"I could well imagine him to be an ancient prince."

The Spring On Spec has finally arrived, with nice pieces from Jack Skillingstead and Tony Pi...Pi's "Come-From-Aways" is about a linguistics professor in Newfoundland who risks her career - and eventually much more - when she decides that a strange shipwrecked man is really the 11th century Welsh Prince Madoc. -- Rich Horton, LOCUS Magazine (July 2009)

My favorite [On Spec] story this year was Tony Pi's "Come-From-Aways" (Spring), about a linguistics professor in Newfoundland who risks her career when she decides that a strange shipwrecked man is really the 11th Century Welsh Prince Madoc. -- Rich Horton, 2009 yearly summaries

My favourite piece in the Spring 2009 issue was Tony Pi's "Come-From-Aways" about a Viking ship that washes up in a Newfoundland harbour with a single survivor on board. Tony Pi, a linguist by profession, handles the technical material well without swamping the reader, and the ending is up-beat and satisfying. -- James Doig, Horrorscope

'Come-From-Aways' is an enjoyable yarn by Tony Pi in which a Viking long-boat washes up in Newfoundland and a forensic linguist tries to identify the origins of the only survivor on board. The insight into linguistics and the glimpses of local history and culture are fascinating. Is the mariner a prankster or has he really travelled through time? As the story develops and with it the possibilities that the voyager's arrival suggests, the story takes on a marvellous spirit of adventure culminating in an endearing and satisfying conclusion. -- Gareth D. Jones, SF Crowsnest

Favourite Stories of 2009...Come-From-Aways by Tony Pi -- Gareth D. Jones, The Science of Fiction

The Year's Best SF and Fantasy, 2010 Recommended Reading

"Dusk is the time for dangerous tales."

Wrenching story about choices and those we inflict them on. -- Jude-Marie Green, Abyss & Apex blog

"My weariness fled when he mentioned the word. 'A living sphinx? But they're extinct!'"

In Ages of Wonder, Tony Pi's "Sphinx!" is a delight, set in a quite alternate history, in which the land of Ys is threatened by a sphinx that a film maker has apparently revived for a new movie. But other things are going on - most notably, perhaps, the jealousy of the movie's director about his young wife, the movie's star. -- Rich Horton, LOCUS Magazine (April 2009)

Pi and Tirone in particular offer more than an easy tweaking of well-known conventions, Pi providing some of the most impressive world-creation in the volume... -- Nader Elhefnawy, Strange Horizons

Tony Pi...managed to catch me for good with his text "Sphinx!"...I liked the interesting combination of the Sphinx magic with the power of the riddles...Funny and thoroughly enjoyable. -- Liviu Suciu, Bogdan Lascu, Adrian Craciun, Fantasy Book Critic

"So, Stilt Knight, you wish to be a Worldstrider? If so, chase me, chase your dream, but I will not make this an easy road. A strider's strength is as much his soul as it is his body."

"What is your name, old man?" she asked. "Why does the mob take pleasure in your death?"

In the case of the current issue, its first story is one of the strongest. "Aesop's Last Fable" by Tony Pi uses Aesop's death as a launching point for a tale that pits the Greek storyteller against the legendary Sphinx...While I generally lack enthusiasm for reworked Greek mythology, this story won me over by being well-told and delivering exactly what it promises...a compact and enjoyable read. -- Dan Alamia, The Fix Online

More good stuff from the colonies. 'Aesop's Last Fable' by Tony Pi is an untold ancient Greek story about Aesop's death, based on fact and his afterlife, which is not so well documented...This is quite good fun. -- Eamonn Murphy, SF Crowsnest

"I only wanted to ransom it for power, to speed us to our success. Is that so wrong?"

My favorite stories included...Tony Pi's "Come Frost, Sun, and Vine", a story with a Russian fairy tale flavor, about three brothers who each woo the Tsar's daughter. -- Richard Horton, Year End Summaries 2008

In Tony Pi's "Come Frost, Sun, and Vine," three brothers bury their mother and set off on a journey where they happen across the swan maidens...Pi's writing of mythos has a smooth and engaging appeal. While not this reader's favorite story of Pi's, this story may appeal to readers who enjoy a classic magical setting. The choices that these three brothers make along the way provide a backdrop for reader reflection and resonance. -- Rae Bryant, The Fix Online

"It was the same the world over: statues' mouths spoke a hidden message. But what? That was the mystery of the Stone Cipher."

