Here are some reviews for “In the Harsh Glow of Its Incandescent Beauty,” which appears in Interzone 226 (January/February).
Over at the Asimov’s Forum, StevenLP writes:
“Forgot to mention the Jan/Feb issue of Interzone. It has two good stories: “In the Harsh Glow of its Incandescent Beauty” by Mercurio D. Rivera and “Again & Again & Again” by Rachel Swirsky. The former is set in the same universe as Rivera’s impressive “Longing for Langalana” where the [Wergens] are an alien species infatuated with the human race – which forms the backdrop to the story of the main character’s pursuit of his wife who – through chemical means – is infatuated with his ex-business partner….”
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1. The latest issue of Interzone is a corker — I read it on the train on my way up to London. Pick of the bag are:
Into the Depths of Illuminated Seas — a magical, angry sea fable, full of revenge and fury by Jason Sanford. It’s a woman who finds the names of sailors who are to die at sea written on her body.
In the Harsh Glow of its Incandescent Beauty — a story about Mercurio D. Rivera’s aliens that adore humans — an impressive depiction of the pain and self-deception that surround an affair.
Tyler Keevil’s Hibakusha — a man volunteers his way back to a London that has been destroyed by nuclear terrorism.
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Matt Bruensteiner at Garbled Signals writes:
“In the harsh glow of its incandescent beauty”, Mercurio D. Rivera. Maxwell is traveling the solar system in pursuit of his abducted wife. He’s joined by a pair of Wergen, aliens who have granted humanity access to immense amounts of new technology, and also follow humans about with an unexplained cloying devotion. Maxwell is part of a team that discovered a chemical that induces a similar unconditional love in humans. This sets up a neat counterpoint between the Wergen-human relationship and his personal relationship with his wife. Well done.
Some additional reviews can be viewed on the links below:
SFRevu
John’s Reading by John Fair
SFCrow’sNest
Black Gate
Suite 101’s
Tangent Online’s
Anthony Wlliams‘
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