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Clarkesworld Magazine, Issue 234, March 2026
Clarkesworld is a Hugo and World Fantasy Award-winning science fiction and fantasy magazine. Each month we bring you a mix of fiction, articles, interviews and art. Our March 2026 issue (#234) contains:
Fiction
• "Bend Like the Palm" by David D. Levine
• "First Human Ghost on Mars" by R.L. Meza
• "Crosstalk, Elysium" by Carolyn Zhao
• "Scion" by Thomas Ha
• "Scion: Afterword" by Thomas Ha
• "Those Who Left History" by Wanxiang Fengnian
• "You Are Invited to Our SPRING CELEBRATION" by Thoraiya Dyer
• "Person, Place, Thing" by Marissa Lingen
Non-Fiction
• "The Hands and the Brain: Complementary Dominance" by Benjamin C. Kinney
• "Anatomy of a Novel: A Conversation with J.M. Sidorova" by Arley Sorg
• "Fluidity, Desire, and Survival: A Conversation with Rebecca Roanhorse" by Arley Sorg
• "Editor's Desk: The Best from 2025" by Neil Clarke
Cover Art
• "Long Distance Call" by Pascal Blanché
Fiction
• "Bend Like the Palm" by David D. Levine
• "First Human Ghost on Mars" by R.L. Meza
• "Crosstalk, Elysium" by Carolyn Zhao
• "Scion" by Thomas Ha
• "Scion: Afterword" by Thomas Ha
• "Those Who Left History" by Wanxiang Fengnian
• "You Are Invited to Our SPRING CELEBRATION" by Thoraiya Dyer
• "Person, Place, Thing" by Marissa Lingen
Non-Fiction
• "The Hands and the Brain: Complementary Dominance" by Benjamin C. Kinney
• "Anatomy of a Novel: A Conversation with J.M. Sidorova" by Arley Sorg
• "Fluidity, Desire, and Survival: A Conversation with Rebecca Roanhorse" by Arley Sorg
• "Editor's Desk: The Best from 2025" by Neil Clarke
Cover Art
• "Long Distance Call" by Pascal Blanché
215 pages, Kindle Edition
First published March 1, 2026
About the author
Neil Clarke
413 books407 followersNeil Clarke is best known as the editor and publisher of the Hugo and World Fantasy Award-winning
Clarkesworld Magazine.
Launched in October 2006, the online magazine has been a finalist for the Hugo Award for Best Semiprozine four times (winning three times), the World Fantasy Award four times (winning once), and the British Fantasy Award once (winning once). Neil is also a ten-time finalist for the Hugo Award for Best Editor Short Form (winning once in 2022), three-time winner of the Chesley Award for Best Art Director, and a recipient of the Kate Wilhelm Solstice Award. In the fifteen years since Clarkesworld Magazine launched, numerous stories that he has published have been nominated for or won the Hugo, Nebula, World Fantasy, Sturgeon, Locus, BSFA, Shirley Jackson, WSFA Small Press, and Stoker Awards.
Additionally, Neil edits Forever —a digital-only, reprint science fiction magazine he launched in 2015. His anthologies include: Upgraded, Galactic Empires, Touchable Unreality, More Human than Human, The Final Frontier, Not One of Us, The Eagle has Landed, , and the Best Science Fiction of the Year series. His next anthology, The Best Science Fiction of the Year: Volume Seven will published in early 2023.
He currently lives in New Jersey with his wife and two sons.
Additionally, Neil edits Forever —a digital-only, reprint science fiction magazine he launched in 2015. His anthologies include: Upgraded, Galactic Empires, Touchable Unreality, More Human than Human, The Final Frontier, Not One of Us, The Eagle has Landed, , and the Best Science Fiction of the Year series. His next anthology, The Best Science Fiction of the Year: Volume Seven will published in early 2023.
He currently lives in New Jersey with his wife and two sons.
