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Goodly Creatures
The world is on fire.
The last remaining mega-corporation works its employees to the bone to hold us back from the very brink of calamity.
But what if the very things we believe to be our salvation are actually the harbingers of our doom?
In this shocking and surreal glimpse of humanity’s not-so-distant, climate-ravaged future, a beleaguered engineer at a monolithic biotech company must track down an elusive biosynthetic creature after it escapes containment and begins wreaking havoc throughout the facility.
Contains illustrations by Pat Hughes and a bonus story set in the same universe.
The last remaining mega-corporation works its employees to the bone to hold us back from the very brink of calamity.
But what if the very things we believe to be our salvation are actually the harbingers of our doom?
In this shocking and surreal glimpse of humanity’s not-so-distant, climate-ravaged future, a beleaguered engineer at a monolithic biotech company must track down an elusive biosynthetic creature after it escapes containment and begins wreaking havoc throughout the facility.
Contains illustrations by Pat Hughes and a bonus story set in the same universe.
32 pages, Kindle Edition
Published September 5, 2023
7 people want to read
About the author
Austin Shirey
7 books26 followersAustin Shirey writes strange and fantastic fiction. He is the author of the novella CITY OF SPORES, and his stories have appeared in several publications and anthologies including The Saturday Evening Post, MetaStellar, and The Dread Machine. When he’s not writing (or pretending to moonlight as an IT systems analyst), he’s probably reading, watching movies, listening to music, or playing guitar. He lives in Northern Virginia with his wife, their daughters, and two cats. You can find more of his work and links to his socials online at www.austinshirey.com.
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Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews
January 19, 2025
Austin creates a strange world, full of various creatures with body modifications, in this short about the climate crisis and nature. KindCorp’s mantra is “We Fix Things”. Is the world’s best chance to survive for it to be left to itself or meddled with technology. My only complaint is that I want the story to keep going! Well written short story with some great illustrations.
June 27, 2023
Goodly Creatures is a beautifully written unique story about a glimpse of humanity’s not so distant, climate-ravaged future.
I loved this book so much, it was shocking and fascinating! It was short and I was hooked the entire time.
I really enjoyed seeing the beautiful illustrations the book contained!
I highly recommend this read to anyone who wants a wonderful short story.
🔥 Publication Date: September 5, 2023 🔥
Thank you so much @booksirens for the opportunity to read this awesome ARC of this book for my honest review.
I loved this book so much, it was shocking and fascinating! It was short and I was hooked the entire time.
I really enjoyed seeing the beautiful illustrations the book contained!
I highly recommend this read to anyone who wants a wonderful short story.
🔥 Publication Date: September 5, 2023 🔥
Thank you so much @booksirens for the opportunity to read this awesome ARC of this book for my honest review.
September 4, 2023
This was a bit slow in the beginning but it really picked up! I LOVED the illustrations and the concept of the world as a whole was some really, really good shit. The spider's legs, owl's face, etc. The SECURITY MEERKATS. The plot twist in the first story was a very compelling one that actually made me go "Huh, there's something here. This author might be one to watch."
The second story/bonus story was more melancholy and relatable, and I honestly enjoyed the first person pov more. It was a nice note to end on. Nice being a relative word, because emotionally it was NOT nice and very painful. But relatable. And a quieter, thoughtful piece to contrast the more high-concept and plot-twist oriented main story was a welcome palette cleanser.
It could have honestly very easily earned that five star with a few more scenes to pad it out. I felt like it was a tiny bit underbaked, (not in the sense that things were underdeveloped, but in the sense that it had enough big concepts and characters to juggle a novella length or even a full book) but that's fine, I'd happily take more from this world or set of characters in the future.
I think another thing it could have done to bump up the quality was delve a bit more into the science aspects of the work at KindCorp, but not everyone wants to write hard sci-fi (hell, even I don't!) so that's fine. The stuff in the labs was fascinating, and I wanted to stay and take a guided tour of their work stations but there was no time because a monster is on the loose! And I do love when a monster is on the loose.
