It was the first story by George R. R. Martin to be nominated for Hugo Award and Nebula Award.Recently it was included in published in 2003 GRRM anthology Dreamsongs collection: A RRetrospective (Volume I).

    Humans are engaged in a long war against an advanced alien race, the Senexi, but the possibility for peace may exist thanks to a young girl who learns the enemy's larger role and humanity's opportunity to evolve.

    But there's something even more interesting than the remarkable movies: the woman working behind the counter.

    Who's off course now?

    McAuley88 • Glory • (2007) • novelette by Greg Egan112 • Maelstrom • (2007) • novelette by Kage Baker143 • Blessed by an Angel • (2007) • shortstory by Peter F. Hamilton158 • Who's Afraid of Wolf 359? • shortstory by Ken MacLeod170 • The Valley of the Gardens • (2007) • novelette by Tony Daniel202 • Dividing the Sustain • (2007) • novelette by James Patrick Kelly234 • Minla's Flowers • [Merlin [4] • 2] • (2007) • novella by Alastair Reynolds291 • Splinters of Glass • (2007) • novelette by Mary Rosenblum316 • Remembrance • (2007) • shortstory by Stephen Baxter334 • The Emperor and the Maula • (2007) • novelette by Robert Silverberg379 • The Worm Turns • (2007) • shortstory by Gregory Benford401 • Send Them Flowers • (2007) • novelette by Walter Jon Williams436 • Art of War • shortstory by Nancy Kress454 • Muse of Fire • (2007) • novella by Dan Simmons

    Fleeing his dominatrix ex-wife, shifting world economies, trading his image on the "reputations market," and inventing extropianistic technologies are all in a day's work. Nebula Award Nominee, Hugo Award Nominee

    Under cover as a factory manager, Anderson combs Bangkok's street markets in search of foodstuffs thought to be extinct, hoping to reap the bounty of history's lost calories. There, he encounters Emiko... Emiko is the Windup Girl, a strange and beautiful creature. One of the New People, Emiko is not human; instead, she is an engineered being, creche-grown and programmed to satisfy the decadent whims of a Kyoto businessman, but now abandoned to the streets of Bangkok. Regarded as soulless beings by some, devils by others, New People are slaves, soldiers, and toys of the rich in a chilling near future in which calorie companies rule the world, the oil age has passed, and the side effects of bio-engineered plagues run rampant across the globe. What Happens when calories become currency? What happens when bio-terrorism becomes a tool for corporate profits, when said bio-terrorism's genetic drift forces mankind to the cusp of post-human evolution? Award-winning author Paolo Bacigalupi delivers one of the most highly acclaimed science fiction novels of the twenty-first century.

    Contents:Mana (1937)Jay Score (1941)Homo Saps (1941)Metamorphosite (1946)Hobbyist (1947)Late Night Final (1948)Dear Devil (1950)Fast Falls the Eventide (1952)I Am Nothing (1952)Weak Spot (1954)Allamagoosa (1955)Into Your Tent I'll Creep (1957)Study in Still Life (1959)

    Murder, politics, and genetic manipulation provide the framework for the latest Union-Alliance novel by the author of Downbelow Station. Cherryh's talent for intense, literate storytelling maintains interest throughout this long, complex novel.

    Storylines both conventional and outlandish reveal humdrum routines as menacing, or imaginary worlds as perfectly familiar. Allusions to authors such as Edgar Allan Poe and Jules Verne reinforce the fantasy tradition in these tales, while understated humor and moments of sadness add a quirky unpredictability. Also included is the previously unpublished novella, "Botch Town," a coming-of-age story about a boy on Long Island whose family and friends live ordinary lives under threats both real and imagined. Each story is followed by a brief afterword that details its genesis.ContentsIntroduction by Jonathan CarrollThe Annals of Eelin-Ok + Story NotesJupiter's Skull + Story NotesA Night in the Tropics + Story NotesThe Empire of Ice Cream + Story NotesThe Beautiful Gelreesh + Story NotesBoatman's Holiday + Story NotesBotch Town + Story NotesA Man of Light + Story NotesThe Green Word + Story NotesGiant Land + Story NotesCoffins on the River + Story NotesSummer Afternoon + Story NotesThe Weight of Words + Story NotesThe Trentino Kid + Story Notes

    Just before his works are celebrated at an exhibition in London, Jonathan journeys to the village where his former lover, Patricia, lives with her British husband, Nick. Archaeologists working on a dig, their spare existence is spent sifting through a Roman rubbish heap to discover the past. In their cold, remote house, Jonathan discovers an early painting of Patricia he'd done when they were young lovers. The subsequent struggle for the painting embodies the unreconciled passions of the past. Patricia has never forgiven Jonathan for leaving her, Nick despises Jonathan and the kind of art he produces, and Jonathan has never been able to recapture the inspiration and purity he felt when he painted Patricia. In taut scenes that dart from past to present and back, the characters are forced to deal with the unanswerable question of anti-Semitism, the legacy of the Holocaust and assimilation, the sadness of lost love, the role of the artist and the location of the human soul at the end of a ragged century.