Ratings & Reviews
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Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
March 27, 2026
Alright, I wanted to try something different, so this is my first attempt at reading stories in a magazine—though maybe not my very first, but it’s been quite a few years since I’ve done something like this...
I haven’t decided yet whether this will be a good project for me. The stories were all very weird to me and sometimes pretty hard to understand; I guess I’ll have to recalibrate my brain a bit for this. But I’ll still be eagerly waiting for the next issue.
"Bend Like the Palm" by David D. Levine: liked it - 4 stars
❝
We were living on a sugar cube dissolving in coffee, and we had been for my whole life. But where else could we go? The islands were our home.
„First Human Ghost on Mars" by R.L. Meza: weird but interesting - 3 stars
"Crosstalk, Elysium" by Carolyn Zhao: amusing, liked it very much - 5 stars
❝
All Karnarian ships need to sleep when they’re tired, or when the fuel is out, or when the pilot tells such boring stories that it’s not possible to stay conscious.
"Scion" by Thomas Ha: nope … sorry - 1 star
"Those Who Left History" by Wanxiang Fengnian, translated by Stella Jiayue Zhu: Phew, very morbid, very depressing. For a long time, I didn't know what to make of it, but I actually ended up liking this story. - 3 stars
"You Are Invited to Our SPRING CELEBRATION" by Thoraiya Dyer: The story gives off some really strong “Project Hail Mary” vibes—really, really strong ones. I like the story. - 3 stars
"Person, Place, Thing" by Marissa Lingen: interesting, weird - 2 stars
I haven’t decided yet whether this will be a good project for me. The stories were all very weird to me and sometimes pretty hard to understand; I guess I’ll have to recalibrate my brain a bit for this. But I’ll still be eagerly waiting for the next issue.
"Bend Like the Palm" by David D. Levine: liked it - 4 stars
❝
We were living on a sugar cube dissolving in coffee, and we had been for my whole life. But where else could we go? The islands were our home.
„First Human Ghost on Mars" by R.L. Meza: weird but interesting - 3 stars
"Crosstalk, Elysium" by Carolyn Zhao: amusing, liked it very much - 5 stars
❝
All Karnarian ships need to sleep when they’re tired, or when the fuel is out, or when the pilot tells such boring stories that it’s not possible to stay conscious.
"Scion" by Thomas Ha: nope … sorry - 1 star
"Those Who Left History" by Wanxiang Fengnian, translated by Stella Jiayue Zhu: Phew, very morbid, very depressing. For a long time, I didn't know what to make of it, but I actually ended up liking this story. - 3 stars
"You Are Invited to Our SPRING CELEBRATION" by Thoraiya Dyer: The story gives off some really strong “Project Hail Mary” vibes—really, really strong ones. I like the story. - 3 stars
"Person, Place, Thing" by Marissa Lingen: interesting, weird - 2 stars
May 1, 2026
In this March issue of Clarkesworld, "Those Who Left History" is a standout amongst other strong stories. My mind is stretched!
Bend Like the Palm
BY DAVID D. LEVINE
“Bend Like The Palm” opens with the quote:
Rating: 3.5/5
First Human Ghost on Mars
BY R.L. MEZA
R.L. Meza delivers a fresh, cosmic ghost story in which the mechanics that govern ghosts differ on Mars. Chiefly, you can die twice :) First contact with Mars ghosts? Check. Transformation into a crab-like Martian ghost thingy? Check. Human purpose even in the afterlife plus afterlife? Check.
Rating: 3.5/5
Crosstalk, Elysium
BY CAROLYN ZHAO
A ship that chooses to operate only when it is told a riddle? Nice. Carolyn Zhao treats us to a mysterious narrator, Dolly, who tells things out of order and is unsure of the veracity of her history. I enjoyed how Dolly was vague about the overarching world yet specific about local details of this world. I began to really question who and what Dolly is upon reading:
Zhao’s prose is enjoyable, and my favourite line is:
Person, Place, Thing
BY MARISSA LINGEN
Marissa Lingen shares a short story about shifting perspectives depending on whether one views something as a person, a place, a thing, or perhaps all three. The story is told from the viewpoint of an alien, hive-minded entity that is partitioned as a “translator subcolony”. It’s a bit strange, but not in a bad way. Ultimately, the message didn’t really hit home for me.
