Uncanny Magazine Issue 69: March/April 2026

by Michael Damian Thomas, Angela Liu, Anjali Sachdeva

Genres: Short Stories, Science Fiction, Fantasy, Poetry

159 pages, Kindle Edition

Published March 3, 2026

About the author

Michael Damian Thomas is the two-time Hugo and Parsec Award-winning co-publisher and co-editor-in-chief of Uncanny Magazine with his wife, Lynne M. Thomas. In this role, he has also been a finalist twice for the World Fantasy Award and a finalist for a Locus Award. Michael was a two-time Hugo Award finalist as the former Managing Editor of Apex Magazine (2012-2013), co-edited the Hugo Award finalist essay anthology Queers Dig Time Lords (Mad Norwegian Press, 2013) with Sigrid Ellis, and co-edited the anthology Glitter & Mayhem (Apex Publications, 2013) with John Klima and Lynne M. Thomas. He has also worked as an Associate Editor on numerous books at Mad Norwegian Press, including the Hugo Award-winning Chicks Dig Time Lords (edited by Lynne M. Thomas and Tara O’Shea, 2010) and Hugo Award finalist Chicks Dig Comics (edited by Lynne M. Thomas and Sigrid Ellis, 2012). Michael was additionally a contributor to the SF Squeecast podcast (with Elizabeth Bear, Paul Cornell, Seanan McGuire, Lynne M. Thomas, and Catherynne M. Valente) and was a contributor to the Down and Safe- Blake’s 7 podcast (with Amal El-Mohtar, Scott Lynch, and L.M. Myles).

Michael lives in DeKalb, IL, with his wife Lynne, their daughter Caitlin, and a cat named Marie. Caitlin has a rare congenital disorder called Aicardi syndrome, and Michael works as her primary caregiver.

Reviews

[Nicole (bookwyrm)]

As with any collection, there were some stories I liked more than others. Overall, however, this is a solid magazine issue. I enjoyed the essays more than usual as well. My favorite pieces this time were the ones by John Wiswell, Anjali Sachdeva, and Theodora Goss. I also enjoyed Sunwoo Jeong's piece, but I am not sure I fully understand what's going on. (The straightforward part where the action happens, yes. I understood that. But the meanings for things and most symbolism went over my head. I did still enjoy it)

[Marco]

This review is for "What We Mean When We Talk About the Hole in the Bathroom" by Angela Liu.
This is the story of a long-married couple that one day discovers an impossible, two-foot-wide void on their bathroom wall.
While the woman views the anomaly as the ultimate proof of her lifelong "bad luck," her husband—exhausted by corporate life and marital friction—prefers to believe it will simply vanish with a good night’s sleep. What begins as a domestic argument over a literal hole quickly spirals into a surreal exploration of the metaphorical gaps between partners. It is a haunting, atmospheric story about the silence that grows in a marriage and the tempting allure of disappearing when communication finally breaks down.
It's a great story with a lot of depth and full of symbolism. It reads almost as fiction, despite the sci-fi premise.
I am looking forward to reading more by this author.

[Esther]

I am really enjoying this year’s issues of Uncanny. This issue had a lot of stories set either in our world or a very similar one. It didn’t have too many happy emotions but it still had a wider emotional palette, closer to how I remember early Uncanny editions. The order of the edition feels more deliberate again and it repays reading in one or two sittings which is exactly what I want from a magazine.

My favourite story was ‘The Women Who Stole Flowers’ by Theodora Goss. Goss is the master of perfect final lines that catapult a great story into the stratosphere. My favourite poem was “The Truth About Wolves” by Marissa Lingen. I am trying to read more poetry. A lot of it goes over my head but this connected. Lots of great essays in this one, wow! A real feast! By a hair, my favourite is probably the Samantha Mills.

Excited to read the next edition!

[Amy Mills]

Review is for the podcast (69A; will get to B once released). If I happen across any other stories from this issue, they will get added and reviewed here, as well. I generally give the issue the rating of the story I liked best.

What We Mean when We Talk About the Hole in the Bathroom by Angela Liu (4 stars) - Interesting allegory, inspired by an actual strange opening in a childhood bathroom. Here, it seems to symbolize the growing distance between a married couple, and perhaps offers one of them a way out.

The Mighty Impervious Woman Considers Retirement by Izzy Wasserstein (5 stars) - Superhero variation on "Be careful what you wish for." Impervious to physical harm? Great. Impervious to emotional depth? Not so great. Well-put-together and enjoyable.

[Thia Reads A Lot]

Not my favourite issue. The only memorable story for me was "Chimera" (4*). A very good essay about screenwriting though, "What Prose Writers Can Learn from Script Writers (and What Not to Learn)", that I highly recommend

[Katherine]

Chimera by Anjali Sachdeva

[Dana]

I backed this on Kickstarter, so I received the issue in advance of publication as part of the campaign.