Suvudu Universe

First released this past November, Apex Magazine Issue 54 features stories from Bogi Takács, Vajra Chandrasekera, Keffy R.M. Kehrli, and Jim C. Hines; nonfiction pieces from Michael Damian Thomas and Lynne M. Thomas; an interview with Jim C. Hines; poetry from Alexandra Seidel and Rose Lemberg; and cover art by Galen Dara.

First of all, if (like me) you're not accustomed to reading magazines on your e-reader, I must say the presentation is stellar. It looks great, and works very well. In fact, it's very much like reading a short anthology. I've had some bad experiences with magazines, most of them PDFs that required the reader to magnify and scroll around, so the proper e-book formatting here was a very nice surprise.

The 4 short stories here offer a good mix of genres and styles. Recordings of a More Personal Nature by Bogi Takács is an interesting story about memories and stories, the power they hold over us, and the lengths we'll go to remember. The Jackal’s Wife by Vajra Chandrasekera was a fantastically odd tale about faery tale curses and  forbidden treasure, love and betrayal, and transformations (both spiritual and physical) with one of the greatest first lines I've read in a long time:

This is a Ghost Story by Keffy R.M. Kehrli didn't really work for me, more because of its structure than its story, but it still does some interesting things with ghosts.

Creature in Your Neighborhood by Jim C. Hines, on the other hand, was absolutely brilliant in its twisted, inappropriate glory. He offers us a very Sesame Street type world, populated by puppets and humans, and introduces a werewolf to the cast. It's a story that's both clever and very, very funny, with several moments that had me laughing out loud. I mean, just try singing one of Rolly's songs to yourself and see if you can keep a straight face:

Operation Fourth Story  is a 2 week showcase event (April 3rd to April 17th) by the folks over at Apex Magazine, featuring guest posts, reviews of past issues, and interviews with the Apex Magazine crew. Their goal is to generate 250 new subscribers, which will provide the revenue to add a fourth piece of original short fiction to every issue.

From now until April 17th you can get the next year (12 issues) of Apex Magazine for only $17.95 direct from Apex or through Weightless books. Each month you’ll receive a download link for the issue in the format of your choice and Voila! Apex Magazine just got mobile, living happily on your eReader. Sign up during Operation Fourth Story and not only do you get a free Apex eBook of your choice but, if they reach their goal of 250 new subscribers, one random subscriber will win a Kindle Paperwhite!