The Fire When It Comes

"The Fire When It Comes" is a fantasy short story by American writer Parke Godwin. It was first published in the January 1981 issue of The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction.

Plot summary

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A young couple rents an apartment that is haunted by the ghost of an actress.

Reception

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"The Fire When It Comes" won the 1982 World Fantasy Award for Best Novella,[1] and was a finalist for the 1981 Nebula Award for Best Novelette[2] and the 1982 Hugo Award for Best Novelette.[3]

Kirkus Reviews considered it to be "dandy", judging it to be the best story in Godwin's 1984 identically-named collection The Fire When It Comes.[4] Mike Ashley called it 'powerful'.[5]

References

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  1. ^ 1982: the 8th World Fantasy Convention, at WorldFantasy.org; retrieved September 4, 2018
  2. ^ The Fire When It Comes, at Science Fiction Writers of America; retrieved September 4, 2018
  3. ^ 1982 Hugo Awards, at TheHugoAward.org; retrieved September 4, 2018
  4. ^ THE FIRE WHEN IT COMES, by Parke Godwin, reviewed at Kirkus Reviews, published April 20, 1984; retrieved September 4, 2018
  5. ^ Science Fiction Rebels: The Story of the Science-Fiction Magazines from 1981 to 1990, by Mike Ashley; published 2016 by Oxford University Press