The included illustrations were beautiful I cannot stress that enough, I hope they sell art prints of them or something, I'm sure some people would love these. It was exactly how I was envisioning the world and characters as I read.
4/5, will check out work by this author again for sure. Thank you to the author and BookSirens for providing a review copy!
Want to read
June 30, 2023tbr - the coverrrr. Obsessed.
September 27, 2023
Received PDF ARC from Author
Goodly Creatures was a fantastic short read, the environmental descriptions were vivid to say the least. As you went through the “layers” of the building wheee most of the story took place, you could really sense what was happening. I thoroughly enjoyed the message, the images, and the bonus story was *chef’s kiss*. The ending has me harping for more….
Goodly Creatures was a fantastic short read, the environmental descriptions were vivid to say the least. As you went through the “layers” of the building wheee most of the story took place, you could really sense what was happening. I thoroughly enjoyed the message, the images, and the bonus story was *chef’s kiss*. The ending has me harping for more….
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July 27, 2023Ecological and economic precarity take center stage in this brief but well-fleshed (pun intended) short science fiction read. Both of the short stories take place largely within a research facility that is named, in the most Orwellian sense, "KindCorp". A hotbed of scientific marvels amidst the ruins of a burning world, one that seeks to replace the dying flora and fauna with commercial, commodified alternatives.
Even though it clocks in at less than fifty pages, the first short story ends satisfyingly, if not necessarily happily, with some clever plot decisions along the way. I wouldn't quite call them "twists", but maybe "reframings" would be a better description? Either way, it is tightly written, smooth-flowing storytelling. I enjoyed the world-building, and the way bioengineering plays a center role in this future dystopia. In my opinion, too much futuristic SF is tritely sterile and overly focused on tech as plastic-metal-unliving-matter-as-superior babble.
This is not. Which is probably why I enjoyed the world-building so much.
Even though it clocks in at less than fifty pages, the first short story ends satisfyingly, if not necessarily happily, with some clever plot decisions along the way. I wouldn't quite call them "twists", but maybe "reframings" would be a better description? Either way, it is tightly written, smooth-flowing storytelling. I enjoyed the world-building, and the way bioengineering plays a center role in this future dystopia. In my opinion, too much futuristic SF is tritely sterile and overly focused on tech as plastic-metal-unliving-matter-as-superior babble.
This is not. Which is probably why I enjoyed the world-building so much.
August 30, 2023
Crawford, a bioengineer at KindCorp, arrives late at work on annual review day. Unfortunately for her, this was probably the high point of her day as she makes a discovery that could end in disaster.
Set in a fairly-near-future Earth, where climate change causes catastrophe after catastrophe, KindCorp's mission is summed up in their slogan: We Fix Things. It felt good to read a story in which a big corporation is trying to develop solutions to climate change rather than completey ignore it, even if those solutions aren't preemptive!
While it is about climate change, the whimsical feel of the characters and worldbuilding made it still feel fun. The form that the tech takes is unusual and yet still very plausible, making this story a unique and interesting one!
Great amount of suspense and surprise for such a short story! And having a bonus story was excellent - I'd love a whole collection set at KindCorp!
This is an honest voluntary review after receiving a free ARC. Thank you to the author and booksirens!
Set in a fairly-near-future Earth, where climate change causes catastrophe after catastrophe, KindCorp's mission is summed up in their slogan: We Fix Things. It felt good to read a story in which a big corporation is trying to develop solutions to climate change rather than completey ignore it, even if those solutions aren't preemptive!
While it is about climate change, the whimsical feel of the characters and worldbuilding made it still feel fun. The form that the tech takes is unusual and yet still very plausible, making this story a unique and interesting one!
Great amount of suspense and surprise for such a short story! And having a bonus story was excellent - I'd love a whole collection set at KindCorp!
This is an honest voluntary review after receiving a free ARC. Thank you to the author and booksirens!
