The Best Science Fiction and Fantasy of the Year: Volume Nine
Page 69
“– but you’ll be part of the legend.”
“Yep.”
“Okay, then. I accept the mission.” Corry turned and kissed Anna on the cheek.
“You’ll take us to the stars?”
“You bet.” She slipped the disc into her pocket. “It’s getting late.”
She stood up and reached to help Anna to her feet. ”C’mon. Let’s ride.”
COPYRIGHT
Selection and “Introduction” by Jonathan Strahan. Copyright © 2015 by Jonathan Strahan.
“Tough Times All Over” by Joe Abercrombie. © Copyright 2014 Joe Abercrombie. Originally published in Rogues. Reprinted by kind permission of the author.
“The Scrivener” by Eleanor Arnason. © Copyright 2014 Eleanor Arnason. Originally published in Subterranean Magazine, Winter 2014. Reprinted by kind permission of the author.
“Moriabe’s Children” by Paolo Bacigalupi. © Copyright 2014 Paolo Bacigalupi. Originally published in Monstrous Affections. Reprinted by kind permission of the author.
“Covenant” by Elizabeth Bear. © Copyright 2014 Elizabeth Bear. Originally published in Hieroglyph: Stories & Visions for a Better Future. Reprinted by kind permission of the author.
“Slipping” by Lauren Beukes. © Copyright 2014 Lauren Beukes. Originally published in Twelve Tomorrows: MIT Technology Review SF Annual 2014. Reprinted by kind permission of the author.
“Ten Rules for Being an Intergalactic Smuggler (The Successful Kind)” by Holly Black. © Copyright 2014 Holly Black. Originally published in Monstrous Affections. Reprinted by kind permission of the author.
“Shadow Flock” by Greg Egan. © Copyright 2014 Greg Egan. Originally published in Coming Soon Enough. Reprinted by kind permission of the author.
“The Truth About Owls” by Amal El-Mohtar. © Copyright 2014 Amal ElMohtar. Originally published in Kaleidoscope. Reprinted by kind permission of the author.
“Cimmeria: From the Journal of Imaginary Anthropology” by Theodora Goss. © Copyright 2014 Theodora Goss. Originally published in Lightspeed, July 14. Reprinted by kind permission of the author.
“Cold Wind” by Nicola Griffith. © Copyright 2014 Nicola Griffith. Originally published in Tor.com, 16/4/2014. Reprinted by kind permission of the author.
“Someday” by James Patrick Kelly. © Copyright 2014 James Patrick Kelly. Originally published in Asimov’s Science Fiction, April-May 2014. Reprinted by kind permission of the author.
“Interstate Love Song (Murder Ballad No.8)” by Caitlín R. Kiernan. © Copyright 2014 Caitlin R Kiernan. Originally published in Sirenia Digest #100, May 2014. Reprinted by kind permission of the author.
“Mothers, Lock Up Your Daughters Because They are Terrifying” by Alice Sola Kim. © Copyright 2014 Alice Sola Kim. Originally published in Tin House #61. Reprinted by kind permission of the author.
“Amicae Aeternum” by Ellen Klages. © Copyright 2014 Ellen Klages. Originally published in Reach for Infinity. Reprinted by kind permission of the author.
“Caligo Lane” by Ellen Klages. © Copyright 2014 Ellen Klages. Originally published in Subterranean Magazine, Winter 2014. Reprinted by kind permission of the author.
“The Lady and the Fox” by Kelly Link. © Copyright 2014 Kelly Link. Originally published in My True Love Gave to Me. Reprinted by kind permission of the author.
“The LONG HAUL From the ANNALS OF TRANSPORTATION, The Pacific Monthly, May 2009” by Ken Liu. © Copyright 2014 Ken Liu. Originally published in Clarkesworld, November 2014. Reprinted by kind permission of the author.