Rating: 1.5/5
Those Who Left History
BY WANXIANG FENGNIAN, TRANSLATED BY STELLA JIAYUE ZHU
High-concept stuff! A future world has invented “exclusive residences” using a technology called “spatial closure”, which involves folding the edges of a small space inward until it closes and disappears from the world. And thus, you are removed from history. The rest of the world continues without the residents, while they live indefinitely in an alternate timeframe. Wanxiang Fengnian treats us to a discursive exploration of the sociological and philosophical consequences; the story alternates between the diary of one such resident, an investigative series of volunteers all over the world, and a far-future investigative series, where I felt the wonder of examining a history now incomplete due to the span of time. I found it marvellous that, in 6850 words, a compelling future history is laid forth with wondrous worldbuilding in each era (the gravitational anchor concept is pretty cool); it did not feel rushed despite the vast span of time. Authentic.
This story may make my “Notable Reads of 2026 List” :)
Rating: 5/5
You Are Invited to Our SPRING CELEBRATION
BY THORAIYA DYER
Some of the very best science fiction craftily incorporates electromagnetic radiation, and Thoraiya Dyer’s story continues this tradition, though without any explanation of the radiation’s context. Since I typically find this dimension intriguing, I’m providing a little context for the dear reader. The alien beings in this short story communicate at relatively high energy levels of 500 keV (kilo electron volts), while the humans marooned on their world sense visible light, which is around 1-3 eV. To put this further into human perspective, at such high energies of alien communication, their “words” are considered ionizing radiation for humans, i.e. electromagnetic radiation that strips electrons away from atoms. Moreover, a 500 keV photon has sufficient energy to cascade through our bodies like a wrecking ball, altering our molecular makeup by exploding our body’s water molecules and creating a wildfire of corrosive hydroxyl free radicals, breaking double-stranded DNA beyond cellular self-repair, denaturing and fusing proteins, rendering them dysfunctional, etc.
An inchoate friendship forms between the stranded human crew and the radiation-speaking aliens that live on “Planet With Overrepresentation Of Hexagonal Crystal Systems”. The alien narrator is “Unnecessary Expender Of Energy To Satisfy Curiosity”, so named because it is unlike the others of its kind, who choose to ignore the humans. Both human (the Spring Ritual) and alien rituals (The Three Things) are exchanged as they try to share the new home space they find themselves in through cultural understanding. A quirky read!
Rating: 4/5
Scion
BY THOMAS HA
Thomas Ha introduces us to Levinlords, su-folk, a manse with shifting architecture, and indigenous halotolerant bacteria that confer the ability for Rai’s residents to survive otherwise lethal electrical storms rampaging across this oceanic world. There is also AI. There are also esoteric words and confusing sentence structures from Ha’s mind that sometimes made this a frustrating read. I love literary prose, but I dislike an elevation that feels contrived. For me, compelling stories are typically one of two things: those that leave me with a speculative concept that continues to make me think and lingers, and those that are entertaining reads even without a lasting take-home message. “Scion” is closer to the latter, as I’m not sensing a real central theme, but ultimately, the story didn’t develop and take me to interesting places. I still dig the vibes of shifting architecture in what I perceived as a gothic, futuristic structure.
