fivemack | Reading

A selection of speculative fiction stories by Black Canadians.

As The Earth Dreams: Black Canadian Speculative Stories edited by Terese Mason Pierre

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The tabletop science fiction roleplaying game of transhuman survival from Posthuman Studios.

Bundle of Holding: Eclipse Phase 2E (from 2022)

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The American orbital transfer station offers employment to Byron McDougall, a chance for Charlie Bond to search for an alternative to MAD, and for Diana Osborne, escape from her violently abusive father.

The Moon Goddess and the Son by Donald Kingsbury

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Growing up is hard enough without the entire world falling apart around you.

Five Novels About Coming of Age During the Apocalypse

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Why do Cheolma Rehabilitation Hospital patients keep plummeting from the 6th floor, and why do none of them bleed when they hit the tarmac? The explanation is outside Detective Suyeon's field of expertise.

The Midnight Shift by Cheon Seon-Ran

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Skull morphology diverges between urban and rural populations of red foxes mirroring patterns of domestication and macroevolution

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Fallen Woman turned private investigator Sarah Tolerance is hired to recover a fan. Carnage ensues.

Point of Honour (Sarah Tolerance, volume 1) by Madeleine E. Robins

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James Hetley, 78, passed away on October 8 as a result of a bike crash.

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During which I encountered:

* A person supine on the sidewalk, having apparently been struck by a car exiting the expressway. There were EMTs so I didn't interfere.

* A person driving their RC car on the LRT tracks as the train was approaching, who seemed put out that I told him to get off the tracks.

* An angry screaming apparently deranged guy between me and where I needed to be to catch the bus.

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This all-new Huckleberry Bundle presents Huckleberry, the mythic Wyrd West tabletop roleplaying game about tragic cowboys in a world doomed to calamity – unless you save it.

Bundle of Holding: Huckleberry

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2018: Tories vote to pitch the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, PM May’s Brexit progress is strangely uneven, while Prince Harry and Meghan Markle conduct an experiment to determine the depths of British racism.

Poll #33722 Clarke Award Finalists 2018

Open to: Registered Users, detailed results viewable to: All, participants: 7

View Respondents

Which 2018 Clarke Award Finalists Have You Read?

View Answers

Dreams Before the Start of Time by Anne Charnock
1 (14.3%)

American War by Omar El Akkad
2 (28.6%)

Borne by Jeff VanderMeer
5 (71.4%)

Gather the Daughters by Jennie Melamed
0 (0.0%)

Sea of Rust by C. Robert Cargill
1 (14.3%)

Spaceman of Bohemia by Jaroslav Kalfař
1 (14.3%)

Bold for have read, italic for intend to read, underline for never heard of it.

Which 2018 Clarke Award Finalists Have You Read?
Dreams Before the Start of Time by Anne Charnock
American War by Omar El Akkad
Borne by Jeff VanderMeer
Gather the Daughters by Jennie Melamed
Sea of Rust by C. Robert Cargill
Spaceman of Bohemia by Jaroslav Kalfař

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On Spec to close. From the editorial:

Earlier this year, I announced that I’d be retiring and leaving On Spec at the end of December, and my final issue as Managing Editor would be VOL 35 No 4. After much soul-searching, and discussion with the rest of our editorial staff, the Board of the Copper Pig Writers’ Society has made the difficult decision to end publication of On Spec with that issue.

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A diverse assortment of (mostly) non-Future History science fiction stories from Robert A. Heinlein.

The Menace From Earth by Robert A. Heinlein

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DO NOT UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCE POST A NAKED URL HERE.

Asking politely has failed for 20 years. Therefore, comments with naked urls will be deleted, as they break Recent Comments. To post links, follow the advice below.

DO NOT UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCE POST A NAKED URL HERE.

OK, results of this have not been what I wanted.

DO NOT UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCE POST A NAKED URL HERE.

I am beginning a count now (1:23 PM Oct 13) and if the naked url count hits ten, and I don't think it's someone trying to game what I am going to post, I will turn off anonymous comments for a week. If after that, I get another ten naked urls, I will try a month, and then a year.

If the offender has a DW account, I will block them.

DO NOT UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCE POST A NAKED URL HERE.

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13 works new to me. Four fantasy, two horror, one non-fiction, one thriller, and five SF, of which at least three are series.

Books Received, October 4 to October 10

Poll #33712 Books Received, October 4 to October 10

Open to: Registered Users, detailed results viewable to: All, participants: 55

View Respondents

Which of these look interesting?

View Answers

The Seed of Destruction by Rick Campbell (July 2026)
2 (3.6%)

Uncivil Guard by Foster Chamberlin (November 2025)
8 (14.5%)

Crawlspace by Adam Christopher (March 2026)
6 (10.9%)

The Girl With a Thouand Faces by Sunyi Dean (May 2026)
16 (29.1%)

Your Behavior Will Be Monitored by Justin Feinstein (April 2026)
5 (9.1%)

Blood Bound by Ellis Hunter (April 2026)
1 (1.8%)

Sublimation by Isabel J. Kim (June 2026)
19 (34.5%)

Wolf Worm by T. Kingfisher (March 2026)
25 (45.5%)

Year’s Best Canadian Fantasy and Science Fiction: Volume Three edited by Stephen Kotowych (October 2025)
17 (30.9%)

Rabbit Test and Other Stories by Samantha Mills (April 2026)
16 (29.1%)

The Body by Bethany C. Morrow (February 2026)
4 (7.3%)

I’ll Watch Your Baby by Neena Viel (May 2026)
5 (9.1%)

Nowhere Burning by Catriona Ward (July 2026)
9 (16.4%)

Some other option
0 (0.0%)

Cats!
38 (69.1%)

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I mean, what could possibly go wrong?

Five Extremely Convincing Reasons We Should Build Armed Bases on the Moon

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Old friends unite for one last adventure without fully understanding the implications of the group's latest recruit.

Roll For Initiative (The Last Session, volume 1) by Jasmine Walls & Dozerdraws

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A hapless minister is drafted into international intrigue.

The Cool War by Frederik Pohl

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Welcome, visitor, to Mystery Flesh Pit National Park: The RPG, the Cypher System tabletop roleplaying game rulebook from Ganza Gaming about the Permian Basin Superorganism.

Bundle of Holding: Mystery Flesh Pit