eor

It took me a while to finish this month's Asimov's because I kept reading books in between the stories.

The ending part of "The Bridge" felt to quick for me. I liked the idea, the details in the first bits, but a few more twists before the resolution would have made a more satisfying mystery. A full novel of this one perhaps? I enjoyed the dual viewpoint method of "The Mists of Time" and that surprised me, usually I'm put off by that method. The execution was smooth and both stories held up on their own. I'm not enamored of the end in the future sequence, but that's a trifle in an enjoyable story. "Hormiga Canyon" neither wowed me or made me run for the hills.

The short stories offered a mixture of present day and future. "Dead Horse Point" drew me into the characters. "Teacher's Lounge" was absurdly creepy. I mean this couldn't happen! Oh, wait, it could, couldn't it. The central idea of "Prodigal" was good, but the plot struck me as flat. "Thank You, Mr. Whiskers" didn't make me sing or yowl.

In summary, lots of rich ideas and diverse execution.

43. Asimov's August 2007