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Worlds of Adventure #1
WORLDS OF ADVENTURE – ISSUE 1
Fall into seven tales of speculative wonder in this new e-zine from T Spec Fiction.
Whether it’s the tingling confrontation of gunslingers and robots, the rip-roaring escapades of dwarvish jet troopers, or the misadventures of two Victorian ladies on the planet Venus, T Spec’s first issue has a story for everyone.
Whether it’s the tingling confrontation of gunslingers and robots, the rip-roaring escapades of dwarvish jet troopers, or the misadventures of two Victorian ladies on the planet Venus, T Spec’s first issue has a story for everyone.
112 pages, Kindle Edition
Published July 17, 2020
2 people are currently reading
37 people want to read
About the author
Allison Tebo
28 books470 followersI am no longer accepting friend requests, but do feel free to follow.
Allison Tebo is a Christian writer committed to creating magical stories full of larger-than-life characters, a dash of grit, and plenty of laughs. She is the author of Break the Beast, an epic fantasy retelling of Beowulf, and the Tales of Ambia, a series of romantic comedy retellings of popular fairy tales. Her flash fiction has been published in magazines such as SplicketySpark and Saddlebag Dispatches and her short stories have been featured in anthologies by Inklings Press, Rogue Blades Entertainment, Pole to Pole Publishing, Editing Mee, Dragon Soul Press, and Ye Olde Dragons Publishing.
Allison also writes under the pseudonym Al Thibeaux and co-runs the speculative fiction e-zine Worlds of Adventure.
Allison graduated with merit from London Art College after studying cartooning and children’s illustration and, when not creating new worlds with words or paint, she enjoys reading, baking, and making lists.
You can find out more about her work at https://allisonteboauthor.com/ or follow her on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/allisonteboauthor/
Allison Tebo is a Christian writer committed to creating magical stories full of larger-than-life characters, a dash of grit, and plenty of laughs. She is the author of Break the Beast, an epic fantasy retelling of Beowulf, and the Tales of Ambia, a series of romantic comedy retellings of popular fairy tales. Her flash fiction has been published in magazines such as SplicketySpark and Saddlebag Dispatches and her short stories have been featured in anthologies by Inklings Press, Rogue Blades Entertainment, Pole to Pole Publishing, Editing Mee, Dragon Soul Press, and Ye Olde Dragons Publishing.
Allison also writes under the pseudonym Al Thibeaux and co-runs the speculative fiction e-zine Worlds of Adventure.
Allison graduated with merit from London Art College after studying cartooning and children’s illustration and, when not creating new worlds with words or paint, she enjoys reading, baking, and making lists.
You can find out more about her work at https://allisonteboauthor.com/ or follow her on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/allisonteboauthor/
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
July 26, 2020
So, my sisters and I launched our own e-zine.
And this is me right now:
T Spec Fiction is a quarterly e-zine dedicated to creating clean speculative fiction for YA and MG readers (though adults would enjoy it, too!). You can find out more at our new website -
T SPEC FICTION.
I am so proud of my sisters and excited that they are now published authors. I have been dreaming of the day when I could share my review of their work with you all for a long time, and now that time is finally here!
THE REVIEWS:
Rendezvous: The cover story of this e-zine and my big sister’s first venture into flash fiction – and what a great venture. Within seconds, I am in love with this dear little defector. I was smiling through the entirety of this story, and I wish there were more!
One Last Shot: A gritty and clever short story written by my very own twin! Jaq did such a fabulous job with this. I love science fiction Westerns, and the Louis L’amour type narrator and the tense scenario had me engaged for every page. I also really connected with the relationship between the two heroes and I would love to see more of their adventures together! What an original pair.
The Queen’s Cure: I wrote this one, so I rather like it. 😃 This one was a little different for me. Stylistically, I drew a great deal of inspiration from one of my favorite authors, Rosemary Sutcliff, and I also decided to write it as a kind of journal entry, as if the main character, is sitting across from you and recounting this pivotal time in his life. I hope you’ll enjoy it.
Treachery Aboard The Nautilus: Wow, my big sister sure knows how to spin a yarn! As always, Tor does the best male friendships and reimagines 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea in the most intriguing and satisfying way!
