Grace Immaculate

by Gregory Benford

When we encountered the aliens, we thought we knew the story they were telling. But we were looking at the wrong end . . .

Genres: Science Fiction, Short Stories, Aliens, Religion, Science Fiction Fantasy, Ebooks, Fantasy

32 pages, ebook

First published October 19, 2011

About the author

Gregory Benford is an American science fiction author and astrophysicist who is on the faculty of the Department of Physics and Astronomy at the University of California, Irvine.

As a science fiction author, Benford is best known for the Galactic Center Saga novels, beginning with In the Ocean of Night (1977). This series postulates a galaxy in which sentient organic life is in constant warfare with sentient mechanical life.

Reviews

[Cathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hard SF. First contact at a distance. Religious themes. Discourse. Disaster. Fall from grace? My cup of tea...

About hydras from Earth: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hydra_(...
You‘re welcome!

Can be read for free here: https://www.tor.com/2011/10/19/grace-...

[Christine · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a short story (one of the Tor.com series). It details human and alien interaction in terms of religion. There isn’t action but straight forward narration (no dialogue). Yet, it is very thought provoking and oddly hopeful. It is a perfect book to use in a group discussion setting.

(Crossposted at Booklikes)

[Becks! · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5⭐'s

[Peter Tillman · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another alien contact via SETI story from Benford, this one very short and religious-themed. It's well done. Interestingly *alien* aliens. https://www.tor.com/2011/10/19/grace-...

[Gareth Is Haunted · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting take on the concept of alien first contact, science and religion's influence on this, then what develops after.
Not bad for such a short story.

[Timothy Finucane · Rating 3 out of 5]

A quick satirical short story with an interesting ending. Aliens, religion, and a big questions all rolled into a few pages. But I am left wondering, "what happened next?"

[Gerd · Rating 3 out of 5]

Liked it, I think.

I'm not really sure what Benford is driving at with that tale.
It's open ended and I do not think that it is a good end for the humans. :)

[Kieran McAndrew · Rating 5 out of 5]

An encounter with aliens should provide answers, not call into question everything we've ever known.

Benford's squib of a short story is enigmatic and thought provokingly disturbing. Recommended.

[Metaphorosis · Rating 3 out of 5]

reviews.metaphorosis.com

2.5 stars

Mildly amusing story that never went anywhere.

This started off well, and was interesting most of the way through. For one thing, it was willing to be a little more irreverent towards religion than most stories are these days, and it didn't take itself too seriously. But while the ending is lighthearted, it's so thin that it undercuts the rest of a pretty good story. I was a little sorry I'd read the thing through, even for free, and as short as it is.

[Scott · Rating 3 out of 5]

This alien first contact story merits enough muscle to be developed into a full blown novel, as this is a very brief narrative that lays the groundwork for something larger. Intriguing elements are in place for thoughtful rumination on how religion (the Catholic Church/Pope) would have its hand in a first contact scenario, and also to what purpose the aliens would wish to seek us out.

[John Yelverton · Rating 1 out of 5]

It is a short story about man corrupting an uncorrupted alien race via discussions through radio telescopes. It's too short and doesn't convey the gravity of sin in any effective way, and the ending is a complete disaster, literally.

[Robbie · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is short, even for a short story. It read more like a summary of a novel than a short story. Some of the ideas are interesting, but nothing is really fleshed out enough to take much meaning or make a point about anything. I only read this because there's a book that I pre-ordered coming out tomorrow and so I didn't want anything too long so that I'd get to start that new book sooner than later. I rushed through a couple of novellas while being held prisoner in my bedroom due to fumes form the unit below mine permeating my apartment, so I've turned to a couple of short stories that Tor released for free in EPUB format to round out my day.

[chvang · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's a germ of an idea, and a pretty good idea at that--though not much more than that.

[frkvinter · Rating 2 out of 5]

Dont really know what I was expecting from such a short story but, I dunno, it felt kind of pointless :/

[Sylvie Helen · Rating 3 out of 5]

This wasn't just short, it was short.

[S · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 stars. Interesting ideas but way too short to make a big impact.

[DOUGLAS J BERRY]

Short religious and sci fi story.

Suitable for teens and adults. A brief look at catastrophic communication between races. Not many sci fi stories deal with religious beliefs.

[Tell Tale Books · Rating 4 out of 5]

-Gregory Kerkman

[Eric · Rating 5 out of 5]

Stunning and terrific short story. Amazing really :)

[Amber · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed the concept of this but it was waaaaay too short. If it could have been fleshed out more I think it would have been a good one.

[mad mags · Rating 3 out of 5]

Too Short!

Sometime in the unspecified future, humans make contact with extraterrestrials: “The first SETI signal turned up not in a concerted search for messages, but at the Australian Fast Transients study that looked for variable stars.” Thus begins a multigenerational, excruciatingly slow exchange of information and ideas with an alien species that we humans nickname the “Hydrans” (for their physical similarity to earth-bound hydras). Naturally, the evangelical Christian community wants in on the action – particularly when it begins to suspect that these aliens might be (gasp!) atheists – and so a coalition of churches builds a seven billion dollar beacon in order to proselytize to these heathen, hive-minded extraterrestrials. Needless to say, things don’t go so well for the hapless Hydrans.

Benford plants the seed of what could be a very interesting story, yet it remains just that – a seed. “Grace Immaculate” is a very quick read, ending seemingly before it even begins. The ending is appropriately ambiguous, yet still quite unsatisfying. I’d really love to see this as either a longer short story or even a novella.

http://www.easyvegan.info/2014/10/14/...

[Eero · Rating 3 out of 5]

So Google is finally selling books in my country, and I found this extremely short free story while browsing their selection and used it to test the service.

It is a fast, fun, a bit satirical read about religion and interstellar contact. But in the end, it feels like a joke I am not getting. Perhaps the ambiguity is intentional: the kind of explanation I am imagining for the twist ending might not lead to a good story.

[Daniel Stephens · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun little story - liked the idea of examining religion from an alien angle, and the problem that having to wait centuries for replies to theological questions could render the mean it's coming back to a completely different society. The twist was OK, but I felt some deeper possibilities for the story may have been sacrificed for the sake of it.

[Maggie Gordon · Rating 3 out of 5]

Benford gives readers an interesting scenario regarding first contact, where our human individuality and understandings of religion and faith cause ruin for a species with no such concepts. I do have a complaint, however, and that is that the narrative was far too short to really savor what was going on, and the ending is quite ambiguous in an unsatisfying manner.

[Cody]

I chose not to rate this and only write a review as the story is only 8 pages long. I liked what I read but it reads like an outline or a recap of a book rather than a short story. All I can say is that I wish there was more.

[JM · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow. Just wow. It's been a while since I've read a short story that made me go "...and then WHAT HAPPENED?" but in a good way. The social focus of the sci-fi aspects is great. Highly recommended if you enjoyed books such as "Speaker for the Dead."

[Mandy Walkden-Brown · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not one of my favourite science fiction reads, but at least it was thought provoking.
The premise was good, I just didn't like where the story went very much.
Well written and I will try another story from this author.

[Robin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Stupid, stupid, stupid!

[Ally Web · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not to much to say about this story. It's confusing at first, and the ending felt incomplete.

[Roopkumar Balachandran · Rating 3 out of 5]

A short story from Timescape author!, satirical short story about religion and aliens. Kept me wondering what will happen next. And also to me the story appears incomplete.