Monday, December 19, 2016

Twilight’s Captives, by Christopher L. Bennett

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(Hard SF) When humanity joined the Nocturne League, we never dreamed they might punish a treaty violation by confiscating a colony's children. (10,079 words; Time: 33m)

Rating: ★☆☆☆☆ Needs Improvement

"Twilight’s Captives," by (edited by Trevor Quachri), appeared in issue 01-02|17, published on by .

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

Pro: There are several excellent story concepts here. The aliens who look scary but are fragile. The concept of raising children according to alien customs in order to produce people who can communicate with both sides. The idea of a compact that worked at sub-light speeds but breaks down with FTL.

Con: The execution makes the story unreadable. The biggest problem is that the dialogue sounds very unnatural. One simply can't imagine people talking this way. Other problems include failure to control point of view, info dumps, and a happy ending that's unbelievable.

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