“The Vaporization Enthalpy of a Peculiar Pakistani Family” by Usman T. Malik. © Copyright 2014 Usman T Malik. Originally published in Qualia Nous. Reprinted by kind permission of the author.
“Four Days of Christmas” by Tim Maughan. © Copyright 2014 Tim Maughan. Originally published in Terraform, December 2014. Reprinted by kind permission of the author.
“The Fifth Dragon” by Ian McDonald. © Copyright 2014 Ian McDonald. Originally published in Reach for Infinity. Reprinted by kind permission of the author.
“Shay Corsham Worsted” by Garth Nix. © Copyright 2014 Garth Nix. Originally published in Fearful Symmetries. Reprinted by kind permission of the author.
“I Met a Man Who Wasn’t There” by K. J. Parker. © Copyright 2014 K. J. Parker. Originally published in Subterranean Magazine, Winter 2014. Reprinted by kind permission of the author.
“Kheldyu” by Karl Schroeder. © Copyright 2014 Karl Schroeder. Originally published in Reach for Infinity. Reprinted by kind permission of the author.
“Tawny Petticoats” by Michael Swanwick. © Copyright 2014 Michael Swanwick. Originally published in Rogues. Reprinted by kind permission of the author.
“Grand Jeté (The Great Leap)” by Rachel Swirsky. © Copyright 2014 Rachel Swirsky. Originally published in Subterranean Magazine, Summer 2014. Reprinted by kind permission of the author.
“The Insects of Love” by Genevieve Valentine. © Copyright 2014 Genevieve Valentine. Originally published in Tor.com, 28/5/2014. Reprinted by kind permission of the author.
“Collateral” by Peter Watts. © Copyright 2014 Peter Watts. Originally published in Upgraded. Reprinted by kind permission of the author.
“The Devil in America” by Kai Ashante Wilson. © Copyright 2014 Kai Ashante Wilson. Originally published in Tor.com, 2/4/2014. Reprinted by kind permission of the author.
ALSO FROM
SOLARIS
The universe shifts and changes: suddenly you understand, you get it, and are filled with wonder. That moment of understanding drives the greatest science-fiction stories and lies at the heart of Engineering Infinity. Whether it's coming up hard against the speed of light - and, with it, the enormity of the universe - realising that terraforming a distant world is harder and more dangerous than you'd ever thought, or simply realizing that a hitchhiker on a starship consumes fuel and oxygen with tragic results, it's hard science-fiction where a sense of discovery is most often found and where science-fiction's true heart lies.
This exciting and innovative science-fiction anthology collects together stories by some of the biggest names in the field, including Gwyneth Jones, Stephen Baxter and Charles Stross.
www.solarisbooks.com
ONE GIANT LEAP FOR MANKIND
Those were Neil Armstrong’s immortal words when he became the first human being to step onto another world. All at once, the horizon expanded; the human race was no longer Earthbound.
Edge of Infinity is an exhilarating new SF anthology that looks at the next giant leap for humankind: the leap from our home world out into the Solar System. From the eerie transformations in Pat Cadigan’s “The Girl-Thing Who Went Out for Sushi” to the frontier spirit of Sandra McDonald and Stephen D. Covey’s “The Road to NPS,” and from the grandiose vision of Alastair Reynolds’ “Vainglory” to the workaday familiarity of Kristine Kathryn Rusch’s “Safety Tests,” the thirteen stories in this anthology span the whole of the human condition in their race to colonise Earth’s nearest neighbours.
Featuring stories by Hannu Rajaniemi, Alastair Reynolds, James S. A. Corey, John Barnes, Stephen Baxter, Kristine Kathryn Rusch, Elizabeth Bear, Pat Cadigan, Gwyneth Jones, Paul McAuley, Sandra McDonald, Stephen D. Covey, An Owomoyela, and Bruce Sterling, Edge of Infinity is hard SF adventure at its best and most exhilarating.
‘A strong collection of stories that readers of science fiction will certainly enjoy.’