Seven Strong: This one’s mine, and I had a blast writing this rip-roaring steampunk retelling of Snow White. Dwarves and jet packs are my new favorite thing! I got so attached to this group of rock-em-sock-em tough guys and their relationship with Snow that I MIGHT be convinced to write a sequel.
Night Raid On The Zone: One word: transporting. My older sister has a way of utterly whisking you away and weaving a setting around you so vividly, you can taste it, smell it, and see it. I was completely immersed in this fascinating story world and became VERY attached to these character. I never thought I’d say this, but I really want a talking lizard, now.
Trent and Featherstone Episode 1 – Looking For Adventure: Every time my sister writes a story, I say, “Oh, this is my new favorite. THIS ONE is your best.” And when it comes to Trent and Featherstone, I don’t think I can change that first opinion!
Strong single women? Female-centric storylines and friendships? Young gals who have adventures and jobs and dreams and goals that have NOTHING to do with romance? SIGN ME UP. Cordelia and Blanche have the kind of relationship that could start its own franchise; it’s the best. And the romps they have and the world they live on? I want to stay here forever, and I want these too dashing ladies as my best friends.
Note: This e-zine is also the launch of my new pen name, Al Thibeaux, so if you are wondering who that is on the website, that's me. My older sister is Tor and my twin is Jaq.
CONTENT GUIDE: This is an e-zine dedicated to clean fiction, so there is no sex, swearing, or gore. I would rate all of these stories PG for action and peril and thematic elements. I would give my story, SEVEN STRONG, a PG-13 rating. The dwarfess Sargent suffers from PTSD and is struggling through a lot of hatred and sadness and there is more violence (blasters and grenades are heavily used, but no blood or gore is ever used and 99 percent of violence committed is against robots).
And this is me right now:
T Spec Fiction is a quarterly e-zine dedicated to creating clean speculative fiction for YA and MG readers (though adults would enjoy it, too!). You can find out more at our new website -
T SPEC FICTION.
I am so proud of my sisters and excited that they are now published authors. I have been dreaming of the day when I could share my review of their work with you all for a long time, and now that time is finally here!
THE REVIEWS:
Rendezvous: The cover story of this e-zine and my big sister’s first venture into flash fiction – and what a great venture. Within seconds, I am in love with this dear little defector. I was smiling through the entirety of this story, and I wish there were more!
One Last Shot: A gritty and clever short story written by my very own twin! Jaq did such a fabulous job with this. I love science fiction Westerns, and the Louis L’amour type narrator and the tense scenario had me engaged for every page. I also really connected with the relationship between the two heroes and I would love to see more of their adventures together! What an original pair.
The Queen’s Cure: I wrote this one, so I rather like it. 😃 This one was a little different for me. Stylistically, I drew a great deal of inspiration from one of my favorite authors, Rosemary Sutcliff, and I also decided to write it as a kind of journal entry, as if the main character, is sitting across from you and recounting this pivotal time in his life. I hope you’ll enjoy it.
Treachery Aboard The Nautilus: Wow, my big sister sure knows how to spin a yarn! As always, Tor does the best male friendships and reimagines 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea in the most intriguing and satisfying way!
Seven Strong: This one’s mine, and I had a blast writing this rip-roaring steampunk retelling of Snow White. Dwarves and jet packs are my new favorite thing! I got so attached to this group of rock-em-sock-em tough guys and their relationship with Snow that I MIGHT be convinced to write a sequel.
Night Raid On The Zone: One word: transporting. My older sister has a way of utterly whisking you away and weaving a setting around you so vividly, you can taste it, smell it, and see it. I was completely immersed in this fascinating story world and became VERY attached to these character. I never thought I’d say this, but I really want a talking lizard, now.
Trent and Featherstone Episode 1 – Looking For Adventure: Every time my sister writes a story, I say, “Oh, this is my new favorite. THIS ONE is your best.” And when it comes to Trent and Featherstone, I don’t think I can change that first opinion!
Strong single women? Female-centric storylines and friendships? Young gals who have adventures and jobs and dreams and goals that have NOTHING to do with romance? SIGN ME UP. Cordelia and Blanche have the kind of relationship that could start its own franchise; it’s the best. And the romps they have and the world they live on? I want to stay here forever, and I want these too dashing ladies as my best friends.
Note: This e-zine is also the launch of my new pen name, Al Thibeaux, so if you are wondering who that is on the website, that's me. My older sister is Tor and my twin is Jaq.
