Monday, February 1, 2016

Sooner or Later Everything Falls Into the Sea, by Sarah Pinsker

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(Near-future SF) Bay lives alone and subsists off things that wash ashore from cruise ships and such. Then Gabby washes up, alive, and complicates her life. (7,596 words; Time: 25m)

Rating: ★★★★☆ Recommended
Recommended By: NClarke Nebula

"," by (edited by John Joseph Adams), appeared in issue 69, published on .

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

Pro: We gradually come to realize just how complete the collapse was, that Gabby's "interview" is all in her mind, and that Bay hasn't seen another human being in years. Bay takes a while to realize she needs human company, but it's clear that she does. Bay saves Gabby's life, but Gabby brings Bay back to life, and by the end of the story, they're a team.

Con: The scope of the story is very small, and the emotional impact at the end is small as well.

Other Reviews: Search Web, Browse Review Sites (Issue 69)
Sarah Pinsker Info: Interviews, Websites, ISFDB, FreeSFOnline

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5 comments (may contain spoilers):

  1. Great character development of two very distinct personalities. And the interaction between them was really well done. I loved that the "interview" turned out to be Gabby gradually coming around to the truth of her own situation.

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  2. Is this word count accurate? The Nebula has it down as a nominee for novelette, not short story. ???

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    Replies
    1. It's wrong. Greg reads Lightspeed stories on his Kindle so it's possible that device calculates the word count differently from the website. I've fixed the count here and moving forward, we'll use the count provided by the magazine where available.

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    2. Don't feel bad though; even the people running the Nebula Awards have trouble counting words:

      http://www.kittywumpus.net/blog/2017/02/20/and-for-my-next-trick-aka-the-amazing-disappearing-nebula-nomination/

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    3. Thanks! I'm off to adjust my nominations now! :-)

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