A massive invasion fleet suddenly appears off the corner of the solar system, headed towards Earth. The nearest patrol ship is sent to investigate, with little chance of survival.

    This artfully assembled anthology of original fiction, nonfiction, and art can serve as an introduction to the Steampunk culture or provide dedicated fans with more fuel. Stories of outlandishly imaginative technologies, clockwork contraptions, eccentric heroines, and mad scientists are complemented by canon-defining nonfiction and an array of original illustrations. This collection showcases the most sensational Steampunk talents of the last decade, including Daniel Abraham, John Coulthart, William Gibson, and Margo Lanagan, and demonstrates exactly why the future of the past is so excitingly new.ContentsIntroduction: “What Is Steampunk?” by Jeff and Ann VanderMeer“The Cast Iron Kid” by Andrew Knighton“The Steam Dancer (1896)” by Caitlín R. Kiernan“The Anachronist’s Cookbook” by Catherynne M. Valente“Tanglefoot” by Cherie Priest“O One” by Chris Roberson“Balfour and Meriwether in the Adventure of the Emperor’s Vengeance” by Daniel Abraham“The Bold Explorer in the Place Beyond” by David Erik Nelson“The Strange Case of Mr. Salad Monday” by Geoffery D. Falksen“At the Intersection of Technology and Romance” by Jake von Slatt“The Future of Steampunk: A Roundtable Interview” by Jeff and Ann VanderMeer“Dr. Lash Remembers” by Jeffrey Ford“Lost Pages From The Encyclopdia of Victoriana” by Jess Nevins“As Recorded on Brass Cylinders: Adagio for Two Dancers” by Lisa Mantchev“A Serpent in the Gears” by Margaret Ronald“Machine Maid” by Margo Lanagan“Which Is Mightier, the Pen or the Parasol?” by Gail Carriger“The Unbecoming of Virgil Smythe” by Ramsey Shehadeh“Wild Copper” by Samantha Henderson“The Mechanical Aviary of Emperor Jalal-ud-din Muhammad Akbar” by Shweta Narayan“The Unblinking Eye” by Stephen Baxter“Lovelace & Babbage” by Sydney Padua“The Persecution Machine” by Tanith Lee“Flying Fish (Prometheus)” by Vilhelm Bergsøe“The Gernsback Continuum” by William Gibson

    It is not an easy task, for many dangers threaten the bridge builders, from nomad raiders to Free Magic sorcerers. Despite the danger, Morghan wants nothing more than to join the Bridge Company as a cadet. But the company takes only the best, the most skillful Charter mages, and trains them hard, for the night might come when only a single young cadet must hold the bridge against many foes. Will Morghan be that cadet?Also included in this collection are eighteen short stories that showcase Nix’s versatility as he adds a fantastical twist on an array of genres including science fiction, paranormal, realistic fiction, mystery, and adventure.

    Exotic beasts and improbable travelers roam restlessly through these darkly diverting and finely honed tales.In “The Situation,” a beleaguered office worker creates a child-swallowing manta-ray to be used for educational purposes (once described as Dilbert meets Gormenghast). In “Three Days in a Border Town,” a sharpshooter seeks the truth about her husband in an elusive floating city beyond a far-future horizon; “Errata” follows an oddly familiar writer who has marshaled a penguin, a shaman, and two pearl-handled pistols with which to plot the end of the world. Also included are two stories original to this collection, including “The Quickening,” in which a lonely child is torn between familial obligation and loyalty to a maligned talking rabbit.Chimerical and hypnotic, VanderMeer leads readers through the postmodern into a new literature of the imagination.

    Rapid expansion into habitable worlds brings immense prosperity and a new age of exploration unlike any humanity has seen. WAR Conflicts over control of the colonial worlds spawn a massive, generation-long war among humans. Under a shaky armistice, humanity has just begun to crawl out of the shadows of destruction, but suspicion and bitter hostility run deep. INVASION On a rocky, desolate planet, a small band of gold prospectors find themselves making a discovery they never expected—valuable and powerful relics of the galaxy's deep past. The prospectors also discover a hostile alien species, ruthless beings who do not tolerate humans and wipe them out on sight. Humanity's first contact with intelligent aliens becomes a war for survival. The invasion has begun...but the beginning of the invasion is also the beginning of the resistance. "Resistance is a terrific space opera adventure. It combines mystery, heart-pounding action, and a good dose of humor. It's Aliens meets Tremors. I can't wait to read the sequel." -Daniel Arenson, USA Today bestselling author of the Earthrise series

