Book picks similar to
Legends by Robert SilverbergOrson Scott Card
fantasy
short-stories
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Viriconium
M. John Harrison - 2000
This landmark collection gathers four groundbreaking fantasy classics from the acclaimed author of Light.Set in the imagined city of Viriconium, here are the masterworks that revolutionized a genre and enthralled a generation of readers: The Pastel City, A Storm of Wings, In Viriconium, and Viriconium Knights.Contents:The Pastel City, 1971 (novel)A Storm of Wings, 1980 (novel)In Viriconium, 1982 (novel)The Lamia & Lord Cromis, 1971 (short story)Viriconium Knights, 1981 (short story)The Luck in the Head, 1984 (novelette)Strange Great Sins, 1983 (short story)The Lords of Misrule, 1984 (short story)The Dancer from the Dance, 1985 (short story)A Young Man’s Journey to Viriconium, 1985 (short story)
The Hidden Girl and Other Stories
Ken Liu - 2020
This collection includes a selection of his science fiction and fantasy stories from the last five years — sixteen of his best — plus a new novelette.In addition to these seventeen selections, The Hidden Girl and Other Stories also features an excerpt from the forthcoming book three in the Dandelion Dynasty series, "The Veiled Throne".Contents:- Ghost Days (2013)- Maxwell's Demon (2012)- The Reborn (2014)- Thoughts and Prayers (2019)- Byzantine Empathy (2018)- The Gods Will Not Be Chained (2014)- Staying Behind (2011)- Real Artists (2011)- The Gods Will Not Be Slain (2014)- Altogether Elsewhere, Vast Herds of Reindeer (2011)- The Gods Have Not Died in Vain (2015)- Memories of My Mother (2012)- Dispatches from the Cradle: The Hermit - Forty-Eight Hours in the Sea of Massachusetts (2016)- Grey Rabbit, Crimson Mare, Coal Leopard (2020)- A Chase Beyond the Storms: An excerpt from "The Veiled Throne", Book 3 of the Dandelion Dynasty- The Hidden Girl (2017)- Seven Birthdays (2016)- The Message (2012)- Cutting (2012)
Chronicles of the Black Company
Glen Cook - 1986
They bury their doubts with their dead.Then comes the prophecy: The White Rose has been reborn, somewhere, to embody good once more…This omnibus edition comprises The Black Company, Shadows Linger, and The White Rose―the first three novels in Glen Cook's bestselling fantasy series.
Arcanum Unbounded: The Cosmere Collection
Brandon Sanderson - 2016
His universe spans the Stormlight Archive, the Mistborn series the tales of Elantris, and others, comprising a unique constellation of vividly imagined realms known as the Cosmere.Now for the first time anywhere, stories representing each of these planets, and their fully realized and distinct magic systems, have been collected in a single spectacular volume. Arcanum Unbounded: The Cosmere Collection brings together tales spanning the known limits of Sanderson's universe--including the never-before-published Edgedancer, a thrilling new novella of the Stormlight Archive--along with charts, illustrations, notes...and secrets.The Cosmere Collection encompasses six worlds in all, explored across nine astonishing works of short fiction: Sel ("The Hope of Elantris" and The Emperor's Soul); Scadrial ("The Eleventh Metal," "Allomancer Jak and the Pits of Eltania, Episodes Twenty-eight Through Thirty," and Mistborn: Secret History); Taldain ("White Sand"); Threnody (“Shadows for Silence in the Forests of Hell”); First of the Sun (“Sixth of the Dusk”); and Roshar (Edgedancer).These exciting tales will catapult you onto an unprecedented journey across a cosmos only Brandon Sanderson could have envisioned. Arcanum Unbounded: The Cosmere Collection is an indispensible volume no Sanderson fan can do without.