Locus Magazine
‘Stands as a solid and at times striking contribution to “the ongoing discussion about what science fiction is in the 21st century.”’
The Speculative Scotsman
‘If you want science fiction, rather than space opera, this is for you.’
Total SciFi Online
www.solarisbooks.com
HUMANITY AMONG THE STARS
What happens when we reach out into the vastness of space? What hope for us amongst the stars?
Multi-award winning editor J
onathan Strahan brings us fourteen new tales of the future, from some of the finest science fiction writers in the field.
The fourteen startling stories in this anthology feature the work of Greg Egan, Aliette de Bodard, Ian McDonald, Karl Schroeder, Pat Cadigan, Karen Lord, Ellen Klages, Adam Roberts, Linda Nagata, Hannu Rajaniemi, Kathleen Ann Goonan, Ken MacLeod, Alastair Reynolds and Peter Watts.
“A strong collection of stories that readers of science fiction will certainly enjoy.”
Locus Magazine on Engineering Infinity
“One of the year’s most exciting anthologies.”
io9 on Edge of Infinity
www.solarisbooks.com
Solaris Rising presents nineteen stories of the very highest calibre from some of the most accomplished authors in the genre, proving just how varied and dynamic science fiction can be. From strange goings on in the present to explorations of bizarre futures, from drug-induced tragedy to time-hopping serial killers, from crucial choices in deepest space to a ravaged Earth under alien thrall, from gritty other worlds to surreal other realms, Solaris Rising delivers a broad spectrum of experiences and excitements, showcasing the genre at its very best.
‘What, then, are Solaris publishing? On the basis of this anthology, quite a wide-ranging selection of SF, some of it very good indeed.’
– SF Site on The Solaris Book of New Science Fiction
‘A cliché it may be, but there really is something for everyone here... an ideal bait to tempt those who only read novels to climb over the short fiction fence.’
– Interzone on The Solaris Book of New Science Fiction, Vol. 2
‘The stories presented in this latest volume are intended to showcase the diverse nature of science fiction. Does it succeed? Absolutely.’
– SF Signal on The Solaris Book of New Science Fiction, Vol. 3
www.solarisbooks.com
An anthology of nine short stories from some of the most exciting names in science fiction today. From both sides of the Atlantic - and further afield - these nine great writers offer you everything from a mystery about the nature of the universe to an inexplicable transmission to everyone on Earth, and from engineered giant spiders to Venetian palaces in space.
So settle in, and enjoy yet more proof of the extraordinary breadth and depth of contemporary SF. Featuring Adam Roberts, Aliette de Bodard, Gareth L. Powell, Mike Resnick, Sarah Lotz, Phillip Vine, Tanith Lee, Paul Cornell, Paul di Filippo
“**** A well-presented buffet of tasty snacks.”
– SFX on Solaris Rising
“Essential reading.”
– BBC Focus Magazine on Solaris Rising
“One of the three or four best SF anthologies published this year.”
– Gardner Dozis, Locus on Solaris Rising
www.solarisbooks.com
Solaris Rising 2 showcases the finest new science fiction from both celebrated authors and the most exciting of emerging writers. Following in the footsteps of the critically-acclaimed first volume, editor Ian Whates has once again gathered together a plethora of thrilling and daring talent. Within you will find unexplored frontiers as well as many of the central themes of the genre – alien worlds, time travel, artificial intelligence – made entirely new in the telling. The authors here prove once again why SF continues to be the most innovative, satisfying, and downright exciting genre of all.
www.solarisbooks.com
Award-nominated editor Ian Whates showcases the best in contemporary science fiction, celebrating new writing by a roster of diverse and exciting authors. Here you will discover how this ‘literature of ideas’ produces stories of astonishing imagination and incisive speculation.
Solaris Rising 3 thrillingly demonstrates why science fiction is the most relevant, daring and progressive of genres.
So settle in, and enjoy yet more proof of the extraordinary breadth and depth of contemporary SF.
www.solarisbooks.com