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The Year's Top Hard Science Fiction Stories


Allan KasterCraig DeLancey - 2017
    In “Vortex,” by Gregory Benford, astronauts find a once thriving microbial lifeform that carpets the caves of Mars dying off. A code monkey tracks down the vain creator of a pernicious software virus that people jack cerebrally in “RedKing,” by Craig DeLancey. In “Number Nine Moon,” by Alex Irvine, illicit scavengers on Mars are on a rescue mission to save themselves after one of their team members dies. A young girl’s thirst for vengeance becomes a struggle for survival when she is swallowed by a gigantic sea creature on an alien planet in “Of the Beast in the Belly,” by C.W. Johnson. In “The Seventh Gamer,” by Gwyneth Jones, a writer immerses herself into a MMORPG community to search for characters being played by real aliens from other worlds. A woman armed with a rifle stalks a herd of cloned wooly mammoths in British Columbia in “Chasing Ivory,” by Ted Kosmatka. In “Fieldwork,” by Shariann Lewitt, a volcanologist struggles with her research on Europa where both her mother and grandmother suffered dire consequences. A daughter pays homage to her mother with mega-engineering projects to deal with climate change over eons in “Seven Birthdays,” by Ken Liu. In “The Visitor from Taured,” by Ian R. MacLeod, a cosmologist in the near future is obsessed with proving his theory of multiverses. The citizens of a small town on a “Jackaroo” planet object to a corporation placing a radio telescope near local alien artifacts in “Something Happened Here, But We’re Not Quite Sure What It Was,” by Paul McAuley. And finally, in “Sixteen Questions for Kamala Chatterjee,” by Alastair Reynolds, a graduate student defends her dissertation on a solar anomaly that threatens humanity.

Sapience: A Collection of Science Fiction Short Stories


Alexis Lantgen - 2019
     In the near future, humanity builds a colony on Europa, one of the moons of Jupiter. They tunnel into the ice to explore the dark oceans beneath the moon's surface, searching for signs of extraterrestrial life. What they find will change them forever, setting humanity on a path to the stars. But the old conflicts and hatreds of Earth are not so easily escaped. Will human colonists on distant planets and moons create a paradise or a horrifying dystopia?

Blue Collar Space


Martin L. Shoemaker - 2018
     Martin L. Shoemaker, author of “Today I Am Paul”, presents stories of ordinary people doing extraordinary work. Planning, exploring, constructing… living and growing and dying… across the Solar System. Includes these award-winning stories: Scramble (second place, Jim Baen Memorial Short Story Award, 2012) Unrefined (third place, Writers of the Future, 2014) Racing to Mars (first place, Analog Analytical Laboratory award, 2016) Plus seven more stories!

Bread Alone (Adventures in the Liaden Universe® Number 34)


Sharon Lee - 2021
    Bread is a good start for sustenance.Don Eyr and Serana were survivors who came to Low Port – it gave them air, water, a place to stand and a place to make bread. The place to sleep meant they needed a certain amount of safety and to get that they founded a bakery at the corner of Crakle and Toom, brought in others seeking to survive in the midst of the poverty and ignorance, and built a tiny bastion of a self-sufficient community dedicated to raising competent, alert children who understood decency.Low Port toughs tried to break the bakery and a planet-shaking blast from the skies nearly did it in, but the bakery was hope, and people who have hope will fight to keep it.This chapbook collects four stories about sustenance, all about the bakery, its people, and its influence. ″Degrees of Separation,″ ″Fortune’s Favors,″ and "Block Party" are reprints. The novelette ″Our Lady of Benevolence″ appears here for the first time.

The Best of Robert Silverberg


Robert Silverberg - 1976
    Malzberg · in · Road to Nightfall · nv Fantastic Universe Jul ’58 · Warm Man · ss F&SF May ’57 · To See the Invisible Man · ss Worlds of Tomorrow Apr ’63 · The Sixth Palace · ss Galaxy Feb ’65 · Flies · ss Dangerous Visions, ed. Harlan Ellison, Garden City, NY: Doubleday, 1967 · Hawksbill Station · na Galaxy Aug ’67 · Passengers · ss Orbit 4, ed. Damon Knight, G.P. Putnam’s, 1968 · Nightwings [Watcher] · na Galaxy Sep ’68 · Sundance · ss F&SF Jun ’69 · Good News from the Vatican · ss Universe 1, ed. Terry Carr, Ace, 1971

11 Science Fiction Stories


Philip K. Dick - 2010
    SpaceshipPiper in the Woods

The 11th Science Fiction MEGAPACK®: 36 Modern and Classic Science Fiction Stories


