Lightspeed: Edited by John Joseph Adams

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Honors

Science Fiction

Ruminations in an Alien Tongue

by Vandana Singh

Author spotlight

Sitting on the sun-warmed step at the end of her workday, Birha laid her hand on the dog’s neck and let her mind drift. Like a gyre-moth finding the center of its desire, her mind inevitably spiraled inward to the defining moment of her life. It must be something to do with growing old, she thought irritably, that all she did was revisit what had happened all those years ago.

In Apr. 2012 (Issue 23)

Fantasy

Forget You

by Marc Laidlaw

Author spotlight

She came into his life the way his cats crept into his lap. One day he was alone, had been alone for years, his life and his home empty of anyone but himself and a few friends who didn’t visit all that often anyway. And then at some point he realized she had been there for a while, in his house, in his bed, in every part of his life, having accomplished the transition so subtly that he could never say exactly when or how it had occurred.

In Apr. 2012 (Issue 23)

Fantasy

The Gravedigger of Konstan Spring

by Genevieve Valentine

Author spotlight

There was something more civilized about a town that could bury its dead, if they stayed dead, and so Folkvarder Gray put out the notice for a gravedigger.

In Feb. 2012 (Issue 21)

Fantasy

Blue Lace Agate

by Sarah Monette

Author spotlight

Jamie Keller and his partner hadn’t found the shoggoth larva smugglers yet, but his boss, the head of the Bureau of Paranormal Investigation’s southeast hub, had other things on his mind.

In Jan. 2012 (Issue 20)

Science Fiction

The Sighted Watchmaker

by Vylar Kaftan

Author spotlight

The Makers had been dead for billions of years, yet Umos discovered one caught in the starship’s net. A young one, naked, with still-fused dorsal fins.

In Dec. 2011 (Issue 19)

Science Fiction

Her Husband’s Hands

by Adam-Troy Castro

Author spotlight

They opened the box and showed her Bob’s hands, resting side by side on a white pillow. The left one lay palm-down, the right one palm-up. The one that was palm-up twitched and waggled fingers at Rebecca when it saw her.

In Oct. 2011 (Issue 17)

Science Fiction

The Nearest Thing

by Genevieve Valentine

Author spotlight

We know you love your family. We know you worry about leaving them behind. And we know you’ve asked for more information about us, which means you’re thinking about giving your family the greatest gift of all: You.

In Aug. 2011 (Issue 15)

Science Fiction

The Old Equations

by Jake Kerr

Author spotlight

I miss you already. But you know that. What you don’t know is just how proud I am of you. You were born for this, and no one could possibly be able to handle such a demanding job as well as you.

In July 2011 (Issue 14)

Science Fiction

Eliot Wrote

by Nancy Kress

Author spotlight

Eliot’s father had been entered into Ononeida Psychiatric Hospital ten days ago, for a religious conversion in which he saw the clear image of Zeus on a strawberry toaster pastry.

In May 2011 (Issue 12)

Science Fiction

Mama, We are Zhenya, Your Son

by Tom Crosshill

Author spotlight

I fell asleep in Dr. Olga’s big room, in the red university building by the Botanical Garden. I had a helmet on my head stuffed with wires. There were lots of lights and noises.

In Apr. 2011 (Issue 11)

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