I’m all about novellas right now as I prepare to present a FREE, ONLINE workshop on September 12, 2026. If you’d like to join me, navigate to the St. Louis Writers Guild website and follow the links labeled “Join the SLWG online event.”
For the next few weeks, I’ll be sharing some novella reviews, either previously reviewed here or on another website, as well as some of the material from the workshop.
A Sense for Memory is an unforgettable immersion into smart science fiction at its very best. In these tales from the Zircona Universe, strong females of both the Rej-jir and Zurxok peoples must use their brains and brawn (plus a little magic) to battle danger and injustice.
[Disclosure: This review first appeared on July 24, 2024, at the Independent Book Review website, with whom I have a business arrangement.]
Two stories compose the book A Sense for Memory, which treats the reader to a pair of engaging protagonists, each showcased in her own science fiction novella. This volume is the first in the Z-verse series.
A Sense for Memory Novella One
The opening story features Commander Qwatajawa, the head cop in a rustic beach town on Cualli Island. Cualli and its planet are part of the Rej-jir race’s planetary system. This small island is one of many in an archipelago that also includes an island-isolated maximum-security prison. But the prison isn’t her concern, at least at the story’s start. An island visitor has disappeared, and CCTV indicated he was attacked and kidnapped or even murdered off screen.
Owatajawa’s investigation soon reveals that the missing Zurxok (a neighboring system’s native race) male was a courier, tasked with transporting a valuable and dangerous artifact. It, too, is missing.
Owatajawa has the firm confidence of her supervisor but only begrudging obedience from most of her junior officers. Thus, the Rej-jir cop feels her best option to solve the case, rescue the Zurxok courier, and recover the artifact is to consult a trusted old friend with expertise in dangerous magical items: the Zurxok illusionist Xa-Kol. Childhood friends, they trust each other implicitly.
A Sense for Memory Novella Two
Xa-Kol is the protagonist of A Sense for Memory’s second novella. The story takes us back to her youthful illusionist training days. On the verge of washing out of the academy for excessive interpersonal conflicts with other students, she travels to a new illusionist center on an isolated, recently terraformed planet. There she will study with a famous old master. Or so she thinks. Xa-Kol finds herself toting crates and laying brick by hand (with machinery right there!), all in the service of building character. Or something.
Resentful at first, her rebellious nature kicks up quite a bit of conflict at first. But she does learn enough to develop some skills with the master. She explores the planet with a new Rej-Jir friend and is especially impressed with the remnant pockets of the old world, species and ecosystems hidden in rocky enclaves. Meanwhile, at higher political levels, the terraforming is controversial, and that conflict spills into Xa-Kol’s world, threatening both her friend and the peaceful illusionist center she has built with her master. Facing the threat means facing some not-so-pleasant aspects of herself.
Memorable Characters
Both stories use a close, third-person point of view. I really enjoyed experiencing these character’s thoughts and feelings. Qwatajawa and Xa-Kol, as well as all the other characters, are distinct individuals. Their personalities were expressed well through their actions, attitudes, and speak patterns.
The stories’ milieus are revealed gradually, gracefully, through the narrative. The reader has just enough information to easily follow the action of each scene, leaving them eager to learn more about the characters and their problems. For example, when the courier, Ushen-Takaan, picks up the mysterious parcel, he reveals much with this bit of interior processing, “The antiquarian from whom Ushen-Takaan picked up the parcel was a Rej-Jir so old her skin color had faded to lilac, eyes milky from the weight of centuries. Somehow, she had struck him as being beautiful. It was uncommon to see the physical evidence of old age when the technology for approximating endless youth was so accessible.”
I especially enjoyed that most of the action took place on planets rather than spacecraft, and that the characters physically experienced those surrounding. Immersive details yield a great narrative experience for the reader. “Xa-Kol hurried over to an enormous tree, huddling underneath its tapering leaves. Her cloak was lined with waterproof fabric on the inside, but it still felt waterlogged and heavy since its outer layers were more akin to velvet. The ensemble wasn’t about function—naturally, it was all about style.”
Issues Applicable to Earth
The book’s worldbuilding is impressive, exquisitely detailed in every aspect from geography to biology to cultural norms. The individuals and societies portrayed would be called “alien” by humans, but we’re not there. While the conflicts are relatable to planet Earth, there are no Sol system explorers to weigh in with opinions. (That is left to us, the readers.)
The book features maps, charts, and illustrations, which reinforce our mental picture of the characters as well as enhance the narrative.
A Sense for Memory raises important political and eco fiction themes: How does society balance individual rights with society’s needs? What is cruel punishment? What are sentient beings’ responsibilities to the land and “lower” animal and plant life? How does commerce and industrial expansion balance with the interrelated systems that support all life? What means are justified and what sacrifices are acceptable to institute change?
These stories were a pleasure to experience, and fans of character-driven science fiction will enjoy getting to know Qwatajawa, Xa-Kol, and their respective worlds. Readers interested in eco fiction will appreciate the issues and themes presented. I look forward to reading more stories in this intriguing setting.
What do you look for in science fiction? Comment on the blog.
If you are interested in A Sense for Memory Part One, you might like to read my review of A Sense for Memory Part Two.
“The Talking Cure is a marvelous story—an Agatha Christie-style murder mystery infused with a strong sense of the Weird… and a hearty dose of magic on the side. It’s ideal for all fans of the sinister, the surprising, and the strange.” —Cherie Priest, award-winning author of Boneshaker
Find The Talking Cure at these fine locations:
Left Bank Books in St. Louis
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Last year, St. Louis Writers Guild published Weird STL, an anthology celebrating the strange, spooky, and just plain wonderful stories of our hometown. This volume of short stories, poems, a play, and essays includes a Sean Joye universe short story, “Big Magick.” Joseph Arwald, one of the baddies from The Big Cinch, tells us what really happened to the Ferris Wheel from the St. Louis 1904 World’s Fair.
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