The Mad Scientist's Guide to World Domination: Original Short Fiction for the Modern Evil Genius
John Joseph AdamsAustin Grossman - 2013
Moreau to Dr. Doom, readers have long been fascinated by insane plans for world domination and the madmen who devise them. Typically, we see these villains through the eyes of good guys. This anthology, however, explores the world of mad scientists and evil geniuses—from their own wonderfully twisted point of view. An all-star roster of bestselling authors—including Diana Gabaldon, Daniel Wilson, Austin Grossman, Naomi Novik, and Seanan McGuire ... twenty-two great storytellers, all told—have produced a fabulous assortment of stories, guaranteed to provide readers with hour after hour of high-octane entertainment born of the most megalomaniacal mayhem imaginable. Everybody loves villains. They’re bad; they always stir the pot; they’re much more fun than the good guys, even if we want to see the good guys win. Their fiendish schemes, maniacal laughter, and limitless ambition are legendary, but what lies behind those crazy eyes and wicked grins? How—and why—do they commit these nefarious deeds? And why are they so set on taking over the world? If you've ever asked yourself any of these questions, you’re in luck: It’s finally time for the madmen’s side of the story.Between each chapter falls a single-page essay by the editor, by way of introduction to the story ahead; they have titles of their own, but all contain spoilers, so are not listed here (they can be found on the Internet Science Fiction Database if desired). All individual works in this anthology are in short story form, with the exception of Diana Gabaldon's 80-page Outlander novella, and unless otherwise noted, were first published within. CONTENTS Foreword - Chris Claremont, The Mad Scientist's Guide to World Domination: Original Short Fiction for the Modern Evil Genius (p9)01 - Austin Grossman, Professor Incognito Apologizes: An Itemized List (p16)02 - Harry Turtledove, Father of the Groom (p28)03 - Seanan McGuire, Laughter at the Academy: A Field Study in the Genesis of Schizotypal Creative Genius Personality Disorder (SCGPD) (p38)04 - David D. Levine, Letter to the Editor (p52)05 - Jeremiah Tolbert, Instead of a Loving Heart (2004, p59)06 - Daniel H. Wilson, The Executor (p68)07 - Heather Lindsley, The Angel of Death Has a Business Plan (p83)08 - Dave Wolverton (as David Farland), Homo Perfectus (p96)09 - L.A. Banks, Ancient Equations (p108)10 - Alan Dean Foster, Rural Singularity (p123)11 - Genevieve Valentine, Captain Justice Saves the Day (p133)12 - Theodora Goss, The Mad Scientist's Daughter (2010, p142)13 - Diana Gabaldon, The Space Between (2012 Outlander novella, p161)14 - Carrie Vaughn, Harry and Marlowe Meet the Founder of the Aetherian Revolution (p245)15 - Laird Barron, Blood and Stardust (p261)16 - L.E. Modesitt Jr., A More Perfect Union (p276)17 - Naomi Novik, Rocks Fall (p289)18 - Mary Robinette Kowal, We Interrupt This Broadcast (Lady Astronaut short story, p298)19 - Marjorie M. Liu, The Last Dignity of Man (p306)20 - Jeffrey Ford, The Pittsburgh Technology (p328)21 - Grady Hendrix, Mofongo Knows (p341)22 - Ben H. Winters, The Food Taster's Boy (p357)
Fiddler Fair
Mercedes Lackey - 1998
Now comes a volume demonstrating the wide range of her talent, running the gamut from her beloved Bardic fantasies to urban fantasy set in the modern world; from science fiction adventure to chilling horror. And throughout Fiddler Fair, Lackey's sheer storytelling skill will hold the reader spellbound.Learn what happens when animal rights fanatics try to "liberate" genetically reconstructed dinosaurs. Follow Lawrence of Arabia into the desert to meet a power beyond human comprehension; and be with King Arthur, reborn into the present day, when he again gains possession of the enchanted sword Excalibur. And, in a very weird encounter of the most bizarre kind, learn why an alien from a UFO took an unusual interest in a battered Chevy pickup truck.Fiddler Fair is a feast for the multitudes of Lackey fans everywhere – and for new readers, a powerful introduction to the most significant new fantasy writer of the decade.Short stories include:How I Spent My Summer VacationAliens Ate My PickupSmall Print (with Larry Dixon)Last Rights (with Larry Dixon)Dumb FeastDance Track (with Larry Dixon)JihadBalanceDragon's TeethThe Cup and the CauldronOnce and FutureFiddler FairThe Enemy of My Enemy
Otherness
David Brin - 1994
