Minority Report by Philip K. Dick (Minority Report and other stories): This is an older piece, and it does show in the writing. However, the premise and the plot was interesting enough that it was worth recommending regardless.
Like all of the best Philip K. Dick stories, the premise isn’t just original but also strongly tied to problems of the human psyche and moral. In Minority Report, the police are able to predict crimes before they happen, arrest the would-be culprits and prevent the crimes from ever happening. It has created an almost utopic society, but it also raises the question of how sure anyone can be that the people the police are arresting would really have committed the crimes they’re accused of. The ending tries to give an answer to this question that, in my opinion, turns out weak and vague, but the rest of the story investigates the issue in great detail and poses good moral arguments for different views on the dilemma.
What takes this from an interesting philosophical discussion to a great story, though (aside the cool SF element), is the thriller plot. Dick has packed the story with twists and turns and never allows for a boring moment. The result is an excellent speculative idea which is used to highlight a moral dilemma and is presented in an entertaining manner.
Chronicle of the Mender by Alex Shvartsman (DSF): The idea in this one was very interesting, a mix of the Japanese art of kintsugi (mending broken things) and a failed love story. The MC is trying to mend his own broken heart by breaking that of others and using the shards. Aside from being a cool speculative element, this also serves to show how, when hurt and broken, we tend to hurt others.
The writing is also more than solid. Shvartsman really shows off his skills and experience as a writer.
The story drags a bit at times, because the MC’s goal and motivation isn’t made clear until the very end, making it hard to emphasize with him. Still, it was well worth the read.
He Who Watches by Alex Shvartsman (Fireside): One Shvartsman story led me to the next, and the second one turned out to be nearly as great as the first. Also, it led me to Fireside, a great speculative magazine I somehow always end up reading far to little off.
Like Chronicle of the Mender, the best part of this story is the original premise and how the emtions of the characters shine through. Here, Shvartsman takes the common nuclear-apocalypse trope to the next level, showing just how determined humans can be in defeating their enemies and how blind they can also be as to the consequences of their actions.
I won’t spoil the plot more than that, since part of the fun was to figure out what exactly was going on.
If you like the the two Alex Shvartsman stories as much as I did, he also edits and publishes some great comedic anthologies here.
I Made a Totally Understandable Mistake, and Now a Flotilla of Attack Ships are Headed for Earth, AITA? by A.J. Brennan (DSF): A classic tale of alien invasion, but more than that, this was a pretty funny take on just how far people are willing to go to get free from blame, and how good we are at lying to ourselves.
There isn’t much else to the story, but it was a funny read, and it’s easily worth five minutes of your time.
Toby Backman 