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Now celebrating its tenth year of publication, THE 3RD ALTERNATIVE has become positively venerable. So what is it about this journal from the depths of the Cambridgeshire fens which accounts for its longevity? Two things really — quality and care. Both are amply demonstrated in this Spring issue.

Liz Williams, in her guest editorial, refers to a "secret commonwealth of genre", a sort of openly secret tradition of writers such as Joan Aiken and Alan Garner, whose work shaped the sensibilities of so many young readers. Some of those young readers go on to become writers, replenishing the tradition with work of the standard found here.

In all honesty, there isn't a duff one in this batch. Tim Pratt's TERRIBLE ONES is especially impressive, a tale of the Greek Furies living out their twilight years in San Francisco and an actress/part-time dominatrix with a stalker problem. It is both humorous and pertinent, with serious points about the fantasy/reality divide. Another Tim, Lees, delivers a poignant and beautifully written story of abandoned love, set on an Earth that has been visited and abandoned by star-travelling aliens.

Both of these stories indicate the strength of fiction on offer. There are floating cities, Kafka homages in the desert badlands, planetary militia armed with forgetfulness, and a world struggling to carry on as normal after a quiet Sunday morning apocalypse. Yet nowhere do these ideas overwhelm the characters or their relationships.

Add to that columnists with something to say, Ursula K. Le Guin holding forth in fine style, thoughtful and intelligent reviews, and marvellous graphics. The TTA Press seems committed to extending and enriching the secret commonwealth. Long may they continue to bring us THE 3RD ALTERNATIVE, and other possibilities.

This 67-page colour magazine filled with short fiction, interviews and reviews describes itself as a magazine containing,

Extraordinary new fiction, stunning artwork, reviews, and interviews, cinema features, provocative comment columns and much more.

the divide between science fiction/fantasy/horror and the non-genre

The magazine also includes an interview with author Russell Hoban, reflecting on his past and present works. This in-depth interview gives plenty of background information for those who are not familiar with the author.

The last few pages are dedicated to book reviews in a section written by Peter Tennant. Aside from reviews and short fiction, this issue also contains an article about the Japanese education system. John Paul Catton comments on the negative effects, which form a major part of the education's aim to preserve social harmony. This is an eye-opener and brings to light the problems, which arise when the idea of 'working together' is taken to mean 'being the same'. The article is well worth a read.

This magazine introduced me to genres, which I had turned my back on in the past. I never saw myself as the type of person who would enjoy science fiction or fantasy and THE 3RD ALTERNATIVE allowed me to reconsider my assumptions. It also allowed me to read about authors and issues, which I had never been aware of before. A brilliant magazine filled with interesting information and well-written stories.

A well-produced, glossy, high-quality horror and fantasy magazine, with six competent, if hardly rivetingly original, stories, and assorted articles.

THE BLACK PHONE by Joe Hill graphically tells the story of a young boy kidnapped by a mass-murdering fat slob and how he manages to escape through messages from one of the killer's former (dead) victims over the phone, which he then uses as a weapon to smash the fat slob to helpless bloody pulp.

A well-crafted though ultimately aimless story, FATHER GREGORI'S RELIC, by Susan Fry is set in the medieval Holy Land where a priest is looking to buy some sort of relic to take home to his parish church and thereby ensure his own fame, his own temporal after-life.

Jay Lake writes a story, DADDY'S CALIBAN, about a lost kingdom and such Tolkien-type fantasy. Other pieces include an interesting column on horror/ghost films by Stephen Volk; interviews with short-story writer Christopher Fowles and novelist David Peace; a number of reviews of books of this genre; and John Paul Catton writes a regular column on the dark side of Japanese culture and media.

There is also, quite bizarrely but interestingly, an article on the history and development of crisps.

All in all, a good read with an intriguing mix.

The first reading of this magazine is quite a shocking experience. Not for its top content but for the fact that there are very few adverts in it at all. Which for a magazine is quite refreshing indeed. Instead of turning your way through adverts for mobiles and mobile content before you get to the good stuff, in The Third Alternative you're there almost immediately. Pages and pages of short stories, reviews and the odd interview pack this Tenth Anniversary issue and, yes, it is certainly worth the few pounds from your pocket if alternative/horror/weird out here fiction is something that floats your boat.

If only all magazines were this packed! The Third Alternative then. Worth the cover charge and then some.