via FREE Fiction / Raindrop.io https://raindrop.io The first contestant worth mentioning wore manticore fur. The fibers, a deep shade of gunmetal, tapered to points of polished basalt. Ruffs of black cockatrice feathers bounced at his collar and cuffs as he swaggered down an aisle lined with twisted… Strange Horizons - The Skinwalkers Ball By Hammond Diehl, Art by Helen Mask via Instapaper https://ift.tt/2ITWze9

via FREE Fiction / Raindrop.io https://raindrop.io By Divine providence, we captured the mermaid with neither loss of life nor injury to any seaman, nor any harm done to the specimen. So easily we might have passed her by without even noticing her; but the sharp young eyes of Small Jack espied her a… Strange Horizons - A Journal of Certain Events of Scientific Interest from the First Survey Voyage of the Southern Waters by HMS Ocelot, As Observed by Professor Thaddeus Boswell, D.Phil, MSc.; or, A Lullaby (Part 1 of 2) By H… https://ift.tt/2UyjfSg

via FREE Fiction / Raindrop.io https://raindrop.io Strange Horizons has had many faces since we began in 2000, and those faces are always changing. I often refer to us as the collective—or composite, Yoon Ha Lee style—which at any given time involves 50+ creative volunteers, committed to voices new,… Strange Horizons - Fond Farewells By Vanessa Rose Phin via Instapaper https://ift.tt/2HwR0kc

via FREE Fiction / Raindrop.io https://raindrop.io Her father said at breakfast, "Drowned men can't have kids." He said it as if teaching Katy a lesson, or maybe as if she had asked. He kept looking at her, his fingers twitching on the Sunday newspaper like dropped lizards' tails. via Pocket

via FREE Fiction / Raindrop.io https://raindrop.io They said that she was poisoned. People always talk. Doc knew that it was the illness, though—the one that comes with the snow and leads people away behind it into the thaw. He said that it wouldn't be long before her husband visited us. via Pocket

via FREE Fiction / Raindrop.io https://raindrop.io Peter had wanted a Little Brother™ for three Christmases in a row. His favorite TV commercials were the ones that showed just how much fun he would have teaching Little Brother™ to do all the things that he could already do himself. via Pocket

via FREE Fiction / Raindrop.io https://raindrop.io Cesária Escobar was sixteen when she walked down the aisle, arm in arm with a man she had only met once. Her seven brothers and sisters watched in dismay, but her widowed mother wished her well. via Pocket Samovar - Saligia | English Translation By H. Pueyo, Translated by H. Pueyo via Instapaper https://ift.tt/2JVdk97

via FREE Fiction / Raindrop.io https://raindrop.io When the bomb hit, I was almost inside the ladies' clothing store where I work. If I hadn't paused to check out a cute bicycle courier I would have been safe. The bomb detonated silently, coating the street with a brief yellow burst like the mother … Samovar - The Knack Bomb | De foefbom By Bo Balder, Translated by Bo Balder via Instapaper https://ift.tt/2JTtC2s

via FREE Fiction / Raindrop.io https://raindrop.io This story is part of our 2015 fund drive bonus issue! Read more about Strange Horizons' funding model, or donate, here. Eyes, eyes, eyes. So many eyes on my long arms. via Pocket Strange Horizons - Hundred Eye By Yukimi Ogawa via Instapaper https://ift.tt/2Uh15rz

via FREE Fiction / Raindrop.io https://raindrop.io Where I’m from, it bodes ill to announce that you’re going somewhere. It’s a nuance of the language I was born into, where the word ‘go’ is swept under, reserved for foes and fiends while ‘return’ is extolled as a treasure. via Pocket Strange Horizons - Tessellations, In A Greater Hand By Artyv K via Instapaper http://bit.ly/2D5zyPV

via FREE Fiction / Raindrop.io https://raindrop.io First, the egusi seeds were roasted and ground in a paste. Gherek worked slivers of onions sliced into half moons and pepper seeds into the paste then pounded it some more. The dried white hibiscus flowers boiled in water with a little bit of salt, …

via FREE Fiction / Raindrop.io https://raindrop.io The party was going swimmingly. Adé stood in a corner of her sitting room, presently doubling as an exhibition space, and took cautious sips from the glass in her hand, eyes following Nkem’s butterfly movements around the room. via Pocket

I heard about the story from the friend of a friend of an acquaintance, and didn’t put any stock in it at first. In my profession, you hear things like this with some frequency. You’d be a fool if you went running every time you heard someone cry fi… via FREE Fiction / Raindrop.io https://raindrop.io Strange Horizons - Notes on a Resurrection By Natalia Theodoridou via Instapaper https://ift.tt/2J24rId

When the first breeze of the morning whistles over the green tips of the paddy-stalks to kiss the tawny jute thatching of the bungalow roof, Apa is already out on the verandah. It’s still dark but that doesn’t matter, it’s been more than twoscore ye… via FREE Fiction / Raindrop.io https://raindrop.io Strange Horizons - And Now His Lordship Is Laughing By Shiv Ramdas via Instapaper https://ift.tt/301dTB7

It’s no secret that Carrie’s been having trouble starting her thesis. And, okay, maybe she has been complaining for weeks, and maybe Professor Kawamura has started breathing down her neck, and maybe Yumi and Kazu have been bearing the brunt of it al… via FREE Fiction / Raindrop.io https://raindrop.io Strange Horizons - Invisible and Dreadful By S. R. Mandel via Instapaper https://ift.tt/2TRH2NK

I woke up that morning in the mood for curry, so I ended up at the supermarket. I was pushing a shopping cart down the ethnic aisle, scanning the shelves of spices, when you appeared beside me. I didn’t have to turn to know you were staring. The sid… via FREE Fiction / Raindrop.io https://raindrop.io Strange Horizons - Someday We'll Embrace This Distance By Niyah Morris, Art by Em Allen via Instapaper https://ift.tt/2KwwAYQ