A Jar of Goodwill by Tobias Buckell

“A Jar Of Goodwill” is a 2010 science fiction novelette by Tobias S. Buckell. It is about a specially trained human who takes a very risky job in hopes that it will pay off big.

Its Like Winning The Lottery

Sometimes it is difficult finding good science fiction stories to recommend. I probably read about 2 or 3 stories for each one that I blog about. That’s better that it used to be – when I first started I had to read 4 or 5 stories to find one good one! Anyway, now that I have a lot more experience with finding great stories I usually do better picking them. Also, I have a huge list of recommended stories that I am working my way through. Anyway, it is very rare that I just pick a completely random story and give it a try – but that is exactly what happened with this story. Wow – was I ever glad I did! This awesome story was very reminiscent of the Revelation Space universe – so if you are a fan of Alistair Reynolds then you’ll probably love this story – and if you’re not then you’re in for a real treat!

Non-spoiler Summary in a Nutshell

Alex is a professional “Friend” – someone who has been altered to be acutely aware of human emotions and body language. That is all nice and well as long as she (I say “she”, although Alex is really bi-gendered) has respectable contract work for her services. But when the station’s harbor master coerces her into working a shady job involving virus creating scientists, valuable organic plastic, a hive mind agent and patent-troll aliens she begins to wonder if she can make the right choice – whatever that may be!

My Two Cents…

• The concept of a Friend was cool. Not only did it fit well with this story, but it really makes sense as a logical step in the evolution of mankind.
• The Gheda aliens were deliciously evil patent bullies!
• The life forms on the planet Ve – both the Vesians and the plastic plants – were totally fascinating!

Interesting Tidbits About This Story:

• Page Count: 17
• Word Count: 8,048
• Did you know that Tobias Buckell grew up on the Caribbean island of Grenada? Yep. You can learn more about this fantastic science fiction author on his web site.
• If you liked this story, be sure to check out Tobias Buckell’s bibliography page at Amazon.com to see what else he has written.

Where You Can Find A Jar Of Goodwill:

• This story was originally published in the May 2010 (#44) issue of Clarkesworld Magazine – where you can still read it online for free.
• * Note: If you enjoyed this story (or any other story at Clarkesworld) then please consider donating money and becoming a Clarkesworld Citizen.

Craving More Stories?

If you enjoyed “A Jar Of Goodwill” then you might also like Orphans of The Helix by Dan Simmons – about a group of deep space settlers who drop out of hyper-space to help some aliens protect their orbital forest ring.

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