Fritz Leiber - 2016
    There's a greater emphasis than usual on Golden Age writers (just the way it came together) -- but we have one original story as well, a posthumous collaboration with H.B. Fyfe, finishing a really terrific but not-quite-done tale he had been working on before his death. It's a bit reminiscent of James Tiptree, Jr.'s best work -- but predates Tiptree by a couple of decades. And we have novels by Robert Silverberg, Frederik Pohl & C.M. Kornbluth, Murray Leinster, E. Everett Evans, and Donald Wollheim...not to mention part 2 of our serialization of Tony Rothman's mammoth 2013 novel, Firebird. And a ton of great short stories. 36 works in all, more than 1900 pages of great reading!ANGELS IN THE JETS, by Jerome BixbyA CODE FOR SAM, by Lester del ReySTAR SHIP, by Poul AndersonTHE WELL-OILED MACHINE, by H.B. FyfeJACK OF NO TRADES, by Evelyn E. SmithTHE GRAVITY BUSINESS, by James E. GunnDOOMSDAY EVE, by Robert Moore WilliamsMASTER OF LIFE AND DEATH, by Robert SilverbergFALCONS OF NARABEDLA, by Marion Zimmer BradleyNEW LAMPS, by Robert Moore WilliamsTHE PIRATES OF ZAN, by Murray LeinsterOUT OF THE IRON WOMB!, by Poul AndersonLATER THAN YOU THINK, by Fritz LeiberTHE PLANET MAPPERS, by E. Everett EvansAFTERGLOW, by H.B. Fyfe and John Gregory BetancourtSHIPPING CLERK, by William MorrisonCONTAGION, by Katherine MacLeanTHE LIGHT ON PRECIPICE PEAK, by Stephen TallTHE LUCKIEST MAN IN DENV, by Simon EisnerON THE FOURTH PLANET, by J.F. BoneBIMMIE SAYS, by Sydney Van ScyocSWEET TOOTH, by Robert F. YoungSEARCH THE SKY, by Frederik Pohl and C. M. KornbluthSTAR, BRIGHT, by Mark CliftonHOT PLANET, by Hal ClementTWO WEEKS IN AUGUST, by Frank M. RobinsonTHE ALIEN, by Raymond F. JonesBODYGUARD, by Christopher GrimmJAYWALKER, by Ross RocklynneSECOND CHILDHOOD, by Clifford D. SimakOF ALL POSSIBLE WORLDS, by William TennPOLLONY UNDIVERTED, by Sydney Van ScyocDELAY IN TRANSIT, by F. L. WallaceA GIFT FROM EARTH, by Manly BanisterONE AGAINST THE MOON, by Donald A. WollheimSpecial Feature: FIREBIRD, by Tony Rothman [Part 2 of 3]If you enjoy this volume of classic stories, don't forget to search your favorite ebook store for "Wildside Press Megapack" to see the 270+ other entries in this series, including science fiction, fantasy, mysteries, adventure, horror, westerns -- and much, much more!

The River Horses


Allen M. Steele - 2007
    Taking place between the events of Coyote Rising and Coyote Frontier, it follows three individuals -- Marie Montero and Lars Thompson, veterans of the recent revolution against Earth, and Manuel Castro, a posthuman Savant who was once the colony world's lieutenant governor -- as they set on a journey to explore Coyote's uncharted regions."Steele's intimate stand-alone novella of the fronrtier planet of Coyote chronicles the redemptive journey of two colony exiles, adding a brilliant brushstroke to the already vast6 and vivid canvas of the Coyote saga ,,, With a sophistication reminiscent of some of the genre's greatest visionaries, Steele has created a must-read for anyone who enjoys thought-provoking SF..." -- Publisher's Weekly

Velocity


B.V. Larson - 2010
    V. Larson! This 60,000 word book is an Anthology of short stories. Most are Science Fiction mixed with Horror. Others might be called Dark Fantasy... Many have been published previously in various magazines.The Barrier – What does it take to go faster than light?Symptoms of Godhood – How far can you modify a body and still call the results human?Discharged – A long war and an even longer stay in an automated hospital.Teeth at Bedtime – Technology follows us everywhere.The Insect Requirement – Great sacrifices are required for Earth’s early colonists.Blind Eyes – If we can design our own children, how far will we go?TA96 – Do our genes belong to us?Zundra’s Movies – A future where video is created with the mind, and insanity is fun to watch.Pinball – A young man builds his own watchdog.Love Aboard the Kamadeva – A love triangle between two desperate souls and a digital mirage.Starplay – A window into the universe becomes a door.The One-Way Gang – Leaving Earth is easy, but you can never come back.Rusted Metal – What has spent the last century in the basement?Lunar Lotto – Death comes instantly to outlaws in vacuum.The Rollers – Crime has been mostly eliminated by removing all forms of cash... Mostly.

