Reviews of 'Golden Touch'

 

Celestial Reviews 375 -- Nov 18, 2000

"The Golden Touch" by Vickie Morgan (artemis55@hotmail.com).

One of the problems with magic is that its rules are ill defined.

I recall, when I was much younger, overhearing some teenage boys discussing King Midas. The discussion was gross. "What if he touched himself? Would he turn to gold?" "Of course not. You're touching yourself, even when you're not touching yourself." "How about his shit? Would he shit golden crap?" "Well, I guess so?" "But if he didn't -- if the crap stayed crap -- would the water in the toilet bowl turn to gold?"

The present story deals with the more post-pubescent problem of what King Midas would have done for sex. The Young Philosopher whom I quoted above would suggest that the King could jerk off without turning his tool to gold; but the problem remains that his partner would turn to gold -- and thus lose value in one sense, while gaining in another. In the story, the prostitute is charged with the task of giving pleasure to King Midas, while trying to maintain her continued (non-goldenized) existence.

This is an interesting idea. Ariadne approaches the problem one way in this story. I suspect there are many other possibilities; and if I were a contest-announcing person, I would challenge other authors to explore this problem.

Ratings for "The Golden Touch"
Athena (technical quality): 10
Venus (plot & character): 10
Celeste (appeal to reviewer): 10