Embodied Exegesis: Transfeminine Cyberpunk Futures

by Ann Leblanc (Editor), Lillian Boyd (Contributor), Elly Bangs (Contributor)

Embodied Exegesis is an anthology of cyberpunk and posthuman stories written by transfem authors. The included stories explore the limits of the genre: gender-affirming cybernetics, the literary surveillance state, transcendent hive-minds, a transgender coffee machine, and weaponized shitposts. The future of cyberpunk is trans, so stay tuned for an anthology of wild and weird stories exploring the limits of technological transformations of our bodies and minds.

Genres: Science Fiction, Queer, LGBT, Cyberpunk, Anthologies, Short Stories, Adult

ebook

First published August 27, 2024

Reviews

[Sam · Rating 5 out of 5]

A really great collection of cyberpunk trans stories exploring cybercapitalist futures and transhuman embodiment through stories that center on transfem nanite pregnancy as a revolution, selling your mind to the military to work as a sentient missile, using the polluted flesh water of your town for tattoo based body modification to the surreal experience of being a sentient coffee machine on a space ship (and you are transgender and your boss wants to kill God). If you like your sci-fi trans, futuristic, bizarre, heartbreaking, joyful, angry and just gloriously Weird you should check this collection out.

My favorite short stories were Bespoke by Elly Bangs, Syndical Organization in Revolutionary Transition by Izzy Wasserstein, The Majestic Art of Flesh by Hailey Piper, A Canyon of Blood for the Normalest Man Alive by Palimrya, The Missile Knows Where It Is by Petra Skelton & A Notorious Intergalactic Criminal by Maya Deane.

[Kat · Rating 4 out of 5]

I picked this anthology up from the library new purchases based on the striking cover. Embodied Exegesis is a collection of short stories by transfem authors set in the science fiction future, exploring transhuman and cyberpunk themes.

Anthologies are always a bit tricky to review, especially ones with many contributing authors. As you might expect, it was a bit of mixed bag. I loved "Moonpool," a piece about a restaurant worker who's forced to become the gender of whichever set of pronouns were used to misgender them last, and the bizarre, hallucinatory, confident prose of "A Canyon of Blood For The Normalest Man Alive." I did not like a short story which rather painfully chose to eschew paragraph breaks entirely. But for me, the absolute standout was Maya Deane's "A Notorious Intergalactic Criminal." It's about killing God, and also there's a transgender female coffee machine, and I'm not sure I understood a word of it, but boy did I have fun. Here's an excerpt of the hypnotically compelling prose:

But I have made you different from the others. All the other coffee machines are cisgender, built to the same standardized female specifications as all traditional automata—but not you. In ancient times it was established that nothing is more offensive to God than the antique practice of transgenderism, so I have made you a transgender female coffee machine, a stench in His divine nostrils, the better to flush him out.

Competently but not dazzlingly executed overall, with a few standouts, but what a great subject for an anthology. I had previously passed over Deane's Wrath Goddess Sing because the premise didn't especially appeal to me, but after reading her short story, it immediately went on my tbr.

[Jordan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This trans cyberpunk anthology has a wide range of stories. It swings between traditional cyberpunk, biopunk, and then over to W.S. Burroughs style surrealism & body horror. Each story brings a dramatically different approach from the one before.

[Coulson]

Favorite stories:
- Bespoke (Elly Bangs): A very cool exploration of gender, transhumanism, and how one belongs in a body. Loved the world and the story.
- Syndical Organization in Revolutionary Transition (Izzy Wasserstein): About motherhood/creatorhood, consciousness, existence, and community. Really excellent.
- The Majestic Art Of Flesh (Hailey Piper): Really interesting concept of illicit self-creation and modification using the toxic pollution of a corporation.
- Each Of Us Is All Of Us: Not entirely a story, but just a feel good moment of trans solidarity and hope and joy.

There were lots of other good ones too. I think there were only two I actively disliked. But these were the ones that stuck out most in my memory.

I read this because I was curious about Maya Deane's other work and I similarly thought her story (A Notorious Intergalactic Criminal) was very clever and creative, but not entirely there yet. It was still good, though, and matched the interesting things I already know she can do with religion and personhood especially. I think she's a writer I will continue to follow.

[Mister Sosotris · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a fabulous collection! Not only is this a consistently high quality collection of stories, but they're arranged really interestingly, taking the reader on a journey from grounded, more traditional cyberpunk spaces to mind-exploding genre-defying heights as the definitions of cyberpunk and transhumanism get stretched and plumbed, until you find yourself desperate to find another book that has a similar effect on your brain.

I had a fabulous time with this collection. I greatly enjoyed all of them, but I must say "The Majestic Art of Flesh" got under my skin and stayed there for days after I finished it. Such stunning and disturbing imagery.

"My Robot Body" also punched a searing hole through my heart and soul and left me breathless afterwards.

Please read this collection! It's spectacular!!!