CONTENT GUIDE: This is an e-zine dedicated to clean fiction, so there is no sex, swearing, or gore. I would rate all of these stories PG for action and peril and thematic elements. I would give my story, SEVEN STRONG, a PG-13 rating. The dwarfess Sargent suffers from PTSD and is struggling through a lot of hatred and sadness and there is more violence (blasters and grenades are heavily used, but no blood or gore is ever used and 99 percent of violence committed is against robots).
July 31, 2020
*chanting*
A five star read! A five star read! A five star read! A five star--
Okay, y'all get the point by now. This has been a very hit-or-miss reading year for me; but after much tribulation and much frustration, I have finally hit on a collection of new-to-me stories that I really, really, really loved.
T Spec Fiction is a magazine just launched by my dear friend Allison Tebo and her sisters. It's speculative fiction, so, a mixture of fantasy and sci-fi, although this particular issue leaned more heavily into the sci-fi. Robots, spaceships, strange new planets, that kind of thing. There were seven short stories, five stand-alones and two which I think are "To Be Continued" in the next magazine.
It would be hard for me to express what a delightfully cozy, yet thrilling, reading experience this was. I haven't read a proper fiction magazine (serial stories and all!!!) in yearsssssssss, since I was a child thumbing through old issues of Cricket. Holding this new magazine in my hands, I was instantly transported back to those days. And I was not disappointed.
These stories capture the best flavor of an old-fashioned adventure yarn: hair-raising escapades and strange new worlds, faced by plucky, level-headed heroes and heroines armed with a firm Moral Code and a strong sense that All Will Be Well In The End. I'm not saying that's the *only* type of story I like to read, ever--but I needed a dose of that this week, okay?? I really, really needed it. *sniffles gratefully*
Each story stood out with its own unique, vivid setting, and I was swept up by each new aesthetic, from green lashing seas to gray metal hangars to red desert shadows. I very much appreciated the female-centric emphasis: fully five of these seven adventure stories have women for their main characters. Also, no romance. Which is refreshing, to say the least!!!
My only quibble would be that I didn't always agree with the political/philosophical leanings displayed; there were moments in several stories where I would point to an Idea and go, "nope." However, I kind of knew this would happen going into it ... so I wasn't caught off guard. ;)
Brief impressions of each story!
- "Rendezvous": essentially, Mr. Pickwick on the high seas. this man is adorable. we stan.
- "One Last Shot": very cute sidekick creature! reminded me of BB-8
- "The Queen's Cure": this was quite Rosemary Sutcliff-ish, a noble warrior queen and her warrior princess niece and a crusty old general work together to save their country.
- "Treachery Aboard the Nautilus": Ned Land *heart eyesssss*
- "Seven Strong": smol fierce dwarf lady. we stan.
- "Raid On the Zone, Part 1": essentially, Scout Finch and some talking animal friends prepare to fight marauders. most excellent.
- "The Trent-Featherstone Journals, Episode 1": no-nonsense Victorian ladies fending off hungry dinosaurs on the planet Venus. THIS STORY CLEARED MY SKIN, WATERED MY CROPS, AND CURED MY DEPRESSION. I'M. NOT. EVEN. JOKING.
The best part? Every last one of these stories is perfectly appropriate for middle-grade and up. I just passed the magazine off to my baby sister with zero qualms.
Go buy it!!!
A five star read! A five star read! A five star read! A five star--
Okay, y'all get the point by now. This has been a very hit-or-miss reading year for me; but after much tribulation and much frustration, I have finally hit on a collection of new-to-me stories that I really, really, really loved.
T Spec Fiction is a magazine just launched by my dear friend Allison Tebo and her sisters. It's speculative fiction, so, a mixture of fantasy and sci-fi, although this particular issue leaned more heavily into the sci-fi. Robots, spaceships, strange new planets, that kind of thing. There were seven short stories, five stand-alones and two which I think are "To Be Continued" in the next magazine.
It would be hard for me to express what a delightfully cozy, yet thrilling, reading experience this was. I haven't read a proper fiction magazine (serial stories and all!!!) in yearsssssssss, since I was a child thumbing through old issues of Cricket. Holding this new magazine in my hands, I was instantly transported back to those days. And I was not disappointed.