Pak's Preschool" a woman discovers that her baby has been called upon to work while still in the womb. In "NatuLife" a married couple finds their relationship threatened by the wonders of sex by simulation. In "Sshhh . . . " the arrival of benevolent aliens on Earth leads to frenzy, madness . . . and unimaginable joy. In "Bubbles" a sentient starcraft reaches the limits of the universe--and dares to go beyond. These are but a few of the challenging speculations in Otherness, from the pen of an author whose urgent and compelling imaginative fiction challenges us to wonder at the shape and the nature of the universe--as well as at its future.• The Giving Plague • (1988)• Myth Number 21 • (1990)• Story Notes (Transitions) • (1994)• Dr. Pak's Preschool • (1989)• Detritus Affected • (1993)• The Dogma of Otherness • [Editorial (Analog)] • (1986)• Sshhh ... • (1988)• Story Notes (Contact) • (1994)• Those Eyes • (1994)• What to Say to a UFO • (1994)• Bonding to Genji • (1992)• The Warm Space • (1985)• Whose Millennium? • (1994)• NatuLife ® • (1994)• Piecework • (1990)• Science versus Magic • (1990)• Bubbles • (1987)• Story Notes (Cosmos) • (1994)• Ambiguity • (1989)• What Continues ... And What Fails ... • (1991)• The Commonwealth of Wonder • (1990)
Dragon Wing
Margaret Weis - 1990
Over time, magicians learned to work spells only in their own realms and forgot the others. Now only the few who have survived the Labyrinth and crossed the Death Gate know of the presence of all four realms--and even they have yet to unravel the mysteries of their severed world...In Arianus, Realm of Sky, humans, elves, and dwarves battle for control of precious water--traversing a world of airborne islands on currents of elven magic and the backs of mammoth dragons. But soon great magical forces will begin to rend the fabric of this delicate land. An assassin will be hired to kill a royal prince--by the king himself. A dwarf will challenge the beliefs of his people--and lead them in rebellion. And a sinister wizard will enact his plan to rule Arianus--a plan that may be felt far beyond the Realm of Sky and into the Death Gate itself.
Again, Dangerous Visions
Harlan EllisonEdward Bryant - 1972
It was edited by Harlan Ellison, illustrated by Ed Emshwiller. Like its predecessor, Again, Dangerous Visions and the 46 stories within it received many awards. The Word for World Is Forest, by Ursula K. Le Guin, won a Hugo for Best Novella. When It Changed by Joanna Russ won a Nebula Award for Best Short Story. For a 2nd time, Ellison received a special Hugo for editing the anthology. Again, Dangerous Visions was to be followed by a 3rd anthology, The Last Dangerous Visions. At this point, Ellison has said that it will probably never see the light of day.Introduction: An Assault of New Dreamers by Harlan Ellison The Counterpoint of View by John Heidenry Ching Witch! by Ross Rocklynne The Word for World Is Forest by Ursula K. Le Guin For Value Received by Andrew J. Offutt Mathoms from the Time Closet: 1/Robot's Story, 2/Against the Lafayette Escadrille, 3/Loco Parentis by Gene Wolfe Time Travel for Pedestrians by Ray Nelson Christ, Old Student in a New School (poem) by Ray Bradbury King of the Hill by Chad Oliver The 10:00 Report Is Brought to You by... by Edward Bryant The Funeral by Kate Wilhelm Harry the Hare by James B. Hemesath When It Changed by Joanna Russ The Big Space Fuck by Kurt Vonnegut Bounty by T.L. Sherred Still-Life by K.M. O'Donnell (Barry N. Malzberg) Stoned Counsel by H.H. Hollis Monitored Dreams & Strategic Cremations: 1/The Bisquit Position, 2/The Girl with Rapid Eye Movements by Bernard Wolfe With a Finger in My I by David Gerrold In the Barn by Piers Anthony Soundless Evening by Lee Hoffman [█] by Gahan Wilson The Test-Tube Creature, Afterward by Joan Bernott And the Sea Like Mirrors by Gregory Benford Bed Sheets Are White by Evelyn Lief Tissue: At the Fitting Shop & 53rd American Dream by James Sallis Elouise and the Doctors of the Planet Pergamon by Josephine Saxton Chuck Berry, Won't You Please Come Home by Ken McCullough Epiphany for Aliens by David Kerr Eye of the Beholder by Burt K. Filer Moth Race by Richard Hill In re Glover by Leonard Tushnet Zero Gee by Ben Bova A Mouse in the Walls of the Global Village by Dean R. Koontz Getting Along by James Blish & Judith Ann Lawrence Totenbüch by Parra y FiguéredoThings Lost by Thomas M. Disch With the Bentfin Boomer Boys on Little Old New Alabama by Richard A. Lupoff Lamia Mutable by M. John Harrison Last Train to Kankakee by Robin Scott Empire of the Sun by Andrew Weiner Ozymandias by Terry Carr The Milk of Paradise by James Tiptree, Jr.
