Apex is a monthly on-line magazine edited by Jason Sizemore among
others.
Everything is available in HTML from
the magazine's site,
and it can be bought in various other formats. (But I gather that it's
stopping with the May issue, so don't rush to subscribe.)
Words from the Editor-in-Chief by Jason Sizemore says that he's back
in the saddle after mandibular surgery.
Professor Strong and the Brass Boys by Amal Singh has oppressed
robots discovering that they're oppressed, and trying to break free of
it. Naturally it stops just when an important decision would be made;
the atmosphere is decent, but I don't like the lack of plot.
All Votes Will Be Counted (We Promise) by Paul Crenshaw seems to be
trying to be a cautionary tale about how we need politicians. In its
world, they've been replaced by instant democracy: everyone has to get
together for a vote a few times a week, but spoiling your ballot paper
gets you a visit from the Feds, and because everyone votes all the
time and treats it as a game, nobody much cares when the ballot for
war doesn't have a "no" tickbox. Interesting ideas but it fails to be
more than a cautionary tale.
Face by Veronica Brush works a little too obviously towards its
twist in the tail, but does a decent job getting there.
A Fool's Baneful Gallantry by Derek Lubangakene is fantasy, about a
doomed party on a quest during which everything goes wrong. It's all
very grim and miserable and while there is some redeeming virtue, I
kept being thrown out of the flow by the odd use of language. Could
have used an editor.
Only problem with that plan was getting Adzala away from the Amghar,
who though burdensome, could speak the tongue of the
shadowbinderfolk, without which Jasiri and Mikaya would surely be
slain.
(It's Adzala who speaks it, not the Amghar.)
She needs to … ride northwards—north be south of where the sun westers.
(Huh?)
The Pros and Cons of Stage Directions by Alethea Kontis reveals that
when Kontis is reeling off dialogue she punctuates it with stage
directions (she was briefly a child star) rather than more serious
non-dialogue description, then has to go back and revise it.
Interview with Author Amal Singh by Andrea Johnson doesn't add much
to the story.
Again, nothing that grabs me in this issue.
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