His powerful dark fantasy, The Physiognomy, was a New York Times Notable Book of the Year; his novel, The Girl in the Glass, won the Edgar® Award, mystery and crime fiction’s most prestigious prize. Crackpot Palace is Ford’s fourth superb collection of short fiction, and in it, his prodigious talent shines as brightly as ever. Here are twenty tales both strange and wonderful, filled with mad scientists, vampires, lost souls, and Native American secrets, from an author who has been glowingly compared to Kafka, Dante, and Caleb Carr (The Alienist).

    Each short story cultivates a whimsical sense of imagination and reveals a mature, darker voice than previously experienced from this legendary author. In one tale the Angel of Death enjoys newfound celebrity while moonlighting as an anchorman on the network news, while in another the shortsighted ruler of a gentle realm betrays himself in dreaming of a "manageable war." Further storylines include an American librarian who discovers that, much to his surprise and sadness, he is the last living Frenchman, and rivals in a supernatural battle who decide to forgo pistols at dawn, choosing instead to duel with dramatic recitations of terrible poetry. Featuring several previously unpublished stories alongside a bevy of recently released works, this haunting compilation is appealing to both genre readers and mainstream literature lovers.Includes "By Moonlight," Locus Award-winner for Best Novelette.

    Wells's Morlocks, and learn what really happens when aliens beam us the Encyclopedia Galactica.Contents9 • Intro (2008) essay 13 • Identity Theft • (2005) novella79 • Come All Ye Faithful (2003) 95 • Immortality (2003) 105 • Shed Skin (2002)127 • The Stanley Cup Caper (2003)131 • On the Surface • [H. G. Wells' Time Machine Universe]• (2003)143 • The Eagle Has Landed (2005) 151 • Mikeys (2004)165 • The Good Doctor (1989) 167 • Ineluctable (2002) • novelette205 • Kata Bindu (2004) 219 • Driving a Bargain (2002) 235 • Flashes (2006) 251 • Relativity (2003) 261 • Biding Time (2006) 279 • E-Mails from the Future (2008)

    Lovecraft’s Cthulhu mythos is explored and reinvented in style in “Down and Out in R’lyeh.” In the novelette “The Limitless Perspective of Master Peek, or, the Luminescence of Debauchery,” Perpetua masquerades as a man in order to continue her father’s business as a glassblower and must fashion a special eye for a queen. And in “The Beasts Who Fought for Fairyland Until the Very End,” the wyvern A-Through-L, the warrior Green Wind and his giant cat the Leopard of Little Breezes cope with their broken-hearted disappointment over politicks as the evil Marquess ascends to rule. Of her previous collection, The Bread We Eat in Dreams, the New York Times said, “Valente’s writing DNA is full of fable, fairy tale and myth drawn from deep wells worldwide.” With The Future Is Blue she continues to build and invent unforgettable worlds and characters with lyrical abandon, creating stories that feel old and new at once.The Future is Blue also includes three never-before-printed stories, for almost 30,000 words of work exclusive to this collection: “Major Tom,” “Two and Two is Seven,” and the long novelette “Flame, Pearl, Mother, Autumn, Virgin, Sword, Kiss, Blood, Heart, and Grave.”Limited: 1250 signed numbered hardcover copiesTable of Contents:The Future Is BlueNo One Dies in NowhereTwo and Two is SevenDown and Out in R'lyehThe Limitless Perspective of Master Peek, or, the Luminescence of DebaucherySnow DayPlanet LionFlame, Pearl, Mother, Autumn, Virgin, Sword, Kiss, Blood, Heart, and GraveMajor TomThe Lily and the HornThe Flame After the CandleThe Long Goodnight of Violet WildThe Beast Who Fought for Fairyland Until the Very End

    From Cixin Liu, the New York Times bestselling author of The Three-Body Problem, To Hold Up the Sky is a breathtaking collection of imaginative science fiction.Stories included are:The Village TeacherThe Time Migration2018-04-01Fire In The EarthContractionMirrorOde To JoyFull Spectrum Barrage JammingSea of DreamsCloud of PoemsThe Thinker

    This second volume of The Year's Best Science Fiction and Fantasy features over a quarter million words of fiction by some of the genre's greatest authors, as selected by Rich Horton, a well-known and well-received contributor to many of the field's most respected magazines.

