Reviews of my published short fiction:
King of Sand and Stormy Seas
Genre: Fantasy
A mercenary returns home and faces disillusion. Published in Shimmer, Fall 2006 issue. Reviewed in Tangent Online and SF Revu. This story also got a recommendation from Lois Tilton at the Internet Review of Science Fiction.
Shedding Her Own Skin
Genre: Magic Realism
A young woman meets a nahual, a shape-shifting warlock that can transform into a fox, and builds a fragile friendship with him during the time of the Mexican Revolution. Published in the November 2007 issue of Fantasy Magazine. It was reviewed in The Fix.
The House That Ate Gothic
Genre: Magic Realism
Flash piece about a house with strange habits. Published in the March 2008 issue of Hub. It was reviewed in The Fix.
Candles for the Dead
Genre: Magic Realism
Ghosts and memories haunt a woman many decades after a murder. Set in turn of the century Mexico. Published in the May issue of Tales of Moreauvia. Reviewed in The Fix.
Maquech
Genre: Science Fiction
In Mexico City an exotic animal pet-trader purchases a jeweled beetle but gets more than he bargained for. Published in the July 2008 issue of Futurismic. Received a mention in Richard Horton’s 2008 summary.
Of Fire and Time
Genre: Magic Realism
A Spanish conquistador travels throughout Mexico for 300 years attempting to find an elusive Mexica treasure guarded by a lineage of priests. Published in the October 2008 issue of Zahir. Reviewed at the Internet Review of Science Fiction. Reprint in Time in a Bottle anthology.
Enchantment
Genre: Fantasy
A knight discovers real magic in an unlikely place. Published in the November 2008 issue of Reflection’s Edge. Received a recommendation in Richard Horton’s 2008 summary. Also received an honourable mention in The Year’s Best SF and Fantasy by Richard Horton.
Jaguar Woman
Genre: Fantasy
A woman dreams of escape and revenge in the time of the Conquista. Published in 2009 (Shimmer issue 10) and reviewed by SFRevu, which calls it “an effective” story. Also reviewed in Internet Review of Science Fictionand Tangent.Audio version from PodCastle.
B’alam
Genre: Fantasy
A young woman needs to undergo a test to become a warrior. Published in the August 2009 issue of Reflection’s Edge. Received a mention in Richard Horton’s 2009 summary.
Bed of Scorpions
Genre: Dark Fantasy
About a brother, a sister and numerous references to scorpions. Published in September 2009. Reviewed in Beam Me Up and SF Site. Received a mention in Richard Horton’s 2009 summary. Audio version from Pseudopod.
Seeds
Genre: Science Fiction
GMO corn seeds create a big conflict in Mexico. Published in Shine: An Anthology of Optimistic Science Fiction. Reprinted in Hub Magazine. Both in 2010. Reviewed by: Scifi Wire, Barnes and Noble Blog, Bibliophile Stalker, Fantascienza, SF Revu, Fantasy Book Critic, Futurismic, SF Signal, Concatenation, Crimethink, Suite 101 and many others.
Bloodlines
Genre: Fantasy
Lourdes struggles to do the right thing, which is harder than you may think when you belong to a family of witches. Published in the September 2010 issue of Fantasy Magazine. Reviewed by Lois Tilton at Locus Online who says “Although this is a simple tale, Lourdes is a sympathetic and admirable character with an appealing narrative voice.”
Driving With Aliens in Tijuana
Genre: Science Fiction
A shopgirl in Tijuana gets the chance of a lifetime when a rich alien asks her to spend some time with him. But what she learns about the extraterrestrial, and people, maybe surprise her. Appears in the November issue of Expanded Horizons. Reviewed by David Hebblethwaite at The Portal who says “the result is a work that’s distinctive and stays in the mind for some time afterwards.”
Flash Frame
Genre: Horror
A Mexican journalist encounters madness and horror at the cinema. It is yellow. Appears in Cthulhurotica anthology, reprinted in The Book of Cthulhu. Reviewed by Harry Markov at Rise Reviews, Lovecraft eZine and This Book and I Could Be Friend. More talk about this story here and here.
Shade of the Ceiba Tree
Genre: Fantasy
Two sisters must face against the man that awaits them by the ceiba tree. Kaleidotrope #11. Reviewed at SFRevu which calls it “a wonderful fairy story.”
A Puddle of Blood
Genre: Horror
A kid living in Mexico City’s streets encounters a vampire in peril. Appears in Evolve 2. Reviewed at B&N blog, Tangent and SFRevu, among many other places.
This Strange Way of Dying
Genre: Fantasy
A young woman in Porfirian Mexico meets and is wooed by Death. Appears in GigaNotoSaurus. Reviewed at Locus Online Reviews where Lois Tilton says “The setting gives it special interest, both social and historical; in the end, it is a love story”.
Memory
Genre: Fantasy
Two immortals battle each other, well, forever. Short piece appeared in Expanded Horizons December 2011. Reviewed at Shiny Shorts.
Scales As Pale as Moonlight
Genre: Magic Realism
The story of a fantastical snake and an ordinary woman who has lost her baby. CVC: Carter V. Cooper Short Fiction Anthology Series, Book One and Exile Quarterly (May 2011) Reviewed by Daniel Perry.
The Performance
Genre: Horror
Flash fiction in the form of an interview. Published at Journal of Unlikely Entomology (May 2012). Reviewed at SFRevu and Prezzey.net.
Iron Justice Versus the Fiends of Evil
Genre: Fantasy
A Mexican wrestler travels to Canada to figure out an odd crime and catch the bad guys. Published in the Masked Mosaic anthology. (February 2013). Reviewed at Speculating Canada.