The Starlit Wood
Dominik ParisienKarin Tidbeck - 2016
It’s how so many of our most beloved stories start.Fairy tales have dominated our cultural imagination for centuries. From the Brothers Grimm to the Countess d’Aulnoy, from Charles Perrault to Hans Christian Anderson, storytellers have crafted all sorts of tales that have always found a place in our hearts.Now a new generation of storytellers have taken up the mantle that the masters created and shaped their stories into something startling and electrifying.Packed with award-winning authors, this anthology explores an array of fairy tales in startling and innovative ways, in genres and settings both traditional and unusual, including science fiction, western, and post-apocalyptic as well as traditional fantasy and contemporary horror.From the woods to the stars, The Starlit Wood: New Fairy Tales takes readers on a journey at once unexpected and familiar, as a diverse group of writers explore some of our most beloved tales in new ways across genres and styles.
Mean Streets
Jim Butcher - 2009
Green.Kat Richardson’s Greywalker finds herself in too deep when a “simple job” goes bad and Harper Blaine is enmeshed in a tangle of dark secrets and revenge from beyond the grave.For centuries, the being that we know as Noah lived among us. Now he is dead, and fallen-angel-turned-detective Remy Chandler has been hired to find out who killed him in a whodunit by Thomas E. Sniegoski.
The Dying Earth
Jack Vance - 1950
Twk-men ride dragonflies and trade information for salt. There are monsters and demons. Each being is morally ambiguous: the evil are charming, the good are dangerous.
Swords & Dark Magic: The New Sword and Sorcery
Jonathan StrahanGarth Nix - 2010
the Black Company ... Majipoor. For years, these have been some of the names that have captured the hearts of generations of readers and embodied the sword and sorcery genre. And now some of the most beloved and bestselling fantasy writers working today deliver stunning all-new sword and sorcery stories in an anthology of small stakes but high action, grim humor mixed with gritty violence, fierce monsters and fabulous treasures, and, of course, swordplay. Don't miss the adventure of the decade!Contents:- Introduction: Check Your Dark Lord at the Door by Lou Anders & Jonathan Strahan- Goats of Glory by Steven Erikson- Tides Elba: A Tale of the Black Company by Glen Cook- Bloodsport by Gene Wolfe- The Singing Spear by James Enge- A Wizard in Wiscezan by C.J. Cherryh- A Rich Full Week by K.J. Parker- A Suitable Present for a Sorcerous Puppet by Garth Nix- Red Pearls: An Elric Story by Michael Moorcock- The Deification of Dal Bamore: A Tale from Echo City by Tim Lebbon- Dark Times at the Midnight Market by Robert Silverberg- The Undefiled by Greg Keyes- Hew the Tintmaster by Michael Shea- In the Stacks by Scott Lynch- Two Lions, a Witch, and the War-Robe by Tanith Lee- The Sea Troll's Daughter by Caitlín R. Kiernan- Thieves of Daring by Bill Willingham- The Fool Jobs by Joe Abercrombie
Maps in a Mirror: The Short Fiction of Orson Scott Card
Orson Scott Card - 1990
For those readers who have followed this remarkable talent since the beginning, here are all those amazing stories gathered together in one place, with some extra surprises as well. For the many who are newly come to Card, here is chance to experience the wonder of a writer so versatile that he can handle everything from traditional narrative poetry to modern experimental fiction with equal ease and grace. The brilliant story-telling of the Alvin Maker books is no accident; the breathless excitement evoked by the Ender books is not a once-in-a-lifetime experience. In this enormous volume are forty-six stories, plus ten long, intensely personal essays, unique to this volume. In them the author reveals some of his reasons and motivations for writing, with a good deal of autobiography into the bargain.Contents: Introduction (Book 1: The Hanged Man, Tales of Dread) • essay by Orson Scott Card Eumenides in the Fourth Floor Lavatory (1979) / novelette by Orson Scott Card Quietus (1979) / short story by Orson Scott Card Deep Breathing Exercises (1979) / short story by Orson Scott Card Fat Farm (1980) / short story by Orson Scott Card Closing the Timelid (1979) / short story