    Now, for the first time, all of his short fiction has been collected in one volume, demonstrating the scope, the vision, and the wonder of one of America's greatest storytellers. Courage and achievement are celebrated and questioned, paradoxes examined, and human frailty appreciated in fifteen tales, at once lyrical and provocative, ranging fromthe fantastic to the achingly real. Be it a tale of an expulsion from Eden, a journey through time, the dreams of a failed writer, ora dead woman's ambiguous legacy, each story in Novelties & Souvenirs is a glorious reading experience, offering delights to be savored ... and remembered.Contents:Antiquities (1977)Her Bounty to the Dead (1978)The Reason for the Visit (1980)The Green Child (1981)Novelty (1983)Snow (1985)The Nightingale Sings at Night (1989)Great Work of Time (1989)In Blue (1989)Missolonghi 1824 (1990)Exogamy (1993)Lost and Abandoned (1993)Gone (1996)An Earthly Mother Sits and Sings (2000)The War between the Objects and the Subjects (2002)

    With "Year's Best SF 17, " acclaimed, award-winning editors and anthologists David G. Hartwell and Kathryn Cramer demonstrate the amazing depth and power of contemporary speculative fiction, showcasing astonishing stories from some of the genre's most respected names as well as exciting new writers to watch. Prepare to travel light years from the ordinary into a tomorrow at once breathtaking, frightening, and possible, with tales of wonder from: Elizabeth Bear Gregory Benford Neil Gaiman Nancy Kress Michael Swanwick and others.Contentsxi • Introduction (Year's Best SF 17) • essay by David G. Hartwell and Kathryn Cramer1 • The Best Science Fiction of the Year Three • (2011) • shortfiction by Ken MacLeod16 • Dolly • (2011) • shortstory by Elizabeth Bear34 • Altogether Elsewhere, Vast Herds of Reindeer • (2011) • shortstory by Ken Liu48 • Tethered • (2011) • shortfiction by Mercurio D. Rivera73 • Wahala • (2011) • shortfiction by Nnedi Okorafor96 • Laika's Ghost • (2011) • novelette by Karl Schroeder128 • Ragnarok • (2011) • poem by Paul Park140 • Six Months, Three Days • (2011) • novelette by Charlie Anders [as by Charlie Jane Anders ]163 • "And Weep Like Alexander" • (2011) • shortfiction by Neil Gaiman169 • The Middle of Somewhere • (2011) • shortfiction by Judith Moffett195 • Mercies • (2011) • novelette by Gregory Benford220 • The Education of Junior Number 12 • [Machine Dynasties] • (2011) • shortfiction by Madeline Ashby246 • Our Candidate • (2011) • shortstory by Robert Reed261 • Thick Water • (2011) • shortfiction by Karen Heuler281 • The War Artist • (2011) • shortstory by Tony Ballantyne294 • The Master of the Aviary • (2011) • shortfiction by Bruce Sterling323 • Home Sweet Bi'ome • (2011) • novelette by Pat MacEwen346 • For I Have Lain Me Down on the Stone of Loneliness and I'll Not Be Back Again • (2011) • shortstory by Michael Swanwick364 • The Ki-anna • (2011) • novelette by Gwyneth Jones388 • Eliot Wrote • (2011) • shortstory by Nancy Kress403 • The Nearest Thing • (2011) • novelette by Genevieve Valentine430 • A Vector Alphabet of Interstellar Travel • (2011) • shortstory by Yoon Ha Lee438 • The Ice Owl • (2011) • novella by Carolyn Ives Gilman

    Original tales by such science fiction luminaries as Orson Scott Card, Harry Turtledove, and Connie Willis, written in honor of Isaac Asimov's fiftieth anniversary in the genre, are set in one of his fictional universes.

    The editor, selected by SFWA's anthology Committee (chaired by Mike Resnick), is Jane Yolen, an author of children's books, fantasy, and science fiction. This year's Nebula Award winners are Charlie Jane Anders, Seanan McGuire, William Ledbetter, Amal El-Mohtar, and Eric Heisserer, with David D. Levine winning the Andre Norton Award for Young Adult Science Fiction and Fantasy Book.

