R. Martin and multiple-award winning editor Gardner Dozois Burroughs’s A Princess of Mars. Bradbury’s The Martian Chronicles. Heinlein’s Red Planet. These and so many more inspired generations of readers with a sense that science fiction’s greatest wonders did not necessarily lie far in the future or light-years across the galaxy but were to be found right now on a nearby world tantalizingly similar to our own—a red planet that burned like an ember in our night sky . . . and in our imaginations. This new anthology of fifteen all-original science fiction stories, edited by George R. R. Martin and Gardner Dozois, celebrates the Golden Age of Science Fiction, an era filled with tales of interplanetary colonization and derring-do. Before the advent of powerful telescopes and space probes, our solar system could be imagined as teeming with strange life-forms and ancient civilizations—by no means always friendly to the dominant species of Earth. And of all the planets orbiting that G-class star we call the Sun, none was so steeped in an aura of romantic decadence, thrilling mystery, and gung-ho adventure as Mars. Join such seminal contributors as Michael Moorcock, Mike Resnick, Joe R. Lansdale, S. M. Stirling, Mary Rosenblum, Ian McDonald, Liz Williams, James S. A. Corey, and others in this brilliant retro anthology that turns its back on the cold, all-but-airless Mars of the Mariner probes and instead embraces an older, more welcoming, more exotic Mars: a planet of ancient canals cutting through red deserts studded with the ruined cities of dying races. FEATURING ALL-NEW STORIES BY James S. A. Corey • Phyllis Eisenstein • Matthew Hughes • Joe R. Lansdale • David D. Levine • Ian McDonald • Michael Moorcock • Mike Resnick • Chris Roberson • Mary Rosenblum • Melinda Snodgrass • Allen M. Steele • S. M. Stirling • Howard Waldrop • Liz Williams And an Introduction by George R. R. Martin!Table of contents:RED PLANET BLUES (Introduction) by George R.R. MartinMARTIAN BLOOD, by Allen M. SteeleTHE UGLY DUCKLING, by Matthew HughesTHE WRECK OF THE MARS ADVENTURE, by David D. LevineSWORDS OF ZAR-TU-KAN, by S.M. StirlingSHOALS, by Mary RosenblumIN THE TOMBS OF THE MARTIAN KINGS, by Mike ResnickOUT OF SCARLIGHT, by Liz WilliamsTHE DEAD SEA-BOTTOM SCROLLS, by Howard WaldropA MAN WITHOUT HONOR, by James S.A. CoreyWRITTEN IN DUST, by Melinda SnodgrassTHE LOST CANAL, by Michael MoorcockTHE SUNSTONE, by Phyllis EisensteinKING OF THE CHEAP ROMANCE, by Joe R. LansdaleMARINER, by Chris RobersonTHE QUEEN OF NIGHT’S ARIA, by Ian McDonald

    Contributor John Cheever; Shirley Jackson; Henry Kuttner

    Where tinkerers and dreamers craft and re-craft a world of automatons, clockworks, calculating machines, and other marvels that never were. Where scientists and schoolgirls, fair folk and Romans, intergalactic bandits, utopian revolutionaries, and intrepid orphans solve crimes, escape from monstrous predicaments, consult oracles, and hover over volcanoes in steam-powered airships.

    In a collaboration of seven well-known writers. Berserker Base is the story of a group of people in a desperate struggle to stop this threat to civilization.

    Janet Kagan was a unique voice in the business, bringing her witty sense of humor and refreshing outlook to stories that tackled political intrigue, murder mysteries, and ecological puzzles. Her stories are thought-provoking, often funny, and always entertaining.“Janet Kagan explores the interfaces of culture, language, intelligence, and what it means to be human.”—Sharon Lee and Steve Miller, coauthors of the best-selling Liaden Universe® series“An absolute delight.”—Mike ResnickAt the publisher's request, this title is sold without DRM (Digital Rights Management).

    ContentsThe Mountain Without a NameThe AccountantHunting ProblemA Thief in TimeThe Luckiest Man in the WorldHands OffSomething for NothingA Ticket to TranaiThe BattleSkulking PermitCitizen in SpaceAsk a Foolish Question

    Dickson, author of the best-selling DORSAI books and many other praiseworthy novels and scince fiction stories, has selected nine of his finest tales in this book.Here are stories of interstellar exploration, of adventure at the dawn of star flight and at the ultimate end of star flight, of man versus machine, of man versus nature, and of man versus the cosmos.If you like science fiction, it will be impossible not to find among these tales several that will prove to be as memorable in fantasy experience as any you will ever read again. Such is the skill and imagination of Gordon R. Dickson, one of the real giants of the science fiction world.Contents:Ancient, My EnemyThe Odd OnesThe Monkey WrenchTiger GreenThe Friendly ManLove Me TrueOur First DeathIn the BoneThe Bleak and Barren Land

