This was an interesting and quick read with a lot of different elements and a unique premise for each story. I did find it somewhat hard to connect with some of the stories, but that’s okay. I think there is something in here for everyone if you’re going into it with an open mind.

In a way, I was reminded of the show Black Mirror with the combination of sci-fi, fantasy, and slightly macabre vibe which made it very intriguing. There were a lot of directions explored and it allowed the reader to really experience what felt like a genre of its own. I have never read anything quite like this before so as a curious reader I was challenged to think outside the box. To explore the possibilities of the strange and enigmatic.

Overall, this was a great read. Thank you NetGalley and Interstellar Flight Press for this eARC in exchange for an honest review.

This collection has some excellent writing - the imagery is some if the best I've read.

The only downside is that some stories feel a bit rushed and not fleshed out. That said, they're quick and easy to read.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for the ARC

Space, Mystery, Time, Humor, and Intrigue - Stories to restore your spirit.

This wondrous collection by Stewart C Baker engages like a dance through the mysterious and illimitable at the fingertips of a storyteller who, at each meeting of the eyes, each insight of connection, flicks away with a wink to the next turn. Clever, engaging, and enigmatic, an erratic rhythm of struggle between longing and contentment that soothes as it deepens, steadied by the undertone that sometimes one needs to keep on to get through.

Baker's words calm in the diaphanous embrace of melancholy - segments of tales, fragments of existence, pockets of unreality, generating the urgency to run to and grasp what we've forgotten to appreciate as our own. An artist in the liminal spaces of self, Baker writes quiet fiction that excites, in notes similar to those in the works of Zig Zag Claybourne, yet with the sparkle of unerring snap only a librarian of the world could provide.

This collection of short stories represents a decade+ of work and publication, yet in the sort of comprehensive way in which they seem destined to be read together. In these stories redefining power, genre, and purpose, I hope that you will find yourself in the Butterfly Disjunct.

The Butterfly Disjunct by Stewart C. Baker is a collection of science fiction short stories that “span the breadth of human emotion, space, and time.”
To tell the truth, I found myself struggling to write this review. In many ways The Butterfly Disjunct defies description. It refuses to be pigeonholed into cliche and trope and instead forges its own path. One that allows it to stand tall in its occasional weirdness and differing perspectives.
The characters are quintessentially human (even those that aren't) and ooze a certain charm that is hard to resist. The prose is simple but doesn't hold your hand, and it feels like every word has been chosen carefully to do what it needs to do. The stories seem to be in a shared universe, with names that cross story boundaries and a couple stories that provide an ongoing narrative when put together.
It's not without its flaws. Some stories end abruptly with little to no payoff and some are lacking in a cohesive plot, making them feel floaty and disjointed. That might be what Baker is going for but I don't know how much it works for me.
That being said, The Butterfly Disjunct is a delightful collection of stories that is well worth the read.

Each story has a unique concept, and each story is beautifully creative. In one story, we find the characters in space, and in another, our characters are in an apocalyptic wasteland. My favorite story is failsafe. I loved how even in the face of devastation, we could choose to be empathetic and have compassion for one another. Even in the face of the end of the world.

Stewart C. Baker’s debut collection, *Echoes Through the Void*, is a bold and imaginative exploration of human emotion and existential curiosity, masterfully blending the boundaries of gender and genre. Through a series of evocative stories, Baker crafts a universe where the strange and the earnest intersect, celebrating the diverse facets of relationships and empathy.

The collection opens with a gripping tale of a scientist tormented by an elusive ghost, blending psychological tension with speculative intrigue. This is followed by a story featuring a cocky poet whose attempts to evade peace unravel in profound and unexpected ways. Each narrative is unique, yet they are all connected by Baker’s deft ability to explore deep-seated human concerns amidst the backdrop of space and time.

One of the standout pieces follows a grieving mother’s quest to find life beneath Europa’s icy surface. This story not only delves into the mysteries of space but also touches on the raw and poignant journey of loss and hope. Similarly, the narrative of a ship’s AI striving to save its beloved crew highlights themes of loyalty and sacrifice, offering a poignant reflection on artificial intelligence and human connection.

Baker’s stories are as varied in their settings as they are in their emotional resonance. From the fight against the looming specter of existence to the intimate portrayal of personal struggles, the collection spans a remarkable breadth of experiences. The author’s ability to weave together such disparate elements—science fiction, poetry, and deep emotional introspection—creates a tapestry that is both rich and multifaceted.

