McAllister's Mates Twenty Nine
Hi all
Two strange, diverse, and very enjoyable sci-fi stories from Stefan Baciu and Victor Jimenez.
These reviews are part of Reviewstack run by the great writer and pillar of the Substack Community : Thaddeus Thomas
McAllister’s Mates - An ongoing series of reviews of some of the wonderful articles, poems, and stories I’ve discovered on Substack (and other places) and more importantly the beautiful souls behind the works.
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Please take a few moments to read the works of these authors, artists, and creators and if you find their work as life-affirming and life changing as I do, then please let them know. We need to support and cherish these voices.
You can meet some of my other friends in the previous instalments: 28 27 26 25 24 23 22 21 20 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
If you want to keep me in caffeine (and keep the ghostly voices whispering for the poetry side of things) - consider clicking below. For any who do so, you have my deepest gratitude.
A gorgeous opening sentence talks of listening for the future, blood, and grace. So much more evocative than the rather clichéd phrase of “mind, body, and spirit”. (Although I do have a fondness for that idea, which Stefan clearly shares.)
The subject of the unification of the opposites of physicality (body) and intellectualism (mind) to create a third force beyond both (spirit) is an apt metaphor for Stefan’s work here. Transcendent poetic segues are woven effortlessly through an exciting science fiction adventure. The approach reminds me a little of Shakespeare and his ability to embed deep philosophical discourse into fast plotted thrillers like Macbeth and Richard the Third. The poetry gains consequence and urgency, and the story gains more richness and beauty. This is not a mere balance of narrative and poetry, it is a work that transcends the sum of its parts.
Descriptions of cybernetic organisms read with a beauty as radiant as Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s Khubla Khan.
“Steel remembers the body even when the body is gone. The wires, the bolts, the antennae did not dissolve with him. They called him back to form. Identity returned like a wound reopening.”
However this strange being is driven by machinery, not spiritual energy (arguably a more frightening and urgent force in our current age). Also, unlike Coleridge’s poem, we don’t get the luxury of sealing this strange creature in a cave of ice with a warning sigil. We are very much pulled into his story of strange, hostile deserts where a hermit weaves magic or perhaps subatomic energies into healing forces. A place where quantum physicists use cosmological readings and deep space static to create trances and transcribe heavenly ballads.
If your expectations haven’t been challenged and subverted enough, then Stefan has also captured this tale as a multimedia experience. The audio narration is truly something. Stefan not only uses some great voice acting but also expertly blended musical elements. Sinister, heavy moog (I think) bass lines create an air of constant menace while heavenly chiming synths suggest ethereal, otherworldly power. Stefan’s voice is no less dynamic moving between soft reverence and implied menace. He lingers gently on keywords, deepening his tone on the grand proclamations. Stefan adds even more dread to the darker phrases with subtle growls and soft hisses on the soft syllables. The soundwork brings to mind Delerium’s early recordings particularly Spheres and Spheres 2, the second half of David Bowie’s Low album, and the less bombastic more introspective moments of the Nine Inch Nails Tron Ares soundtrack - records that are very close to my heart. This is a psychologically layered, multi-sensory triumph. And the best news? This is only the beginning of an ongoing saga.
A science-fiction horror that grounds its fantastic elements in compelling character development. The writing is a showcase of detailed world-building woven through the plot and action. The story opens with a lone maintenance worker on a space station completing a repair in his never-ending list. His life here is monotonous, yet frantic. Details of his circumstances and history are revealed through snippets of an internal monologue, as his mind wanders from his latest menial task.
This approach not only tells who this man is, and what this world looks like, it also shows us the almost purgatorial nature of Alex’s existence. Who hasn’t been here? Trapped in the office completing menial tasks, commanded by disembodied electronic voices through emails or messages? Alex, however, is not a bored nine to five office clerk counting the minutes. He is a weary, lonely soul denied human contact for months on end -(like Alex) we are denied the comfort of his recollections as a robotic overseer barks commands interrupting his reveries and dragging us back to the decaying station. Victor’s expertly timed, sharp edits crank up both our empathy for Alex and the palpable tension. Denied the warmth of human company, and even the solace of contemplation and imagination through his constant task list - Alex grows ever more distressed and enraged.
His digital “assistant” becomes a combination of cloying nanny and dictatorial micro-manager. Always observant, gently insistent, and ever “helpful” with offers of medication and “listening”. The paranoia, desperation, and emotional longing simmer to a boil. The ship’s malfunctions and the A.I. become ever more invasive until they seem to take on a malevolent will. Well at least from Alex’s point of view - we’re on the outside looking in with rationality. Aren’t we? This is the point where the (possibly) supernatural elements come in and as ever I have a strict no spoiler policy - the explanation of events remains tantalisingly messy (though the story follows a full and satisfying arc) and there are a number of possible explanations - Conspiracy? Madness? A.I. orchestrating events? - Much to ponder…The story showcases Victor’s strengths as an author with grounded characters living full and detailed lives that we come to care about before the madness starts, making it that much more terrifying when it does. A satisfying one shot that I can highly recommend to fans of Black Mirror, Phillip K Dick’s short story anthologies, or the outer limits. Have fun - but you may not look at your Alexa device quite the same way after….
I hope you enjoy these beautiful works as much as I enjoyed reading and writing about it.
You can meet some of my other friends in the previous instalments: 28 27 26 25 24 23 22 21 20 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Substack has proven to be a treasure trove and I already have a few more gifted writers lined up for my next review newsletter.
P.S Subscribe for your chance to get your work reviewed here! You can also claim your FREE book of Poetry and art Hypnos Hermes - an epic poem presented as a medieval manuscript. A fantastical story written in verse enriched by many colourful and vibrant artworks.
If you want to keep me in caffeine (and keep the ghostly voices whispering for the poetry side of things) - consider clicking below. For any who do so, you have my deepest gratitude.
Graeme, my friend, you have a natural talent for enriching narratives with depth and beauty. I believe that if you dedicated yourself to creating speculative fiction or magical realism, your first work would knock it out of the park. At worst, it would be a unique gem and an example of an upcoming novelist obviously destined for future success.
Strong alternatives might be writing mythological epics or fantasy - you could harness your poetic voice. I bet it would blow people away if you told them your process was poem first, story inspired by that poem second!
Your introspective nature could also bend to truly wicked purpose - you'd excel at grounding terror in character empathy, should you deign to turn this talent to horror!