Alias Space and Other Stories

by Kelly Robson

Alias Space and Other Stories is the first fiction collection from Nebula Award-winning writer Kelly Robson, who vaulted onto the Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror stage in 2015, earning spots in multiple Year’s Best anthologies. This volume collects Robson’s best stories to date, along with exciting new work, and notes to accompany each piece.

Robson’s stories are noted for their compassion, humanity, humor, rigor, and joy. This volume includes the chilling gothic horror “A Human Stain,” winner of the 2018 Nebula Award; the madcap historical fantasy “Waters of Versailles,” which was a finalist for both the Nebula and World Fantasy Awards; and science fiction stories such as the touching “Intervention,” chilling “The Three Resurrections of Jessica Churchill,” obscene “What Gentle Women Dare,” heartbreaking “Two-Year Man,” and many others.

These fourteen stories showcase Robson’s whip-smart richness of invention, brilliant storytelling, deep worldbuilding, and devilish sense of humor.

Kelly Robson grew up in the foothills of the Canadian Rockies, and as a teenager was crowned princess of the Hinton Big Horn Rodeo. From 2008 to 2012, she wrote the wine and spirits column for Chatelaine, Canada’s largest women’s magazine. Kelly consults as a creative futurist for organizations such as UNICEF and the Suncor Energy Foundation. She and her wife, writer A.M. Dellamonica, live in downtown Toronto.

Genres: Short Stories, Science Fiction, Fantasy, Horror, Speculative Fiction, Anthologies, Queer

420 pages, Hardcover

First published April 5, 2021

About the author

Like you, I'm a passionate reader. I spent most of my teenage years either hanging out at the drugstore waiting for new issues of Asimov's Science Fiction magazine, or when I was in the city, lurking in the SF and Fantasy section of the bookstore. This was pre-Internet and since there were no bookstores in my town and the library was pretty bare, good books -- the kind that made my heart sing -- were precious treasures.

To this day, nothing is more important to me than reading, nothing is more delicious than a great novel, and few people are as important as my favorite writers.

My writing life has been pretty diverse. I've edited science books, and from 2008 to 2012 I had the great good luck to write a monthly wine column for Chatelaine, the largest women's magazine in Canada.

I've published short fiction at Tor.com, Asimov's Science Fiction, Clarkesworld, and a number of anthologies. Several of my stories have been chosen for "year's best" anthologies, and in the past two years I've been a finalist for several high-profile awards.

Reviews

[Kaa · Rating 2 out of 5]

I read about half of the stories in this collection, but was too bored and frustrated to continue. I think Kelly Robson and I are just not compatible - I didn't love her novella either. Although there's a lot of things I should like in these stories, I just never fully connected with any of them, and several missed the mark in terms of representation.

For one thing, there was a strong theme of motherhood and parenting, but in a way that was weirdly negative about people (especially women) who don't want to be parents. The first story, "Two-Year Man", was the worst, as it literally referred to women who don't want children as broken (an assertion that was especially jarring in a story by a queer woman who notes, several stories later, that she doesn't have or want children of her own). However, this theme and negativity popped up repeatedly through many of the stories I read, which I found both tedious and infuriating.

One of the hardest things about this book was that there were elements I really appreciated about many of them, but this always went along with things that really bothered me. For instance, I really loved that "La Vitesse" and "Two Watersheds" were set in the Rockies, as I grew up in that region as well, and I thought the scene-setting in those stories was amazing. However, both had other aspects I found frustrating. For La Vitesse, it was the way the story leaned into stereotypes about First Nations people (a group I do not believe Robson belongs to), especially regarding the daughter of the protagonist. I think the author was attempting to subvert negative portrayals, but it felt to me that she was out of her lane. "Two Watersheds" was another story where the theme of women having children they didn't really want showed up, which made it hard to enjoy the wonderfully vivid descriptions of Rocky Mountain waterway restoration. (To be fair to this story, I think I might have read the attitude toward childbearing differently if it hadn't been preceded by several other stories with related themes.)