    E. Modesitt, Jr.You can’t militarize space. This one rule has led to decades of peaceful development of space programs worldwide. However, increasing resource scarcity and a changing climate on Earth’s surface is causing some interested parties to militarize, namely India, the North American Union, and the Sinese Federation. The discovery of a strange artifact by Dr. Alayna Wong precipitates a crisis. What appears to be a hitherto undiscovered comet is soon revealed to be an alien structure on a cometary trajectory toward the sun. Now there is a race between countries to see who can study and control the artifact dubbed the "Solar Express" before it perhaps destroys itself. Leading the way for the North American Union is Alayna’s friend, Captain Christopher Tavoian, one of the first shuttle pilots to be trained for combat in space. But, as the alien craft gets closer to its destination, it begins to alter the surface of the sun in strange new ways, ways that could lead Alayna to revolutionary discoveries—provided Chris can prevent war from breaking out as he navigates among the escalating tensions between nations.

    

    Reprint.

    Novellas, longer than short stories but shorter than novels, are a rich and rewarding literary form that can fully explore tomorrow’s technology, the far reaches of the future, thought-provoking imaginings, fantastic worlds, and entertaining concepts with the impact of a short story and the detailed breadth of a novel. Gathering a wide variety of excellent SF and fantasy, this anthology of “short novels” showcases the talents of both established masters and new writers.Contents (alphabetical order by author last name):“In Her Eyes” by Seth Chambers (The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction, Jan/Feb 2014)The Churn: An Expanse Novella by James S. A. Corey (Orbit)“Where the Trains Turn” by Pasi Ilmari Jääskeläinen (translated by Liisa Rantalaiho) (Tor.com, 15 November 2014)Yesterday’s Kin by Nancy Kress (Tachyon Publications)“Claudius Rex” by John P. Murphy (Alembical 3: A Distillation of Three Novellas, eds. Schoen & Dorrance)“The Things We Do For Love” by K. J. Parker (Subterranean Press Magazine, Summer 2014)“The Mothers of Voorhisville” by Mary Rickert, (Tor.com, 30 Apr 2014)“The Lightning Tree” by Patrick Rothfuss (Rogues, eds. Martin & Dozois)Dream Houses by Genevieve Valentine (Dream Houses WSFA/ Wyrm Publishing)

    Here, that steamy, swampy jungle world with strange creatures lurking amidst the dripping vegetation is explored in sixteen all-new stories collected by bestselling author George R. R. Martin and editor Gardner Dozois.

    This new collection of stories from the multi-award-winning author of Doomsday Book and To Say Nothing of the Dog contains:A Letter from the ClearysAt the RialtoDeath on the NileThe Soul Selects Her own SocietyFire WatchInside JobEven the QueenThe Winds of Marble ArchAll Seated on the GroundLast of the WinnebagosTen stories - which have all won the Hugo Award, the Nebula Award or both - are compulsory reading for the serious science fiction fan.

    

    AldissAn invasion of invisible monsters strikes terror on an English farm.HE WHO SHAPES, by Roger ZelaznyThe science of tomorrow makes possible a new kind of psychiatrist--one who can enter another human mind and reshape it...if he dares!THE DOORS OF HIS FACE, THE LAMPS OF HIS MOUTH, by Roger ZelaznyA man measures his courage against a Venusian sea monster the size of a thirty-story building."REPENT, HARLEQUIN!" SAID THE TICKTOCKMAN, by Harlan EllisonA John Birch world of the future where tardiness takes time off your life, and a joker who's never on time throws jelly-beans into the clockworks.Four Distinguised Runners-up:THE DROWNED GIANT, by J.G. BallardCOMPUTERS DON'T ARGUE, by Gordon R. DicksonBECALMED IN HELL, by Larry NivenBALANCED ECOLOGY, by James H. Schmitz"The stories in this book...show the quality of modern science fiction, its range, and, I think, its growing depth and maturity. Science fiction has come a long way." --DAMON KNIGHTContents ix • Introduction (Nebula Award Stories) • (1966) • essay by Damon Knight 1 • The Doors of His Face, the Lamps of His Mouth • (1965) • novelette by Roger Zelazny 34 • Balanced Ecology • (1965) • shortstory by James H. Schmitz 53 • "Repent, Harlequin!" Said the Ticktockman • (1965) • shortstory by Harlan Ellison 65 • He Who Shapes • (1965) • novella by Roger Zelazny 151 • Computers Don't Argue • (1965) • shortstory by Gordon R. Dickson 165 • Becalmed in Hell • [Known Space] • (1965) • shortstory by Larry Niven 178 • The Saliva Tree • (1965) • novella by Brian W. Aldiss 234 • The Drowned Giant • (1964) • shortstory by J. G. Ballard