★★★☆☆ Average
(Horror) It’s been a long time since Ravi left Guyana, but he’s sure he recognizes a Jumbie, even in New York, where they don’t believe in evil spirits. And it’s following him. (2,211 words; Time: 07m)
"Salt Lines," by Ian Muneshwar [bio] (edited by Jane Crowley and Kate Dollarhyde), appeared in Strange Horizons issue 05/21/18, published on May 21, 2018.
Mini-Review (click to view--possible spoilers)
Pro: The story does a nice job of making Ravi’s New York come to life. He’s young, he’s lonely, and despite everything, he misses his home. My impression is that the jumbie haunting him symbolizes his own self-hatred, although the story never makes it clear.
Guyana is the only country in South America where homosexuality is still illegal, so his exile is very real, and the description of his cousin's murder is plausible.
Con: But what does it mean in the end? The jumbie finds him and wants to have sex with him, but so what? Is it a metaphor for him killing himself? Or what? And why was it important that his cousin lost her first child?
Other Reviews: Search Web, Browse Review Sites (Issue 05/21/18)
Ian Muneshwar Info: Interviews, Websites, ISFDB, FreeSFOnline
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Guyana is the only country in South America where homosexuality is still illegal, so his exile is very real, and the description of his cousin's murder is plausible.
Con: But what does it mean in the end? The jumbie finds him and wants to have sex with him, but so what? Is it a metaphor for him killing himself? Or what? And why was it important that his cousin lost her first child?
Other Reviews: Search Web, Browse Review Sites (Issue 05/21/18)
Ian Muneshwar Info: Interviews, Websites, ISFDB, FreeSFOnline
Follow RSR on Twitter, Facebook, RSS, or E-mail.
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