I finally quit after "Skin City", in which a character 1) falls in love with a person she has never even interacted with, and 2) decides that "moves in a way I interpret as femme" = "uses she/her pronouns". Look, I too have been fascinated by people I've never spoken to, and have looked for opportunities to interact, but I would call that, at best, the *possibility* for love. And the way Kass insists on her own interpretation of this person's identity is not a great sign for her ability to see past her own assumptions to actually know this person as a person and not just an object of fascination.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for giving me an eARC of this book.

[Liz (Quirky Cat) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Alias Space and Other Stories is an anthology that collects the best short stories written by Kelly Robson. They are mostly science fiction short stories, which admittedly is half the reason this anthology caught my eye (that and the amazing cover).

There are fourteen short stories in this anthology, including: Two-Year Man, A Study In Oils, Intervention, La Vitesse, So You Want To Be A Honeypot, Two Watersheds, The Desperate Flesh, Alias Space, Skin City, Waters of Versailles, What Gentle Women Dare, The Three Resurrections of Jessica Churchill, We Who Live in the Heart, and A Human Stain.

“And I fervently believe that humanity will survive to the stars.”


Two-Year Man
Rating: ⋆ ⋆ ⋆
Two-Year Man was an interesting choice for the first short in this collection, and I'm not going to lie; it did leave me a little bit concerned about the rest of the anthology. This story covers one make and his adopted children and the wife who didn't want them. It's a bit of a hard read and leaves a raw impression behind.
"The baby was the best thing he'd ever found."


A Study In Oils
Rating: ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆
A Study in Oils was a brilliant read and probably my favorite out of the entire collection. Yes, I really do mean that. I wish that the anthology had either started or ended on this note, but it is what it is. I love the level of detail in this narrative and wish that there was more.
"I'd do anything to keep you alive, kid, and I don't even like you."


Intervention
Rating: ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆
I'm not sure how to feel about this one, truth be told. I sort of love the message here that humanity needs to learn to be more compassionate once again, but it also hurts to think that this is a lesson that needs to be taught.
"She said there was no better medicine for grief than children, so I found a creche tucked away behind a water printing plant and signed on as a cuddler."


La Vitesse
Rating: ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆
La Vitesse is perhaps my second or third favorite short story in this anthology, and I adored how different it was from everything else that I have read.
"Bea had seen the first dragon in 1981, two years back, when she was bringing home abuse full of soccer players after a tournament in Jasper."


So You Want To Be A Honeypot
Rating: ⋆ ⋆ ⋆
I went into this one wanting to love it; I really did. The title is clever and plays with classic spy tropes, as does most of this short, come to think of it. Mostly, I just had trouble getting into the narrative on this one.
"When she was a girl, Vasilisa wanted to be a sniper."


Two Watersheds
Rating: ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆
I love how much of this story revolved around virtual reality, and yet it had such a very different take on it than I've seen before.
"The illusion of being in the Athabasca valley was flawless as a full-sensory gaming surround, but all-the-more-perfect because it was far, far from perfect."


The Desperate Flesh
Rating: ⋆ ⋆ ⋆
The Desperate Flesh is a title that admittedly left me very concerned, but it was a pretty solid read on the whole. Not my favorite, but far from a bad read either.
"She'd expected to be busy in her new job but hadn't expected to face a scandal right away"


Alias Space
Rating: ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆
Alias Space is the title story for this anthology, and frankly, I'm surprised that it wasn't at the end, where most anchor shorts are. Oh well, I wasn't going to complain about its appearance here. Though honestly, maybe having it be the opening was a good idea (I still don't love what they went with for an opener, sorry). My only regret is that the ending just seemed to...appear. Like there could have (and should have) been more to it, and there just wasn't. Then again, that does sort of fit the theme of it all...
"Twenty years, Agnes thought. Rain trickled down her face, acrid with run-off from her hair spray. I want twenty more."


Skin City
Rating: ⋆ ⋆
I'm not sure if this is the intention or not, but Skin City made me deeply uncomfortable. The whole intentionally misgendering just rubbed the wrong way – even if that was actually the whole point of the story. I'm not sure. I assume yes?
"For Kass, the worst thing about being in jail wasn't the food."


