A Civilization Dreams of Absolutely Nothing, by Thoraiya Dyer

[Analog]

★★☆☆☆ Not Recommended

(Apocalypse) When her species learns that a dark-matter star is going to pull their planet away from their sun, Jade comes up with a desperate plan to deflect it. (9,318 words; Time: 31m)

Ring Wave, by Tom Jolly

[Analog]

★★★☆☆ Mixed

(Hard SF Apocalypse) After the asteroid destroys the Earth, Aleja escapes in a life pod good for one month, but surviving long enough to find a real colony isn’t going to be easy. (14,888 words; Time: 49m)

The Savannah Problem, by Adam-Troy Castro

[Analog]

★★★★☆ Nonstop action and excitement.

(SF Action/Adventure; Draiken) Draiken kidnaps a hired killer from a space station and spirits him away for a “demonstration.” But what sort of demonstration could possibly change the man’s mind? (21,452 words; Time: 1h:11m)

Recommended By: 👍RSR+1 👍STomaino+1 (Q&A)

Although this story can stand alone, it’ll be extra fun for anyone who’s read the previous stories in the Draiken series.

The Beast Weeps with One Eye, by Morgan Al-Moor

[BCS]

★★★★★ A fine little story with a satisfying outcome.

(African High Fantasy) Attacked by endless flocks of ravens, the Bjebu people flee their village to a strange place controlled by a strange god, who grants them safety in exchange for “three offerings of sorrow.” (6,663 words; Time: 22m)

The Blighted Godling of Company Town H, by Beth Cato

[BCS]

★★★★☆ Uplifting story in a cool setting.

(Future-Fantasy Steampunk) The godling of Town H sits in her office, depressed because with the bankruptcy of the company, her town is almost dead. But she has to rouse herself because something is attacking the town, and her people need her. (5,300 words; Time: 17m)

Sequestration; Vitrification, by Allison Jamieson-Lucy

[Strange Horizons]

★★★☆☆ Average

(Near-Future SF) In the shadow of a looming nuclear war, Lynn researches the effect of nuclear waste on diatoms, but she increasingly feels life is pointless. (4,413 words; Time: 14m)

Recommended By: 👍GTognetti+2 (Q&A)

Finding a Science-Fiction/Fantasy Magazine to Subscribe To

People interested in short science fiction and fantasy often ask for help picking an SF/F magazine to subscribe to, particularly at the start of the year when they're thinking in terms of New Year's resolutions. Different people have different tastes, of course, but after four years of reading and reviewing, Rocket Stack Rank is in a good position to offer some general advice.

Overview

First we're going to discuss why anyone would want to subscribe to magazines when so much is available online for free. Then we'll describe the eleven magazines that Rocket Stack Rank regularly reads and reviews. Next we'll briefly discuss what other magazines are out there and why we picked the eleven we follow. Finally, we'll wrap up with an invitation to readers (and editors) to share their thoughts about these magazines or others we didn't mention.

Bear in mind that the commentary strongly reflects the personal tastes of the author, although we've tried hard to include information helpful to readers with different tastes. In particular, our rankings are based heavily on the original fiction published by each magazine, even though magazines often have other content such as non-fiction articles, poetry, reprinted fiction, etc.