    Hamilton has proven himself a modern master of epic space opera, carrying the tradition of far-future empire building begun by Heinlein and Asimov into the new millennium. But Hamilton is also a master of the short story, and when he tackles one of science fiction’s most enduring themes—time travel—the result is as provocative as it is entertaining. It starts in 2007 with a break-in. The victim: Marcus Orthew, the financial and technological genius behind Orthanics, the computer company whose radical products have delivered a one-two punch to the industry, all but knocking PCs and Macs out of the ring. The perpetrator: a man obsessed with Orthew. Just another simple case of celebrity stalking—or so everyone assumes at first, including Metropolitan Police Chief Detective David Lanson. But when Lanson interviews the suspect, he makes a startling claim: Orthew is from the future. Or, rather, a future—a parallel timeline. Thus begins the ride of a lifetime for Lanson, as his pursuit of the facts tumbles him headlong down a rabbit hole—and the hunter finds himself hunted.

    Part of the Shadows Beneath - The Writing Excuses Anthology

    Besides the acclaimed, Hugo-winning title piece and its influential prequels, the 36 stories include the British SF Association Award winner "Cube Root", and eight "Year's Best" and "Best Of" anthology choices. SF, fantasy, horror, and unclassifiable Langford weirdness ranging from 1975 to 2003.Contents: *Introduction (Different Kinds of Darkness) (2004) • essay by David Langford *Heatwave (1975) / short story by David Langford *Accretion (1977) / short story by David Langford *Connections (1978) / short story by David Langford *Training (1979) / short story by David Langford *The Final Days (1981) / short story by David Langford *Answering Machine (1982) / short story by David Langford * Hearing Aid (1982) / short story by David Langford * Wetware (1984) / short story by David Langford * Cube Root (1985) / short story by David Langford * Notes for a Newer Testament (1985) / short story by David Langford *In a Land of Sand and Ruin and Gold (1987) / short story by David Langford *Ellipses (1990) / short story by David Langford *A Surprisingly Common Omission (1990) / short fiction by David Langford *A Snapshot Album (1991) / short story by David Langford *Leaks (1991) / short story by David Langford *Waiting for the Iron Age (1991) / short story by David Langford *Blossoms That Coil and Decay (1992) / short story by David Langford *A Game of Consequences (1998) / short story by David Langford *Logrolling Ephesus (2003) / short fiction by David Langford *Too Good to Be (1983) / short story by David Langford *In the Place of Power (1984) / short story by David Langford *The Arts of the Enemy (1992) / short story by David Langford *As Strange a Maze as E'er Men Trod (1998) / short story by David Langford *Cold Spell (1980) / short story by David Langford *3.47 AM (1983) / short story by David Langford *The Facts in the Case of Micky Valdon (1989) / short story by David Langford *The Motivation (1989) / short story by David Langford *Encounter of Another Kind (1991) / short story by David Langford *The Lions in the Desert (1993) / short story by David Langford *Deepnet (1994) / short story by David Langford *Serpent Eggs (1994) / short story by David Langford *Blood and Silence (1995) / short story by David Langford *Blit [Blit] (1988) / short story by David Langford * What Happened at Cambridge IV [Blit] (1990) / short story by David Langford * comp.basilisk FAQ [Blit] (1999) / short fiction by David Langford (variant of Comp.Basilisk FAQ) *Different Kinds of Darkness [Blit] (2000) / short story by David Langford *Original Appearances (Different Kinds of Darkness) (2004) • essay by uncredited.

    He will seek answers, question the unquestionable, and attempt to tear down the walls of hatred that have isolated his planet of anarchists from the rest of the civilized universe. To do this dangerous task will mean giving up his family and possibly his life—Shevek must make the unprecedented journey to the utopian mother planet, Urras, to challenge the complex structures of life and living, and ignite the fires of change.