July 26, 2023
Imaginative, fun, right to the point yet still giving enough character depth to let the reader connect, everything you could want in a short story. It paints a vision of a future that is full of scientific marvels and yet also really bleak, but it does so in a very unassuming way, never bothering to explain anything but fully utilizing its form of a short story to just through you into the world and let you figure it out. A lot is conveyed in just a few words, and even in this short story you can see the bones of dozens of bigger stories, whether they be mystery or espionage or thriller or horror or cozy work-place melodramas, there are the seeds of all those and more in this. If colorful, post-apocalyptic sci-fi holds any interest for you, check this short story and author out!
I want to thank the author and BookSirens, who provided a complimentary eARC for review. I am leaving this review voluntarily.
I want to thank the author and BookSirens, who provided a complimentary eARC for review. I am leaving this review voluntarily.
September 4, 2023
I didn't realize how short this was when I downloaded it. It's a very interesting world brimming with possibilities. There are people augmented with animal parts, and experimenting with DNA, and just when it was starting to get interesting, it was over. I thought it was longer, but there was a second story in the same universe, and I'm sure there could be many, as it was intriguing. Also I was thankful for the pictures because indeed they helped my imagination with the hybrids. Thanks to the author for an advance copy.
October 3, 2023
Two fantastic short stories of a grim future where hybrid characters are coding new species and humans who win jobs through a lottery are printing replacement species, all through a corporation using green biotech to heal the earth before climate apocalypse truly wins. But of course it’s more sinister than that. I could read a novel from this author I loved these stories so much!
July 7, 2023
*Big thanks to SirenBooks and the author for an ARC in exchange for an honest review*
This was delightful! Shirey packed a lot into this small package. It is well written with a unique commentary on conservation in the face of capitalism in an all-too realistic apocalyptic world (ya know, cause species are going extinct left and right already). I would love to see the story of KindCorp in a full-length novel (or a few!). Maybe one day, as it’s clear to me the future is bright for this author.
This was delightful! Shirey packed a lot into this small package. It is well written with a unique commentary on conservation in the face of capitalism in an all-too realistic apocalyptic world (ya know, cause species are going extinct left and right already). I would love to see the story of KindCorp in a full-length novel (or a few!). Maybe one day, as it’s clear to me the future is bright for this author.
November 14, 2023
I received this story from Voracious Readers.
Even with the story being so short, I was interested in the world and the drama at this workplace. I don't know why those body mods would be necessary... but I'm intrigued enough to read more stories set here. It's a unique take on the world coming to an end and a far-off future way we'd deal with it.
Even with the story being so short, I was interested in the world and the drama at this workplace. I don't know why those body mods would be necessary... but I'm intrigued enough to read more stories set here. It's a unique take on the world coming to an end and a far-off future way we'd deal with it.
August 7, 2023
I received a ARC free from Book Sirens and this is my voluntary honest review.
A strange, unique, imaginative and fun short story.
Very engaging.
Don't miss.
A strange, unique, imaginative and fun short story.
Very engaging.
Don't miss.
July 30, 2025
26 pages with two very different sides of the same world. And both written so that you don't know what is going to happen next in a great way!!
September 29, 2023
My first time reading anything like this, and it was pretty cool! I really enjoyed the unique short story with illustrations. Will be looking more into the authors other books!
July 13, 2023
“We fix things.”
Short and sweet! I absolutely loved the world building. I was sad to reach the end, knowing I wanted to know more about this world and especially place of employment. The sins of capitalism and our destruction of this world lay heavy on this story without shoving it down your throat. Definitely would read more of these!
Short and sweet! I absolutely loved the world building. I was sad to reach the end, knowing I wanted to know more about this world and especially place of employment. The sins of capitalism and our destruction of this world lay heavy on this story without shoving it down your throat. Definitely would read more of these!