These stories capture the best flavor of an old-fashioned adventure yarn: hair-raising escapades and strange new worlds, faced by plucky, level-headed heroes and heroines armed with a firm Moral Code and a strong sense that All Will Be Well In The End. I'm not saying that's the *only* type of story I like to read, ever--but I needed a dose of that this week, okay?? I really, really needed it. *sniffles gratefully*
Each story stood out with its own unique, vivid setting, and I was swept up by each new aesthetic, from green lashing seas to gray metal hangars to red desert shadows. I very much appreciated the female-centric emphasis: fully five of these seven adventure stories have women for their main characters. Also, no romance. Which is refreshing, to say the least!!!
My only quibble would be that I didn't always agree with the political/philosophical leanings displayed; there were moments in several stories where I would point to an Idea and go, "nope." However, I kind of knew this would happen going into it ... so I wasn't caught off guard. ;)
Brief impressions of each story!
- "Rendezvous": essentially, Mr. Pickwick on the high seas. this man is adorable. we stan.
- "One Last Shot": very cute sidekick creature! reminded me of BB-8
- "The Queen's Cure": this was quite Rosemary Sutcliff-ish, a noble warrior queen and her warrior princess niece and a crusty old general work together to save their country.
- "Treachery Aboard the Nautilus": Ned Land *heart eyesssss*
- "Seven Strong": smol fierce dwarf lady. we stan.
- "Raid On the Zone, Part 1": essentially, Scout Finch and some talking animal friends prepare to fight marauders. most excellent.
- "The Trent-Featherstone Journals, Episode 1": no-nonsense Victorian ladies fending off hungry dinosaurs on the planet Venus. THIS STORY CLEARED MY SKIN, WATERED MY CROPS, AND CURED MY DEPRESSION. I'M. NOT. EVEN. JOKING.
The best part? Every last one of these stories is perfectly appropriate for middle-grade and up. I just passed the magazine off to my baby sister with zero qualms.
Go buy it!!!
December 2, 2022
Riviting
This was an excellent collection of science fiction and I look forward to reading more! Did not disappoint! My favorite were the last three 😁
This was an excellent collection of science fiction and I look forward to reading more! Did not disappoint! My favorite were the last three 😁
October 29, 2020
I’d been wanting to read speculative fiction by the three Thibeaux sisters for years, and their first family-friendly e-zine more than fulfilled my expectations! I’m so excited to see these wonderful ladies burst upon the publishing world at last.
I highly recommend T Spec Fiction for every fan of unusual fantasy and sci-fi. Each story or novella is adventurous, gritty, and intense but full of heart and humor.
T Spec is mature and intense enough for any speculative fiction reader, but the stories are clean, and some of them are appropriate for slightly younger readers.
Rendezvous by Tor Thibeaux - 5 stars
This was definitely my favorite story in this issue. It was short but precious! The story and its protagonist made me laugh and grin in surprise and delight, throughout the entire length of this short. It’s what would happen if Bilbo Baggins traveled on a futuristic airship after defecting from a rigid totalitarian regime. I loved every moment!
One Last Shot by Jaq Thibeaux - 4 stars
A fun sci-fi adventure involving a shoot-out, a robot, a capable female character, and a steadfast friendship.
The Queen’s Cure by Al Thibeaux - 4 stars
A deep, intense, and chilling adventure that mixes mechanical enemies with a high fantasy world. The bittersweet ache, sweeping scope, fascinating characters, and exquisite writing style reminded me of one of my very favorite authors, Rosemary Sutcliff--a compliment I do not give lightly or often.
Treachery Aboard the Nautilus by Tor Thibeaux - 4 stars
A quirky, lighthearted, and darkly humorous reimagining of 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea that turns the original tale upside down with a surprising twist. What if Nemo was not the villain after all--and another character was instead?
Seven Strong by Al Thibeaux - 4 stars
A dark, intense steampunk retelling of Snow White. I enjoyed the characters, themes, and writing style. I noticed skilled, unique nods to the original elements of Snow White and enjoyed the twists on the original tale.
Raid on the Zone - Part 1 by Tor Thibeaux - 4 stars
This was my second favorite story in this issue of T Spec, and ohhhh, I loved it so much. I can’t wait for the next installment! The worldbuilding, writing, and unusual setting were fabulous, and I enjoyed the engaging adventure. But what I loved best were the quirky characters and friendships, especially the determined young female protagonist.
