Friday, June 10, 2016

Death of a Starship Poet, by James Van Pelt

Find this issue
(SF Mystery) Six months out from Zeta Reticuli, someone murders a poet. Jayla isn't a detective, but someone needs to solve the murder or no one will feel safe. (4,784 words; Time: 15m)

Rating: ★★★☆☆ Average
Recommended By: Readers

"," by (edited by Trevor Quachri), appeared in issue 07-08|16, published on by .

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

Pro: The story is both about solving the murder and about Jayla finding a suitable topic for her next memoir. Several of the interactions (especially with the poets) are quite funny.

Con: There is no real way for the reader to solve the mystery; the narrator simply doesn't give us enough to go on.

Other Reviews: Search Web, Browse Review Sites (Issue 07-08|16)
James Van Pelt Info: Interviews, Websites, ISFDB, FreeSFOnline

Follow RSR on Twitter, Facebook, RSS, or E-mail.

2 comments (may contain spoilers):

  1. So interesting to have read this story right after Six Wakes by Mur Lafferty, which has a much, much darker take on essentially the same plot

    ReplyDelete
  2. I'm not familiar with the Lafferty story. Now I'll have to go find it.

    ReplyDelete