July 11, 2023
Such a fun and interesting read about a not-so-distant future where animals have mostly died off and KindCorp, a biotech company, creates synthetic life to save the earth. I love the idea of humans modifying themselves with animal/insect parts to adjust to this new dying world. I'd really love to see more of KindCorp and the moral-greyness of their work and I also love the awesome illustrations done by Pat Hughes!! This is such a unique take on capitalism and conservation, and I love that bonus story (I got chills).
*Thank you BookSirens and the author for this ARC in exchange for an honest review*
*Thank you BookSirens and the author for this ARC in exchange for an honest review*
September 7, 2023
I liked it. Delightfully weird, and great world building. Love the cover & illustrations. The two short stories left me wanting to read more about KindCorp. At the time of this brief review Goodly Creatures was available on Kindle Unlimited.
September 5, 2023
Thank you Austin Shirley and BookSirens
Loved this short quick story. It is written very tightly.
The story takes place on Evaluation Day which takes place once a month. The main character's bioanimal specs has been tamper with during the night. Unbeknownst to the employees there is more going on in Kindcorp then they know. It was a clever unique idea and I really enjoyed it. The technology of our current culture could possibly In the far far future apocalyptic world bring this into the real world. We do already have the technology of cloning and 3d printers.
There is a complimentary short story about what Kind Corp is manufacturing in their facilities. It is also tied into the first story by announcing a death of a species.
Pat Hughes illustrations are so beautiful drawn they enhance the story with life and colors 😍 💖 ❤️.
I highly recommend this story.
Futuristic Utopian
Science Fiction
automatons
Loved this short quick story. It is written very tightly.
The story takes place on Evaluation Day which takes place once a month. The main character's bioanimal specs has been tamper with during the night. Unbeknownst to the employees there is more going on in Kindcorp then they know. It was a clever unique idea and I really enjoyed it. The technology of our current culture could possibly In the far far future apocalyptic world bring this into the real world. We do already have the technology of cloning and 3d printers.
There is a complimentary short story about what Kind Corp is manufacturing in their facilities. It is also tied into the first story by announcing a death of a species.
Pat Hughes illustrations are so beautiful drawn they enhance the story with life and colors 😍 💖 ❤️.
I highly recommend this story.
Futuristic Utopian
Science Fiction
automatons
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 1, 2023
Decent.
This book was strange. I personally didn't like how the story ended, and I was bewildered at the conclusion of the bonus content. However, I am grateful that the author included the free gift into this book. Props for that.
At first, I thought I would give this book a three-star rating, but the visuals in this book aided my reading experience, and helped me push forward through the story. I'm glad the writer opted for a short story, as this would have been a difficult read if it was any bigger. As you dig into this text, you'll notice that it is edited and well-formatted.
This Sci-Fi tale would have benefited with more backstory for the characters. I also felt that the finale of this book did not leave me satisfied. I couldn't help yearn for more; maybe it's because I couldn't connect that well with the characters? There weren't any twists, which in my opinion was a mistake. I wasn't excited or surprised while reading this story. It lacked that "Ooh" factor. That's why I didn't give this book a five-star rating.
I suggest that the wordsmith stray away from this topic going forward. While I may have issued this book a four-star rating, I will not recommend this book to other readers, nor will I read this book again.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
This book was strange. I personally didn't like how the story ended, and I was bewildered at the conclusion of the bonus content. However, I am grateful that the author included the free gift into this book. Props for that.
At first, I thought I would give this book a three-star rating, but the visuals in this book aided my reading experience, and helped me push forward through the story. I'm glad the writer opted for a short story, as this would have been a difficult read if it was any bigger. As you dig into this text, you'll notice that it is edited and well-formatted.
This Sci-Fi tale would have benefited with more backstory for the characters. I also felt that the finale of this book did not leave me satisfied. I couldn't help yearn for more; maybe it's because I couldn't connect that well with the characters? There weren't any twists, which in my opinion was a mistake. I wasn't excited or surprised while reading this story. It lacked that "Ooh" factor. That's why I didn't give this book a five-star rating.