In *Echoes Through the Void*, Stewart C. Baker demonstrates an exceptional talent for combining speculative fiction with heartfelt storytelling. This debut collection is not only a testament to Baker’s creativity but also a celebration of the myriad ways in which human experiences can be expressed and understood. For readers seeking a profound and imaginative journey through space, time, and the complexities of the human heart, this collection is a must-read.

The Butterfly Disjunct is not my usual genre (both in that it's sci-fi and short stories) but I was really intrigued by it and decided to try it out. Despite not being able to finish it due to life getting very busy, I read almost 50%. I enjoyed a lot of it! Something I really liked is that each story had its own vibe, formatting, and theme. However, I get the impression that Stewart was rushing through some of these stories. In some, the sections ended just before some kind of important action started, then picked up after it was over, leaving us with a gap in the middle. In others, when there were opportunities for the characters to have depth, Stewart simply glossed over it to push the plot forward. There were some where I wished they were longer because I wasn't ready to leave the characters, or wished to see more of the details of the story. On the whole however I enjoyed more than I didn't, and I think anyone who likes sci-fi should give this a try!

Specific thoughts about the stories I was able to read are listed on my storygraph.

An exploration of possibility and imagination, like all science fiction - but this collection in particular takes a wily, winding look into sentience. There are no boundaries in these personal worlds. The reader tours life thoroughly; no age, no genderspectrum, no system, no individual that Baker cannot pick up, and effortlessly craft a wondrous lens for the reader to consider through. Segments are linked to each other, either directly or indirectly - explicitly so, or with names reminiscent of other names, suggesting time and evolution within (could it be?) a single universe - or perhaps even a breakoff timeline, a multiverse, stemming from a singular butterfly disjunct.

The stories I like best are (in no particular order): Proceedings From the First and Only Sixteenth Annual One-Woman Symposium on Time Manipulation; Ghosts of Maricourt Crater; The Future, One Summer Behind; Three Tales the River Told; The Robotic Poet Reads Bashō; Memorial Park. These in particular deal with themes I am interested in - language, sentience, grief, academia, and friendship.

Here, a familiar trope spun refreshingly new, there a completely new premise to surprise, this collection is sure to have something for everyone.

This is a debut collection of the author’s previously published short stories and a few stories new to this collection.

They can all be described as speculative fiction on the sci-fi end of the spectrum, some very lightly e.g. a vaguely described non-existent medical procedure, mentions of robots, etc., and others with more defined staples of the genre; space travel, time travel, multiple dimensions, etc.
Really, you could call the sci-fi elements the background staging or secondary genre for this collection. The real fun in this collection for me was the wide range of primary genre that each story presented. I never knew from one story to the next what I would get and that kept me engaged throughout.
There is horror, spy thriller, action-adventure, absurdist, family drama, romance, space opera, mystery, comedy, dystopian or post-apocalyptic, and more. These genres will sometimes be mixed and matched as well, with different tones and styles so obviously Baker is extremely talented and creative.

Most of my individual ratings for these stories were between 3 and 4 stars. There are about 30 stories here, and there were only a couple that I didn’t at least like.
There were two stories I gave 5 stars:
Elements of a successful exit broadcast - The prologue to the collection, it is a list of instructions with allusions to something terrible happening on the space ship/station that is the setting. It presented a really unsettling and isolating tone. I’d put this pretty firmly on the horror end of the genre map.
Favourite quote: By the time your message reaches home, everyone you knew will long be dead and buried. You are speaking for the future, from the past.
How to configure your quantum disambiguator - This opens section ???. [Error: Out of timeline, unable to process] and is a humorous but also slightly horrifying set of absurd instructions that might or might not help you not end the space-time continuum.
Favourite quote: Push the red button. Please do not push the red button. Push the red button.

Ultimately, this collection seeks to highlight the love and connection between people. Friends, family, lovers, people in general (human or otherwise), people lost to us, those that stick with us in hard times, and new connections filled with possibility. Other strong themes include bodily autonomy, hope for humanity in the face of a changing climate, and personal growth when you make bad decisions.

Extra points for top notch titles. Some favourites were Words I’ve redefined since your dinosaurs invaded my Lunar Lair; How to break causality and write the perfect time travel story; Proceedings from the First and Only Sixteenth Annual One-Woman Symposium on Time Manipulation.
I also appreciated the comprehensive content warning list included for individual stories.

I would definitely read from this author again.

