For me, the novella and novelettes were the issue's highlights. The shorter works were engaging, but not quite as stellar as the longer fictions.

Good issue. See if you can sense the theme.Here are my favorite stories:- The Abomination by Nuzo OnohTo paraphrase LBJ—Give the lowest of the low a’ thing’ to look down on and they won't notice you are picking their pocket and will even empty their pockets for you. What happens when ‘this thing’ gets the will—and the means!—to stand up to the abuse? I really liked the way Onoh unobtrusively sprinkled the story with cultural words and markers in a way that even I could suss their meaning and sig...

9 • Haunted Hills Community and Country Club • 18 pages by Lincoln Michel OK/Good. Ingrid moves from the city and debt to become a realtor for Haunted Hills, where the houses are more affordable. 27 • The Scorpian and the Syrinx • 24 pages by Brian Trent Very Good+. Claudius is killed by scorpions. The praetor calls in Decimus, who deals with the supernatural, to find out how to keep the Azteca from unleashing any more havoc on them. Clever mystery. Great character, speculative portion well set

I liked "The Scorpion and the Syrinx" by Brian Trent

An excellent edition. My favorite stories were:“The Forlorn” by Matthew Hughes - Discriminator Cascor searches for a missing Mage’s apprentice.“The Abomination” by Nuzo Onoh - A psychological horror story about a hermaphrodite girl rejected and banned from her family. “To the Honorable and Esteemed Monsters under My Bed” by E.A. Bourland - A funny tale about a boy, who exchange letters with the monsters under his bed. “The Scorpion and the Syrinx” by Brian Trent - An anternate history story wher...

My favorite stories in this issue were probably Lincoln Michel's "Haunted Hills Community and Country Club" and E.A. Bourland's "To the Honorable and Esteemed Monsters Under My Bed", both due to the humor inherent in each.Unfortunately I didn't like this issue as much as past F&SF, and I think it's because it took me forever to get through the novella in this one, "The Abomination," which was rather dark in a way I don't always like, though it did feature an intersex protagonist, which I enjoyed...

I want to warn you ahead of time, that my ratings of F&SF issues will usually be three stars because some stories touch me a lot, some are meh and a few are Ack! In the September/October 2021 issue, I was most impressed with three stories:- The Abomination by Nuzo Onoh - The Scorpion and the Syrinx by Brian Trent- Ice Fishing on Europa by Erin Barbeau

2.5/5, rounded up due to the inclusion of Matthew Hughes, my favorite type of popcorn.Lots of horror in this edition, which is not my cup of tea. Love the diverse voices tho!

An interesting issue, with good stories by Brian Trent, Matthew Hughes, Nuzo Onoh, E. A. Bourland and Carl Taylor.- “The Haunted Hills Community and Country Club” by Lincoln Michel: a real estate agent gets a job selling haunted houses at a community. As first, it goes well, as the houses sell at below market rates and the owners don't mind the hauntings. But then comes a horror that no real estate agent can overcome.- "The Scorpion and the Syrinx" by Brian Trent: a fascinating story of an alter...

Got for free from Kindle Unlimited Aug 2021.Read:-- Seedling by Octavia Cade - 1*huh? flash fiction. retelling. Hansel and Gretel but they aren't siblings. I didn't understand the point of the story. Did not enjoy.-- Review: Love Death + Robots - I haven't watched all of them yet so I tried to avoid spoilers. I think the reviewer is correct in their questioning of why they aren't advancing the genre at all. "... to put it bluntly, there are troves of ideas in which to cull materials. ... the lar...

I don’t normally write out reviews, but this is the best F&SF issue I’ve read in my *checks notes* just over one year of subscribing. I loved every single story. Well done, everyone!!

The editor, Sheree Renée Thomas, posts racist articles to her twitter about the "unbearable whiteness of the democratic party." Given that she cosigns the usage of "whiteness" as a derogatory term, I wonder to what extent she can be relied on to choose authors for publication without racist bias.I mean, it only takes a quick glance at her social media to see she's made her prejudice pretty clear.The magazine was better when C.C. Finlay edited it. At least then a racist wasn't in charge of select...

A pretty good issue. Several good stories with one very good one.Lincoln Michel - The Haunted Hills Community and Country Club - 4 stars- A unique idea, gathering haunted houses into one location and selling them to people who are desperate to buy houses. Fairly well written.Brian Trent - The Scorpion and the Syrinx - 4 stars- Set in a universe where Rome had discovered and colonized/conquered North America. In this story they are fighting the Aztecs, and magic is real. A good story.Erin Barbeau...

The first issue of my new subscription I received for Christmas! I absolutely loved the story "The Scorpion and the Syrinx" by Brian Trent. That was a great story and I found myself, as I do with many well thought out alternate history short stories, desperately wanting more from the world in which that story was set. The other stories in this particular edition were your normal mix of short stories ranging in length and quality to make sure that there's a little something for everyone. All in a...

The Haunted Hills Community and Country Club ~ I’ve recently come to realize that I’m not of a fan of ghost stories. Primarily as I don’t believe in ghosts. For me, they just seem to be perpetuating superstitions and archaic religious beliefs. This was a cute story, but not much else for me (3/5).The Scorpion and the Syrinx ~ Alternate histories! Variant timelines! Good stuff, I just wish it had been longer (4/5). Ice Fishing on Europa ~ Nice! Beautiful story. I kept worrying that the incident w...

My favorite stories in this issue: - "The Abomination" by Nuzo Onoh - a girl born with both sets of genitals is shunned by her village as an abomination, until one day when she makes a wish- “Ice Fishing on Europa" by Erin Barbeau - a scientist on Jupiter's moon Europa gets help from an unlikely place when her shipment of supplies doesn't arrive on time- "To the Honorable and Esteemed Monsters Under My Bed" by E. A. Bourland - a epistolary story comprised of correspondence between an eight year