Skinder's Veil, by Kelly Link

Skinder's Veil is part of the collection "When Things Get Dark", a volume in honor of Shirley Jackson.  It's the last story in the book, so it's the last impression you have of the volume.  I'm left a bit confused.  Content is benign, no warnings of any sort really.  Even though it's a classic horror setup.  Our protagonist is an ordinary sociology ABD making somewhat slow progress on his dissertation.  He gets a housesitting gig in an isolated location with strange rules--let anyone in who asks, except the owner, Skinder.  You figure mayhem is going to ensue.  Instead we get a series of encounters with humans telling stories, and non-humans getting treated like houseguests.  Intriguing because you keep waiting for the other shoe (or the axe) to drop and it never really does.  Instead it's kind of an allegory.  I guess I liked it?  

The Girl Who Did Not Know Fear, by Kelly Link

The Girl Who Did Not Know Fear is very much a literary story, only speculative in a bit of an out-of-body sequence.  The premise is a kind of Groundhog Day In An Airport thing, where a professor coming back from a conference is stranded in Detroit for 5 days waiting for a flight.  She's not much of a traveler so it's that much worse, though she seems mentally prepared.  It feels weirdly off center, since the title character is actually kind of a side story in a tale of intensely difficult and deeply felt coincidence.  The flight in the story is as horrible as one I took on my one and only overseas trip, to London, which was in the end quite worthwhile even though both ends of the trip competed with each other for worst flight ever.  The story will find a lot of sympathetic ears.

I Can See Right Through You, by Kelly Link

I've reviewed many Kelly Link stories since I started reading the award winners--she's a real stalwart here, it would be an unusual year for her not to have one.  This year her entry for the World Fantasy Award is I Can See Right Through You, appearing in McSweeney's Internet Tendency. 

Link specializes in slice-of-life stories.  This is the story of the demon lover, who is described in semi-fantastic ways but is really a typecast vampire movie actor (really could be one of the Twilight  cast, several years down the road).  He's made a mint, had many marriages and flings, and behaved badly in various ways.  He's even had an internet shaming involving a sex tape.  But he's really only had one true love, his early costar Meggie.

The story is light and fun to read, all the way through.  It's an accomplished piece by an accomplished writer.  I give it 3 stars.

And that covers the short stories for the World Fantasy Award.  I can only get at 3 of the 5 stories--Jackalope Wives, The Fisher Queen, and this one.  Of the three, I would say this one is the most deserving of the award.  We shall see.

The Faery Handbag, by Kelly Link

The Faery Handbag really cleaned up in 2005.  It won both the Nebula and Hugo for novelette, and had a Best Short Story nomination for the World Fantasy Award.  And it is a nice story, very complete and well told.  I just don't quite see what the fuss is about over her.  Link has a very nice way with characters, which this entry shows.  Our protagonist is the granddaughter of Zofia Swinks, a decidedly odd person from a convincing but make-believe country.  Nothing of what she says is believable, but there is definitely something going on with her handbag.

The appeal here is Zofia herself--library book stealing, tall, wonderful at Scrabble if she can use her native language. Genevive, the protagonist, is an appropriately angst-ridden teenager.  They have a fine old time with her boyfriend Jake.  It's nice and feels good to read.  Did I learn something new about literature, or fantasy, or anything like that?  Doesn't feel like it.  But if you are a fantasy aficionado (fantasy fan just doesn't scan) you probably already know about Kelly Link, and like her.  Good on you.  3 stars for me.

The Hortlak, by Kelly Link

The Hortlak is an exercise in surrealism.  One might want to say Kerouac or Hunter S. Thompson, but not really.  This is Dali all the way.  Familiar things, mainly a convenience store, take on a strange shape and retreat from reality.  The rot is provided by the Ausible Chasm, a place where trash goes and zombies come out.  The zombies themselves are not in any way typical, except for being described as dead.  They are placeholders for more surrealism.  There is a girl, and ghosts of dogs, and bees.  The Turkish sentences are good too, Turkish reads in a very surreal way.  I like Dali, so this was interesting to read, even if it didn't go anywhere in particular.  It's a nice seasoning for SF.  I give it 3 stars, and would recommend it if you think you might like to let your mind wander a bit.

Louise's Ghost, by Kelly Link

Louise's Ghost (part of Link's Stranger Things Happen collection) won the Nebula for best novelette in 2001, and I think I understand why.  It's a really fine piece of writing for writers.  The protagonist and her best friend are both named Louise, and there is much weaving of their stories, with a bit of intentional confusion.  The magical elements are matter-of-factly handled yet central to the story--the ghost(s) are not mere adjuncts to character development, they are central to it.  I feel like I've learned something about writing by reading this piece.  The only holdback is that I normally don't want to work that hard to understand a speculative piece, and I think this story sort of needs to be studied.  I would highly recommend it if you like more introspective, writerly pieces.  As more of an adventure-science guy I can manage 3 stars for it.

Shoe and Marriage, by Kelly Link

Shoe and Marriage is part of Kelly Link's Stranger Things Happen collection, and was nominated for a World Fantasy Award in 2001.  In order to convey a large message, a short story has to be poetic, or cryptic, or both.  I would say that Shoe and Marriage is on the cryptic side.  The shoe is a metaphor for all things we care deeply about, mostly children.  Not to make you think it is sweet--it's mostly pretty dark.  I think her fans would find it worth reading, I myself will have to consider whether I did or not.  2 stars, in the end.

The Specialist's Hat, by Kelly Link

The Specialist's Hat is another story in Kelly Link's Stranger Things Happen collection, and it won the World Fantasy Award for 1999.  The hat is indeed a nasty thing, what with it's making noises like "an agouti" and grunting and such, but the setting is highly fascinating--a huge old mansion with eight three-story chimneys.  Cool indeed, and they have interesting secrets.  The story is well constructed and flows nicely, so no surprise it won.  I still like my fiction a bit on the harder side, so I will give it 3 stars to be diplomatic.

Travels with the Snow Queen, by Kelly Link

Travels with the Snow Queen was nominated for both the Hugo and Nebula awards in 1996 and 1997.  It's a heavy irony take on what a woman will do for love, or what she thinks is love, or merely the chance to say her piece.  Lots of riffs on fairy tales, and fairy tale endings.  Tasty enough, but no new spaces explored, really.  I have heard Kelly Link is pretty good, so will keep trying with her.  3 stars for being an award nominee.