Rating: 2/5
Scion: Afterword
BY THOMAS HA
From the University of Neo Limuria, Professor Andrew Hyun-Richter, a professor of tributary anthropology, transcribes an account from a long-past era set in “Scion”. The account is discovered in a cenotaph among the remnants of the colony undergoing excavation. The professor is in contention with his colleagues over whether the history contained in the cenotaph is mere fiction or whether corroborating but scant evidence suggests the events are real. Perhaps it is the researcher and academic in me that finds this facet of the story intriguing. I found this scholarly afterword’s strength lies in its anthropological exposition and re-contextualization of the world of “Scion”. I may even have found this reading more curious and, in some ways, more enjoyable than the actual novella.
Rating: 3.5/5
Bend Like the Palm
BY DAVID D. LEVINE
“Bend Like The Palm” opens with the quote:
“Rivers do not drink their own water; trees do not eat their own fruit; the sun does not shine on itself, and flowers do not spread their fragrance for themselves. Living for others is a rule of nature.”I rather like this message, and it serves as one pillar that guides this community, ravaged by climate change. To survive, the community adapts to a second pillar: to bend but not break. These two pillars are well-taken by me, and as I write this, I can’t help but reflect on the last year and how I’ve bent like the palm, even in times when I did not know I was doing so. For me, this story is a quiet one, meditative in its aftermath.
Rating: 3.5/5
First Human Ghost on Mars
BY R.L. MEZA
R.L. Meza delivers a fresh, cosmic ghost story in which the mechanics that govern ghosts differ on Mars. Chiefly, you can die twice :) First contact with Mars ghosts? Check. Transformation into a crab-like Martian ghost thingy? Check. Human purpose even in the afterlife plus afterlife? Check.
Rating: 3.5/5
Crosstalk, Elysium
BY CAROLYN ZHAO
A ship that chooses to operate only when it is told a riddle? Nice. Carolyn Zhao treats us to a mysterious narrator, Dolly, who tells things out of order and is unsure of the veracity of her history. I enjoyed how Dolly was vague about the overarching world yet specific about local details of this world. I began to really question who and what Dolly is upon reading:
The pilot, however, was totally mute. She’d be asleep most of the time we checked, and the only time she opened her eyes was when she heard Mori mention my name. Dolly.Dolly continues to tell versions of her story, a mix of truths and lies, that she can finally bear and live with. I guess this is what we humans do too. I try to settle on a story of myself that is a truth I can bear. But perspective is a funny thing. How do I know how much of the truth I’ve bent so that I can bear it all?
“Is that what you call her?” the pilot asked.
Zhao’s prose is enjoyable, and my favourite line is:
“The thing about understanding is that you have to make a cavity to wait for the truth.”Rating: 4/5
Person, Place, Thing
BY MARISSA LINGEN
Marissa Lingen shares a short story about shifting perspectives depending on whether one views something as a person, a place, a thing, or perhaps all three. The story is told from the viewpoint of an alien, hive-minded entity that is partitioned as a “translator subcolony”. It’s a bit strange, but not in a bad way. Ultimately, the message didn’t really hit home for me.
Rating: 1.5/5
Those Who Left History
BY WANXIANG FENGNIAN, TRANSLATED BY STELLA JIAYUE ZHU
High-concept stuff! A future world has invented “exclusive residences” using a technology called “spatial closure”, which involves folding the edges of a small space inward until it closes and disappears from the world. And thus, you are removed from history. The rest of the world continues without the residents, while they live indefinitely in an alternate timeframe. Wanxiang Fengnian treats us to a discursive exploration of the sociological and philosophical consequences; the story alternates between the diary of one such resident, an investigative series of volunteers all over the world, and a far-future investigative series, where I felt the wonder of examining a history now incomplete due to the span of time. I found it marvellous that, in 6850 words, a compelling future history is laid forth with wondrous worldbuilding in each era (the gravitational anchor concept is pretty cool); it did not feel rushed despite the vast span of time. Authentic.
