Notes on a Resurrection, by Natalia Theodoridou

[Strange Horizons]

★★★☆☆

(Horror) At a mass funeral for a group of young men killed in an industrial accident, one of them rises from the dead, leading to chaos, confusion, and pain. (4,569 words; Time: 15m)

Ahura Yazda, the Great Extraordinary, by Senaa Ahmad

[Lightspeed]

★★★☆☆

(Modern Fantasy) When Ahura Yazda moved to Canada, he brought a host of mythical beasts with him—even though some of them are dangerous. (4,989 words; Time: 16m)

Sand Castles, by Adam-Troy Castro

[Lightspeed]

★★★☆☆ Honorable Mention

(Horror) Lauren visits a giant sand castle on the beach and thinks she sees something moving inside it. (8,258 words; Time: 27m)

Miles and Miles and Miles, by Andrew Penn Romine

[Lightspeed]

★★★★☆ A Twisted Tale Emerges from the Fog of Memory

(SF Adventure) Noah is a busy man with a lot of work to do on the moon since he and his partner went independent, but his wife’s illness is a big distraction, and there are hints that other things are seriously wrong. (4,108 words; Time: 13m)

The Null Space Conundrum, by Violet Allen

[Lightspeed]

★★★☆☆ Honorable Mention

(Space Opera) Aria thinks her partner Kantikle is, like, totally uncool, but they have to work together if they’re going to catch The Aeon Who Judges All Things before they’ve been in the Warp too long. (7,215 words; Time: 24m)

The Weapons of Wonderland, by Thoraiya Dyer

[Clarkesworld]

★★☆☆☆

(Apocalypse) As Earth is dying from an out-of-control carbon-sequestration project, some scientists seek refuge on the surface of an inhabited comet. (6,295 words; Time: 20m)

One in a Million, by Rodrigo Juri

[Clarkesworld]

★☆☆☆☆

(AI Apocalypse) No longer entirely human, Luis revisits his childhood home and reflects on how the world ended. (8,896 words; Time: 29m)

If you can read this in the original Spanish, it’s a 3-star story.

Flowers on My Face, by Geo-Il Bok

[Clarkesworld]

★★★☆☆ Honorable Mention

(Robot SF) On Ganymede, a group of robots working to repair the colony find time to experiment with trying to act like humans (6,759 words; Time: 22m)

Wu Ding's Journey to the West, by Tang Fei

[Clarkesworld]

★★★☆☆

(Alternate History) In an alternate world where entropy flows backwards, a young man tries to build a railroad from Beijing to St. Petersburg. (9,032 words; Time: 30m)

Shattered Sidewalks of the Human Heart, by Sam J. Miller

[Clarkesworld]

★★★☆☆

(King Kong Pastiche) On the eve of World War II, five years after King Kong’s death, a young New York taxi driver meets Ann Darrow and learns they have something in common. (3,792 words; Time: 12m)

Xingzhou, by Ng Yi-Sheng

[Clarkesworld]

★★★☆☆ Mixed

(Science Fantasy) In which we learn of the lives of immigrants to a fantastic city built on the surfaces of stars—stars that are stuck together into a cluster. (5,526 words; Time: 18m)

The Visible Frontier, by Grace Seybold

[Clarkesworld]

★★★☆☆ Honorable Mention

(SF Adventure) A young sailor wants to learn what the stars really are, and if it’s true there are people living there. (5,473 words; Time: 18m)

Across the Bough Bridge, by Mackenzie Kincaid

[BCS]

★★★★☆ Memorable Story in an Interesting Setting

(Portal Fantasy) A woman calling herself Hawthorn crosses the bridge to Faery with a list of tasks she needs to accomplish. She knows how dangerous it is, but her need is great. (7,719 words; Time: 25m)

What the River Brings, and What It Takes Away, by Natalia Theodoridou

[BCS]

★★☆☆☆

(Fantasy) Sapo sits by the river eating stones so she won’t get pregnant. This has its drawbacks. (2,307 words; Time: 07m)

A Forest, or A Tree, by Tegan Moore

[Single]

Not Rated No Speculative Element

(Mainstream Horror) Four college girls go on a camping trip in the woods. (8,126 words; Time: 27m)

Recommended By: 👍GTognetti+2 (Q&A)

The New Prometheus, by Michael Swanwick

[Single]

★★★☆☆

(Alternate-History Horror; The Mongolian Wizard) Ritter crosses the arctic waste in search of a monster with a great powers but no hope. (6,332 words; Time: 21m)

Unlike the other stories in the series, this one stands alone. If you'd like to start at the beginning, Tor.com maintains a current list of all The Mongolian Wizard Stories

Silver in the Wood, by Emily Tesh

[Single]

★★★☆☆

(Fantasy Horror) In a secondary world a bit like Victorian England but with real magic and real monsters, an ancient forest guardian meets a young man determined to learn his secrets. (21,333 words; Time: 1h:11m)

See related articles on Tor.com.

Speaker to Emos, by Harry Turtledove

[Asimov's]

★★★☆☆

(Alternate History) In an alternate world, a counsellor helps people with an unusual mental problem adjust to life in a world that finds them strange. (3,678 words; Time: 12m)

Fragments from the Library of Cygnus X-1, by Chris Willrich

[Asimov's]

★★☆☆☆

(Catalog Story) At the center of the galaxy, we find a catalog listing some of the most unusual “books” ever created. (4,951 words; Time: 16m)

Ardy's Choice, by Maggie Shen King

[Asimov's]

★★☆☆☆

(AI Automobile) Ardy’s a car, and he really loves the family he drives for, so he tries as hard as he can to save them from an accident. (1,151 words; Time: 03m)