    Contents:The Infinite Assassin (1991)The Hundred Light-Year Diary (1992)Eugene (1990)The Caress (1990)Blood Sisters (1991)Axiomatic (1990)The Safe-Deposit Box (1990)Seeing (1995)A Kidnapping (1995)Learning to Be Me (1990)The Moat (1991)The Walk (1992)The Cutie (1989)Into Darkness (1992)Appropriate Love (1991)The Moral Virologist (1990)Closer (1992)Unstable Orbits in the Space of Lies (1992)

    With the exception of a few human ‘Author’ titles printed in the small basement and back room Libraries, all stories are created by the Artificial Intelligence of the Archive. Most believe the ‘Authors’ are only brands to lure people into spending their credits on print. One woman believes that one of them, author Hugh Howey, is real, and still alive. Her Librarian feeds her belief that Hugh Howey is still sailing around the world, uploading his work to the Archive. Convinced she has found clues in his stories as to where he now resides, she and her girlfriend sail to an island, where she believes Hugh Howey lives.* * * * *

    Included here are the works of masters of the form and of bright new talents, including: Daniel Abraham • Eleanor Arnason • Pauolo Bacigalupi • Kage Baker • Stephen Baxter • Terry Bisson • James L. Cambias • Albert E. Cowdrey • Colin P. Davies • Paul Di Fillipo • Brendan DuBois • Michael F. Flynn • Peter F. Hamilton • M. John Harrison • James Patrick Kelly • Caitlin R. Kiernan • Nancy Kress • Paul Melko • David Moles • Pat Murphy • Robert Reed • Benjamin Rosenbaum • Mary Rosenbaum • Christopher Rowe • William Sanders • Vandana Singh • Vernor Vinge • Walter Jon WilliamsSupplementing the stories are the editor's insightful summation of the year's events and a list of honorable mentions, making this book a valuable resource as well as the single best place in the universe to find stories that stir the imagination and the heart.Cover design by Shea M. KornblumCover illustration by Stephan MartiniereDescription from back cover Contents xi • Acknowledgments (The Year's Best Science Fiction: Twenty-Second Annual Collection) • (2005) • essay by Gardner Dozoisxiii • Summation: 2004 • essay by Gardner Dozois1 • Inappropriate Behavior • (2004) • novelette by Pat Murphy27 • Start the Clock • (2004) • shortstory by Benjamin Rosenbaum42 • The Third Party • (2004) • novelette by David Moles72 • The Voluntary State • (2004) • novelette by Christopher Rowe105 • Shiva in Shadow • (2004) • novelette by Nancy Kress153 • The People of Sand and Slag • (2004) • novelette by Paolo Bacigalupi172 • The Clapping Hands of God • (2004) • novelette by Michael F. Flynn214 • Tourism • (2004) • shortstory by M. John Harrison228 • Scout's Honor • (2004) • shortstory by Terry Bisson244 • Men Are Trouble • (2004) • novelette by James Patrick Kelly283 • Mother Aegypt • [Company] • (2004) • novella by Kage Baker348 • Synthetic Serendipity • (2004) • shortstory by Vernor Vinge366 • Skin Deep • (2004) • shortstory by Mary Rosenblum389 • Delhi • (2004) • shortstory by Vandana Singh405 • The Tribes of Bela • [Colonel Kohn] • (2004) • novella by Albert E. Cowdrey465 • Sitka • (2004) • shortstory by William Sanders478 • Leviathan Wept • (2004) • shortstory by Daniel Abraham499 • The Defenders • (2004) • shortstory by Colin P. Davies504 • Mayflower II • [Xeelee] • (2004) • novella by Stephen Baxter562 • Riding the White Bull • (2004) • novelette by Caitlín R. Kiernan588 • Falling Star • (2004) • shortstory by Brendan DuBois603 • The Dragons of Summer Gulch • (2004) • novelette by Robert Reed628 • The Ocean of the Blind • (2004) • shortstory by James L. Cambias649 • The Garden: A Hwarhath Science Fictional Romance • [Hwarhath] • (2004) • novella by Eleanor Arnason688 • Footvote • (2004) • shortstory by Peter F. Hamilton706 • Sisyphus and the Stranger • (2004) • shortstory by Paul Di Filippo (aka Sisyphe et l'étranger)718 • Ten Sigmas • (2004) • shortstory by Paul Melko726 • Investments • [Dread Empire's Fall] • (2004) • novella by Walter Jon Williams811 • Honorable Mentions: 2004 • essay by Gardner Dozois

    These stories are today.Following up on her first collection, Story Prize finalist Maureen F. McHugh explores the catastrophes, small and large, of twenty-first century life—and what follows after. What happens after the bird flu pandemic? Are our computers smarter than we are? What does the global economy mean for two young girls in China? Are we really who we say we are? And how will we survive the coming zombie apocalypse?