by Orson Scott Card Freeway Games (1979) / short story by Orson Scott Card A Sepulchre of Songs (1981) / novelette by Orson Scott Card Prior Restraint (1986) / short story by Orson Scott Card The Changed Man and the King of Words (1982) / novelette by Orson Scott Card Memories of My Head (1990) / short story by Orson Scott Card Lost Boys (1989) / short story by Orson Scott Card Afterword (Book 1: The Hanged Man, Tales of Dread) • essay by Orson Scott Card Introduction (Book 2: Flux, Tales of Human Futures) • essay by Orson Scott Card A Thousand Deaths [Tales of Capitol] (1978) / novelette by Orson Scott Card Clap Hands and Sing (1982) / short story by Orson Scott Card Dogwalker (1989) / novelette by Orson Scott Card But We Try Not to Act Like It (1979) / short story by Orson Scott Card I Put My Blue Genes On (1978) / short story by Orson Scott Card In the Doghouse (1978) / short story by Orson Scott Card and Jay A. Parry The Originist [Foundation] (1989) / novella by Orson Scott Card Afterword (Book 2: Flux, Tales of Human Futures) • essay by Orson Scott Card Introduction (Book 3: Maps in a Mirror, Fables and Fantasies) • essay by Orson Scott Card Unaccompanied Sonata (1979) / short story by Orson Scott Card A Cross-Country Trip to Kill Richard Nixon (1980) / novelette by Orson Scott Card The Porcelain Salamander (1981) • short story by Orson Scott Card Middle Woman (1981) / short story by Orson Scott Card The Bully and the Beast (1979) / novella by Orson Scott Card The Princess and the Bear (1980) / novelette by Orson Scott Card Sandmagic [Mither Mages] (1979) / novelette by Orson Scott Card The Best Day (1984) / short story by Orson Scott Card A Plague of Butterflies (1981) / short story by Orson Scott Card The Monkeys Thought 'Twas All in Fun (1979) / novelette by Orson Scott Card Afterword (Book 3: Maps in a Mirror, Fables and Fantasies) • essay by Orson Scott Card Introduction (Book 4: Cruel Miracles, Tales of Death, Hope, and Holiness) • essay by Orson Scott Card Mortal Gods (1979) / short story by Orson Scott Card Saving Grace (1987) / short story by Orson Scott Card Eye for Eye (1987) / novella by Orson Scott Card St. Amy's Tale (1980) / novelette by Orson Scott Card Kingsmeat (1978) / short story by Orson Scott Card Holy (1980) / novelette by Orson Scott Card Afterword (Book 4: Cruel Miracles, Tales of Death, Hope, and Holiness) • essay by Orson Scott Card Introduction (Book 5: Lost Songs, The Hidden Stories) • essay by Orson Scott Card Ender's Game [Ender Wiggin] (1977) / novelette by Orson Scott Card Mikal's Songbird (1978) / novelette by Orson Scott Card Prentice Alvin and the No-Good Plow [The Alvin Maker Saga] (1989) • poem by Orson Scott Card Malpractice (1977) / short story by Orson Scott Card Follower (1978) / short story by Orson Scott Card Hitching (1978) / short story by Orson Scott Card Damn Fine Novel (1989) / short story by Orson Scott Card Billy's Box (1978) / short story by Orson Scott Card The Best Family Home Evening Ever (1978) / short story by Orson Scott Card Bicicleta (1977) / short story by Orson Scott Card I Think Mom and Dad Are Going Crazy, Jerry (1979) / short story by Orson Scott Card Gert Fram (1977) / short story by Orson Scott Card Afterword (Book 5: Lost Songs, The Hidden Stories) • essay by Orson Scott Card
City of Saints and Madmen
Jeff VanderMeer - 2002
You hold in your hands an invitation to a place unlike any you’ve ever visited–an invitation delivered by one of our most audacious and astonishing literary magicians. City of elegance and squalor. Of religious fervor and wanton lusts. And everywhere, on the walls of courtyards and churches, an incandescent fungus of mysterious and ominous origin. In Ambergris, a would-be suitor discovers that a sunlit street can become a killing ground in the blink of an eye. An artist receives an invitation to a beheading–and finds himself enchanted. And a patient in a mental institution is convinced he’s made up a city called Ambergris, imagined its every last detail, and that he’s really from a place called Chicago.…By turns sensuous and terrifying, filled with exotica and eroticism, this interwoven collection of stories, histories, and “eyewitness” reports invokes a universe within a puzzlebox where you can lose–and find–yourself again.