This story may make my “Notable Reads of 2026 List” :)
Rating: 5/5
You Are Invited to Our SPRING CELEBRATION
BY THORAIYA DYER
Some of the very best science fiction craftily incorporates electromagnetic radiation, and Thoraiya Dyer’s story continues this tradition, though without any explanation of the radiation’s context. Since I typically find this dimension intriguing, I’m providing a little context for the dear reader. The alien beings in this short story communicate at relatively high energy levels of 500 keV (kilo electron volts), while the humans marooned on their world sense visible light, which is around 1-3 eV. To put this further into human perspective, at such high energies of alien communication, their “words” are considered ionizing radiation for humans, i.e. electromagnetic radiation that strips electrons away from atoms. Moreover, a 500 keV photon has sufficient energy to cascade through our bodies like a wrecking ball, altering our molecular makeup by exploding our body’s water molecules and creating a wildfire of corrosive hydroxyl free radicals, breaking double-stranded DNA beyond cellular self-repair, denaturing and fusing proteins, rendering them dysfunctional, etc.
An inchoate friendship forms between the stranded human crew and the radiation-speaking aliens that live on “Planet With Overrepresentation Of Hexagonal Crystal Systems”. The alien narrator is “Unnecessary Expender Of Energy To Satisfy Curiosity”, so named because it is unlike the others of its kind, who choose to ignore the humans. Both human (the Spring Ritual) and alien rituals (The Three Things) are exchanged as they try to share the new home space they find themselves in through cultural understanding. A quirky read!
Rating: 4/5
Scion
BY THOMAS HA
Thomas Ha introduces us to Levinlords, su-folk, a manse with shifting architecture, and indigenous halotolerant bacteria that confer the ability for Rai’s residents to survive otherwise lethal electrical storms rampaging across this oceanic world. There is also AI. There are also esoteric words and confusing sentence structures from Ha’s mind that sometimes made this a frustrating read. I love literary prose, but I dislike an elevation that feels contrived. For me, compelling stories are typically one of two things: those that leave me with a speculative concept that continues to make me think and lingers, and those that are entertaining reads even without a lasting take-home message. “Scion” is closer to the latter, as I’m not sensing a real central theme, but ultimately, the story didn’t develop and take me to interesting places. I still dig the vibes of shifting architecture in what I perceived as a gothic, futuristic structure.
Rating: 2/5
Scion: Afterword
BY THOMAS HA
From the University of Neo Limuria, Professor Andrew Hyun-Richter, a professor of tributary anthropology, transcribes an account from a long-past era set in “Scion”. The account is discovered in a cenotaph among the remnants of the colony undergoing excavation. The professor is in contention with his colleagues over whether the history contained in the cenotaph is mere fiction or whether corroborating but scant evidence suggests the events are real. Perhaps it is the researcher and academic in me that finds this facet of the story intriguing. I found this scholarly afterword’s strength lies in its anthropological exposition and re-contextualization of the world of “Scion”. I may even have found this reading more curious and, in some ways, more enjoyable than the actual novella.
Rating: 3.5/5
March 15, 2026
An average issue, with interesting stories by Thomas Ha, Wanxiang Fengnian and Thoraiya Dyer.
- "Bend Like the Palm" by David D. Levine: an island is threatened by a storm and its inhabitants have to decide what to save and what to sacrifice. But as tension mounts at the discussion, one person reminds them of the principles their island is based on.
- "First Human Ghost on Mars" by R.L. Meza: a human ghost is transported to Mars. But upon arrival, it gets involved in a life and death situation.
- "Crosstalk, Elysium" by Carolyn Zhao: a story set in a system where spaceships need to be 'encouraged' to operate.
- "Scion" by Thomas Ha: the scion of a family wakes in his family house, and discovers things are not right. As he struggles to get to the heart of the house, from where his father is controlling the house, he discovers some truths about the 'servants' in the house, his relationship with them, and what must be done to bring things back to normal; or perhaps to move on to a new way of living.
- "Scion: Afterword" by Thomas Ha: a series of journal entries set long after the previous story, which reveals more about the world that "Scion" is set in.
