Proof by Induction, by José Pablo Iriarte

Uncanny Magazine, May 2021, 

https://www.uncannymagazine.com/article/proof-by-induction/

Paulie Gifford, a mathematician going for tenure at his university, the same university where his father was a Professor Emeritus until his death just before the start of this story. Paulie and his father had been collaborating on a proof of a mathematical theorem--and on top of losing his father, Paulie has just lost his research partner.

But, in this world, at an unspecified point in our future, there is a technology called Coda; it records a dying person's brain in the moments of death. The recording is interactive, and "knows" everything the deceased knew at the time of death. It can't form new memories, but family members can "enter" the Coda, talk to this recording of the deceased, and ask such mundane and important questions as, "Do you have an insurance policy?"

Tangles, by Seanan McGuire

 

Art by Heonwha Cho

  Magicthegathering.com, September 2021

  Wrenn and her tree, Seven, have been partners a long time, and now Seven wants to retire permanently to his own world. Wrenn, who is a dryad but not quite like other dryads, will need to find a new tree there. This won't be easy, because of the ways in which she is different from other dryads.

Teferi is a mage, traveling for reasons of his own. Most immediately, he has come into the Kessig forest, where Wrenn searches for the right tree, ostensibly to help the Cathars find the white witch rumored to be there, and really to escape the suffocating hospitality of the local townsfolk. He has quietly wandered away from the Cathars.

They encounter each other, and confront a threat, and then an even bigger danger.

This is apparently a Magic: The Gathering short story. I've never played the game, but very much enjoyed this story.

The Sin of America by Catherynne M. Valente

Uncanny Magazine, March 2021, 

https://www.uncannymagazine.com/article/the-sin-of-america/

Sadly, I did not like this one.

It starts with what feels like a relatively long section of really drab, colorless detail, with no real reason to care about any of the people mentioned--most of whom, in the end, really do turn out not to matter in the story.

Then the story starts to get meatier, with one of the characters being identified as the chosen "sin-eater" for America, to eat all the sins of our history, in a diner in Wyoming. We learn some of the details of her life, of the people around her, and how she was chosen to be the sin-eater this time.

Where Oaken Hearts Do Gather, by Sarah Pinsker

Uncanny Magazine, March 2021

The form of this story is the comments on a site called "Lyricsplainer," discussing the lyrics and history of a folk song called, "Where Oaken Hearts Do Gather."

It appears to be a tragic romantic ballad, about a pair called Fair Ellen, and William. There is debate about what "fair" means with reference to Ellen. William might be the butcher's son, or he might have stolen something from the butcher's son, or he might be named William Butcher. Commenters make suggestions, downrate each other's suggestions, occasionally the moderator steps in.

Some of them are doing research elsewhere. One of the points of interest is a previous commenter, who went off to visit a likely location for the original story, but hasn't been heard from in a year.

The more they learn, or think they learn, the creepier it gets. Very absorbing, and quite well done.

Recommended.

Mr. Death, by Alix E. Harrow

Apex Magazine, February 2021

This is a sweet and moving story about Death, the celestial bureaucracy of death, and a junior reaper struggling with a difficult case.

The death he's supposed to witness, and the soul he's supposed to collect, is of a two-year-old boy. The reaper was among the living himself once, and suffered terrible loss, which usually makes him good at his job.

This case cuts especially close, and the reaper has a serious problem with going through the proper procedures, this time.

And that's all I can say, except it's sweet, moving, and carries a punch.

Recommended.

Unknown Number, by Blue Neustifter

https://nitter.it/Azure_Writing/status/1452324530182033413, October 2021

This is a piece of short fiction originally published as a Twitter thread, which is now a Hugo Awards finalist, and yes, it's really good.

I feel old.

A person on their phone one night gets a text from an unknown number, making the unlikely claim, "I'm you."

"You" from an alternate timeline, it develops.