My Battery Is Low and It Is Getting Dark

by Crystal Sarakas (Editor), Joshua Palmatier (Editor), Alethea Kontis

A military attack drone turned shepherd. A train on the London Underground evolving into something new and wondrous. A troupe of robotic actors struggling to find meaning when the audience has disappeared. Explore the myriad ideas of what happens when out-of-date and abandoned technologies are given a second life—one that takes them in a new direction, far outside their intended programming and beyond their original purpose.

MY BATTERY IS LOW AND IT IS GETTING DARK features fourteen stories of quiet hope, heartbreak, creation, and death from fantasy and science fiction authors Dana Berube, Merc Fenn Wolfmoor, Jacey Bedford, Anthony Lowe, Chris Kocher, Brian Hugenbruch, William Leisner, José Pablo Iriarte, Alethea Kontis, Kari Sperring, Edward Willett, John G. Hartness, Alexander Gideon, and Stephen Leigh. You may never look at your smart speaker the same way again.

Stories:
Ganbold and the Best Drone in Mongolia by Dana Berube
The Cold Red Dust by Merc Fenn Wolfmoor
Traveling Hopefully by Jacey Bedford
Ain’t Done Haunting by Anthony Lowe
The Circle by Chris Kocher
Foster-Child of Silence and Slow Time by Brian Hugenbruch
We Choose to Do These Things by William Leisener
Brewing Insurrection by José Pablo Iriarte
Sassi’s Last Ride by Althea Kontis
The Ghosts of Versailles by Kari Sperring
Beneath the Pall by Edward Willett
Sanctuary by John G. Hartness
Terra 3:56 by Alexander G.R. Gideon (credited as Alexander Gideon)
One Had a Lovely Face by Stephen Leigh

Genres: Science Fiction, Fiction, Anthologies, Short Stories, Science Fiction Fantasy

228 pages, Paperback

First published June 18, 2020

Reviews

[Duncan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another fantastically-edited anthology about batteries winding down and different takes on machine intelligence. By turns moving and thought-provoking, I wouldn't hesitate to recommend this to any science-fiction or short story fan.

[Jennifer Collins · Rating 5 out of 5]

When I picked up this anthology, I somewhat feared that the stories would become repetitive even though the theme itself intrigued me. Instead, I found that the fourteen stories here are all utterly distinct and original, each one written by a talented author whose writing made a whole world come to life within only 10-15 pages. It's rare that I can say I truly enjoyed every story in an anthology, but in this case, it's true. Although there were two or three where I didn't love the writer's style, even those stories were so vibrant and original that the reading experience itself was more than worthwhile. An added bonus is that most of these authors were new to me, and now I'm looking forward to looking up the novels that they've written.

Some of my favorites in the collection were: "Ganbold and the Best Drone in Mongolia" by Dana Berube, "This Cold Red Dust" by Merc Fenn Wolfmoor, "Traveling Hopefully" by Jacey Bedford, "Brewing Insurrection" by Jose Pablo Iriarte, "Sassi's Last Ride" by Alethea Kontis, and "Beneath the Pall" by Edward Willett.

I would absolutely recommend this anthology to lovers of science fiction.

[Chris · Rating 4 out of 5]

Some really nice stories in this quick-reading collection. This was published by a small "independent" publisher, Zombies Need Brains, with support via a Kickstarter campaign and collects short stories from mostly veteran-but-lesser-known authors. I backed the campaign and the curator did an excellent job of both communicating with backers and delivering a final product that met expectations. I recommend both this book and future offerings from ZNB.

[Mark Slauter · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another great collection of short stories by Zombies Need Brains. The variety and distinctness of stories make for a pleasurable read.

[Dana · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fantastic collection of stories--and I'm not just saying that because my story is in it!

[Mark Wilcox · Rating 5 out of 5]

An outstanding collection of short stories. A blend of scifi and hope in a time of darkness.

[Heather · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it. Every story. Touching, thoughtful, hopeful. You should read these stories, too.

[Ray Smith · Rating 2 out of 5]

It's hard to review anthologies as a whole. It would be easier to judge each story individually, but I don't feel like it. I will simply say that the collection could have been a lot better. A couple of the stories were good, I really enjoyed a couple of them, but most of them were just okay. So that's what the collection gets, overall. "Just okay."

[Deborah · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you want a summary of the short stories in this book, skip over this review. I am horrible at writing summaries.

This collection of short stories is wonderful. Brilliant, imaginative, and well-written.

I enjoyed this book and gave it 5 stars, which I rarely do.

[Pers · Rating 3 out of 5]

A delightful anthology inspired by the NASA interpretation of the last transmission from the Opportunity Rover.

[David H. · Rating 3 out of 5]

Inspired by the Opportunity rover on Mars and the theme of "new life for old technology," this anthology collects 14 stories. Most of them are fine, but not super interesting. A majority of the stories focus on intelligent robots or artificial intelligences, though a few went into unexpected directions (it took me until the end of "Brewing Insurrection" to realize was the "old technology" was in that story).

One of my favorite stories here was Anthony Lowe's "Ain't Down Haunting" which goes into how androids find meaning in their existence when their purpose is gone. I thought it unfolded in just the right way for what it was doing. Another favorite was Chris Kocher's "The Circle," about a London Underground train computer system that does a little bit more than it should be doing, in the sweetest way, told almost entirely in video transcripts and news articles.

[Megan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This collection of short stories is one of the best I've ever backed from a ZNB kickstarter, and I can't wait to read the other books they published along with this one!

My favorites in no particular order:

Traveling Hopefully
Sassi's Last Ride
Beneath The Pall
One Had A Lovely Face

[Laura L · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really Good Book

It is amazing and inspiring to read a book of short stories from such a wide range of authors. I hope we will have more of these anthologies and that some of the stories will continue on. I especially would to read more about the AI with a soul.

[A Lockwood · Rating 5 out of 5]

This set of stories is interesting and varied. I highly recommend for folks who want a more hopeful world (even at the end of it).