Compelling Science Fiction Issue 14

by Joe Stech, R.R. Angell, Steve DuBois

We start with R R Angell's "A Dog's Life". It's about a dog, a family, and cryo-storage (3937 words). Our second story is "Cravings" by Steve DuBois. In a near-future America run according to the standard that the neediest are served first, a policeman confronts the sacrifices that that principle requires (6000 words). The third story this issue, Santiago Belluco's "The Engineering of Alyssa Langley," is a story about a young woman who hires a black-market genetic engineer to reverse the changes her parents illegally foisted on her. But can she really trust him, especially after her modifications turn out to be far different than she expected (5300 words)? Next we have "Envoy in the Ice" by Dustin Steinacker. This one is a story about humanity's yearly diplomatic visit to a mercurial alien entity who has set up in the Antarctic. It is a reprint that originally appeared in Writers of the Future Vol. 33 (8700 words). The final story is "Our 500-Year Plan" by James Reinebold. Noboru, a digitized drone control operative on a space ark, attempts to maintain control over his life as his environment begins to lose its fidelity (2500 words).

94 pages, Kindle Edition

Published November 30, 2019

Reviews

[Jared Millet · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was originally going to be the magazine's final issue. If that had been the case, it would have gone out with a blast. It's hard to pick a favorite from the pack, but if you put a gun to my head I'd go with Santiago Belluco's "The Engineering of Alyssa Langley."

As it is, I'm glad the magazine will continue and look forward to the next one!