[Gabriel · Rating 4 out of 5]

All anthologies have their ups and downs, but this was mostly ups. I enjoyed how out there many of the concepts and worlds were. Some (but not all) of the highlights for me were: "Carseed" by Maxine Firehammer, one of the shortest stories, which nonetheless held pretty poignant body horror and left many equally horrifying questions as the protagonist chooses a disturbing and possibly fatal transformation. "The Majestic Art of Flesh" by Hailey Piper, a biopunk story that also leaned into horror, where the strange magenta flesh Jerseyites use to reshape their bodies is forced into their minds, revealing, perhaps, a mind of its own. And "My Robot Body" by Megan Hyland, in which the protagonist takes shifts piloting a mobile lab robot that they long to become permanently. All of which showed very different perspectives– ranging from sweet to unsettling– on the desire for bodies (and minds) that transcend humanity and how technology expands the human experience.

[Melsa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely stellar bundle of transfemme cyberpunk stories. From euphoric to funny to deeply depressing, the range of stories all grasp the chance to be properly weird and it fits the genre so much better as well as tackling issues - and the horrors of the future - in a relatable and remarkable way. I can't think of a single included story or poem I did not thoroughly enjoy, if only because it feels the authors got the space to write what they wanted to write, without the shackles of normativity.

[Calvin Coqui]

So many good stories in here! My favorite would probably be "a canyon of blood for the normalest man alive" by Palimrya. The voice its in is so harsh and weird and fun, internet-ish in the best way. I also really liked "Syndical Organization in Revolutionary Transition" by Izzy Wasserstein for its exploration of trans reproduction in the form of uterus transplants and symbiotic nanobots. And "The Repossession of Kevin's Perfect Hair" by Lillian Boyd is a great tone setter for the entire collection as the first story

[Kassandra · Rating 3 out of 5]

An uneven collection, but it does have some very good stories. The ones that stood out to me are:
- Lillian Boyd, "The Repossession of Kevin's Perfect Hair"
- Elly Bangs, "Bespoke"
- Riley Tao, "Right to Remain"
- Anya Johanna DeNiro, "Labelscar"
- Izzy Wasserstein, "Syndical Organization in Revolutionary Transition"
- Hailey Piper, "The Majestic Art of Flesh"
- Meghan Hyland, "My Robot Body"
- Maya Deane, "A Notorious Intergalactic Criminal"

[Dani Finn · Rating 5 out of 5]

This collection of stories is by turns disturbing, hilarious, thought-provoking, bizarre, tragic, and joyful. I made a goal of reading more stories this year, and I could not have picked a better book to start. Though a couple of the stories were too experimental in structure for my taste, they were all powerful in one way or another. I’d love to see more transfeminine story collections like this!

[kate]

only read selected stories for class (does this count), might come back 2 later cause i reallyy enjoyed the reading experience. fav is my robot body i was obsessed

- “The Repossession of Kevin’s Perfect Hair”
- “Bespoke”
- “Syndical Organization in Revolutionary Transition”
- “The Majestic Art of Flesh”
- “My Robot Body”
- “Moonpool”

[Samrat · Rating 4 out of 5]

A striking collection. My favorites, in no particular order, were Maya Deane's 'A Notorious Intergalactic Criminal,' Coyote Victoria Dembecki's 'Moonpool,' and Petra Skelton's 'The Machine Knows Where It Is.'

[Franklyn S. Newton · Rating 5 out of 5]

trans cyborgs I love you. particular favourites were Bespoke, Syndical Organisation, and My Robot Body, but all the prices were really interesting and diverse. Loved it and will be diving into some of these authors other works

[Nat · Rating 4 out of 5]

this collection starts extremely strong, but never quite reaches the same heights again. though it certainly has a couple stories that are so strange in such a unique way that i am like, baffled and fascinated by them.

[Reader · Rating 5 out of 5]

amazing book and a great read

[Dinah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fantastic collection. Some of these are so weird that they defy description but all really good.

[Colleen · Rating 4 out of 5]

While I am probably not the intended audience for this, it was really interesting to see similar themes appear in different, creative ways.

[Ravi]

very cool short fiction collection

[max · Rating 5 out of 5]

beautiful fun challenging anticapitalist collection

[MJ · Rating 1 out of 5]

I love short story collections, but the first two left me cold and I have so many other books to read.

[Venneh · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ended up mainlining this in a few days; fantastic transfeminine cyberpunk anthology that focuses on all possible outcomes within that, and also features some pretty neat poetry and amazing voices besides. Definitely worth your time.

[Maxli Catenby · Rating 5 out of 5]

All of the stories were bangers

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Make Cyberpunk Fucking Weird Again!!!!

As always in an anthology some of these struck a chord with me better than others, but I loved how they came together into a whole. Putting "The Majestic Art of Flesh" right after “Syndical Organization in Revolutionary Transition” was an inspired (and honestly slightly hilarious) contrast on a similar trope. Hailey Piper <3