July 14, 2020
Editor’s note: We haven’t officially discussed many of the Hugo nominations this year, but our fabulous Merrin wanted to tackle the short stories. Who were we to say no! Merrin has covered this particular category of the Hugos twice before, so she knows her stuff. Handy links have been provided for your own reading enjoyment, and you should definitely check…
April 4, 2020
Hello and how are you doing, dear readers? I hope you’re all staying safe, healthy, and practicing self-care during these times. As always, fantasy and science fiction are portals where can escape your present world in exchange for vivid, imaginary ones, so now is a perfect time to seek comfort in the extraordinary by cracking open an book. And if…
April 1, 2020
When the people behind Serial Box offered a copy of Machina to Speculative Chic for review I jumped at the chance, because I liked the work of three of the involved authors, and the fourth, I’d heard good things about. Plus, the plot piqued my interest: scientific teams competing to see whose AI might just save humanity? Sure. Sign me…
January 24, 2019
Ninth Step Station (2019) Written by: Malka Older, Fran Wilde, Jacqueline Koyanagi, Curtis C. Chen Genre: Science Fiction, Police Procedural Length: the ARC I received did not have a page count attached. This is a fiction serial of ten episodes Series: Book #1 of Ninth Step Station Publisher: Serial Box Disclaimer: I received a copy of Ninth Step Station for…
August 17, 2018
Hugo voting is over and the winners will shortly be announced. So I’m getting in just under the wire with a review of the short stories! Reading this category is something of a challenge to myself, as I don’t read enough short fiction in general. I’ve talked about these in ballot order and have not spoiled the ending for any…
July 19, 2017
Novelettes are tricky little beasts. They are story tidbits, and it takes a particularly skilled writer to create one that offers a full story within the limited constraints of standard word count for the form. I am challenging myself to read more short fiction this year, so when our editor approached me to ask if I would be willing to…
November 15, 2016
Let me begin by saying this is my first solo post as a contributor for Speculative Chic! I was surprised and happy when the Editor-in-Chic reached out to me, as this blog has everything I really want in a site: SF/F/H, reviews, and a great group of women (and some familiar faces)! Without further ado, here’s a review of Updraft…