(High Fantasy) Tarangkaya made Bidaten into supersoldier from infancy, and she’s been content to serve them for years. Then her mistress takes a new bride who makes her think differently. (6,012 words; Time: 20m)
Rating: ★★★☆☆ Average
"No Pearls as Blue as These," by Benjanun Sriduangkaew [bio] (edited by Scott H. Andrews), appeared in Beneath Ceaseless Skies issue 232, published on August 10, 2017.
Mini-Review (click to view--possible spoilers)
Pro: This is about Bidaten finding a greater purpose to her life. It does a good job of developing her character to the point where we’re not surprised she chooses to leave with Yut.
Con: There doesn’t seem to be a lot of hope here. Bidaten is still going to swell to enormous size and become immobile. There are no good answers for her.
Yut’s character isn’t very well developed, even though she’s in most of the scenes.
The prose is too purple, although not intolerably so.
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Benjanun Sriduangkaew Info: Interviews, Websites, ISFDB, FreeSFOnline
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Con: There doesn’t seem to be a lot of hope here. Bidaten is still going to swell to enormous size and become immobile. There are no good answers for her.
Yut’s character isn’t very well developed, even though she’s in most of the scenes.
The prose is too purple, although not intolerably so.
Other Reviews: Search Web, Browse Review Sites (Issue 232)
Benjanun Sriduangkaew Info: Interviews, Websites, ISFDB, FreeSFOnline
Follow RSR on Twitter, Facebook, RSS, or E-mail.
I thought the ending was ambiguous leaving us right on the cusp of the decision.
ReplyDeleteI would imagine leaving might avoid the fate of succumbing to the parasites since she wouldn't be defending the city wall.
A post at the author's blog explains that the story is her idea of Attack on Titans (with lesbians and people of color). So the world building would probably be clearer to me if I were familiar with that.