Preaching to the Choir by Adrian Tchaikovsky

Published by Solaris on August 11, 2026

Adrian Tchaikovsky created two earlier series of novellas that fall under the “Terrible Worlds” umbrella. Preaching to the Choir is the first of a three-part “Terrible Worlds: Transformations” series that explore the consequences of change. Each can be read as a standalone.

Preaching to the Choir is an old-fashioned horror story with a modern twist that takes a not-so-subtle shot at British aristocracy (and by extension, oligarchs and tech billionaires). Perhaps inspired by Ursula LeGuin’s “The Ones Who Walk Away” (a story to which the novella refers), this is the story of a gift that requires beneficiaries to make a moral choice. To accept the gift, they must inflict harsh consequences upon others to feed their power.

Elena Mendes is studying medicine at Johns Hopkins. Her boyfriend, Ross Enderbough Junior the Third, invites her to his family reunion in England. The Enderbough family is stinking rich, but they avoid the public limelight. They are the power behind the throne, the advisors and movers who get things done — things that benefit the wealthy — without seeking the kind of political power that might expose them to accountability.

The family is divided into three groups (they dine at separate tables): “old as balls,” middle-aged, and relatively young. They get together for a ritual reunion every 87 years for reasons that Ross and Elena come to understand as the story develops. Outsiders are not invited and the older and middle-aged members of the family are quite distressed that Ross invited Elena to tag along. Before her stay is over, Elena will learn the family’s secret.

The horror lies in the true nature of the Enderbough clan. I won’t spoil the surprise, but it explains the remarkable longevity and financial success of the family members.

Elena must eventually make a moral choice. Whether she will choose to benefit herself at the expense of innocent others or sacrifice power to preserve her good conscience is for the reader to learn.

I always enjoy Adrian Tchaikovsky’s storytelling ability. This novella is less creative than much of his science fiction has been, perhaps because he adheres to the conventions of horror stories. For that reason, I didn’t find it to be particularly frightening. I nevertheless appreciated Tchaikovsky’s view of aristocratic power as founded in greed by people who give little thought to the harm they cause to others. That, after all, is the true horror.

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