Search Worlds Without End

This short story originally appeared in the anthology Interfictions: An Anthology of Interstitial Writing (2007), edited by Delia Sherman and Theodora Goss, and was reprinted in Lightspeed, May 2014. It can also be found in the anthology People of the Book: A Decade of Jewish Science Fiction & Fantasy (2010), edited by Sean Wallace and Rachel Swirsky. The story is included in the collection The Beatrix Gates (2018).

Read the full story for free at Lightspeed.

Set in an alternate world, this modern fairy tale tells the story of two women, Laurie and Jaqe, who become lovers but are separated by Mother Night, a small elderly lady, who is death. Along with her gang of riotous bikers, she cruises through their lives, leaving a trail of heartbreak and joy.

The 'Allies' had arrived, sweeping down from the stars to offer a jaded Earth the marvels of the cosmos. And Earth had gone crazy. Farmers sat back to wait for Vita Flakes to fall from the sky. New York City drank itself into a permanent starstruck stupor. Blissed-out teenagers wandered into the Great Mexican Defoliation Desert to wait for the New Gods to bear them off to the astral plane... But the 'Allies' weren't in the business of trading something for nothing. This impertinent little marketworld might fetch a nice price on the interstellar auction block... particularly if a runaway wondergirl named Golden Vanity was tossed into the bargain!

On Earth, the Wisdom family has always striven to be more normal than normal. But Simon Wisdom, the youngest child, is far from normal: he can see the souls of the dead. And now the ghosts of children are begging him to help them, as they face something worse than death. The only problem is, he doesn't know how.

In a far-away land of magic and legends, Matyas has dragged himself up from the gutter and inveigled his way into the Wizards' college. In time, he will become more powerful than all of them - but will his quest blind him to the needs of others? For Matyas can also hear the children crying. But neither can save the children alone, for the child eater is preying on two worlds...

This novelette originally appeared in The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction, July-August 2012. It can also be found in the anthology The Best Science Fiction and Fantasy of the Year: Volume Seven (2013), edited by Jonathan Strahan.

A queer cult favorite, The Beatrix Gates is a colorful mix of science fiction, magic realism, memoir, and myth exploring themes of spirituality and transformation. Courage and cowardice contend in a literary odyssey unlike any other. Written especially for this volume, "Trans Central Station" is Pollack's personal and political take on the transgender experience then and now--and tomorrow? "Burning Beard" is a fiercely revisionist Bible tale of plague and prophecy told through a postmodern prose of many colors. "The Woman Who Didn't Come Back" is about just what it says. And there is of course PM Press' usual and unusual Outspoken Interview.

Table of Contents:

• Trans Central Station - essay
• Beatrix Gates - (2006) - short story
• Burning Beard: The Dreams and Visions of Joseph Ben Jacob, Lord Viceroy of Egypt - (2007) - short story
• The Woman Who Didn't Come Back - (1990) - short story

Jennifer Mazden is the survivor of a wrecked marriage and she worries about the usual things in life - work, companionship and her future. But then strange things starts happenening to her and she becomes pregnant - from a dream. At that moment she struggles to take charge of her life.

In New York, Paul has a problem. An ancient, ferocious spirit has fallen in love with him. He looks to his 14-year-old cousin, Ellen, for help. She then turns to the toughest, feistiest lawyer in the city.