The Trent-Featherstone Journals - Episode 1 by Tor Thibeaux - 4 stars
A large part of my heart adores past historical eras, and that part of me was delighted by this imaginative and totally unique story. Two Victorian young ladies, who happen to be cousins, desire more adventure than their proper, well-to-do Martian city allows. So, naturally, they take a vacation to embark on a dinosaur-hunting safari in the wild jungles of the planet Venus. I loved the adventure, but my favorite part of this story was the vivid and opposite personalities of the two young ladies. I enjoyed watching their reactions and determination as they handled a dire situation. I can’t wait to read the next episode and see what other dangerous adventures they are plunged into!
I highly recommend T Spec Fiction for every fan of unusual fantasy and sci-fi. Each story or novella is adventurous, gritty, and intense but full of heart and humor.
T Spec is mature and intense enough for any speculative fiction reader, but the stories are clean, and some of them are appropriate for slightly younger readers.
Rendezvous by Tor Thibeaux - 5 stars
This was definitely my favorite story in this issue. It was short but precious! The story and its protagonist made me laugh and grin in surprise and delight, throughout the entire length of this short. It’s what would happen if Bilbo Baggins traveled on a futuristic airship after defecting from a rigid totalitarian regime. I loved every moment!
One Last Shot by Jaq Thibeaux - 4 stars
A fun sci-fi adventure involving a shoot-out, a robot, a capable female character, and a steadfast friendship.
The Queen’s Cure by Al Thibeaux - 4 stars
A deep, intense, and chilling adventure that mixes mechanical enemies with a high fantasy world. The bittersweet ache, sweeping scope, fascinating characters, and exquisite writing style reminded me of one of my very favorite authors, Rosemary Sutcliff--a compliment I do not give lightly or often.
Treachery Aboard the Nautilus by Tor Thibeaux - 4 stars
A quirky, lighthearted, and darkly humorous reimagining of 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea that turns the original tale upside down with a surprising twist. What if Nemo was not the villain after all--and another character was instead?
Seven Strong by Al Thibeaux - 4 stars
A dark, intense steampunk retelling of Snow White. I enjoyed the characters, themes, and writing style. I noticed skilled, unique nods to the original elements of Snow White and enjoyed the twists on the original tale.
Raid on the Zone - Part 1 by Tor Thibeaux - 4 stars
This was my second favorite story in this issue of T Spec, and ohhhh, I loved it so much. I can’t wait for the next installment! The worldbuilding, writing, and unusual setting were fabulous, and I enjoyed the engaging adventure. But what I loved best were the quirky characters and friendships, especially the determined young female protagonist.
The Trent-Featherstone Journals - Episode 1 by Tor Thibeaux - 4 stars
A large part of my heart adores past historical eras, and that part of me was delighted by this imaginative and totally unique story. Two Victorian young ladies, who happen to be cousins, desire more adventure than their proper, well-to-do Martian city allows. So, naturally, they take a vacation to embark on a dinosaur-hunting safari in the wild jungles of the planet Venus. I loved the adventure, but my favorite part of this story was the vivid and opposite personalities of the two young ladies. I enjoyed watching their reactions and determination as they handled a dire situation. I can’t wait to read the next episode and see what other dangerous adventures they are plunged into!
June 9, 2024
This has been sitting on my bookshelf much too long, but I finally managed to get to it, and wow! So creative! So diverse! So original! I'm really looking forward to the rest of this series, and only sad that there aren't more of them.
Note that I skipped two stories (The Queen's Cure and Seven Strong) due to personal convictions on magical fantasy. Based on the little I read of them, they were also quite compelling, and I'm sure those who don't have issues with magic would enjoy them just as much as I did the rest. :)
Rendezvous - 4 stars
Loved how much atmosphere and believable/sympathetic human nature was wrapped up in this little story. And I absolutely adore when an author is willing to jump into an invented setting without pages of history and explanations and just let the story speak for itself. Great start to the collection!
One Last Shot - 3 stars
This one came right up to the edge of my weirdness tolerance with the idea of a sentient, gaseous being...uhhh... But that really wasn't delved into beyond giving the characters and background and a motivation for wanting to escape, so it didn't get to the point where I had to quit. I enjoyed Oriana's resourcefulness and seeing the key detail in her plan slip into place.
Treachery Aboard the Nautilus - 4 stars
Wow. This...this was interesting. I'll be honest, I had to go look up the plot of 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea because I've never read the book, only watched the Disney adaptation once, more than 20 years ago. But even though I didn't remember the most-changed character all that well (and the one I remembered best wasn't really changed that much ;), it still felt a little odd reading it and knowing how much things were changed. Not quite a retelling--more like an alternate-history, what-if kind of thing. But it was interesting, I'll give it that! And the suspense was handled quite nicely. :D
Raid on the Zone, Part I - 4.5 stars
Ahhhh, this story better get a real ending! Because nothing's even happened yet, but I'm invested! The setting is so evocative, even if I did some mental revisions to my mental pictures of it--particularly when the talking animals started showing up. (Yeah, I'm not usually into talking animals, but I'm envisioning it kind of like an animated show at the moment, so, we'll see how that goes.) But boy do I want to know what happens next!
Looking for Adventure, The Trent-Featherstone Journals: Episode 1 - 5 stars
Oh, my word, what a combination! A Victorianesque aesthetic combined with space travel concepts that could have come out of a '50s sci-fi adventure combined with a rip-roaring adventure story featuring at least one unlikely heroine--WOW, this had everything! And I loved it! And I loved that this was episode 1, because I want so much more!
Note that I skipped two stories (The Queen's Cure and Seven Strong) due to personal convictions on magical fantasy. Based on the little I read of them, they were also quite compelling, and I'm sure those who don't have issues with magic would enjoy them just as much as I did the rest. :)
Rendezvous - 4 stars
Loved how much atmosphere and believable/sympathetic human nature was wrapped up in this little story. And I absolutely adore when an author is willing to jump into an invented setting without pages of history and explanations and just let the story speak for itself. Great start to the collection!
One Last Shot - 3 stars
This one came right up to the edge of my weirdness tolerance with the idea of a sentient, gaseous being...uhhh... But that really wasn't delved into beyond giving the characters and background and a motivation for wanting to escape, so it didn't get to the point where I had to quit. I enjoyed Oriana's resourcefulness and seeing the key detail in her plan slip into place.
Treachery Aboard the Nautilus - 4 stars
Wow. This...this was interesting. I'll be honest, I had to go look up the plot of 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea because I've never read the book, only watched the Disney adaptation once, more than 20 years ago. But even though I didn't remember the most-changed character all that well (and the one I remembered best wasn't really changed that much ;), it still felt a little odd reading it and knowing how much things were changed. Not quite a retelling--more like an alternate-history, what-if kind of thing. But it was interesting, I'll give it that! And the suspense was handled quite nicely. :D
Raid on the Zone, Part I - 4.5 stars
Ahhhh, this story better get a real ending! Because nothing's even happened yet, but I'm invested! The setting is so evocative, even if I did some mental revisions to my mental pictures of it--particularly when the talking animals started showing up. (Yeah, I'm not usually into talking animals, but I'm envisioning it kind of like an animated show at the moment, so, we'll see how that goes.) But boy do I want to know what happens next!
Looking for Adventure, The Trent-Featherstone Journals: Episode 1 - 5 stars
Oh, my word, what a combination! A Victorianesque aesthetic combined with space travel concepts that could have come out of a '50s sci-fi adventure combined with a rip-roaring adventure story featuring at least one unlikely heroine--WOW, this had everything! And I loved it! And I loved that this was episode 1, because I want so much more!
February 14, 2021
Absolutely delightful! Can’t wait for the next installment.
November 25, 2021
This is an interesting experiment - and I wish the publisher, Allison Tebo, well. She's introducing a quarterly e-zine called "Worlds of Adventure," where she and her two sisters (all writing under pseudonyms) can share their unique worlds of, well, adventure.
Tebo is a Christian writer of magical stories full of excitement, grit, and a few laughs as well. She seems to gravitate toward romantic comedy retellings of popular fairy tales; and Issue 1 is a nice sampling of this genre.
Her indie publishing venture is T Spec Fiction and this quarterly e-zine contains clean, speculative fiction for YA and MG readers (though adults will enjoy the stories as I did, I'm sure).
I was given a free copy of the zine so that I might share a review here and on my blog. Here are my thoughts on each of the 7 stories in this issue.
* Rendezvous - a cute vignette (a slice of a larger story) featuring a defector's accidental escape from custody. The writing is wry and succinct. Not a bad bit of flash fiction. Has a steampunk feel to it.
* One Last Shot - also a short scene (not a full blown story), featuring another escape but this time done with ingenuity and bravery against a robot guard. Would like to know more about this space opera world; how the protag got involved with her new alien friend whom she helped break out of prison.
* The Queen’s Cure – a bit longish ‘fantasy world vs modern machines’ story, where the traitor to the kingdom advances his science against the realm’s reliance on the Fae. Quite tragic and thematic. The queen employs a long forgotten remedy to save her people, but at what cost?
* Treachery Aboard The Nautilus – probably my favorite story, a pastiche of what happens right after Nemo’s victory over the giant squid in 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. Imaginative, well written, with a nice resolution. A new story in a familiar world is a risk for a writer, but this one works.
* Seven Strong – A fairytale reimagining of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs in a steam punk, robotic, business conglomerate world. Had a hard time getting into this one, but maybe because I never particularly cared for the original story and the re-told setting was just too unusual a mash-up for me.
* Night Raid On The Zone, Part 1 – I have to admit I skimmed this one knowing it was the initial installment of a serial novel and is to be continued in future episodes. I usually want to read a novel as is and not one chapter at a time over time. The premise looked interesting, though.
* The Trent-Featherstone Journals: Episode 1 – This, too, is a serial but this first episode is intriguing. “Victorian ladies fending off hungry dinosaurs on the planet Venus” is how another reviewer put it. I like it. Steam punk, sci-fi, fantastic adventure. If this ever develops into a full novel, I’d probably want to read the whole thing.
So, five stories and two continuing stories make up this first issue. Great concept, overall. Clean and mostly wholesome (PG’ish) with some tragedy, tension, and thought-provoking themes. If you want to support indie projects, this is a good one to look into.
Tebo is a Christian writer of magical stories full of excitement, grit, and a few laughs as well. She seems to gravitate toward romantic comedy retellings of popular fairy tales; and Issue 1 is a nice sampling of this genre.
Her indie publishing venture is T Spec Fiction and this quarterly e-zine contains clean, speculative fiction for YA and MG readers (though adults will enjoy the stories as I did, I'm sure).
I was given a free copy of the zine so that I might share a review here and on my blog. Here are my thoughts on each of the 7 stories in this issue.
* Rendezvous - a cute vignette (a slice of a larger story) featuring a defector's accidental escape from custody. The writing is wry and succinct. Not a bad bit of flash fiction. Has a steampunk feel to it.
* One Last Shot - also a short scene (not a full blown story), featuring another escape but this time done with ingenuity and bravery against a robot guard. Would like to know more about this space opera world; how the protag got involved with her new alien friend whom she helped break out of prison.
* The Queen’s Cure – a bit longish ‘fantasy world vs modern machines’ story, where the traitor to the kingdom advances his science against the realm’s reliance on the Fae. Quite tragic and thematic. The queen employs a long forgotten remedy to save her people, but at what cost?
* Treachery Aboard The Nautilus – probably my favorite story, a pastiche of what happens right after Nemo’s victory over the giant squid in 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. Imaginative, well written, with a nice resolution. A new story in a familiar world is a risk for a writer, but this one works.
* Seven Strong – A fairytale reimagining of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs in a steam punk, robotic, business conglomerate world. Had a hard time getting into this one, but maybe because I never particularly cared for the original story and the re-told setting was just too unusual a mash-up for me.
* Night Raid On The Zone, Part 1 – I have to admit I skimmed this one knowing it was the initial installment of a serial novel and is to be continued in future episodes. I usually want to read a novel as is and not one chapter at a time over time. The premise looked interesting, though.
* The Trent-Featherstone Journals: Episode 1 – This, too, is a serial but this first episode is intriguing. “Victorian ladies fending off hungry dinosaurs on the planet Venus” is how another reviewer put it. I like it. Steam punk, sci-fi, fantastic adventure. If this ever develops into a full novel, I’d probably want to read the whole thing.
So, five stories and two continuing stories make up this first issue. Great concept, overall. Clean and mostly wholesome (PG’ish) with some tragedy, tension, and thought-provoking themes. If you want to support indie projects, this is a good one to look into.
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