This is a raw set of stories! Most are science fiction themed with other genres here and there. The author does a fantastic job in contrasting the rawness of humanity with/against cold and looming worlds. Reading this, I feel like I am in a vivarium trapped, yet blessedly lit with gentle, artificial sunlight. I feel smothered in the soft/passive indifference of the characters. To me, this was a masterclass in character-centric worldbuilding. The prose dances perfectly with the imagery. Just enough detail for a crisp picture yet not so much as to be overwhelming. The twists are poignant and zesty! There is only one other book I have ever read that so artfully weaves varied and similar stories into each other with such style.

I thoroughly enjoyed this short story anthology. Each story is a unique and multifaceted adventure which can be read either for a quick fun time, or pondered deeply. The stories range from unsettling to riotous adventure. Still, each story has a deeper theme swirling under the surface. For example, what is being human and what does that look like in the future? Experiencing claustrophobic grief in a simulation. Does justice disappear when survival starts? When does “peace” become oppressive?

I honestly feel these stories need to be savored. I would like to have this book living on my night stand or end table picking it up in a quiet moment to read and re-read my favorite stories. (How To Escape From The Marshes is not to be missed and I could read a whole novel with this FMC)

Good sci-fi takes you on a fantastic journey and captures your imagination. Great sci-fi captures your heart and makes you ponder the complex themes of life. This is great sci-fi and I will be thinking about these stories for the rest of my life. I am excited to see what Baker writes in the future.

Thanks to NetGalley and Interstellar Flight Press for my advanced copy of The Butterfly Disjunct. It's a 3.5 for me. I really enjoyed the style of Baker's writing. Each story had a unique premise and the creativity within each was great! I particularly enjoyed "the spread of space and endless devastation" and "memorial park." They both explore grief beautifully in such a short format. Most of the stories had strong emotional backings and while some overstayed and some I wanted more of I didn't dislike any of the stories. It was a quick read with lots of different ideas and plenty to take in, but that is what knocked it down a bit for me. It was a lot shoved into one book small book. The creativity and power behind most of the stories really sticks out and I am excited to see if Baker does more in both the short form or longer.

This was a whirlwind of interesting but delightfully distinct stories and snippets of life in a speculative future. It was hard to pin this collection of stories down, as was likely the point, since it explored so many different experiences. My personal favorites were the "the spread of space and endless devastation" and "memorial park." Both dealt with coming to terms with fate and grief, but in wildly different contexts. I don't want to give away the meat of their story so I will simply say they made me, angry, sad, and hopeful all at once. Many of these stories, including the two I mentioned, are looking for hope in dismal places and finding it.

A couple of the stories and writings were far enough out there that I couldn't relate well to them, and these stories took a backseat to the deeper and more relatable experiences within this anthology. That being said, not all of them seemed like they were meant to be relatable, some, like "how to configure your own quantum disambiguator" and "how to break causality and write the perfect time travel story" fell into the category of clever and quirky speculative fiction rather than the deeper and more emotionally developed stories of love and grief sprinkled throughout the volume.

Overall, this was a lovely reading experience and I'm glad I was able to read it through NetGalley in exchange for reviewing the book. I would recommend this if you're looking for a lot of variety packed into bite-sized science and speculative fiction. It was easy to read one or two stories from this anthology before bed each night.

A Stellar Debut Collection: A Journey Through Emotion, Space, and Time

Stewart C Baker’s debut collection is a mesmerizing blend of earnest storytelling and strange, captivating scenarios that traverse the vast expanse of human emotion and the cosmos. The book introduces us to a fascinating array of characters: a scientist haunted by an impossible ghost, a cocky poet on the run from peace, a grieving mother exploring Europa’s icy depths, and a ship AI fiercely loyal to its crew. Each story is a unique exploration of relationships and empathy, transcending both gender and genre boundaries.

Baker's ability to infuse each tale with deep emotional resonance is commendable. The themes of love, loss, and human connection are deftly woven into narratives that are as imaginative as they are heartfelt. The stories stand out not only for their inventive premises but also for their poignant reflections on what it means to be human.

However, the collection's ambitious scope occasionally results in uneven pacing. Some stories shine brighter than others, leaving a few to feel slightly overshadowed. Yet, even in its less polished moments, Baker’s writing remains compelling and thought-provoking.

Overall, this debut is a must-read for those who appreciate a blend of speculative fiction and profound emotional depth. Stewart C Baker has crafted a collection that is both a celebration of empathy and a testament to the boundless possibilities of storytelling. Four stars.