In Nebula Award-winning author Sam J. Miller's devastating debut short-fiction collection, featuring an introduction by Amal El-Mohtar, queer infatuation, inevitable heartbreak, and brutal revenge seamlessly intertwine. Whether innocent, guilty, or not even human, the boys, beasts, and men roaming through Miller's gorgeously crafted worlds can destroy readers, yet leave them wanting more.

Despite his ability to control the ambient digital cloud, a foster teen falls for a clever con-man. Luring bullies to a quarry, a boy takes clearly enumerated revenge through unnatural powers of suggestion. In the aftermath of a shapeshifting alien invasion, a survivor fears that he brought something out of the Arctic to infect the rest of the world. A rebellious group of queer artists create a new identity that transcends even the anonymity of death.

Sam J. Miller (Blackfish City, The Art of Starving) shows his savage wit, unrelenting candor, and lush imagery in this essential career retrospective collection, taking his place alongside legends of the short-fiction form such as Carmen Maria Machado, Carson McCullers, and Jeff VanderMeer.

This book was provided for free by the Publisher and the publishers in exchange for an honest review. Many thanks to the publisher and the author for the opportunity to read this book!

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I was unfamiliar with Sam J. Miller’s work when I first delved into Boys, Beasts & Men, and that was ok with me. I like reading anthologies to get to know new authors, and Boys, Beasts & Men is a beautiful showcase of Miller’s work over the years. In the acknowledgments at the end he gives insights into what inspired each story, and he also explains how many of them link to his other works. A character from one short story links to a novel, or pops up in another one. As a reader who loves interconnectivity between stories this made them even more special. He also did something I’ve never seen in an anthology; he tells a story between the stories. A random hook-up between two men turns into something more, told between one-page interludes between the short-stories. It’s magical and mesmerising.

To be honest, the entire anthology is mesmerising. Miller’s writing is witty and hard-hitting, drawing out stories from angles that most people don’t tend to see. Many of these are often about queer identity, but many are recognisable to people of any identity, community or circumstance. These are the people who fall through the cracks, who aren’t seen by society. Even in the stories with horror and supernatural elements as someone with mental health conditions I felt seen by Miller. His writing is full of lush descriptions and vivid emotions, yet also has a way of stripping things down to the bare bones.

In his acknowledgments he discusses how two of his stories came about from trying to understand people on the other side, the people who hate and do not understand the queer community. The result of this are two stunningly emotive stories (“Calved” and “When your Child Strays from God”) about parents realising that their child had not only grown up, but had, as Miller puts it become “something they can’t understand or find terrifying”. The concepts and themes of boys becoming men, and men being/becoming beasts or monsters run throughout all of Miller’s stories, and it was interesting to see how he interpreted these themes from his own perspective, as well as an outside perspective. There’s even a story from the perspective of a monster becoming aware that it might be a monster.

A story that really stuck out to me was “Shattered Sidewalks of the Human Heart” which considers the idea that the events of King Kong were real. What would happen in a world where a giant ape existed and lost its life because humans acted monstrously? Miller’s story is hauntingly beautiful and will stick with you after you’ve read it. It won’t be the only one, and I could go on and on. Instead, I’m just going to mention one last story; “The Heat of Us”. A retelling of the 1969 Stonewall riots, this short story is told from multiple perspectives as a former reporter puts together an article to tell the “real story” of what happened. In this retelling three people at the riot band together and something extraordinary happens. It is a powerful story, giving voice to a historical moment in LGBT history.

Boys, Beasts & Men is an evocative collection of stories that showcases the scope of Miller’s talent as a writer. In one story he expertly explores that moment as a child when you realise a parent isn’t perfect, perfectly manifesting real life with the existence of dinosaurs. Elsewhere, he tackles the hubris of 21st century America in a dystopian story about a parent trying to reconnect with their teenage son. A supernatural story about house spirits takes on capitalism and homelessness. Every story has multiple layers, and at the heart of them is the story of a real person. Pick Boys, Beasts and Men up for the incredible writing, and stay with it how it makes you feel.

Boys, Beasts & Men is out on June 14th 2022!

Thank you for reading my review for Boys, Beasts & Men by Sam J. Miller! 

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