- "Those Who Left History" by Wanxiang Fengnian, translated by Stella Jiayue Zhu: pocket universes have been invented, and those who enter them are forever 'gone' from our universe, although those inside can still see what is happening outside. The story is a series of journal entries over ever-increasing time spans showing the effect the discovery has on the world, and whether the people in the universes should be forgotten or not.
- "You Are Invited to Our SPRING CELEBRATION" by Thoraiya Dyer: on another world, its lifeform, which apparently live on internal radioactivity make contact with a human ship that arrives, but is damaged. While waiting many years for a rescue ship to arrive, they interact and learn about each other, with the humans showing off a spring celebration. But the celebration is tinged with regret with the alien lifeform discover that rescue may never come.
- "Person, Place, Thing" by Marissa Lingen: an alien, which is a colony organism makes contact with humanity, although humanity is not aware of its colonial nature. When the alien's human contacts are replaced with other that make different demands on it, the alien colony decide to take matters into its own hands to regain contact with the original humans.
- "Bend Like the Palm" by David D. Levine: an island is threatened by a storm and its inhabitants have to decide what to save and what to sacrifice. But as tension mounts at the discussion, one person reminds them of the principles their island is based on.
- "First Human Ghost on Mars" by R.L. Meza: a human ghost is transported to Mars. But upon arrival, it gets involved in a life and death situation.
- "Crosstalk, Elysium" by Carolyn Zhao: a story set in a system where spaceships need to be 'encouraged' to operate.
- "Scion" by Thomas Ha: the scion of a family wakes in his family house, and discovers things are not right. As he struggles to get to the heart of the house, from where his father is controlling the house, he discovers some truths about the 'servants' in the house, his relationship with them, and what must be done to bring things back to normal; or perhaps to move on to a new way of living.
- "Scion: Afterword" by Thomas Ha: a series of journal entries set long after the previous story, which reveals more about the world that "Scion" is set in.
- "Those Who Left History" by Wanxiang Fengnian, translated by Stella Jiayue Zhu: pocket universes have been invented, and those who enter them are forever 'gone' from our universe, although those inside can still see what is happening outside. The story is a series of journal entries over ever-increasing time spans showing the effect the discovery has on the world, and whether the people in the universes should be forgotten or not.
- "You Are Invited to Our SPRING CELEBRATION" by Thoraiya Dyer: on another world, its lifeform, which apparently live on internal radioactivity make contact with a human ship that arrives, but is damaged. While waiting many years for a rescue ship to arrive, they interact and learn about each other, with the humans showing off a spring celebration. But the celebration is tinged with regret with the alien lifeform discover that rescue may never come.
- "Person, Place, Thing" by Marissa Lingen: an alien, which is a colony organism makes contact with humanity, although humanity is not aware of its colonial nature. When the alien's human contacts are replaced with other that make different demands on it, the alien colony decide to take matters into its own hands to regain contact with the original humans.
April 7, 2026
“Person Place Thing” was my favorite from this month, always a fan of Marissa Lingen’s work.
“You Are Invited to Our SPRING CELEBRATION” was a close second though, loved thinking about deadly conversation and the alien societies produced by the removal of any need to compete for external resources in any form.
Honorable mention to “First Human Ghost on Mars” for SPACE GHOSTS, and to “Crosstalk, Elysium” for reasons I can’t say without spoilers.
“You Are Invited to Our SPRING CELEBRATION” was a close second though, loved thinking about deadly conversation and the alien societies produced by the removal of any need to compete for external resources in any form.
Honorable mention to “First Human Ghost on Mars” for SPACE GHOSTS, and to “Crosstalk, Elysium” for reasons I can’t say without spoilers.
Read
April 21, 2026Trying out a subscription. Here are the ones I liked:
“Crosstalk, Elysium” by Carolyn Zhao - I love when sci-fi stories have twists! I realized what the twist was going to be a certain point, and then just had a really fun time watching how Zhao layered it in and anticipating the reveal. More sci-fi twists, please!!
