Monday, October 12, 2015

Indelible, by Gwendolyn Clare

Clarkesworld Magazine, February 2015; 2,475 words
Rating: 3, Good, ordinary story

A man searches an alien concentration camp for relatives of his step-sister, who was an alien too.

Mini-Review (click to view--possible spoilers)

Pro: The story makes the narrator's affection for the Shukar real; he loved his sister and his only friend today is a Shukar. He hates being told he isn't one, so it's logical he ends up trying to become  one.

Con: It's hard to believe that in all that time no one ever figured out that the Shukar shape-shifting ability could be transferred. Another hole is that we're never sure how the narrator's family ended up adopting a Shukar child in the first place--we were told they had very strong family bonds, so we wouldn't think they'd surrender a child.

1 comment (may contain spoilers):

  1. Good story, although I want to imagine that we as a humanity are better than that and wouldn’t treat a group of alien refugee this badly including forced segregation and overt discrimination, I hope I’m right :)

    My understanding is that the Shukar doesn’t transfer zer shape-shifting ability but instead using its power to repair the narrator’s damaged arm, and also the narrator’s family doesn’t give up their adopted shukar but someone apparently dob them in to the authorities.

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