Clarkesworld, March 2008

“The Sky That Wraps the World Round, Past the Blue and Into the Black” by Jay Lake opens the March, 2008, issue of Clarkesworld. It deals with a man who has sold his life to a gangster on a distant planet as part of his self-imposed penance for losing a mysterious alien artifact, as well as his need to escape retribution. His life is spent painting artifacts blue with radioactive paint and in the constant knowledge that death is inevitably dogging his footsteps, in one form or another. Then one day, the chance arises for him to escape his situation. He must ask himself whether leaping into the unknown is a better choice.

Lake’s story is certainly grounded in some complex world-building, and this is both its strength and its weakness. There is some fascinating material, and the background enriches the story greatly, but it also makes it groan a little under the weight of information delivered. As a result, it is somewhat slow going in places, although worth persevering with. An intriguing tale.

Stephen Dedman’s “Teeth” tells of a movie producer and Edgar Allen Poe fan who is confronted by a criminal offering to sell him Poe’s teeth. He has no way of knowing whether the teeth are the genuine article and must decide whether they are worth the exorbitant price requested.

I’m not overly familiar with Poe’s work, so if there was intertextual stuff going on, I’m afraid I missed it. The protagonist eventually comes up with a solution which gets him what he wants and his revenge on his tormentor. To my mind, it wasn’t an overly satisfying solution, and I wasn’t sure whether there was some moral point operating that I missed. Perhaps a reader with greater knowledge of the subject might find greater subtext to it. I found it a well-written story which was, however, ultimately lacking in resolution.

The issue is rounded out by a scientific article from Ekaterina Sedia, “Evolutionary Arms Race: Competing Interests in Male and Female Genomes,” and an interview with Kage Baker by Jeff VanderMeer. Overall, an enjoyable issue of Clarkesworld.