Andy Cox

I was a regular reader of Interzone magazine back in the ‘80s and early ‘90s, along with Asimov’s, Analog and F&SF on occasion. The publication introduced me to some fine writers, many of whom went on to great things (or were already well-established and I had simply not come across them before).

I stumbled upon it again recently, pleased to find that the magazine is still going - now published by TTA press, having replaced their periodical The Third Alternative, rather than [a:John Clute|16910|John Clute|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1208190893p2/16910.jpg] and [a:David Pringle|27149|David Pringle|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-a7c55399ea455530473b9f9e4da94c40.png] - and decided, on a whim, to take out a subscription. I’m glad I did.

Although in a smaller, glossier format than it used to be, much is as it was those years ago; a wide range of book reviews, Nick Lowe’s Mutant Popcorn film coverage and the great [a:David Langford|19443|David Langford|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/m_50x66-09ae6e5eb554f8a5ab0515c05488ea34.png]’s Ansible Link, a round-up of SF news, gossip and too many obituaries. And, of course, the stories.

I had heard of none of the writers in issue 252 before now, but will definitely be seeking several of them out in the future. The opening main feature, The Posset Pot by [a:Neil Williamson|1440127|Neil Williamson|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1402000230p2/1440127.jpg] is classic Interzone fodder; a weird, bleak post-apocalypse set story about loss and holding on to hope, little more than a vignette but enough to interest me, along with the interview with Williamson, to interest me in his new novel, [b:The Moon King|22019410|The Moon King|Neil Williamson|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1400165376s/22019410.jpg|41335684].

The Mortuaries by Katherine E. K. Duckett is likewise bleak, in a US where despite overpopulation due to the rising sea levels and dwindling resources, the dead are preserved and displayed a la Gunther von Hagens. Deliberate references to [b:Make Room! Make Room!|473850|Make Room! Make Room!|Harry Harrison|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1345057490s/473850.jpg|639744] its movie, Soylent Green.

[a:Val Nolan|8065522|Val Nolan|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-a7c55399ea455530473b9f9e4da94c40.png]’s Diving Into The Wreck is similarly about preserving the past at the expense of looking toward the future, this time about the search for the lunar module that still sits somewhere in the dusty regolith.

Sleepers by the superbly named Bonnie-Jo Stufflebeam is odd and melancholy (definitely a theme here), the narrator keeping watch over her dying father while strange half-seen creatures run through the night and fascinate and terrify everybody.

The two stand out stories are the barely (if at all) SF A Brief Light by [a:Claire Humphrey|5372462|Claire Humphrey|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1370434757p2/5372462.jpg] about a family dealing with loss and the funny and indescribable Two Truths and a Lie from [a:Oliver Buckram|6519367|Oliver Buckram|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-a7c55399ea455530473b9f9e4da94c40.png] where a relationship that may or may not be with an alien is plotted out over instants taken from a year, each described with the titular two truths and a lie.

As this is the first taste of my return to Interzone I'm not sure whether the downbeat, somber tone struck by the majority of the stories is typical, although I do remember that was often the case before - leavened by glints of hope and humour, to be sure, but Interzone always seemed to revel in its rather bleak reputation. Regardless, I am enjoying again an Interzone reader and am looking forward to the invention and quirkiness and independence that its semi-prozine status always allowed it to cultivate. And I'm sure I shall, once again, discover many great writers herein.… (mer)