Waters of Versailles
Rating: ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆
I was surprised by the Waters of Versailles, and not just because the title itself was pretty interesting. It was clever and quippy and probably one of the better stories in this anthology.
"After two winters at Versailles, Sylvain was well acquainted with the general passion for powder."


What Gentle Women Dare
Rating: ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆
How do you think a sex worker would react were she to meet the actual devil? Well, wonder no more, for that is exactly what happens in What Gentle Women Dare. This is another highlight of the anthology and absolutely worth the read.
"Her immortal soul had long since drowned in rum and rotted under gobs of treacle toffee."

The Three Resurrections of Jessica Churchill
Rating: ⋆
Warnings: Rape, murder
I learned the hard way a few anthologies ago that when an individual short story comes with a content warning, it's probably better to consider skipping. In this case, I don't feel bad about doing so. Other reviewers have reinforced that the VERY harsh content warning was an accurate one, and it should be skipped if these themes are even remotely upsetting to readers.


We Who Live in the Heart
Rating: ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆
This was an overall interesting read, one set in a far-fetched future that was actually somewhat hard to picture, despite all of the descriptions.
"The first thing newbies notice is how strange it smells."


A Human Stain
Rating: ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆
I didn't know this before picking up the anthology, but A Human Stain is an award-winning horror short story. No wonder it was such a good read! Terrifying but brilliant. This is the perfect conclusion for the anthology, though I do kind of wish that it was higher up in the collection.
"If the best cure for a broken heart was a new young love, Helen suspected hers would be soon mended."

Thanks to Subterranean Press and #NetGalley for making this book available for review. All opinions expressed are my own.

Check out more reviews over at Quirky Cat's Fat Stacks

[Rowen H. · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 rounded up

I definitely liked/"got" some of these stories more than others, but at the end of the day, Kelly Robson writes compelling speculative fiction that is unerringly grounded in the best and worst that humanity is capable of.

[Corey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Here's my prediction: Kelly Robson, already a fine writer, will be the next BIG THING. There is such energy, such joy in these stories that to do anything else but elevate her to the status of genre icon would be a crime against humanity.

These stories are good, is what I'm saying. Damn good.

[Ryan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a simply sublime collection of stories. Robson deftly works through multiple genres, filling each story with interesting characters, fascinating environments, and thoughtful prose.

[Runalong · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very impressive collection of short fiction covering childcare in the future; climate change, gothic horror and burlesque - loved the great worldbuilding and merging of plots and themes.

Full review - https://www.runalongtheshelves.net/bl...

[Dan Trefethen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Kelly Robson made a splash about five years ago with her delightful story “Waters of Versailles” (where a courtier provides plumbing to King Louis' palace with a help of a water nixie), and won a Nebula award with the horror story “A Human Stain”. Both stories are included in this first story collection, along with other strong stories such as “Intervention” and “A Study in Oils”, set in the world of her outstanding novella “Gods, Monsters and the Lucky Peach”.

She cites as influences Connie Willis, Walter Jon Williams, and Michael Bishop. She seems to write about people who are marginalized or normally dismissed, but who are remarkable. Some of her stories are set in Alberta where she comes from, since she thinks far too many stories are set in major urban areas like London, Paris and New York.

She is not afraid to get graphic either with her sex or her horror, which can be a little squirmy, so fair warning. But she has a very fluid style, easy to read but sophisticated in plot and character (after working through many drafts which she describes in her story notes.)

This is one of the more promising story collections of the year in science fiction and fantasy, and should be on the short lists for awards in that category.

The physical book is only available as a signed, limited edition from Subterranean Press, who also issued an ebook version. I would like to see a more broadly available commercial publication as well, but for an author with only a five year publication history, we're lucky to get this one.

[Tim Hicks · Rating 2 out of 5]

I can't put my finger on why most of these didn't click with me.
I liked "A Study in Oils."
Didn't care for the basic premise of "Two-Year Man," and I guess that was true of most of the others. I'd get to where we see what the story is about, and I'm just meh, don't want to know.

"What Gentle Women Dare" felt very much like Connie Willis, who has inspired Robson; it kept bugging me as I read it until I realized I'd seen it before in another book.

Just not my style, I guess.

[Lauren loves llamas · Rating 4 out of 5]

Content warnings: violence and murder (including child death and children in danger), gore, prostitution, sexual assault (graphic and on-page), animal cruelty, misogyny, suicide

In the introduction, the author calls herself a “book-based lifeform” which immediately struck a chord for me. This is a collection of thirteen stories, from some of the author’s earliest work to her latest, including the author’s Nebula award winning novelette. Each story is followed by author’s notes explaining the inspiration and and her intent.

“It’s no use pretending the world hadn’t changed. It changes all the time. Every choice we make, every person we meet, has the potential to transform our lives. When that happens, we adapt. Manage. Cope.”

Many of the stories are, despite climate change, age and all of our personally accumulated mistakes, hopeful. While the author doesn’t have children and doesn’t want children, a large amount of the stories seem to revolve around parenting. I’m not sure whether it’s because children are an easy stand-in for hope, as they are in “Two Watersheds,” or if it’s just because for so long children have been an accepted part of women’s lives. Many of the stories are queer, and especially lesbian, though there are some mis-steps, as when the narrator in “Skin City” assumes someone’s pronouns, even after being reminded why that’s not a good idea.

I have several favorites in the collection. “A Human Stain” is about an Englishwoman agreeing to be a nanny at a friend’s family’s castle in the remote German countryside. It’s the last story (and the Nebula award winning one) and absolutely deliciously horrifying. “A Study in Oils” involves an art retreat in an indigenous Chinese village, a killer, and a group of elderly artists. The detail about the village and the natural wonders around it was compelling and lyrical. The exploration of art and its abilities to express things unseen even to the creator jived with me, though I’m not sure what to think about the fact that the story was at least in part sponsored by the Chinese government. “Waters of Versailles” stars a social-climbing inventor noble in Versailles, whose claim to fame is, well, plumbing. But as in most stories about grasping for power, it’s about who is forgotten and endangered in that search for power. “What Gentle Women Dare” was perhaps my most favorite, following a 1700s sex worker and her meeting with the Devil in a church graveyard.

While the stories take place across a swath of time and space, many of them are distinctly Canadian in setting or tone. There’s an amusing trio of stories – “The Desperate Flesh,” “Alias Space,” and “Skin City” – that track the evolution of Toronto into a city famous for street burlesque shows. I found “Alias Space,” the most recently written story in the collection, especially interesting for its inclusion of mask-wearing and social distancing and the imagined effects of that on live performances. “La Vitesse” is about a school bus driver on a particularly rural route who suddenly has more to contend with than just gravel roads and snow.

“You seek to raise yourself above your station,” she continued. “Those who do have no true home. They leave behind their rightful and God-given place and yet never reach their goal. It is a kind of Limbo, a choice to begin eternity in purgatory even before death.”

As for the ones that didn’t work for me, the anthology opens with “Two-Year Man” which involves a man who assumes his wife is broken because she doesn’t want children. Honestly, I almost DNF’d the book after this story. It was not what I expected from an otherwise feminist and decidedly queer anthology, and I still wonder if I simply grossly misunderstood the story. “So You Want to Be a Honeypot” was a story from the POV of a James Bond-esque femme fatale but missed something in its execution for me. I have mixed feelings about “The Three Resurrections of Jessica Churchill.” It has extreme content warnings but is extremely chilling and thought-provoking. I understand from the author’s notes it was one of her ways to work out her feelings over the disappearance of a classmate, but the author herself isn’t First Nations (nor is the character in the story), and I’d be interested in hearing from someone ownvoices about it.

Overall, this was an enjoyable collection, and I’ll definitely be keeping an eye out for the author’s stories in the future.

I received an advance review copy of this book from NetGalley. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

[Khimaera · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kelly Robson’s Alias Space and Other Stories takes you on a Queer-friendly journey through speculative spaces and showcases Robson’s evolution as a writer from her first published story to the Nebula Award-winning “A Human Stain”. If this collection is anything to go by, where she is in another five years will be something to see. Starting off with my favorite tale, the ending of the eponymous “Alias Space” felt a bit abrupt, but the truth is that it was the best kind of disappointing because it leaves a reader wanting more of the lush and evocative characters and their artistic world. For a story set in a futuristic Toronto about a famed burlesque troupe and a very special ‘bot named Petunia, it could not be more appropriate to leave the audience always wanting more and this entire collection will do just that.

“A Study in Oils” is set in the traditional and pastoral world of the Miao people of southern China where Robson spent time in 2018. A criminal on the run from the Moon is hoping for redemption as he learns about the culture of the Miao. Zhang Lei stumbles at first as he is cut off from all he knows and expects of the world. His lessons in stillness and solitude bring out his old skills as a painter and that may just be the key to saving his life.

We need an Afterschool Special movie made from “La Vitesse”. It’s a perfectly ordinary story about a bus driver in rural Canada working out some issues with her rebellious teenaged daughter. Don’t worry about the unrelenting and ravenous dragon chasing the busload full of kids home from school. “Two Watersheds” follows along with a scientist using an avatar to place survey equipment out in the Athabasca River Valley while streaming her feed live to the internet in a post-climate-change world. It’s a remarkable story of dedication, hope, and faith for the future.

A comical scene of seduction opens the “Waters of Versailles” as we follow Sylvain who is eager to fit into the upper echelons of the aristocracy. He proudly engineers the fountains, pipes, and the first toilets for the palace, fights off leaks that seem to have a mind of their own, and strives to create more grandiose schemes to keep the fickle aristocrats amused and engaged. He’s keeping a secret hidden in the depths of the palace and sooner or later he’s going to be faced with a choice we all have to make eventually: to decide what is really important to us in this world.

Those are my personal favorites but there is a lot more to love in this collection. “Skin City” reads like a Black Mirror episode they haven’t gotten around to filming yet. I have little doubt Zane Grey would be delighted that Riders of the Purple Sage still exists 30,000 years in the future in “We Who Live in the Heart”. The roughest and darkest story is probably “The Three Resurrections of Jessica Churchill” with elements of rape and murder. “What Gentle Women Dare” involves a quiet conversation in a 1763 churchyard in Liverpool between a down-on-her-luck whore and the Devil that questions senseless violence against women. In the author notes for that story, the reader is reminded that writing is often a means of trying to come to terms with unanswerable questions and that is what all these tales do in one way or another. Find your own favorites in this impressive collection and keep an eye out for what’s next from Kelly Robson.

** Thank you to Subterranean Press and NetGalley for the advanced reader copy in exchange for my honest, unbiased review **

[Finchie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Alias Space and Other Stories is a collection that grew on me, with the stories steadily increasing in intensity until the final piece, Robson's Nebula Award winning novelette "A Human Stain." Robson's stories tend to start slow and immersive, then later reveal more and more details of their speculative elements at crucial moments. Her prose is full of strong detail and she never pulls punches, which makes for some truly raw, compelling fiction.

One caveat to my review is that many of Robson's stories are written from diverse perspectives that I am not qualified to comment on, such as First Nations women and the Miao people of Danzhai. The author provides notes at the end of each story with her inspiration (for example, the story with Miao characters, "A Study in Oils," was written on invitation by the Danzhai SF Camp), but I recommend seeking out reviews from the communities represented in these stories for a better perspective.

"Two-Year Man," which leads the collection, opens with a narrator who forces adopted tank-grown children on his wife. While I believe Robson intended that narrator to be unreliable in his perception of his wife's feelings toward the children, it was a rocky start for me. However, it was short, and gave me a solid introduction to Robson's writing style and favored themes.

I wish the collection had begun instead with "A Study in Oils," which was an early favorite for me due to its compelling mix of lush landscape detail, high-stakes mystery, art, and lunar sports. I felt transported to another time and place, which is exactly what I want out of a SFF short story collection.

I also enjoyed "What Gentle Woman Dare," the tale of a 18th century sex worker striking a deal with the devil. I have read a lot of devil-deal stories and this one stood out on the strength of the characters and the inclusion of unique elements that I encourage you to read to discover.

I was surprised to find that while none of the previous stories contained trigger warnings despite some dark content, "The Three Resurrections of Jessica Churchill" did contain warnings. After reading that story, I understand the warnings, and I would strongly recommend skipping this piece if the warnings are things that might trigger you. It is significantly darker than any other story in the book, including the final novelette.

Finally, I was pleasantly surprised to find "We Who Live in the Heart" included in this collection, as I have previously read it in several "Best of the Year" collections without recognizing the author's name. This story about whales-that-aren't-whales, community bonding, and difficult choices has stayed with me for a long time and remains my favorite of the collection.

I received an advance e-copy of this book free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest, unbiased review.

[Joshua Hair · Rating 5 out of 5]

Alias Space was suggested to me for one particular story called A Human Stain. As that happens to be the finale in this collection I decided to listen from start to finish. There were two stories that didn't keep my interest, but overall I very much enjoyed the world-building that went on in between. Story 1 may make mention of a corporation or person that shows us four stories later, which in turn ties in with an event from story 8, which can be traced back to story 3...you get the idea. The stories, as a whole, were interesting, often thought-provoking, and sometimes just outright fun.

Some of the standouts include: A bus driver and her daughter end up in a desperate road race to save a load of school kids from a dragon; a group of outcasts make their home floating through space in a whale/flower/massive unknown interstellar creature; and in a future of social distancing an aging burlesque dancer in determined to bring street performance back to life.

As a final note, the negative reviews seem to be focused on the first story and its negativity towards women who don't want children. I get the feeling that they missed the point and punch of the story entirely. It's pretty obvious what the author's intent was if you take a second to think about it.

Despite two stories not quite working out for me, I'm giving this one four to four-and-a-half stars at the end of the day. I look forward to more of Kelly Robson's work in the future. P.S. I listened to the audiobook and can attest to the narration being a great one.

[Lindsey · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thank you to NetGalley and Subterranean Press for providing me an e-arc of this book in exchange for an honest review

I really wanted to like this collection. I’d heard good things about it and was excited for short stories of science fiction and fantasy by a queer author. There were parts I enjoyed, I liked that after each story Robson gave a brief account of what it meant to her, what the writing process was, or what her thoughts were about it. I even liked some of the stories; “A Study in Oils,” “La Vitesse,” and “What Gentle Women Dare” were my favorites.

However, none of them were good enough to make up for the awful taste that the first story, “Two-Year Man” gave me. Robson, who a few stories later in her afterward says that she never wants kids, has created a character who’s absolutely unthinkingly terrible to his childfree wife by saying that women who don't want children are broken and that hopefully, with enough work, they can be fixed. A few stories later this weird late/hate relationship to having and raising children resurfaced in “Intervention” and really that just did it for the collection for me.

I kept reading, but it wasn’t cup of tea. Someone else will surely like it better.

[Dan · Rating 4 out of 5]

➤ 𝚂𝚈𝙽𝙾𝙿𝚂𝙸𝚂

Alias Space and Other Stories is the debut fiction collection from Nebula Award-winner Kelly Robson, featuring her best work to date along with new stories and author notes. Robson’s tales are celebrated for their compassion, humor, rigor, and joy, spanning genres from gothic horror (Nebula-winning “A Human Stain”) to historical fantasy (“Waters of Versailles”) and poignant science fiction (“Intervention,” “The Three Resurrections of Jessica Churchill,” and more). This collection of 14 stories highlights Robson’s inventive worlds, sharp storytelling, and devilish humor.

➤ 𝚃𝙷𝙾𝚄𝙶𝙷𝚃𝚂

Kelly Robson’s Alias Space and Other Stories is an enjoyable ride through imaginative and weird territory, with standout gems like “A Study in Oils” and “A Human Stain” stealing the show. Robson’s writing is as wonderful as expected, with many stories simmering slowly before boiling over into brilliance. That said, the opening story is a bit of a buzzkill, with its awkward take on children and parenting casting an unnecessary shadow over the collection. Pro tip: skip the first and dive into the good stuff—it’s worth it once you get past the rocky start.

[Anna · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an interesting collection of sci-fi short stories with a focus on leading women; gender roles and their place in futuristic societies on other planets; the question of motherhood, regardless of whether a woman is bearing the child or a child is created in a lab; and the future of our planet, humanity’s survival, and the disappearing of our natural environment. As with most short story collections, some hit more pleasingly than others, but I really enjoyed all of the places, through space and time, that this author carried me for the duration of this collection.

[Tim · Rating 3 out of 5]

A well-written collection whose stories I connected with about as much as I didn't. I question the decision to start things off on such a disturbing note with "Two-Year Man" rather than with almost any other story in the collection. Many of the themes are well-trodden, but by and large the stories skate by on their slick writing. Most of all, I appreciate the author's notes after each story providing history and context. "Waters of Versailles" was a highlight, and I'll look forward to the author's forays into longer fiction.

[LaShana Claude]

Kelly Robson- Kelly Robson is one of the best, most exciting and most complete new storytellers working today."- Jonathan Strahan

If there had been any doubt that Robson is one of the most accomplished and versatile new writers (her SF career only dates back to 2015), Gods, Monsters, and the Lucky Peach should dispel it."- Gary K. Wolfe

"The range and quality of her work tell me that this is an author to watch."- Neil Clarke

[Abbi · Rating 2 out of 5]

I checked this out because I read the "La Vitesse" short story in the Dragon anthology and really enjoyed it. It was also in this anthology and was my favorite. Most of the rest were a bit too ...graphic/risque and not really my interest. I skipped most of the rest. I then just read the short author statements after each one for the inspiration or reasoning for each story and found that more compelling. *shrug* not for me but someone might like.

[Wayne · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an enjoyable collection of stories to read. First time for Kelly Robson, and all the stories were good. My favorite two were "The Three Resurrections of Jessica Churchill" and "A Human Stain". #AliasSpace #NetGalley

[Dima · Rating 2 out of 5]

Boring. Having read thousands of sci fi and speculative fiction short stories in my life, these can be easily missed. Nothing of note here. A pretentious author who would have been laughed out of the room in the golden age of sci fi for lack of interesting things to say.

[Caelyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

These stories are so much fun, and Robson has amazing range—historical fantasy, sci-fi, contemporary fantasy, and horror. Favorites: “A Study in Oils,” “La Vitesse,” “So You Want to Be a Honeypot,” and “A Human Stain.”

[Trigger Warning Database]

Trigger & Content Warnings

Misogyny
Sex work
Graphic sexual assault, on-page
Suicide
Death of a child
Murder
Animal cruelty

[Simon · Rating 4 out of 5]

There is a deeply gentle feel to these, even as horrors are described. I appreciate her strong feminist take on horror.

[Paul Morisset · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ratings:

Alias Space - 3 stars.
A Human Stain - 3 stars.

[Ismay Suzuki · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked most of these stories, and loved some of them, particularly the last one, Bravo!

[Tim Pieraccini · Rating 4 out of 5]

A startling variety of settings and situations. Some of them were more to my taste than others, but there's no denying the imagination and skill of Kelly Robson.

[Robert · Rating 3 out of 5]

As always with short story collections, a diverse liking. Several, esp 'a human stain', bordered on horror - a genre I dislike in general.

[Tina · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think the first story just kind of poisoned the rest. Maybe skip that one. The way children and parenting are treated through out this collection is just oddly offputting, and the first tale sends the whole book off on a bad start.

There was a story about daytime street burlesque that could have been something but just sort of... ended.

A Human Stain was a fantastically disturbing creepy tale. All the Heebie Jeebies.

Overall this collection just left me disappointed.

[Brian · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you Subterranean Press and NetGalley for a copy of the eARC of Alias Space and other Stories. .The writing is wonderful, which is what I expected from Kelly Robson. I enjoyed all the stories. Many are of the slow burn variety, but eventually turn the corner into the imaginative and weird and take off until the tale is done. My favorite part of the collection is how cohesive the stories are although they've been written throughout Robson's career.

[Alice · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fantastic collection.