I suggest that the wordsmith stray away from this topic going forward. While I may have issued this book a four-star rating, I will not recommend this book to other readers, nor will I read this book again.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
August 15, 2023
[I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.]
This is Shirey's second work that I've read in 2023. While the previous one was a collection of short stories The Magic of Everyday Things of various premises (yet the same genre—magic realism), Goodly Creatures is a short fiction with a particular premise. Filled with suspense and (contemporary) horror in every page, Goodly Creatures is as ironic as the title itself, with every page containing tension and dread. There are odd occurrences occurring at the dystopian KindCorp., where the motto of the staff is We Fix Things, but Crawford, the protagonist, is unaware of them.
I've come to appreciate Austin after reading this book, and I hope he continues publishing razor-sharp sci-fi stories (short or long); it would be preferable if they took place in the same universe as KindCorp. Additionally, the bonus story A Susurrus of Plastic Wings ends on an appealing and eerie cliffhanger, leaving readers hoping for a sequel or spin-off. Overall, a succulent treat for fans of short stories!
This is Shirey's second work that I've read in 2023. While the previous one was a collection of short stories The Magic of Everyday Things of various premises (yet the same genre—magic realism), Goodly Creatures is a short fiction with a particular premise. Filled with suspense and (contemporary) horror in every page, Goodly Creatures is as ironic as the title itself, with every page containing tension and dread. There are odd occurrences occurring at the dystopian KindCorp., where the motto of the staff is We Fix Things, but Crawford, the protagonist, is unaware of them.
I've come to appreciate Austin after reading this book, and I hope he continues publishing razor-sharp sci-fi stories (short or long); it would be preferable if they took place in the same universe as KindCorp. Additionally, the bonus story A Susurrus of Plastic Wings ends on an appealing and eerie cliffhanger, leaving readers hoping for a sequel or spin-off. Overall, a succulent treat for fans of short stories!
August 31, 2023
Goodly Creatures is a compelling and enticing short story that gets you hooked right away. Though it was only about 40 pages long, after reading I felt like I had just finished a book a 100 pages longer. The plot is so tightly packed that even in this length, the reader gets a plethora of deeper ideas on top of a fascinating story. It left me thinking about how our society would approach bioengineering and the general situation of this world. In the bonus story, I felt like I was reading about a day in the life of a factory worker in the universe of Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?. Above all else, what Goodly Creatures does best is transporting you into the universe of the book straight away. If the author chooses to do so, this could easily be made into a fascinating and extremely interesting novel. I enjoyed this read a lot and really recommend it!
Thanks to booksirens for providing me with a free ARC. This review was completely voluntary!
Thanks to booksirens for providing me with a free ARC. This review was completely voluntary!
July 5, 2023
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
An absolutely weird and original short book about KindCorp, a business in a dying world that creates synthetic life to save the world. But things go wrong, and does it really matter if humanity is going extinct? Beautiful illustrations also. A fun read but depressing. The bonus story was about a person that works in KindCorp, and how depressing it is to hold a steady job when the world is ending. Recommended.
An absolutely weird and original short book about KindCorp, a business in a dying world that creates synthetic life to save the world. But things go wrong, and does it really matter if humanity is going extinct? Beautiful illustrations also. A fun read but depressing. The bonus story was about a person that works in KindCorp, and how depressing it is to hold a steady job when the world is ending. Recommended.
September 22, 2024
Goodly Creatures is such a fun little story. The prose is tight with crunchy details and specificity, the art throughout is fitting, and the worldbuilding and tone is just a smidge absurd enough for the themes its speaking on to feel all the more close to home. Characterization was excellent, which is difficult in such a short span of words, and much of the imagery will be stuck in my head for a long time. Highly recommend!
(Review copied from StoryGraph)
(Review copied from StoryGraph)
September 26, 2023
This is a vivid sci-fi world that, though very strange, seems alive and real. These stories have a Ray Bradbury feeling, with a sense of horror at the possibilities of the future contrasted with the everyday worries of the characters. Entertaining and inventive!
Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews