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Astounding/Analog
Analog Science Fiction & Fact, July/August 2025
Vol. XCV No. 7 & 8
Table of contents:
• ANALYTICAL LABORATORY RESULTS
• OUT OF “SOME WARM LITTLE POND,” PART 1: “RIFTERS” AND THE RNA WORLD, Kelly Lagor
• BIOLOG: KELLY LAGOR, Richard A. Lovett
• THE FIRST VELODROME ON MARS, Marie Vibbert
• IN TIMES TO COME
• DESERT SOUL, David Gullen
• HIDDEN ACHIEVEMENT, Shane Tourtellotte
• PATIENT WAS THE DOCTOR, Victoria N. Shi
• LAST DAM STANDING, Dawn Vogel
• IF THE ALGORITHMS ARE GENTLE, Bernie Jean Schiebeling
• LOW-TIDE SALVAGE, Matthew Claxton
• UNKNOWNS, EDITED BY ALEC NEVALA-LEE: BACK TO SQUARE ONE, Rachel Fabi
• ESRI, James Dick
• MOTHER HUBBLE’S ELEGY FOR RHESSI: (2002-2023) APRIL 19, 2023, Sandra J. Lindow
• JENNIFER DOES PUSHUPS, Joseph Weber
• IMAGINARY, Daniel D. Villani
• YOUR ENTRY TO PARADISE MEMORIAL EXPERIENCE, Robert Morrell Jr.
• THE MARKS WE LEAVE, M. Ian Bell
• READY FOR NEW ARRIVALS?, Sean Monaghan
• UNDER THE MOONS OF VENUS: A TALE OF A PRINCESS ALTIVOLANT, Jay Werkheiser & Frank Wu
Poetry
• OUR LADY OF THE ATOM, Josh Pearce
Reader's departments
• GUEST EDITORIAL: Three Gates, Steven Barnes
• THE ALTERNATE VIEW, John G. Cramer
• THE REFERENCE LIBRARY, Rosemary Claire Smith
• BRASS TACKS
【 PREVIOUS ISSUE ← July/August 2025 → NEXT ISSUE 】
Table of contents:
• ANALYTICAL LABORATORY RESULTS
• OUT OF “SOME WARM LITTLE POND,” PART 1: “RIFTERS” AND THE RNA WORLD, Kelly Lagor
• BIOLOG: KELLY LAGOR, Richard A. Lovett
• THE FIRST VELODROME ON MARS, Marie Vibbert
• IN TIMES TO COME
• DESERT SOUL, David Gullen
• HIDDEN ACHIEVEMENT, Shane Tourtellotte
• PATIENT WAS THE DOCTOR, Victoria N. Shi
• LAST DAM STANDING, Dawn Vogel
• IF THE ALGORITHMS ARE GENTLE, Bernie Jean Schiebeling
• LOW-TIDE SALVAGE, Matthew Claxton
• UNKNOWNS, EDITED BY ALEC NEVALA-LEE: BACK TO SQUARE ONE, Rachel Fabi
• ESRI, James Dick
• MOTHER HUBBLE’S ELEGY FOR RHESSI: (2002-2023) APRIL 19, 2023, Sandra J. Lindow
• JENNIFER DOES PUSHUPS, Joseph Weber
• IMAGINARY, Daniel D. Villani
• YOUR ENTRY TO PARADISE MEMORIAL EXPERIENCE, Robert Morrell Jr.
• THE MARKS WE LEAVE, M. Ian Bell
• READY FOR NEW ARRIVALS?, Sean Monaghan
• UNDER THE MOONS OF VENUS: A TALE OF A PRINCESS ALTIVOLANT, Jay Werkheiser & Frank Wu
Poetry
• OUR LADY OF THE ATOM, Josh Pearce
Reader's departments
• GUEST EDITORIAL: Three Gates, Steven Barnes
• THE ALTERNATE VIEW, John G. Cramer
• THE REFERENCE LIBRARY, Rosemary Claire Smith
• BRASS TACKS
【 PREVIOUS ISSUE ← July/August 2025 → NEXT ISSUE 】
- GenresScience Fiction
208 pages, digest magazine
First published June 8, 2025
2 people are currently reading
15 people want to read
About the author
Trevor Quachri
102 books28 followersTrevor Quachri (b. 1976) has been the sixth editor of
Analog Science Fiction & Fact
magazine since September 2012.
Previously, he was “a Broadway stagehand, collected data for museums, and executive produced a science fiction pilot for a basic cable channel.”
Quachri started as an editorial assistant in 1999 at Asimov's Science Fiction and Analog. Former editor of Analog, Ben Bova, was an early influence.
Previously, he was “a Broadway stagehand, collected data for museums, and executive produced a science fiction pilot for a basic cable channel.”
Quachri started as an editorial assistant in 1999 at Asimov's Science Fiction and Analog. Former editor of Analog, Ben Bova, was an early influence.
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Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
August 3, 2025
8 • North Station Blues • 14 pages by David Gerrold
OK. Scooter describes North Station to us, then they get a visit from some corporate big wigs. One of the described flare ups of the local sun causes everyone to seek cover. The confinement bothers the big wigs and one finally seeks out Scooter to see if she can sneak their pod into the rotation to leave.
30 • The First Velodrome on Mars • 8 pages by Marie Vibbert
OK+. The stationary bike isn’t doing it for Manuel. Even if he were to get some sort of VR, but he can’t ride out in the open either. He has the idea to create a track, and they have this nice crater on their land. His trouble though is that he wants to do this project himself. Now that he’s thought of it, he doesn’t want to share the credit.
38 • Desert Soul • 17 pages by David Gullen
Good. Nysbeck hires Thab to take her to the last of the machines built to navigate the third ocean. They were built because men went mad navigating that space. Unfortunately so did the machines. Back in Marlow the petty dictator Vernice has once again raised docking fees, and has the gang to cause trouble if they’re not paid.
55 • Hidden Achievement • 7 pages by Shane Tourtellotte
Very Good. Kellie and Peter independently get interested in a new game app about simulated dating. Peter is mostly inspired by the little badges and awards the game gives for completing various things. Kellie also finds herself playing the game on her lunch break.
62 • Patient Was the Doctor • 10 pages by Victoria N. Shi
OK/Fair. The military brings in another psychologist to consult with the alien. He doesn’t want to work with the military, but they offer him money and a health package that will allow he and his wife to seek advanced fertility treatment. Once there he tries his best to expand on what the previous psychologists and linguists have done.
72 • Last Dam Standing • 5 pages by Dawn Vogel
OK. A community calls Cara asking her to fix the dam she helped retrofit decades ago. At first she says there is nothing she can do. Thinks about it overnight and will at least give it a shot.
80 • If the Algorithms Are Gentle • 3 pages by Bernie Jean Schiebeling
Fair. AIs, presumably, in some post apocalyptic setting are amazed that an ice cream stand has remained running on solar power, then they get worried about a red panda eating the chocolate ice cream. Metaphorically sigh in relief as it pursues something else, then query their data and realize it wasn’t toxic.
84 • Low-Tide Salvage • 12 pages by Matthew Claxton
OK. Bea is accompanying her dad on a salvage run. There’s a cargo container drifting past, they need to pull it to shore so they can sell it to the prosper, make some money and goodwill for their holdfast.
96 • ESRI • 20 pages by James Dick
OK/Good. In “EDIE” Wendy Sloan is the primary investigator for a mission to Europa. EDIE falls into the ice and many statues of EDIE are formed on the surface. Kate Sloan is PI for a follow up mission to Europa. This one with a goal of bringing back samples, including a sample of a statue.
116 • Jennifer Does Pushups • 7 pages by Joseph Weber
Good/VG. As she was recovering from a horrible accident an opportunist overhears that she has incredible guts. Literally her digestive track has amazing bacteria. She now sells her digestive lining so others can reap the benefits of craving a better diet, meanwhile her lining regrows and she gets a nice paycheck.
123 • Imaginary • 3 pages by Daniel D. Villani
OK/Fair. Two experiments one from history to show an analogous outcome.
126 • Your Entry to Paradise(TM) Memorial Experience • 2 pages by Robert Morrell Jr
Fair. Father pays for his daughter to experience his funeral, and leaves a message.
128 • The Marks We Leave • 10 pages by M. Ian Bell
Good+. Rylek is going outside the scope of his job, trying to manage individual lives. Going so far as to rewrite the code so that an individual is replaced by an exact facsimile. Maybe this isn’t about saving a life here and there, but rather about agent Rylek.
138 • Ready for New Arrivals? • 12 pages by Sean Monaghan
OK+. Aphrodite and Justin are exploring a crater on Ganymede when Justin breaks through the crust over a crater and falls in. They’re tethered, but there is no telemetry from Justin. Now it’s a rescue.
150 • Under the Moons of Venus: a Tale of Princess Altivolant • 51 pages by Jay Werkheiser, Frank Wu
Good/OK. Professor Boxhammer is interested in sightings of the moons around Venus. He visits an astronomer of the day (eighteenth century) to get more empirical data. Then his nemesis who once tricked him with a fake gives him a scroll telling of an adventure on Venus. There Princess Denjira is trying to save her kingdom from pirates only to find that the regent has conspired with the pirates and that her mother may still be alive.
OK. Scooter describes North Station to us, then they get a visit from some corporate big wigs. One of the described flare ups of the local sun causes everyone to seek cover. The confinement bothers the big wigs and one finally seeks out Scooter to see if she can sneak their pod into the rotation to leave.
30 • The First Velodrome on Mars • 8 pages by Marie Vibbert
OK+. The stationary bike isn’t doing it for Manuel. Even if he were to get some sort of VR, but he can’t ride out in the open either. He has the idea to create a track, and they have this nice crater on their land. His trouble though is that he wants to do this project himself. Now that he’s thought of it, he doesn’t want to share the credit.
38 • Desert Soul • 17 pages by David Gullen
Good. Nysbeck hires Thab to take her to the last of the machines built to navigate the third ocean. They were built because men went mad navigating that space. Unfortunately so did the machines. Back in Marlow the petty dictator Vernice has once again raised docking fees, and has the gang to cause trouble if they’re not paid.
55 • Hidden Achievement • 7 pages by Shane Tourtellotte
Very Good. Kellie and Peter independently get interested in a new game app about simulated dating. Peter is mostly inspired by the little badges and awards the game gives for completing various things. Kellie also finds herself playing the game on her lunch break.
62 • Patient Was the Doctor • 10 pages by Victoria N. Shi
OK/Fair. The military brings in another psychologist to consult with the alien. He doesn’t want to work with the military, but they offer him money and a health package that will allow he and his wife to seek advanced fertility treatment. Once there he tries his best to expand on what the previous psychologists and linguists have done.
72 • Last Dam Standing • 5 pages by Dawn Vogel
OK. A community calls Cara asking her to fix the dam she helped retrofit decades ago. At first she says there is nothing she can do. Thinks about it overnight and will at least give it a shot.
80 • If the Algorithms Are Gentle • 3 pages by Bernie Jean Schiebeling
Fair. AIs, presumably, in some post apocalyptic setting are amazed that an ice cream stand has remained running on solar power, then they get worried about a red panda eating the chocolate ice cream. Metaphorically sigh in relief as it pursues something else, then query their data and realize it wasn’t toxic.
84 • Low-Tide Salvage • 12 pages by Matthew Claxton
OK. Bea is accompanying her dad on a salvage run. There’s a cargo container drifting past, they need to pull it to shore so they can sell it to the prosper, make some money and goodwill for their holdfast.
96 • ESRI • 20 pages by James Dick
OK/Good. In “EDIE” Wendy Sloan is the primary investigator for a mission to Europa. EDIE falls into the ice and many statues of EDIE are formed on the surface. Kate Sloan is PI for a follow up mission to Europa. This one with a goal of bringing back samples, including a sample of a statue.
116 • Jennifer Does Pushups • 7 pages by Joseph Weber
Good/VG. As she was recovering from a horrible accident an opportunist overhears that she has incredible guts. Literally her digestive track has amazing bacteria. She now sells her digestive lining so others can reap the benefits of craving a better diet, meanwhile her lining regrows and she gets a nice paycheck.
123 • Imaginary • 3 pages by Daniel D. Villani
OK/Fair. Two experiments one from history to show an analogous outcome.
126 • Your Entry to Paradise(TM) Memorial Experience • 2 pages by Robert Morrell Jr
Fair. Father pays for his daughter to experience his funeral, and leaves a message.
128 • The Marks We Leave • 10 pages by M. Ian Bell
Good+. Rylek is going outside the scope of his job, trying to manage individual lives. Going so far as to rewrite the code so that an individual is replaced by an exact facsimile. Maybe this isn’t about saving a life here and there, but rather about agent Rylek.
138 • Ready for New Arrivals? • 12 pages by Sean Monaghan
OK+. Aphrodite and Justin are exploring a crater on Ganymede when Justin breaks through the crust over a crater and falls in. They’re tethered, but there is no telemetry from Justin. Now it’s a rescue.
150 • Under the Moons of Venus: a Tale of Princess Altivolant • 51 pages by Jay Werkheiser, Frank Wu
Good/OK. Professor Boxhammer is interested in sightings of the moons around Venus. He visits an astronomer of the day (eighteenth century) to get more empirical data. Then his nemesis who once tricked him with a fake gives him a scroll telling of an adventure on Venus. There Princess Denjira is trying to save her kingdom from pirates only to find that the regent has conspired with the pirates and that her mother may still be alive.
July 5, 2025
An alright issue ... the "main event" Novells (Under the Moons of Venus: A Tale of Princess Altivolant) was not my jam ... lightly classified as Sci-fi, but more political intrigue ... just went on way too long. But other stories in the issue were good.
January 23, 2026
The July-August 2025 issue of Analog. I read and discussed it in ORBIT – Otherworldly Reads, Bold Ideas, and Tales. SF & F Short Stories and Novelettes group in January 2026.
Contents:
Three Gates [Editorial (Analog)] essay by Steven Barnes How to make AI ethical. Three gates system from Rumi, 13th-century sufi poet, is suggested: Before you speak, let your words pass through three gates. At the first gate, ask yourself “Is it true?” At the second gate, ask “is it necessary?” and at the third ask, “is it kind?” I like the approach. 4*
The Analytical Laboratory (Analog, July-August 2025) [The Analytical Laboratory] essay by uncredited a few for which I voted win, and I even remember them.
North Station Blues novelette by David Gerrold North Station is an asteroid-based station on an elliptic orbit around a blue giant, Larry, which one day soon will go nova. There is a side business of producing vacuum bubbles - a bubble of polymer-graphene, a sphere with literally nothing inside. It can be used in a million of ways, from insulation to taking weight off from a lower portion of a space elevator cable. A group of managers comes to check, headed by a retinue, whom the narrator nicknames: Speaker-To-Slaves. Fancy Pants. Dowager Queen. Silent Princess. Nameless Toady. Painted Frog Larry throws a fit and all ordinary activities stop and all go to a safe place within the asteroid. The management is angry that their plans are broken. The narrator suggests a great deal for them with a cut for her. I liked the story, but it feels incomplete. 3.5*
Out of "Some Warm Little Pond" Part I: "Rifters" and the RNA World [Science Fact (Analog)] essay by Kelly Lagor about the beginnings of life and Peter Watts Rifters trilogy starting with Starfish. What modern science tells us. 4*
Kelly Lagor [Biolog] essay by Richard A. Lovett turns out that the author writes SF as well and her debut is available online 'How To Make a Triffid' which I plan to read. 3*
The First Velodrome on Mars short story by Marie Vibbert Manuel tries to build the velodrome on Mars, his fan project, instead of working on what he is assigned. His wife tries to straighten him, but he is obsessed with his construction, up to forgetting eating or caring for himself. I like short fiction by the author, but this one is meh. 3*
In Times to Come (Analog, July-August 2025) [In Times to Come (Analog)] essay by uncredited nothing spectacular here
Desert Soul novelette by David Gullen Earth's far future, a captain Thab of "Chimchin" sails boat, which is a mix of medieval and future tech receives a mission to deliver a person to a specified location. The person, Nysbeck needs to reach the mouth of the Tamz at the coastline of Graybithan, where she plans to destroy the last of AI. We find out that A solid story. 3.75*
Hidden Achievement short story by Shane Tourtellotte, parallel stories of a man and a woman, each discovering a dating app and trying it, because it is unusual. There is a hidden achievement, as the title suggests and I guess it is a bit predictable. 3.25*
Patient Was the Doctor short story by Victoria N. Shi. The narrator is a doctor, his wife is pregnant, there is an alien captured by the military and because the doctor said that his oath isn't limited by humans, he visits the alien, who is probably dying. The story is centered on the narrator's feelings. 3*
Last Dam Standing short story by Dawn Vogel a mear future world after 'soft apocalypse'. Rising oceans drive salt water upriver and there is the last dam keeping it from going even further. The group that manages the dam connects with a retired engineer, who lives alone, asking her to help them. She drives to them and tries to make rusty dam gates work... 3.25*
Luca, Earth Life's Universal Common Ancestor [The Alternate View] essay by John G. Cramer LUCA means the last universal common ancestor of contemporary life. The oldest of several cellular ancestors and is possibly linked to the emergence of life. 3*
If the Algorithms Are Gentle short story by Bernie Jean Schiebeling a weird piece, where algorithms in a post-human world observe a red panda and try to poison it. It hasn't worked for me. 2*
Our Lady of the Atom poem by Josh Pearce I haven't understood it.
Low-Tide Salvage short story by Matthew Claxton a nice short story with worldbuilding worthy of a novel. The narrator is Beatrice, telling the story from her childhood. She and her father salvage stuff on a bank to sell later to one of the great Prospers, the city-states. These cities heavily gene-modify their citizens, each following its own path. Beatrice's father doesn't want to become a next blanc in a city. 4*
Back to Square One [Unknowns (puzzle)] essay by Rachel Fabi a crossword puzzle.
ESRI [Europa] novelette by James Dick a continuation of “EDIE” (Analog, January/February 2023), but if the former was a possible first contact story, where an unmanned probe sent to Europe, stopped responding, but not before it showed an ice sculpture of itself forming. Now is 20 years later, another probe is about to reach Europa. This mission is headed by a daughter of the main heroine from the previous story, and her probe should try to leave Europe before the capture. 3*
Mother Hubble's Elegy for RHESSI: (2002-2023) April 19, 2023 poem by Sandra J. Lindow panegric to the 1st X-ray telescope
Jennifer Does Pushups short story by Joseph Weber Jennifer is a victim of a hovercar crash. During her recovery, it turned out that her small intestines are a source of biome, which is great for getting skinny and healthy, so she sells it monthly. Then she meets a nerd from a bio-startup, who plans to reproduce her biome en masse, destroying her source of income... great ideas SF. 4*
Imaginary short story by Daniel D. Villani Frederick Herschel discovers infrared in his failed experiment (true story), then the heroine here, with a little help from her brother, discovers a new class of particles. 3.25*
Your Entry to Paradise™ Memorial Experience short story by Robert Morrell, Jr. a flash-fic. A woman descends is a capsule from space, the journey paid for by her deceased father. She doesn't understand what is so great about it. 3*
The Marks We Leave short story by M. Ian Bell humanoid (?) aliens prepare to recreate humanity on Earth. Rylek is one of a team that simulates Earth development to choose an optimal scenario, but he, because of his trauma, from time to time, when he sees a death, replaces a piece of the simulation with a copy that actually survives. Interesting idea, but I think underdeveloped. 3*
Ready for New Arrivals? short story by Sean Monaghan two astronaughts walk on Ganymede, Jupiter's moon. One of them suddenly drops in a hole. They are tied, so the remaining one tries to get him out. She got unexpected help. The story sets more questions than it answers. 3*
Under the Moons of Venus: A Tale of a Princess Altivolant novella by Jay Werkeiser and Frank Wu Professor William Herschel meets the narrator, Professor Boxhammer, who is known as the writer of sensationalist stories. The year is 1769 and Venus will pass the Sun, so the question is whether it has moons. The narrator brings a story in the style of Edgar Rice Burroughs about floating cities above Venus, and their inhabitants are remnants of the Atlantis population. There were two artificial moons, fast and slow. The fast one brought oxygen and dropped carbon, the slow one kept the magnetic field. The former has exploded and this civilization is doomed, but most don't understand it. An interesting mix. 3.25*
The Reference Library (Analog, July-August 2025) [The Reference Library] essay by Rosemary Claire Smith the most interesting is IMHO Where the Axe Is Buried, which I read and Jamaica Ginger and Other Concoctions, which I plan to.
Brass Tacks (Analog, July-August 2025) [Brass Tacks] essay by various a nice letter on misconceptions in a fact article plus a non-answer whether the new management will keep audio via NLS
Contents:
Three Gates [Editorial (Analog)] essay by Steven Barnes How to make AI ethical. Three gates system from Rumi, 13th-century sufi poet, is suggested: Before you speak, let your words pass through three gates. At the first gate, ask yourself “Is it true?” At the second gate, ask “is it necessary?” and at the third ask, “is it kind?” I like the approach. 4*
The Analytical Laboratory (Analog, July-August 2025) [The Analytical Laboratory] essay by uncredited a few for which I voted win, and I even remember them.
North Station Blues novelette by David Gerrold North Station is an asteroid-based station on an elliptic orbit around a blue giant, Larry, which one day soon will go nova. There is a side business of producing vacuum bubbles - a bubble of polymer-graphene, a sphere with literally nothing inside. It can be used in a million of ways, from insulation to taking weight off from a lower portion of a space elevator cable. A group of managers comes to check, headed by a retinue, whom the narrator nicknames: Speaker-To-Slaves. Fancy Pants. Dowager Queen. Silent Princess. Nameless Toady. Painted Frog Larry throws a fit and all ordinary activities stop and all go to a safe place within the asteroid. The management is angry that their plans are broken. The narrator suggests a great deal for them with a cut for her. I liked the story, but it feels incomplete. 3.5*
Out of "Some Warm Little Pond" Part I: "Rifters" and the RNA World [Science Fact (Analog)] essay by Kelly Lagor about the beginnings of life and Peter Watts Rifters trilogy starting with Starfish. What modern science tells us. 4*
Kelly Lagor [Biolog] essay by Richard A. Lovett turns out that the author writes SF as well and her debut is available online 'How To Make a Triffid' which I plan to read. 3*
The First Velodrome on Mars short story by Marie Vibbert Manuel tries to build the velodrome on Mars, his fan project, instead of working on what he is assigned. His wife tries to straighten him, but he is obsessed with his construction, up to forgetting eating or caring for himself. I like short fiction by the author, but this one is meh. 3*
In Times to Come (Analog, July-August 2025) [In Times to Come (Analog)] essay by uncredited nothing spectacular here
Desert Soul novelette by David Gullen Earth's far future, a captain Thab of "Chimchin" sails boat, which is a mix of medieval and future tech receives a mission to deliver a person to a specified location. The person, Nysbeck needs to reach the mouth of the Tamz at the coastline of Graybithan, where she plans to destroy the last of AI. We find out that A solid story. 3.75*
Hidden Achievement short story by Shane Tourtellotte, parallel stories of a man and a woman, each discovering a dating app and trying it, because it is unusual. There is a hidden achievement, as the title suggests and I guess it is a bit predictable. 3.25*
Patient Was the Doctor short story by Victoria N. Shi. The narrator is a doctor, his wife is pregnant, there is an alien captured by the military and because the doctor said that his oath isn't limited by humans, he visits the alien, who is probably dying. The story is centered on the narrator's feelings. 3*
Last Dam Standing short story by Dawn Vogel a mear future world after 'soft apocalypse'. Rising oceans drive salt water upriver and there is the last dam keeping it from going even further. The group that manages the dam connects with a retired engineer, who lives alone, asking her to help them. She drives to them and tries to make rusty dam gates work... 3.25*
Luca, Earth Life's Universal Common Ancestor [The Alternate View] essay by John G. Cramer LUCA means the last universal common ancestor of contemporary life. The oldest of several cellular ancestors and is possibly linked to the emergence of life. 3*
If the Algorithms Are Gentle short story by Bernie Jean Schiebeling a weird piece, where algorithms in a post-human world observe a red panda and try to poison it. It hasn't worked for me. 2*
Our Lady of the Atom poem by Josh Pearce I haven't understood it.
Low-Tide Salvage short story by Matthew Claxton a nice short story with worldbuilding worthy of a novel. The narrator is Beatrice, telling the story from her childhood. She and her father salvage stuff on a bank to sell later to one of the great Prospers, the city-states. These cities heavily gene-modify their citizens, each following its own path. Beatrice's father doesn't want to become a next blanc in a city. 4*
Back to Square One [Unknowns (puzzle)] essay by Rachel Fabi a crossword puzzle.
ESRI [Europa] novelette by James Dick a continuation of “EDIE” (Analog, January/February 2023), but if the former was a possible first contact story, where an unmanned probe sent to Europe, stopped responding, but not before it showed an ice sculpture of itself forming. Now is 20 years later, another probe is about to reach Europa. This mission is headed by a daughter of the main heroine from the previous story, and her probe should try to leave Europe before the capture. 3*
Mother Hubble's Elegy for RHESSI: (2002-2023) April 19, 2023 poem by Sandra J. Lindow panegric to the 1st X-ray telescope
Jennifer Does Pushups short story by Joseph Weber Jennifer is a victim of a hovercar crash. During her recovery, it turned out that her small intestines are a source of biome, which is great for getting skinny and healthy, so she sells it monthly. Then she meets a nerd from a bio-startup, who plans to reproduce her biome en masse, destroying her source of income... great ideas SF. 4*
Imaginary short story by Daniel D. Villani Frederick Herschel discovers infrared in his failed experiment (true story), then the heroine here, with a little help from her brother, discovers a new class of particles. 3.25*
Your Entry to Paradise™ Memorial Experience short story by Robert Morrell, Jr. a flash-fic. A woman descends is a capsule from space, the journey paid for by her deceased father. She doesn't understand what is so great about it. 3*
The Marks We Leave short story by M. Ian Bell humanoid (?) aliens prepare to recreate humanity on Earth. Rylek is one of a team that simulates Earth development to choose an optimal scenario, but he, because of his trauma, from time to time, when he sees a death, replaces a piece of the simulation with a copy that actually survives. Interesting idea, but I think underdeveloped. 3*
Ready for New Arrivals? short story by Sean Monaghan two astronaughts walk on Ganymede, Jupiter's moon. One of them suddenly drops in a hole. They are tied, so the remaining one tries to get him out. She got unexpected help. The story sets more questions than it answers. 3*
Under the Moons of Venus: A Tale of a Princess Altivolant novella by Jay Werkeiser and Frank Wu Professor William Herschel meets the narrator, Professor Boxhammer, who is known as the writer of sensationalist stories. The year is 1769 and Venus will pass the Sun, so the question is whether it has moons. The narrator brings a story in the style of Edgar Rice Burroughs about floating cities above Venus, and their inhabitants are remnants of the Atlantis population. There were two artificial moons, fast and slow. The fast one brought oxygen and dropped carbon, the slow one kept the magnetic field. The former has exploded and this civilization is doomed, but most don't understand it. An interesting mix. 3.25*
The Reference Library (Analog, July-August 2025) [The Reference Library] essay by Rosemary Claire Smith the most interesting is IMHO Where the Axe Is Buried, which I read and Jamaica Ginger and Other Concoctions, which I plan to.
Brass Tacks (Analog, July-August 2025) [Brass Tacks] essay by various a nice letter on misconceptions in a fact article plus a non-answer whether the new management will keep audio via NLS
August 2, 2025
Originally published at myreadinglife.com.
Each time I finish reading a short fiction magazine, I post short descriptions and a rating for each story. Here is my latest for the most recent issue of Analog .
"North Station Blues" by David Gerrold (9,141 words) — A lowly employee on a station around a dying star plots his way out and up. Good storytelling. Nothing new or particularly attention-getting here. (My rating: 3/5)
"The First Velodrome on Mars" by Marie Vibbert (3,921 words) — A scientist on Mars becomes obsessed about getting credit for his velodrome project. The main character is annoying but so real. (My rating: 4/5)
"Desert Soul" by David Gullen (11,577 words) — A female starfarer joins with a male boat captain seeking the last of insane timeless golems. An unusual story that surprised me toward the end. Liked it more than anticipated. (My rating: 3.5/5)
"Hidden Achievement" by Shane Tourtellotte (4,504) — Two people struggling in their dating and social lives download and play a new dating app. This was a page turner for me. Should have seen the ending coming but didn't as I was so caught up in the story I didn't have time to evaluate. I thoroughly enjoy everything by this author. I only wish he had more available to read on the public internet. (My rating: 5/5)
"Patient Was the Doctor" by Victoria N. Shi (6,761 words) — A psychologist takes a job treating an octopus-like alien to get health coverage for IVF with is wife. Reminds me of the movie Arrival . (My rating: 5/5)
"Last Dam Standing" by Dawn Vogel (2,950 words) — A retired doctor living alone in the mountains is contacted to help same a dam she designed 20 years prior. I liked it but it just felt run of the mill. (My rating: 3/5)
"If The Algorithms Are Gentle" by Bernie Jean Schiebeling (1,139 words) — Computer servers in a post-apocalyptic city with no humans observe a red panda plunder an ice cream cart. 🤷🏻 (My rating: 3/5)
"Low-Tide Salvage" by Matthew Claxton (6,310 words) — A father and daughter find a drone ship and work to salvage it for sale to the local Prosper. A touching story of pride and survival. (My rating: 4/5)
"ESRI" by James Dick (12,312 words) — The daughter of a famous scientist follows in her footsteps sending a mission to Europa. This story is a sequel to EDIE by the same author in the January/February 2023 issue of Analog. (My rating: 4/5)
"Jennifer Does Pushups" by Joseph Weber (4,460 words) — A woman who survived a deadly car accident makes her living selling her gut biome. A unique exploration of the ethics and economics of selling parts of oneself. (My rating: 4/5)
"Your Entry to ParadiseTM Memorial Experience" by Robert Morrell, Jr. (999 words) — A daughter's father bequeaths her an experience that teaches her to live life. (My rating: 3/5)
"The Marks We Leave" by M. Ian Bell (6,768 words) — Rylek seeks to assuage his pain of the loss of his lover by saving some of the people in the simulation on which he works. A compassionate exploration and portrayal of deep grief. (My rating: 5/5)
"Ready for New Arrivals?" by Sean Monaghan (6,966 words) — An astronaut on Ganymede falls down a hole while tethered to another. Lots of suspense, a sort of brief thriller. (My rating: 5/5)
"Under the Moons of Venus: A Tale of a Princess Altivolant" by Jay Werkheiser and Frank Wu (34,072 words) — A story of Venus as told at King George's court during the 1769 transit of Venus. Partially inspired by Edgar Rice Burroughs Mars books. About halfway it becomes a climate change allegory. (My rating: 3/5)
Average story rating: 3.89/5
Each time I finish reading a short fiction magazine, I post short descriptions and a rating for each story. Here is my latest for the most recent issue of Analog .
"North Station Blues" by David Gerrold (9,141 words) — A lowly employee on a station around a dying star plots his way out and up. Good storytelling. Nothing new or particularly attention-getting here. (My rating: 3/5)
"The First Velodrome on Mars" by Marie Vibbert (3,921 words) — A scientist on Mars becomes obsessed about getting credit for his velodrome project. The main character is annoying but so real. (My rating: 4/5)
"Desert Soul" by David Gullen (11,577 words) — A female starfarer joins with a male boat captain seeking the last of insane timeless golems. An unusual story that surprised me toward the end. Liked it more than anticipated. (My rating: 3.5/5)
"Hidden Achievement" by Shane Tourtellotte (4,504) — Two people struggling in their dating and social lives download and play a new dating app. This was a page turner for me. Should have seen the ending coming but didn't as I was so caught up in the story I didn't have time to evaluate. I thoroughly enjoy everything by this author. I only wish he had more available to read on the public internet. (My rating: 5/5)
"Patient Was the Doctor" by Victoria N. Shi (6,761 words) — A psychologist takes a job treating an octopus-like alien to get health coverage for IVF with is wife. Reminds me of the movie Arrival . (My rating: 5/5)
"Last Dam Standing" by Dawn Vogel (2,950 words) — A retired doctor living alone in the mountains is contacted to help same a dam she designed 20 years prior. I liked it but it just felt run of the mill. (My rating: 3/5)
"If The Algorithms Are Gentle" by Bernie Jean Schiebeling (1,139 words) — Computer servers in a post-apocalyptic city with no humans observe a red panda plunder an ice cream cart. 🤷🏻 (My rating: 3/5)
"Low-Tide Salvage" by Matthew Claxton (6,310 words) — A father and daughter find a drone ship and work to salvage it for sale to the local Prosper. A touching story of pride and survival. (My rating: 4/5)
"ESRI" by James Dick (12,312 words) — The daughter of a famous scientist follows in her footsteps sending a mission to Europa. This story is a sequel to EDIE by the same author in the January/February 2023 issue of Analog. (My rating: 4/5)
"Jennifer Does Pushups" by Joseph Weber (4,460 words) — A woman who survived a deadly car accident makes her living selling her gut biome. A unique exploration of the ethics and economics of selling parts of oneself. (My rating: 4/5)
"Your Entry to ParadiseTM Memorial Experience" by Robert Morrell, Jr. (999 words) — A daughter's father bequeaths her an experience that teaches her to live life. (My rating: 3/5)
"The Marks We Leave" by M. Ian Bell (6,768 words) — Rylek seeks to assuage his pain of the loss of his lover by saving some of the people in the simulation on which he works. A compassionate exploration and portrayal of deep grief. (My rating: 5/5)
"Ready for New Arrivals?" by Sean Monaghan (6,966 words) — An astronaut on Ganymede falls down a hole while tethered to another. Lots of suspense, a sort of brief thriller. (My rating: 5/5)
"Under the Moons of Venus: A Tale of a Princess Altivolant" by Jay Werkheiser and Frank Wu (34,072 words) — A story of Venus as told at King George's court during the 1769 transit of Venus. Partially inspired by Edgar Rice Burroughs Mars books. About halfway it becomes a climate change allegory. (My rating: 3/5)
Average story rating: 3.89/5
July 9, 2025
A worker at a line base around a blue giant flare star known as ‘Larry’ is hosting yet another tour group of rich, entitled assholes on their way to somewhere else when he gets an idea that may free him from his job and also benefit his loathsome guests in “North Station Blues” by David Gerrold. David Gullen takes us to a fringe planet where sailor Thab Thinble takes on a passenger, Nysbeck, who is seeking to destroy the last mad shipmind that navigated the realms of hyperspace. But when they find the computer, Eleventy-Seven, it reveals surprising capacities that may be useful but deadly in “Desert Soul”. Adventure SF with heart! A queer psychologist is employed by the military to help understand a dying alien and perhaps find meaning in its passing. But the alien has touched him in other ways which may affect his chances of becoming a parent in “Patient Was The Dictor” by Victoria N. Shi. A young girl and her father struggle to make ends meet by salvaging downed drones in a wartorn future in “Low-Tide Salvage” by Matthew Claxton, and Kate has taken up the mission started by her mother, a Europa Sample Return Initiative “ESRI”, but the mystery of the surface statues and the possible life below the Europan oceans remains in this intriguing sequel from James Dick. A woman who was recovering from a serious accident was found to have remarkably resilient and regenerative intestinal linings, which she has managed to parlay into a lucrative biotransplant business. But in “Jennifer Does Pushups” by Joseph Weber, she finds that Big Tech can steal practically anything. Aphrodite Williams and Justin Tabert are exploring on the surface of Ganymede when a part of the crust gives way revealing a perfectly smooth-walled and circular hole. Justin is swinging on the end of his line, uncommunicative, and it looks like first contact may be with a mindless mining machine in “Ready For New Arrivals?” by Sean Monaghan. In 1769 a hieroglyphic manuscript is discoverd which tells of high adventure “Under The Two Moons Of Venus: A Tale Of A Princess Altivolant”, where a usurper to the crown insists on staying in floating paths high in the atmosphere of Venus, while its artificial satellites (which provide oxygen and magnetic fields) decay. The refugees hope to reach the blue world further out from which they fled thousands of years prior in Jay Werkheiser & Frank Wu’s imaginative tale. OK issue.
September 6, 2025
Another weak issue. That's two in a row. But there are a few gems here. I liked Marie Vibbert's "The First Velodrome on Mars." And Shane Tourtellotte's "Hidden Achievement" is excellent.
The closing Novella, Wu and Werkheiser's "Under the Moons of Venus: a Tale of Princess Altivolant," is a fun Burroughsian adventure.
The closing Novella, Wu and Werkheiser's "Under the Moons of Venus: a Tale of Princess Altivolant," is a fun Burroughsian adventure.
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