Could flowers be the spark of insurrection? The delicate petals fuel for a fire that will change everything?

Perhaps, but before we answer those burning questions, 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 twelfth story in this ecology-related short story collection.

The Theft of Flowers by Stephen Palmer

I have to admit, after reading this story twice, I have no idea what it’s about. But it’s cool!

Best line:

A mixture of dog-eat-dog and callous exploitation; human greed dissolved into silicon lies.

This very short story follows Djeneba as she struggles to survive in the Ouagadougou Market; but this is unlike any market you or I might visit on a pleasant, sunny afternoon. This is an information market.

And that’s pretty much all I could figure out. The setting is surreal; a mixture of African savanna and something akin to the digital world of Blade Runner. But the stakes are high–it’s either life or death for Djeneba and the market. In the end, she might survive by giving her compatriots up, but at what cost? Was it too high?

While I didn’t like that I was confused for much of the story, the words had a natural rhythm that spurred one to keep reading. And there’s a lot of repetition, but you welcome it, because you know it’s a clue. The knowledge we seek is just beyond our reach. Very much like reality is at the cusp understanding for the characters, but they’ll never quite get there.

It’s the sort of story that will keep you up at night thinking about how we give up control in the blind hope of securing it.

Until next time, enjoy a perplexing short story.

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