ASIMOV'S, JAN. 2006

The new issue of Asimov's got off to a good start before I even read a word. Why? A new Michael Swanwick story highlighted on the cover. Swanwick is one of my favorite writers a for a few years had an incredible run of stories in the magazine. He doesn't publish as much as he used to, unfortunately, but he still comes with high quality when he does appear. The new story, "An Episode of Stardust," contains a semi-tall tale within the story, or at least it appears to be a tall tale. It's a story of con artists in a setting of Faerie - a dwarf, a fey, a vixen, and other creatures populate the work. And while it may not be my favorite of Swanwick's stories, it is well-written and entertaining. A good way to kick off the issue.

I have a soft spot for tales of ships that take generations to reach their destinations and R.R. Angell's "In the Space of Nine Lives" is one of those. On this ship there are only 2 people awake at a time (at the most) - a pilot and the person he trains to be the next pilot. All of the pilots come from the same genetic stock but we can see differences in their personalities - they each grow up partly in stim with their own set of friends made up from the people traveling in hibernation on the long voyage. The story is about that old nature vs. nuture to a large extent, as well the nature of reality. I liked it.

Carol Emshwiller tackles another standard SF trope - the alien - in "World of No Return." What happens when you are an alien yet born and raised on Earth? How do you stay true to your people? Can you truly fit in with humans? Emshwiller is always worth a read and this story is no exception.

"The Last McDougals" by David D. Levine uses a McDonalds parody to look into the future at the state of the culture. It's solid.

I was a big fan of Allen M. Steele's Coyote stories, so I was looking forward to reading something outside of that milieu. "World Without End, Amen" deals with another standard SF trope, that of the dangers of technology. If we build powerful AIs, what's to stop them from taking over the world? Lawrence Kaufman's problem is that he was on the wrong side of that question and the story brings him to a place he can finally live in the world. Not as exciting as the Coyote stuff but still very enjoyable.

"Storm Poet" by Kim Antieau is set in the past during a drought and concerns itself with the bonds of family and the power of words. It's another solid one.

Stephen Baxter is a writer I always mean to read more of but never get around to (Kage Baker is another). He's very prolific, with many published novels and stories. "Ghost Wars" is set in his Destiny's Children sequence, which comprises three novels I haven't read and a myraid of short stories, some of which I'd read. Let's put it this way - I wasn't completely lost with the concept. A fighter crew of four ends up aiding a Silver Ghost (the enemy) against one of its own (known as the Black Ghost). Baxter tends towards hard science, so there is quite a bit about stars and advanced physics here but he always manages to make it readable. He's more of a plotter than a character writer although I always find enough character in the stories so as not to get lost in the science. This story is good. Will I finally start reading more of Baxter? Probably not any time soon.

There were no bad stories in this issue and I really enjoyed five out of the seven. A pretty good ratio and a good start to the year for editor Sheila Williams.