    Dick, Larry Niven, Fritz Leiber, Poul Anderson, Damon Knight, J.G. Ballard, John Brunner, Frederik Pohl, Roger Zelazny and Samuel Delany.Contentsxi • Foreword: Year 2002 (Dangerous Visions 35th Anniversary Edition) • (2002) • essay by Michael Moorcockxiii • Introduction: Year 2002 (Dangerous Visions 35th Anniversary Edition • (2002) • essay by Harlan Ellisonxxiii • Foreword 1-The Second Revolution • (1967) • essay by Isaac Asimovxxxiii • Introduction: Thirty-Two Soothsayers • (1967) • essay by Harlan Ellison (variant of Thirty-Two Soothsayers)xxxix • Foreword 2-Harlan and I • (1967) • essay by Isaac Asimov1 • Evensong • (1967) • shortstory by Lester del Rey9 • Flies • (1967) • shortstory by Robert Silverberg21 • The Day After the Day the Martians Came • (1967) • shortstory by Frederik Pohl (variant of The Day the Martians Came)30 • Riders of the Purple Wage • (1967) • novella by Philip José Farmer105 • The Malley System • (1967) • shortstory by Miriam Allen deFord115 • A Toy for Juliette • (1967) • shortstory by Robert Bloch128 • The Prowler in the City at the Edge of the World • (1967) • novelette by Harlan Ellison154 • The Night That All Time Broke Out • (1967) • shortstory by Brian W. Aldiss169 • The Man Who Went to the Moon - Twice • (1967) • shortstory by Howard Rodman181 • Faith of Our Fathers • (1967) • novelette by Philip K. Dick216 • The Jigsaw Man • [Known Space] • (1967) • shortstory by Larry Niven231 • Gonna Roll the Bones • (1967) • novelette by Fritz Leiber256 • Lord Randy, My Son • (1967) • shortstory by Joe L. Hensley272 • Eutopia • (1967) • novelette by Poul Anderson295 • Incident in Moderan • [Moderan] • (1967) • shortstory by David R. Bunch299 • The Escaping • (1967) • shortstory by David R. Bunch305 • The Doll-House • (1967) • shortstory by James Cross326 • Sex and/or Mr. Morrison • (1967) • shortstory by Carol Emshwiller338 • Shall the Dust Praise Thee? • (1967) • shortstory by Damon Knight344 • If All Men Were Brothers, Would You Let One Marry Your Sister? • (1967) • novella by Theodore Sturgeon390 • What Happened to Auguste Clarot? • (1967) • shortstory by Larry Eisenberg396 • Ersatz • (1967) • shortstory by Henry Slesar404 • Go, Go, Go, Said the Bird • (1967) • shortstory by Sonya Dorman412 • The Happy Breed • (1967) • shortstory by John Sladek [as by John T. Sladek ]433 • Encounter with a Hick • (1967) • shortstory by Jonathan Brand439 • From the Government Printing Office • (1967) • shortstory by Kris Neville447 • Land of the Great Horses • (1967) • shortstory by R. A. Lafferty458 • The Recognition • (1967) • shortstory by J. G. Ballard472 • Judas • (1967) • shortstory by John Brunner483 • Test to Destruction • (1967) • novelette by Keith Laumer510 • Carcinoma Angels • (1967) • shortstory by Norman Spinrad523 • Auto-da-Fé • (1967) • shortstory by Roger Zelazny532 • Aye, and Gomorrah . . . • (1967) • shortstory by Samuel R. Delany

