive first collection. My favorites were the great “The Brotherhood of Montague St. Video&#8…

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The Joy of Speculative Fiction by an Author who Really Knows the Setting

I read a lot of speculative fiction which includes settings I know and settings I don’t know, from areas near where I live to galaxies and universes far, far away. I have heard that one of th…

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Novels in Speculative Fiction Anthologies?

The Short: Most of us don’t typically think about finding novels included in speculative fiction anthologies. After reading about two of them in 2025, I decided to write about them. I found n…

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“Tales from the Territory”, a Travis Baldree collection, Fall 2026 Subterranean Press

The Short: I just read Tales from the Territory, a Travis Baldree collection, Fall 2026 Subterranean Press. It includes five works of cozy fantasy short fiction. Information online suggests there w…

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“The Universe Box”, a Michael Swanwick collection, 2026 Tachyon Publications

The short: I read the new Michael Swanwick collection, The Universe Box, February 2026 Tachyon Publications. It includes an Introduction by Swanwick and 19 works of short fiction from 2012 to 2026.…

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” Sister Svangerd and the Devil You Know”, a novel by K. J. Parker, May 12, 2026 Orbit

The Short: I sloppily read Book 2 of K. J. Parker’s Loyal Opposition Trilogy, Sister Svangerd and the Devil You Know, May 12, 2026 Orbit, out of order. I loved it anyway, although it probably…

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Dave’s “Selected Short Fiction of Algis Budrys”

The short: I’ve been a fan of science fiction by Algis Budrys for a long time. Looking recently, I was surprised that I did not find a “Best Of” or “Selected Short Fiction&#…

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The Martian Trilogy (John P. Moore, Amazing Stories, Black Science Fiction, and The Illustrated Features Section), 2025 Amazing Stories

The short: I recently read The Martian Trilogy (John P. Moore, Amazing Stories, Black Science Fiction, and The Illustrated Features Section), including three related 1930 short stories by John…

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My 2026 (2025) Hugo Award nominations

The Short: My top nominations for the 2026 (2025) Hugo Awards are: Best Novel: a tie between the superlative Slow Gods, by Claire North (Catherine Webb), Orbit, and Death of the Author, by Nnedi Ok…

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“Rabbit Test and Other Stories”, Samantha Mills, April 21, 2026 Tachyon

The Short: I read an advance reader copy of Rabbit Test and Other Stories, Samantha Mills, scheduled for April 21, 2026 release by Tachyon Publications. This first collection by Samantha Mills incl…

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“The Best of World SF: Volume 1”, Lavie Tidhar editor, 2021 Ad Astra/Head of Zeus

The Short: I read The Best of World SF: Volume 1, Lavie Tidhar editor, 2021 Ad Astra/Head of Zeus, a few years ago. It’s a fairly hefty anthology of mostly reprinted world SF, with a generous…

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Not “Hellhounds of the Cosmos”! Looking for Clifford D. Simak’s First Great Fiction

The Short: I recently read “Hellhounds of the Cosmos”, a novelette by Clifford D. Simak, Astounding June 1932. It’s not very good, although I am not sorry I read it. This made me …

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“Radiant Star”, an Ancillary Universe novel by Ann Leckie, May 2026 Orbit

The Short: Radiant Star by Anne Leckie, May 2026 Tor, is the sixth Ancillary Universe novel. I love this great science fiction story of isolated planet Aaa, religious and cultural conflicts, a wate…

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“The Best of Adrian Tchaikovsky”, February 28, 2026 Subterranean

The Short: I just read an Advance Reader Copy (ARC) of The Best of Adrian Tchaikovsky, scheduled for release on February 28, 2026, Subterranean. It’s noted as available in hardcover and e-boo…

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“The Best of Lucius Shepard”, 2008 Subterranean Press

The Short: The Best of Lucius Shepard, 2008 Subterranean Press, is in print in e-book and hardcover. It includes 18 short works of speculative fiction, ranging from short stories to novellas. It&#8…

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“Hwarhath Stories: Transgressive Tales by Aliens”, an Eleanor Arnason collection, 2016 Aqueduct Press

The Short: I read Hwarhath Stories: Transgressive Tales by Aliens, an Eleanor Arnason collection, 2016 Aqueduct Press, a few years ago, and it stuck with me. It includes 13 Hwarhath stories, and a …

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“The Clingerman Files”, Mark Bradley editor, 2017 Size 5 1/2 B Publishing, and More

The Short: I finally read Mildred Clingerman’s posthumous collection The Clingerman Files, Mark Bradley editor, 2017 Size 5 1/2 B Publishing. This reprints the contents of her collection A Cu…

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“Harmattan Season”, a novel by Tochi Onyebuchi, 2025 Tor

The Short: I just read Harmattan Season, a novel by Tochi Onyebuchi, 2025 Tor. I loved it. To quote Gary K. Wolfe’s review at Locus Magazine, it’s a “hardboiled political/historic…

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Dogs and Speculative Fiction – The Second Time Around

The Short: We recently got a new puppy. We love him, but he has turned our life upside down as expected. This led me to think about both a) how much I love SFF that features dogs, and b) how the ad…

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2025 Recommended Reading List

Welcome to the Locus Recommended Reading List… We saw some fabulous books come out last year and are so pleased to let you know about them! Our recommendations are compiled annually by the Locus re…

locusmag.com