Can’t beat short, sweet, and funny! Can you guess what today’s story is about?

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Before we answer that question, let’s get the standard introduction out of the way. In celebration of the 10th anniversary of the publication of Ecotones: Ecological Stories from the Border Between Fantasy and Science Fiction, I’m reviewing all fourteen (14) short stories. Start here to read all mini-reviews.

This is the ninth story in this ecology-related short story collection.

Compatibility by Ken Liu (multiple award-winning author)

This lovely little piece by Ken Liu is about robots and artificial intelligence (AI).

I can hear the audience groan from here. I mean, aren’t we all tired of robots and AI taking over our lives?

Yes. Yes, we are. And this little story about compatibility (or the lack of it) drives that home like nothing else I’ve read. What is so impressive, though, is that Mr. Liu wrote this over a decade ago and the story still rings true. I can’t give away too much, it’s such a short piece, but know that in the end, you’ll all be delightfully groaning because the story mimics reality in just the right way.

There’s nothing I didn’t like about this piece. Well-written and entertaining; a must read.

Until next time, enjoy a helpful robotic short story.

What is Ecotones?

ECOTONES is an anthology of speculative fiction featuring fourteen tales from best-sellers, award-winners and nominees, established talents, and up-coming authors.

Ecotones exist wherever different ecosystems make contact. Where forest meets field… where the land meets the sea… where swamp gives way to jungle… where the surface descends beneath the ground… these are borders across which different ways of life come into conflict, and sometimes cooperation.

But in speculative fiction we might envision other borders: where the mundane meets the fantastical. Where countries clash and cultures mix. Where technology is joined to flesh. Where the known meets the unknown. These are ecotones of the imagination — where anything could happen.

Featuring the work of Ken Liu, Lauren Beukes and Tobias S. Buckell, as well as eleven stories from members of SFFWorld.com’s writing community, ECOTONES is a collection like no other — a point of contact between fantasy and science fiction with a timely environmental theme.

If you’d like to follow along, Ecotones is available for free in Kindle Unlimited. Check it out.

All the best,

Nila