The First Golden Age of Science Fiction MEGAPACK ®: Winston K. Marks


Winston K. Marks - 2014
    Winston K. Marks (1915-1979) is one such unjustly forgotten author.Included here are 12 science fiction stories, published between 1953 and 1959, representing some of his best work:THE WATER EATER (1953)UNBEGOTTEN CHILD (1953)…SO THEY BAKED A CAKE (1954)BACKLASH (1954)TABBY (1954)BREEDER REACTION (1954)FORSYTE'S RETREAT (1954)MATE IN TWO MOVES (1954)THE TEST COLONY (1954)BROWN JOHN’S BODY (1955)THE MIND DIGGER (1958)THE DEADLY DAUGHTERS (1958)If you enjoy this book, search your favorite ebook store for "Wildside Press Megapack" to see the more than 100 other entries in the series, covering science fiction, modern authors, mysteries, westerns, classics, adventure stories, and much, much more!

Spaceship Medic


Harry Harrison - 1969
    Follw space survival drill.''We are all dead men,' says First Engineer Holtz, when the spaceship Johannes Kepler is hit by a meteorite. But Lieutenant Donald Chase, a young doctor on his first flight, refuses to give in to despair. Soon he's in charge of the damaged ship, sailing off course without radio contact and heading for a solar storm.Can he get to Mars safely?

A Land of Ash


David Dalglish - 2010
    We're 40,000 years overdue. A LAND OF ASH Lava flows stretch for hundreds of miles. A cloud of ash billows east, burying the Midwest, destroying crops, and falling upon the Pacific Coast like a warm, dead snow. The remnants of the United States flees south as the global temperatures plummet. Amid this total devastation are stories of families, friends, sons and fathers and wives: the survivors. Within are eleven stories focusing on the human element of such a catastrophe, from an elderly couple gathering to await their death to a father sealing his shelter in hopes of keeping the air breathable for his daughter. Contributing to this collection include many popular and up-and-coming independent authors, including David McAfee, Daniel Arenson, and more.

The Sargasso of Space


Edmond Hamilton - 2009
    Helpless, doomed, into the graveyard of space floats the wrecked freighter Pallas.

Good Morning Vendemiatrix


H. Paul Honsinger - 2020
    In these labors, there is one friend that they can count on, day in and day out . . . he’s a constant companion in their headsets with the Smack and Crack, Sno Bro, and other music they love, as well offering a seemingly endless stream of friendship and encouragement: the morning DJ on Company Radio Channel D, Robin Whitlake. But, Robin is more than a warm human voice in the endless night, he is a man with a heroic, yet deadly and dangerous secret past that could condemn him to death at any time. Disfigured and aging rapidly, he must work harder and harder to project the youth and vitality that he brings to his broadcasts, all the while wondering when and if his past will catch up with him. On 14 January 2314, it did. A disaster in the mining colony brings the heroic and deadly elements of Robin’s past into sudden collision. Not only must he decide whether to subject himself to possible execution, Robin has to call upon all his professionalism as a broadcaster, the skills he spent decades honing in his former life, and the Morse code abilities of a red-headed, pig-tailed Space Scout named Elaine, in a desperate “Hail Mary” improvisation with thousands of innocent lives hanging in the balance. Good Morning Vendemiatrix is an 8800 word stand-alone novelette set in the “Man of War” universe. Fans of Honsinger’s other work will recognize the setting and be treated to a cameo appearance by a familiar character, while new readers will not find themselves “lost in space.” It is a humorous and exciting piece of shorter fiction written to be enjoyed by all Science Fiction readers.

Matty: A Matt Turner Series Short


Michael Siemsen - 2013
    When a young girl is snatched on her way home from school, Matty's police detective father knows that every minute counts. For the first time - but not the last - Detective Roger Turner enlists his son's unique help.With over 130,000 copies sold, the Matt Turner Series launched author Michael Siemsen to bestseller status. The Dig (Book 1) and The Opal (Book 2) hint at the troubled psychometrist's shocking childhood, using his ability to "read" an object's history to help his father solve the worst kinds of crimes. Only now, with the short story Matty are we offered a firsthand glimpse into a young Matt's first case - tracking down a kidnapped girl named Joss Lynn Leland.