Those looking for a new group of classic, hard science fiction writers need look no further than the latest volume of Galaxy's always-reliable original anthology series...13 quality stories by relative newcomers touched with imagination and inventive plotting. The standout is Jeff Carlson's "The Frozen Sky,"...but several others will linger in the reader's mind. Fresh names worth watching include Tony Pi, who presents a chilling story of the world's end...While readers will relish these short pieces, many of the ideas explored in them would likely work well in a longer format, auguring well for the future of these talented up-and-comers. -- Publishers Weekly

Tony Pi's "The Stone Cipher" has a new and brilliant idea: all the statues in the world simultaneously begin speaking, and the story surrounds a linguist, Pierre, and his wife, Marie-Claire, who are trying to figure out what the statues are saying...Pi's story has a fantastical central premise... -- D.G.D. Davidson, The Sci Fi Catholic

Imagine that all the statues started talking...Tony Pi's "The Stone Cipher" is a thought provoking story. -- Barry Hunter, Baryon Online 106

Tony Pi sums up the premise of "The Stone Cipher" with, "What if the whole history of human sculpture has been a conversation between the planet and humanity?"...The religious aspects are handled well, neutrally, and the story itself leaves the reader with a feeling of both damnation and potential hope. -- Michele Lee, The Fix Online

...overall the stories are quite enjoyable...I really enjoyed reading it, I think because there is a sense of freshness to things, a sense of writers trying new things - perhaps because they are new writers! I'll briefly mention some highlights...Tony Pi's "The Stone Cipher" has one of the wildest ideas: statues around the world begin to move, apparently in unison, but very slowly...All in all, this is a very fine showcase for some promising work by some promising new writers. -- Richard Horton, LOCUS Magazine

This is the first volume of Writers of the Future that I've read (heard) cover-to-cover, and there wasn't a weak story in the lot....Two stories really stood out to me. In "The Stone Cipher" by Tony Pi (read by Stefan Rudnicki), every stone statue in the word starts to speak, in unison, silently and very slowly...the payoff is well worth the time. Rudnicki gives the story just the right ominous tone. -- Scott D. Danielson, The Fix Online (Audiobook Fix)

This is well written with rich characters and a powerful story. I wanted to know more, but I understand why the author ended it where he did. -- Jennifer Dawson, Flash Me Magazine

Second Place in the Writers of the Future Contest, Q1, 2006.

"I yearn to fly free and race the wind, but I cannot. I am trapped, as are my brethren, tied to a children's ride. We must wait until our Riders free us so we may hunt the siren songs that feed off death."

My favorite stories included...Tony Pi's "The Pinocchio Cantatas", about a living carousel animal. -- Richard Horton, sff.people.richard-horton

...The imagery of this surreal fantasy engages deeply...Mitch, Chivaree's rider, is sympathetic, and he is intriguingly used in a subplot that explores choices and change. "The Pinocchio Cantatas" is recommended for fantasy readers who like dark elements without a dark ending. -- Rae Bryant, The Fix Online

"But here in the city, was I a pawn: limited, vulnerable, dime-a-dozen? Almost an unworkable choice, save that a pawn masked its true potential."

There is this beautiful goddess. She is looking for her immortal love. She wants it to be you. All you have to do is let her give you the powers of a god of war...It's very well written...It has the seeds to be a work of mythic passion...interesting, worth reading... -- Paul J. Iutzi, Tangent Online

"I would have gladly lingered in that simple dream, save that a man's cry and the tang of blood roused me. I woke to scales instead of skin, snakes instead of hair, and fresh blood on my viper-tongues."

Companion piece to Zeno's Last Paradox.

"When you loathe your skin and bones, be bold"

Honorable Mention in The Year's Best Fantasy & Horror 2006.