    Martin’s Introduction to Warriors:“People have been telling stories about warriors for as long as they have been telling stories. Since Homer first sang the wrath of Achilles and the ancient Sumerians set down their tales of Gilgamesh, warriors, soldiers, and fighters have fascinated us; they are a part of every culture, every literary tradition, every genre. All Quiet on the Western Front, From Here to Eternity, and The Red Badge of Courage have become part of our literary canon, taught in classrooms all around the country and the world.Our contributors make up an all-star lineup of award-winning and bestselling writers, representing a dozen different publishers and as many genres. We asked each of them for the same thing — a story about a warrior. Some chose to write in the genre they’re best known for. Some decided to try something different. You will find warriors of every shape, size, and color in these pages, warriors from every epoch of human history, from yesterday and today and tomorrow, and from worlds that never were. Some of the stories will make you sad, some will make you laugh, and many will keep you on the edge of your seat.” Every story in this volume appears hre for the first time. Included are a long novella from the world of Song of Ice and Fire by George R.R. Martin, a new tale of Lord John by Diana Gabaldon, an Emberverse story by S.M. Stirling, a Forever Peace sory by Joe Haldeman, and a long story of humanity at bay by David Weber. Also present are original tales by David Ball, Peter S. Beagle, Lawrence Block, Gardner Dozois, Robin Hobb, Cecelia Holland, Joe R. Lansdale, David Morrell, Naomi Novik, James Rollins, Steven Saylor, Robert Silverberg, Carrie Vaughn, Howard Waldrop, and Tad Williams.Many of these writers are bestsellers. All of them are storytellers of the highest quality. Together they make a volume of unforgettable reading.Contents:- Introduction: Stories from the Spinner Rack by George R.R. Martin- The King of Norway by Cecelia Holland- Forever Bound by Joe Haldeman- The Triumph by Robin Hobb- Clean Slate by Lawrence Block- And Ministers of Grace by Tad Williams- Soldierin' by Joe R. Lansdale- Dirae by Peter S. Beagle- The Custom of the Army by Diana Gabaldon- Seven Years from Home by Naomi Novik- The Eagle and the Rabbit by Steven Saylor- The Pit by James Rollins- Out of the Dark by David Weber- The Girls from Avenger by Carrie Vaughn- Ancient Ways by S.M. Stirling- Ninieslando by Howard Waldrop- Recidivist by Gardner Dozois- My Name is Legion by David Morrell- Defenders of the Frontier by Robert Silverberg- The Scroll by David Ball- The Mystery Knight: A Tale of the Seven Kingdoms by George R.R. Martin

    Many of these characters live in a utopian future of instant connection and technological gratification that belies an unbridgeable human distance, while others inhabit a post-collapse landscape made primitive by disaster, which they must work to rebuild as we once did millennia ago.In “The Cartographers,” the main character works for a company that creates and sells virtual memories, while struggling to maintain a real-world relationship sabotaged by an addiction to his own creations. In “Saying Goodbye to Yang,” the robotic brother of an adopted Chinese child malfunctions, and only in his absence does the family realize how real a son he has become.Children of the New World grapples with our unease in this modern world and how our ever-growing dependence on new technologies has changed the shape of our society. Alexander Weinstein is a visionary new voice in speculative fiction for all of us who are fascinated by and terrified of what we might find on the horizon.

    We had beaten the common cold. But in doing so we created something new, something terrible that no one could stop. The infection spread, a man-made virus taking over bodies and minds, filling them with one, unstoppable command...FEED.Countdown"Everglades"San Diego 2014: The Last Stand of the California BrowncoatsHow Green This Land, How Blue This SeaThe Day the Dead Came to Show and TellPlease Do Not Taunt the OctopusAll the Pretty Little HorsesComing to You Live

    An overview of the best science fiction short stories of the 20th century as selected and evaluated by critically-acclaimed author Orson Scott Card.

    For all its denizens, from technocrats to terrorists, celebs to crooks, "Futureland" is an all-American nightmare just waiting to happen.