“Those Who Left History” by Wanxiang Fengnian, trans. Stella Jiayue Zhu - very good, very ominous. Well-written translation. I love a SFF story that goes years and centuries into the future—I’m thinking of The Gilda Stories by Jewelle Gomez here, or maybe what I imagine Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell is about (I haven’t read it)—so cool and also moving, if you can pull it off. Which this did!
“You Are Invited to Our SPRING CELEBRATION” by Thoraiya Dyer - Some more interesting things with perspective/who knows what when. I liked (or actually, was stressed by) the stakes.
“Person, Place, Thing” by Marissa Lingen - An interestingly non-human/artificial protagonist, which the story gets you to root for even though they’re about to do something potentially pretty iffy - invade Earth.
“Crosstalk, Elysium” by Carolyn Zhao - I love when sci-fi stories have twists! I realized what the twist was going to be a certain point, and then just had a really fun time watching how Zhao layered it in and anticipating the reveal. More sci-fi twists, please!!
“Those Who Left History” by Wanxiang Fengnian, trans. Stella Jiayue Zhu - very good, very ominous. Well-written translation. I love a SFF story that goes years and centuries into the future—I’m thinking of The Gilda Stories by Jewelle Gomez here, or maybe what I imagine Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell is about (I haven’t read it)—so cool and also moving, if you can pull it off. Which this did!
“You Are Invited to Our SPRING CELEBRATION” by Thoraiya Dyer - Some more interesting things with perspective/who knows what when. I liked (or actually, was stressed by) the stakes.
“Person, Place, Thing” by Marissa Lingen - An interestingly non-human/artificial protagonist, which the story gets you to root for even though they’re about to do something potentially pretty iffy - invade Earth.
May 13, 2026
The bulk of this issue is made up of Scion, which I thought had some promise but lost me towards the end.
I was getting some Souls-like vibes from it, both due to setting and the words chosen to describe the world. An era is nearing it's end, and our protagonist has to choose to either extend it by taking up the mantle of lord, or let the storm die out and usher in a new age. The lord is a godlike being (who has enigmatic relatives strewn about the mansion), but due to old age and a weakened state due to upholding the current age, their dominion is neglected. And there's a tragic ending for a companion!
To me, this is very Souls-y, and as a fan of the games and those kinds of settings, I was intrigued. But that feeling faded towards the end as the setting was explored/explained more, and broke almost entirely in Scion: Afterword. So to summarize - I enjoy most of Scion, but it lost me towards the end, and then completely on the home stretch.
Of the rest, I got some enjoyment out of Person, Place, Thing and Crosstalk, Elysium.
I was getting some Souls-like vibes from it, both due to setting and the words chosen to describe the world. An era is nearing it's end, and our protagonist has to choose to either extend it by taking up the mantle of lord, or let the storm die out and usher in a new age. The lord is a godlike being (who has enigmatic relatives strewn about the mansion), but due to old age and a weakened state due to upholding the current age, their dominion is neglected. And there's a tragic ending for a companion!
To me, this is very Souls-y, and as a fan of the games and those kinds of settings, I was intrigued. But that feeling faded towards the end as the setting was explored/explained more, and broke almost entirely in Scion: Afterword. So to summarize - I enjoy most of Scion, but it lost me towards the end, and then completely on the home stretch.
Of the rest, I got some enjoyment out of Person, Place, Thing and Crosstalk, Elysium.
March 20, 2026
A really diverse collection! The standout for me is Thoraiya Dyer’s You Are Invited to Our SPRING CELEBRATION.
Read
March 24, 2026Two stories I really liked: "You Are Invited to Our SPRING CELEBRATION" and "Person, Place, Thing"
The rest I didn't really cared for
The rest I didn't really cared for
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews