Maryam’s Reviews > Clarkesworld Magazine, Issue 205, October 2023 > Status Update

Timothy: An Oral History by Michael Swanwick 2*
In a world populated by women, the birth of a man shatters everything.
I didn't like this story, even the idea of the premise was awkward to me. The ending felt very icky as well.

Post Hacking for the Uninitiated by Grace Chan - DNF
The beginning of the story was interesting but it lost me after a while.

De Profundis, a Space Love Letter by Bella Han - 4*
A human rediscovers books after centuries of AI-written stories. A beautiful love letter to the power of stories. The narration style was interesting and the world felt detailed and alive.

Such is my Idea of Happiness by David Goodman - 5*
A young man working in finance on very little sleep and lots of stimulants like other red eyes wants to secure a promotion to earn a little more sleeping time.
The idea was great and it reminded me of old schools dystopias (like 1984) with a modern twist. The pacing was right, the atmosphere was right. Really good.

Down To The Root by Lisa Papademetriou - 5*
A young woman tries to save her colleage after an accident in space.
I loved the world and I wanted this story to be longer. In a few pages, the author managed to create fascinating characters and world with different cultures.

The Blaumilch by Lavie Tidhar - 4*
A young man living an aimless life in The Mars that Never Was group? cult? discovers that the Mars that is might be more interesting than something he can only grasp a few minutes here and there on virtual reality.
The worldbuilding was vivid and the humor completely worked for me which is usually the case with Tidhar's work.

Possibly Just About A Couch by Suzanne Palmer - DNF
A story about a couch which might be the universe? Honestly, I had no clue what it what about after a few pages so it was an easy DNF for me.