An Agent of Utopia

An entertaining collection of short stories of science fiction and magical realism. The standouts for me were “Real Indians,” a story about Native American construction workers in the 1920s; “Slow As A Bullet,” a story written as a folk tale, about a man who bets that he can outrun a bullet; and “Cl......more

The book began with a bang. "An Agent of Utopia" is an excellent fantasy that's razor-sharp and equally smooth. Next one (Joe Diabo's Farewell) shows a downward trend. Then it went downhill, with words and snarks without a shred of charm. Undoubtedly they were well-written. But I failed to understand......more

Bestest of things, ever. My two favorites were the two previously unpublished, "Agent of Utopia" and "Joe Diablo's Farewell." "Agent" is powerful and clever and really makes you feel you're stuck in the filth of early modern London. A true delight to see Andy turn his penchant for dialect on the Sha......more

3.5 stars. I picked this up because the title story, "Agent of Utopia,"is nominated for multiple SFF awards. The stories in this collection were really a mixed bag for me; I really liked some and wasn't all that fond of others. I actually feel like the collection would be best read spaced out over a......more

This book makes me wish I were more familiar with his writings, but it seems likely to me that much of his best work is collected here. Crackerjack storytelling, just very satisfying reading, and nothing here that you could say was a lesser story. The voice is assured, rich with southern flavors, ca......more