    This brilliant collection, often cited as the first of its kind, explores fundamental questions about ourselves and our treatment of the universe (and other beings) around us and ultimately what it means to be human.Contents: * Cordwainer Smith: The Shaper of Myths (1975) • essay by John J. Pierce [as by J. J. Pierce] * The Instrumentality of Mankind (timeline) (1975) • essay by John J. Pierce * Scanners Live in Vain [The Instrumentality of Mankind] (1950) / novelette by Cordwainer Smith: meet Martel, a human altered to be part machine-a scanner-to be able withstand the trauma space travel has on the body. Despite the stigma placed on him and his kind, he is able to regrasp his humanity to save another; Fantasy Book #6 ’50 * The Lady Who Sailed The Soul [The Instrumentality of Mankind] (1960) / novelette by Cordwainer Smith, Genevieve Linebarger; Galaxy Apr ’60 * The Game of Rat and Dragon [The Instrumentality of Mankind] (1955) / short story by Cordwainer Smith; Galaxy Oct ’55 * The Burning of the Brain [The Instrumentality of Mankind] (1958) / short story by Cordwainer Smith; If Oct ’58 * Golden the Ship Was - Oh! Oh! Oh! [The Instrumentality of Mankind] (1959) / short story by Cordwainer Smith, Genevieve Linebarger; Amazing Apr ’59 * The Crime and the Glory of Commander Suzdal [The Instrumentality of Mankind] (1964) / short story by Cordwainer Smith; Amazing May ’64 * The Dead Lady of Clown Town [The Instrumentality of Mankind] (1964) / novella by Cordwainer Smith: get to know the underpeople-animals genetically altered to exist in human form, to better serve their human owners-and meet D'Joan, a dog-woman who will make readers question who is more human: the animals who simply want to be recognized as having the same right to life, or the people who created them to be inferior; Galaxy Aug ’64 * Under Old Earth [The Instrumentality of Mankind] (1966) / novelette by Cordwainer Smith; Galaxy Feb ’66 * Mother Hitton's Littul Kittons [The Instrumentality of Mankind] (1961) / novelette by Cordwainer Smith; Galaxy Jun ’61 * Alpha Ralpha Boulevard [The Instrumentality of Mankind] (1961) / novelette by Cordwainer Smith; Galaxy Jun ’61 * The Ballad of Lost C'mell [The Instrumentality of Mankind] (1962) / novelette by Cordwainer Smith: the notion of love being the most important equalizer there is, is put into action when an underperson, C'mell, falls in love with Lord Jestocost. Who is to say her love for him is not as valid as any true-born human? She might be of cat descent, but she is all woman!; Galaxy Oct ’62 * A Planet Named Shayol [The Instrumentality of Mankind] (1961) / novelette by Cordwainer Smith: it is an underperson of bull descent, and beings so mutilated and deformed from their original human condition to be now considered demons of a hellish land, who retain and display the most humanity when Mankind commits the most inhumane action of all; Galaxy Oct ’61aka: Paul M. A. Linebarger, Paul Myron Anthony Linebarger, Paul Linebarger, Felix C. Forrest, Carmichael Smith, Kordvejner Smit..

    This spellbinding collection is a must for fans of classic SF. - Publishers WeeklyWith the publication of his first story, 'The Coldest Place', in 1964 Larry Niven launched one of the most important careers in the history of science fiction. Over the next decade his stunning hard science fiction won four short fiction Hugo Awards and both the Hugo and Nebula Awards for his all-time classic novel, Ringworld.But it was the short stories that amazed and astounded first. Stories like 'The Coldest Place', 'Becalmed in Hell', 'Neutron Star', and 'All the Myriad Ways' set the boundaries for 'Known Space', one of science fiction s grandest future histories, while Niven also explored the classic tavern story in his 'Draco's Tavern' sequence and even fantasy in his 'Magic Goes Away' stories.Astoundingly, there has never been a single compendium the focused solely on Niven's best short fiction until now. The Best of Larry Niven collects no less than twenty seven stories written over a period of thirty-five years, bringing together some of the best-loved stories in science fiction for the first time, along with some overlooked classics. Whether this is your first time in Known Space or you're visiting old friends in Draco's Tavern, The Best of Larry Niven is unforgettable.Contents:9 • Introduction (The Best of Larry Niven) • essay by Jerry Pournelle11 • Becalmed in Hell • [Known Space] • (1965) • shortstory by Larry Niven25 • Bordered in Black • (1966) • shortstory by Larry Niven45 • Neutron Star • [Known Space] • (1966) • novelette by Larry Niven63 • The Soft Weapon • [Known Space] • (1967) • novelette by Larry Niven113 • The Jigsaw Man • [Known Space] • (1967) • shortstory by Larry Niven125 • The Deadlier Weapon • non-genre • (1968) • shortstory by Larry Niven135 • All the Myriad Ways • [Time Travel - Parallel Universe] • (1968) • shortstory by Larry Niven145 • Not Long Before the End • [Magic Goes Away] • (1969) • shortstory by Larry Niven157 • Man of Steel, Woman of Kleenex • (1969) • essay by Larry Niven165 • Inconstant Moon • (1971) • novelette by Larry Niven191 • Rammer • [State] • (1971) • novelette by Larry Niven219 • Cloak of Anarchy • [Known Space] • (1972) • shortstory by Larry Niven239 • The Fourth Profession • (1971) • novelette by Larry Niven285 • Flash Crowd • [Teleportation] • (1973) • novella by Larry Niven337 • The Defenseless Dead • [Gil Hamilton] • (1973) • novelette by Larry Niven381 • The Flight of the Horse • [Svetz] • (1969) • shortstory by Larry Niven395 • The Hole Man • (1974) • shortstory by Larry Niven409 • Night on Mispec Moor • [State] • (1974) • shortstory by Larry Niven421 • Flatlander • [Known Space] • (1967) • novelette by Larry Niven459 • The Magic Goes Away • [Magic Goes Away • 1] • (1978) • novel by Larry Niven523 • Cautionary Tales • (1978) • shortstory by Larry Niven527 • Limits • [Draco Tavern] • (1981) • shortstory by Larry Niven533 • A Teardrop Falls • [Berserker] • (1983) • shortstory by Larry Niven545 • The Return of William Proxmire • (1989) • shortstory by Larry Niven555 • The Borderland of Sol • [Known Space] • (1975) • novelette by Larry Niven595 • Smut Talk • [Draco Tavern] • (2000) • shortstory by Larry Niven605 • The Missing Mass • [Draco Tavern] • (2000) • shortstory by Larry NivenCover art by Edward Miller

