Tuluscan Six and the Time Circle by Anne Brooke is a short story with a light comic touch that may appeal to many readers, even those who tend to avoid science-fiction. The fast pace, comical details, and the single viewpoint from an appealing hero make for an immediately engaging reading experience. The author’s humor centers on the amusing contrast between the blasé view that Karlan has of his bureaucratic job and the exotic way in which it’s presented to us readers. Through Karlan’s eyes, we glimpse a very high-tech future in which a “time stitch” is just another office supply and the “Virtual Cleaning Master” incinerates one’s spilled cup of tea, along with the tea itself, before it hits the carpet. This short story perfectly contains an ingenious plot for Karlan and his mysterious visitor to carry out, and still manages to work in a playful sex scene!

The story begins when Karlan shows up for another day at the Earth Interplanetary Administration Office as an overworked, underpaid civil servant reporting to an exacting boss. However, a mysterious stranger materializes within Karlan’s office and introduces himself as Tuluscan Six – Karlan’s future lover. Tuluscan has come back in time to warn Karlan that the upcoming first contact between their respective planets may result in a horrifying accident that will obliterate Tuluscan’s timeline. Only by following Tuluscan’s plan can Karlan preserve their possible future together. Karlan almost calls security, but becomes convinced when Tuluscan tells him things about his own past that only a lover could know. What follows is Karlan’s most exciting workday ever as he and his alluring visitor attempt to carry out their daring plan.

Val for AReCafe ( )