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Dirk Strasser has written over thirty books for major publishers in Australia. He won the Ditmar for Best Professional Achievement in 2002 and has been short-listed for the Aurealis and Ditmar Awards a number of times. His Ascension trilogy of novels – Zenith, Equinox and Eclipse – were published by Pan Macmillan in Australia and by Heyne Verlag in Germany.
Podcasting is upon us, and it doesn’t seem to be just a passing phase. Stern classicists may turn up their noses, but long morning commutes, hectic multi-tasking schedules, and dwindling free-time have all hindered a once captive, reading audience. Is audio “reading” the way of the future?
Night comes softly, and the crickets chirp their spell-binding lullaby. In a small thicket the nymph lulls to trance-like slumber as the last rays of light disappear.
If you were a mother and didn’t bind your daughter’s feet, then you were being unkind, for she would be unattractive, and thus unable to find herself a suitable husband. That was the scariest realisation I’d come to in a while, and I decided to write a story about it: a girl without bound feet, who would crave them as her only assurance of a future as a married woman.
Ironically, the vampiric elves were tolerably interesting with backstory and depth; Nagle does not demonize the supposed antagonist of the tale. I sympathized with Shalár, who is just trying to keep her people alive, and I’m compelled by the mystery of why certain elves become vampiric.
In addition to the usual problems of adolescents, the brother and sister grapple with the secrecy that keeps magic-users alive in a mundane world. Liz, who enjoys none of the benefits magical power confers, nevertheless must comply with the sorcerers’ strict code of secrecy, estranging her from the mundane world.
The signifiers are everywhere: more nuanced and positive attitudes toward peasants, a central core of allies prominently united across national, gender, or species line against individuals of ill-will (many of whom seem to take a particular pleasure in mistreating women), and strong and equal power-sharing arrangements between male and female characters.
Mari Ness worships chocolate, words and music, in no particular order, and has a second career as cat furniture for two adorably cute cats. Her work has previously appeared in McSweeney’s Internet Tendency, Aberrant Dreams, Coyote Wild, and several other print and online places. She keeps a blog at mariness.livejournal.com. Her short story, “Playing with Spades” is featured this week at Fantasy Magazine.
There are certainly worse things to read if one is stuck on a long airplane ride. And that is precisely it—The Laurentine Spy is not godawful. It’s not a mutated abomination that one can enjoy snarking or giggling over. It’s just dull. One should skip The Laurentine Spy, unless there is a long flight ahead and the only other option is Ann Coulter.
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This issue's cover art by
Jorm S / Adobe Stock Image.
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