    Revisions from the author's notes are included, allowing a deeper view into her world and a better understanding of her work. The Nebula Award–winning short story Love Is the Plan, the Plan Is Death, the Hugo Award–winning novella The Girl Who Was Plugged In, and the Hugo and Nebula Award–winning novella Houston, Houston, Do You Read? are included.The stories of Alice Sheldon, who wrote as James Tiptree Jr. ( Up the Walls of the World ) until her death in 1987, have been heretofore available mostly in out-of-print collections. Thus the 18 accomplished stories here will be welcomed by new readers and old fans. ''The Screwfly Solution'' describes a chilling, elegant answer to the population problem. In ''Love Is the Plan the Plan Is Death,'' the title tells the tale--species survival insured by imprinted drives--but the story's force is in its exquisite, lyrical prose and its suggestion that personal uniqueness is possible even within biological imperatives. ''The Girl Who Was Plugged In'' is a future boy-meets-girl story with a twist unexpected by the players. ''The Women Men Don't See '' displays Tiptree's keen insight and ability to depict singularity within the ordinary. In Hugo and Nebula award-winning ''Houston, Houston, Do You Read?'' astronauts flying by the sun slip forward 500 years and encounter a culture that successfully questions gender roles in ours.ContentsIntroduction by Michael SwanwickThe Last Flight of Doctor Ain (1969)The Screwfly Solution (1977)And I Awoke and Found Me Here on the Cold Hill’s Side (1972)The Girl Who Was Plugged In (1973)The Man Who Walked Home (1972)And I Have Come Upon This Place by Lost Ways (1972)The Women Men Don’t See (1973)Your Faces, O My Sisters! Your Faces Filled of Light! (1976)Houston, Houston, Do You Read? (1976)With Delicate Mad Hands (1981)A Momentary Taste of Being (1975)We Who Stole the Dream (1978)Her Smoke Rose Up Forever (1974)Love Is the Plan the Plan Is Death (1973)On the Last Afternoon (1972)She Waits for All Men Born (1976)Slow Music (1980)And So On, and So On (1971)

    Lily Yu, Andrea Hairston, Tobias Buckell, Hiromi Goto, Rebecca Roanhorse, Indrapramit Das, Chinelo Onwualu and Darcie Little Badger.

    Valente. A collection of some of Catherynne Valente's most admired stories, including the Hugo Award-nominated novella "Silently and Very Fast" and the Locus Award finalist "13 Ways of Looking at Space/Time," with a brand-new long story to anchor the collection.Contents:The Melancholy of Mechagirl (2011) poemInk, Water, Milk (2013)Fifteen Panels Depicting the Sadness of the Baku and the Jotai (2010)Ghosts of Gunkanjima (2005)Thirteen Ways of Looking at Space/Time (2010)One Breath, One Stroke (2012)Story No. 6 (2013)Fade to White (2012)The Emperor of Tsukayama Park (2005) poemKillswitch (2007)Memoirs of a Girl Who Failed to Be Born from a Peach (2005) poemThe Girl with Two Skins (2008) poemSilently and Very Fast (2011)