April had me in a contemplative mood, it seems. My ten favorite short speculative stories dealt with depression, death, moral gray areas, trauma, and grief, as well as a couple of gruesome murder stories for good measure. Make yourself a nice cup of herbal tea, wrap yourself in a blankie, and get ready to feel some feels.

Read the rest of this spotlight at Tor.com.

My spotlight on my ten favorite short speculative fiction stories from March 2022 is no theme, all vibes. A missing town, a possessive lake, a dying demigod, a reanimated dragon, a vanishing house, a dead brother, and a bit of gold alchemy, cultural appropriation, and HR-mandated self-care breaks for spice.

Read the rest of this spotlight at Tor.com.

While last month my short speculative fiction reading veered toward dark, emotionally heavy tales, for February I opted for light and warmth. This month my ten favorites showed love in all its myriad forms, from friendship to romance to familial and beyond, as well as a splash of something unsettling and chilling for good measure.

Read the rest of this spotlight at Tor.com.

Lotta death this month. Lotta death! My December was pretty grim, and that seems to have skewed my favorite January short science fiction, fantasy, and horror stories toward the dark and deadly. Come for the monsters eating nazis, stay for the mangled corpses being turned into pig food.

Read the rest of this spotlight at Tor.com.

December 2021 brought a plethora of great short science fiction, fantasy, and horror stories to my inbox. Judging by the stories that ended up on my spotlight this month, I went on an environmental disasters kick. From fussy lake gods to exploitative space station dwellers, from technology-infused religious beliefs to robots repopulating the planet, with a few creepy houses to spice things up.

Plus! Four extra stories from a few publications whose summer and fall issues I missed when they were initially released.

Read the rest of this spotlight at Tor.com.