"All the Things You Are" by Mike Resnick

The first science fiction magazine that I subscribed to was Galaxy. At that time a new editor by the name of Jim Baen had taken charge. Jim published stories by Roger Zelazny, David Drake, Arsen Darnay and many others that became favorites of mine. Galaxy was great. Jim went on to establish his own publishing company. Last year science fiction lost one of the best when Jim died. I am happy that Jim Baen's Universe(and Baen Books) will continue the legacy that started with Jim's editorship of Galaxy. After reading Eric Flint's editorial, I am confident that Universe has a bright future.

The lineup for this issue is a good mix of classic and new writers. You know you are in for a treat when a magazine can boast authors such as Gene Wolfe, John Barnes, Gregory Benford, John Ringo, Eric Flint, and Mike Resnick.

The first story in this issue sold me on the magazine. Mike Resnick's All the Things You Are is what I would call a classic science fiction story. It starts with an unexplainable mystery, the main character pieces together part of the puzzle and goes to another planet to solve the riddle. Reading this story brought back memories of Isaac Asimov's short stories. That is one of the highest compliments I can give to a story. Mike continues to be one of my favorite authors.

The Lost Fleet: Dauntless by Jack Campbell

Fans of good old fashioned science fiction epics can rejoice. Jack Campbell's The Lost Fleet series is a classic in the making.

From John(Jack Campbell) Hemry's webpage...
The Alliance has been fighting the Syndics for a century - and losing badly. Now its fleet is crippled and stranded in enemy territory. Their only hope is a man who's emerged from a century-long hibernation to find he had been heroically idealized beyond belief . Captain John "Black Jack" Geary's legendary exploits are known to every schoolchild. Revered for his heroic "last stand" in the early days of the war, he was presumed dead. But a century later, Geary miraculously returns from survival hibernation and reluctantly takes command of the Alliance fleet as it faces annihilation by the Syndics. Appalled by the hero-worship around him, Geary is nevertheless a man who will do his duty. And he knows that bringing the stolen Syndic hypernet key safely home is the Alliance's one chance to win the war. But to do that, Geary will have to live up to the impossibly heroic "Black Jack" legend.

Hemry does a good job of showing the downside of being considered a legend. If the Alliance fleet is going to survive, Captain Geary will have to overcome his own doubts and build on the legend of "Black Jack".

Fans of the fiction of Poul Anderson will quickly get pulled into the universe of "Black Jack" Geary. The author shows an understanding of how battles might be fought in outer space. Enough mysteries still need solved to make me anxious to read the other books in the series. This series is going on my shelf alongside stories such as Dominic Flandry, Berserker and Dorsai.


John(Jack Campbell) Hemry's webpage.

Interview with the author.