Bewildering Stories’
Third Quarterly Review, 2016
Year 15 of Bewildering Stories
The Editors’ Choices: issues 672-683
The Quarterly and Annual Reviews are like lighthouses on the chaotic sea of the Internet.
They signal not danger but “Good landfall” and “Safe harbor.” Welcome ashore!
Everything in green is a link. A few links are standard (blue, underlined). The genres in the “Titles selected” table are anchor or alert links. Links to pages other than the QR open in a new window; you won‘t lose your place.
Bewildering Stories ends the season — winter or summer, depending on your hemisphere — with the Review Editors’ selection of favorites from the third quarter of 2016. New readers will have easy access to the recent best of Bewildering Stories, and veteran readers will have a chance to catch up on anything they may have missed.
The Quarterly Reviews are not a contest, competition or poll. And there are no quotas: anything — from everything to nothing — may qualify in any genre. Rather, they answer a practical question: “If a friend asked you to recommend something outstanding from the past quarter of Bewildering Stories, what would you choose?”
As always, the Review Board’s discussions have been extensive and lively. A big Thank You to Edward Ahern, Bill Bowler, Gary Clifton, Charles C. Cole, Ada Fetters, Gary Inbinder, Bill Kowaleski, Marina J. Neary, John Stocks and Lewayne L. White.
At Bewildering Stories, no one is the proverbial tree falling unheard in a forest. All contributors know that real people have given their works a thoughtful reading, regardless whether we send regrets or they qualify for the Mariner Awards.
The Review Editors and Associate Editors — our review readers — have functions that are entirely different but equally important. The Review Editors determine how Bewildering Stories shall carry its flag. The Associate Editors enable us to converse with our contributors and determine what Bewildering Stories shall be. Their insightful and detailed critiques of submissions help us set what we like to think is an Internet standard for editorial practice and for service to our contributors and readers.
Our special editors also deserve a vote of thanks: Coordinating Editors Bill Bowler, Edward Ahern and Bill Kowaleski; Flash Fiction Editor Charles C. Cole; and Poetry Editor John Stocks. They provide the kind of personal touch Bewildering Stories takes pride in, and they make the administrative work not only easier but possible.
The Quarterly News
In the past 12 weeks, the Review Editors cast 856 votes on 91 titles, 44 of which have qualified as Editors’ Choices. We congratulate the authors represented here. We hope they will inspire all our contributors.
We think our Review Editors reflect the range of opinion to be found among our readers.The Order of Merit is a special acknowledgment to our contributors. It’s a kind of “surprise package” that links to the most highly rated works in this Quarterly Review.
We resume regular publication with issue 684 on September 26, 2016.
| Titles selected of titles eligible | |||||
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Novels Novellas Serials |
1 of 1 0 of 4 |
Short Stories Flash Fiction Drama |
15 of 36 6 of 7 1 of 1 |
Poetry Short Poetry Essays & Memoirs |
7 of 13 11 of 26 3 of 3 |
- All selections are listed in alphabetical order by author unless noted otherwise.
- Serialized works are eligible only in the quarter in which they conclude.
- Multiple titles are listed in chronological order.
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Novels Elous Telma, Oikos NannionShort Stories Edward Ahern, Listen to the Deaf Man SingCharlie Allison, Krish's New Pet Gary Clifton Patrick Doerksen, The Grumbling Dark Ada Fetters Bill Kowaleski, Intelligent Designers Stuart North, Root Causes: A Tale of Zodom Roger Pitcher, Your Humble Servants Bill Prindle, Mere Chance Nidhi Singh, The Carrot Is Mightier Than the Sword Martin Westlake, Hemming Joanna M. Weston, The Mouse Hole Ad Lewayne L. White, Sunrise and Dawn Drama Charles C. Cole, What We Do TogetherFlash Fiction Gary Clifton, Madman at the GateCharles C. Cole M. C. Tuggle, Whisper Listing Poetry Shola Balogun Lana Bella James R. RudolphShort Poetry David Adès, Hole in OneEdward Ahern Shola Balogun Lana Bella Bill Kowaleski Essays & Memoirs Charles C. Cole, Better Off ForgottenAda Fetters, Different Spaces Andrew Sacks, Grandmaster Fearless |
Departments Selections are listed in chronological order. Challenges On the Imbalance BeamGloat ’Em If You Got ’Em Pull Over Now Hear That Missed It by That Much Is Rusty the New Orange? Everything Literally Out Loud in Real Life Discussions Born on a Friday in MarchJ-Cap and Frank The Dream World in Oikos Nannion Dreams in Oikos Nannion Contact With the Depths Authors and Characters The Order of the Hot Potato Here are the most controversial works of the quarter, the ones on which the Review Editors’ opinions diverged significantly for one reason or another. The titles are listed in descending order with the most controversial first. Eleven of the titles appear among the Editors’ Choices. Challenge to the readers: why might any of these titles be on the list? Discussions are welcome and may appear in a future regular issue.
The Order of Merit Here are links to the most highly rated works in each genre represented by more than one title in this Quarterly Review. The categories are listed according to their normal order in the Readers’ Guide. In keeping with Bewildering Stories’ astronomical motif, the winners are indicated by the names of space telescopes. Two “telescopes” in any genre indicate a tie. The most highly rated title in the quarter is indicated by the name of an arm of the Galaxy.
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