Metaphorosis magazine - beautifully written science fiction and fantasy
Episodes
Friday Sep 29, 2023
The Antidote for Longing III — Karl Dandenell
Friday Sep 29, 2023
Friday Sep 29, 2023
When Lars Bjornsen learns the young Empress Anna is finally pregnant after years of trying, it confirms his suspicions that the Emperor Gustavus was inadvertently poisoned by an overdose of the aphrodisiac Sweet Agony. Lars provides an antidote, but before he can petition the emperor for his freedom, he is taken prisoner. Now, Lars faces a choice: does he join the spymaster’s conspiracy and return to the splendors of the imperial court, or denounce her actions and put his own life—and that of his friend Fredrik–in jeopardy?
Narrated by Thomas Baxter. Published in Metaphorosis on 29 September 2023. Find the original at magazine.metaphorosis.com.
Friday Sep 15, 2023
Astrid Underwater — J.J. Eskelin
Friday Sep 15, 2023
Friday Sep 15, 2023
One summer day, on the shore of an island in the Pacific Northwest where the wild and the otherworldly are intimately entwined, Sigun falls asleep, leaving her son playing alone by the cusp of a deep channel of water. What they encounter there shakes Sigun, awakening her grief and challenging her to reclaim her own fierce nature.
Narrated by host Matt Gomez. Published in Metaphorosis on 15 September 2023. Find the original at magazine.metaphorosis.com.
Friday Aug 25, 2023
The Antidote for Longing II — Karl Dandenell
Friday Aug 25, 2023
Friday Aug 25, 2023
Lars Bjornsen, the exiled imperial poisoner, has reunited with his old friend, Fredrik Magnusson, who now serves as physik to the imperial family. Together they race to unravel two mysteries: the sudden illness of Emperor Gustavus and the death of the newest imperial poisoner, Lord Anders. While the clues point to a possible coup attempt, Lars begins to suspect that Spymaster Maja Viklund and Lord Anders were dosing the emperor with an aphrodisiac known as Sweet Agony to ensure a new heir. While Sweet Agony is not part of the Society of Poisoner’s arsenal, its side effects could be fatal for an old man like Emperor Gustavus.
Narrated by Thomas Baxter. Published in Metaphorosis on 25 August 2023. Find the original at magazine.metaphorosis.com.
Friday Aug 11, 2023
A Life of Color — N.V. Haskell
Friday Aug 11, 2023
Friday Aug 11, 2023
Laura’s job with the Department of Magical Resources has left her no time or desire for human connection but when a mysterious magical infant is thrust into her care, she is forced to confront elements of her painful past. As she tries to help the child, the integrity of herself and those around her will be tested. But no matter how the assignment is finished, Laura will never be the same.
Narrated by host Matt Gomez. Published in Metaphorosis on 11 August 2023. Find the original at magazine.metaphorosis.com.
Friday Aug 04, 2023
A Wielder Does Not Know Regret — Katherine Karch
Friday Aug 04, 2023
Friday Aug 04, 2023
You settle in beside the child. Her pulse is rapid and weak beneath your fingers as you bring your thoughts to the focal point of the girl’s origin. You set yourself like a fulcrum in the space between what is yet to come and what has passed, and stretch.
Narrated by host Matt Gomez. Published in Metaphorosis on 04 August 2023. Find the original at magazine.metaphorosis.com.
Friday Jul 28, 2023
The Antidote for Longing I — Karl Dandenell
Friday Jul 28, 2023
Friday Jul 28, 2023
Lars Bjornsen was once an influential member of the Society of Poisoners, serving as imperial poisoner to Emperor Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden, but Lars has been in exile for the past three years because he failed to assassinate the son of the Russian tsar. When an imperial messenger brings word that Emperor Gustavus has taken ill and the current imperial poisoner is dead, Lars realizes his oath of fealty requires he assist. He must be careful, however, because Lars’ former lover, Spymaster Maja Viklund, has eyes everywhere, and he faces imprisonment or execution should he be discovered.
Narrated by Thomas Baxter. Published in Metaphorosis on 28 July 2023. Find the original at magazine.metaphorosis.com.
Friday Jul 21, 2023
The Princia Prologos — Aaron Zimmerman
Friday Jul 21, 2023
Friday Jul 21, 2023
The story of Miranda Southbrook has been told and retold with all manner of embellishment and fancy. But this recovered journal is the story told in her own words, the story of a young woman given a terrible choice and tested with an impossible circumstance. It is the account of an extraordinary person wrestling with the most ordinary of questions: what is my place in the world?
Narrated by host Matt Gomez. Published in Metaphorosis on 21 July 2023. Find the original at magazine.metaphorosis.com.
Friday Jun 30, 2023
The Zoo Diaries VI — Frances Pauli
Friday Jun 30, 2023
Friday Jun 30, 2023
The animals of the Rainriver Zoological Gardens experience the backlash of Oliver the tortoise's escape and the zoo's sudden popularity. Overstressed and driven to the edge of desperation, the animal and human inhabitants of the zoo race toward an unintended intersection that is bound to end in tragedy.
Narrated by host Matt Gomez. Published in Metaphorosis on 30 June 2023. Find the original at magazine.metaphorosis.com.
Friday Jun 23, 2023
Nothing but the Gods On Their Backs — Alex T. Singer
Friday Jun 23, 2023
Friday Jun 23, 2023
A young refugee living out of a tenement becomes the unwitting avatar of her lost country's god.
Narrated by host Matt Gomez. Published in Metaphorosis on 23 June 2023. Find the original at magazine.metaphorosis.com.
Friday Jun 16, 2023
Snow Like Pink Pepper — Devan Barlow
Friday Jun 16, 2023
Friday Jun 16, 2023
When the snow falls, everyone hides inside, afraid. But what if the snow had something to tell us?
Narrated by host Matt Gomez. Published in Metaphorosis on 16 June 2023. Find the original at magazine.metaphorosis.com.