Lisa Tuttle. MEMORIES OF THE BODY (Grafton, #5.99).

* FOR the feminist of the future, alimony can be a poor second to a

sharp dose of murder therapy on a wayward ex-hubby. Girls: why settle

for a monthly cheque when you can literally have his guts for garters?

The title tale of Lisa Tuttle's sci-fi feminist collection, Memories of

the Body, illustrates the danger of violent or perfectionist fantasies

as characters release pent-up frustrations on robotic mannequins of

their ex-lovers.

In 15 disturbing stories in which love fades, desire destroys, and men

and women continue to attract to their mutual peril, Tuttle lifts up the

bedsheets to examine the rifts and barriers between the sexes. Depending

on the behaviour of your current partner, it's either overplayed or

shrewdly accurate, yet from both points of view you can still enjoy her

dark humour. Food for thought, if sometimes hard to digest. --

S. McG.