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The new issue of Space And Time is #107 and is here with stories by Ty Drago, Diane Arrelle, Scott H. Andrews, Larry Hodges, David Tallerman, J Michael Shell, and Mary A. Turzillo, along with poetry, poetry book reviews, the first part of an interview with Peter S. Beagle, and a book review by yours truly.

The latest issue of Space And Time is #107, the Summer 2009 issue and is has a very good mix of stories.

The issue starts with "Bits and Pieces" by Ty Drago. This is a far future story, set on some alien world that has been the site of a war for a very long time. 1225 is a machine with human parts. It's been scavenging for parts to keep itself running when it comes upon a crashed ship. It finds "fleshy flotsam" and starts taking parts of her but some old inner logic prevents it from doing too much harm. It starts talking with the "flotsam" whose name is Lily and things change for both of them. This was well-told tale and I liked it quite a bit.

Diane Arrelle's "The Party" is set on present-day Earth at Christmas time. Lisa has planned a Christmas party for family and friends, even though her brother and his wife were killed a few months earlier, leaving their daughter Tina in her hands. Lisa misses her brother and best friend, and Tina misses her parents, but the party might be just the thing they need. This was a sad, poignant story and delivers very effectively.

"Ebb" by Scott H. Andrews takes place in what seems to be a primitive human-type culture on some other world. The culture barely gets by on subsistence-level and all are obligated to serve the city and put the city above themselves. Our unnamed narrator is too old and frail to contribute much and is looked down upon. While the story is well-written and really gives you a good sense of the culture, I did not care for its point of view that individuals are worthless if they cannot serve the state.

"Jackpot World" by Larry Hodges starts as a courtroom drama in which an alien is on trial for something he did not do. It involves a lot of criminals, all named Wayne. He tells his story and we understand what happened. This was a very different kind of story and quite interesting. We are left with trying to figure out what we could possibly do to resolve things.

Ran Pilate is a profiler of alien species in David Tallerman's "In the Service of Guns" and is called upon by the military to help with winning a stalemated war. The enemy has unlimited firepower and will take out any ship which is armed, leaving anything else alone. Pilate winds up on another planet with a group of aliens called Singers who no one can figure out. How things all come together make for a good story.

"Catted" by J. Michael Shell is a brief tale about a woman's involvement with some sort of god-like being. This is equated with the actions of a cat in this beautiful piece.

Last of all, there's "Chocolate Kittens from Mars" by Mary A. Turzillo and that is what the story is about. Our narrator gets a special present from her lover, Herschel. They are three bio-engineered kittens who taste like rich chocolate when you lick them. But there is more to them then that and we are treated to a chilling little tale!.

This was a another good issue of Space And Time and I urge you to support it. Subscribe!