Always I love Aliette de Bodard. "The Breath of War" is set somewhere in the Xuya Universe, but far from the mindships. On this world one carves a stonesibling at adulthood and gives it Breath, and that stonesibling will one day give Breath to one's child. But Rechan carved her stonesibling long ago, not thinking of children and being tied to her world, but instead thinking of leaving and exploring. Now she must learn the consequences of that.

"Stonebones" by Nathaniel Lee was a great story about being tied in place and yet striving for freedom, and about learning that freedom might not be what you think it is.

Though "The River Does Not Run" by Rachel Sobel didn't appeal to me, it has some wonderful language that makes it worth a read.

"The Goddess Deception, (Part 1)" by Dean Wells begins in this issue and it's great.

( )