Stephen Baxter. Obelisk. (Edge of Infinity)
One of a number of stories in the collection that looks to the Chinese as the people who will get us further into space.
Reviewing short SF since 2000
One of a number of stories in the collection that looks to the Chinese as the people who will get us further into space.
A sequel to ‘Project Hades’ in Analog July/August 2010
I’ve read fewer stories from Baxter of late than I would normally like to, so good to see him leading off this first story in the new Arc magazine.
Humanity finding out some answers to some pretty big questions, but the act of asking…
As ever, a strong collection of stories, albeit fairly ‘safe’ in terms of a relatively narrow range of sources.
A story that could quite easily be presented as a missing Quatermass story from Nigel Kneale.
A bit of a deja vu feeling with the opening and closing stories, with two experienced writers re-treading footprints into the sfnal regolith, with the other stories being good without being great.
The descendents, many generations hence, of those from Earth II, struggle to understand the nature of their planet and how they got there.
A collection of excellent stories.
Five regular contributors (Stephen Baxter, H.G. Stratmann, Jerry Oltion, G. David Nordley, Carl Frederick) to Analog providing fayre consistent with that which they have provided previously. Enow already.
Baxter concludes his XeeLee timeline. What strange forces have been at work so that during a couple of days taken as leave from work, I end up reading Baxter’s ‘Starfall’, which has been sitting on my laptop as a PDF for a year, and this story from Analog, which has been sitting on my ‘to be read’ shelf for about six months, in an afternoon sitting?
Star-spanning combat, part of the XeeLee sequence.
A strong issue, with stories from authors well-established and authors on the way up : Aliette de Bodard, Bruce McAllister, Caroline M. Yoachim, Damien Broderick, David Erik Nelson, Stephen Baxter.
I have to own up to much preferring Baxter’s SF to his alternate history – oh for the XeeLee days!
Molly Brown. The Hamlet AI Murders. A rather missed opportunity. A subtle tale of a
Isabel of the Fall. Ian R. MacLeod. MacLeod has put together ten years’ worth of
The Nephilim. Richard Calder. Calder takes us once more into the far future Britain of
Cadre Siblings. Stephen Baxter. Baxter packs a lot into a short space: a post-invasion Earth,
Not the strongest of issues, a bit of a surprise considering Reed, Cassutt, Robertson and Baxter being on the front cover.
William Barton. In the Age of the Quiet Sun. Good to see another story from
Real physical versions of Asimovs are to hand, which I find I read much more quickly than the e-versions of late (having spent most days at work in front of a screen, reading off a screen is not much of a relaxation!) – so I expect to be up to date with the US mags by the end of the month!
An excellent issue.
PDF version reviewed. Daniel Grotta. RAW. A professional photographer, courtesy of some hi-tech kit and
I missed this when it first hit the shelves, so a mini-review some months after
Maybe its me favouring fellow Brits, but Baxter and Glass are the pick of the bunch for me.
Alex Irvine. Shepherded by Galatea. A few pages in, with a lot more information about
Stephen Baxter. Breeding Ground. Another in the author’s Xeelee sequence. A human warship, human tech
A slightly flat issue for me – maybe it should be read in the last week of December in an armchair by a blazing log fire, with a glass of port in one hand.
Robert Charles Wilson being the pick of the bunch for me.
A slightly weaker than usual issue perhaps – certainly for someone like me for whom the opening SF mystery did little for, and certainly considering the calibre of the authors in this issue.
Father to the Man. Robert Reed. The concluding chapter of a five-tale sequence, begun back
Millennium Babies. Kristine Kathryn Rusch On top form, Rusch describes painfully one of the adults
Reviewed : MobiPocket version on a Tapwave Zodiac. Wil McCarthy. Boundary Condition. National Weather Service
eBookman version reviewed Amy Bechtel. Language Lessons. It’s some sixteen years since the cutesy creatures
Bud Sparhawk. Chandra’s Pup. I got a few pages into this story, and then did
Michael A. Burstein. Time Ablaze. Somewhat formulaic time travel story in which a traveller from
Stories by : Alastair Reynolds, Aliette de Bodard, Charles Coleman Finlay, Daryl Gregory, Dominic Green, Elizabeth Bear, Garth Nix, Geoff Ryman, Gord Sellar, Greg Egan, Gwyneth Jones, Hannu Rajaniemi, Ian McDonald, James Alan Garner, James. L. Cambias, Jay Lake, Karl Schroeder, Kristine Kathryn Rusch, Mary Robinette Kowal, Mary Rosenblum, Maureen F. McHugh, Michael Swanwick, Nancy Kress, Paolo Bacigalupi, Paul McAuley, Robert Reed, Stephen Baxter, Ted Kosmatka
The third in the Solaris series hits the street just as the word on those
An excellent collection of short SF. Several made it to the various Year’s Best collections, and a couple of others which were not selected would not have looked out of place. The volume starts well, is strong in the middle, and ramps up to a strong finish.
Daw and Crowther provide the goods once again, in a pocket-sized collection that manages to 15 almost invariably top quality stories.
This is a good collection featuring some strong stories by many of the biggest names in British SF.
The stories are almost without exception an excellent introduction to the genre, covering a wide spread and with something for most readers. If your kids are past the Harry Potter stage, then give them this hefty volume to help them take a step (or rather, a giant leap) in the right direction.
Stories by : Ted Chiang, Peter S. Beagle, Charles Stross, Greg Egan, Daryl Gregory, Jeffrey Ford, Holly Black, Ted Kosmatka, Alex Irvine, Daniel Abraham, Nancy Kress, Bruce Sterling, Theodore Goss, Neil Gaiman, Stephen Baxter, Ken Macleod, Susan Palwick, Michael Swanwick, M. Rickert, Tony Daniel, Elizabeth Hand, Chris Roberson, Elizabeth Bear, Kelly Link.
This has quite simply got to be the strongest original collection in SF in recent years. If you are a regular visitor to Best SF and tend to concur with what I see as being the best in short SF, then this volume is a must have.
Sixteen stories, of which I’d say 8 hit the mark. It’s a collection of fairly traditional SF, eschewing the new speculative, as perhaps might be expected with the authors for the most being well established. The majority of the stories could have been written anytime during the 1990s, making it a good, if safe collection, and a solid start.
‘Time Pieces’ is a slim volume, containing eight shorter stories by some well-established names, commemorating
Overall, the quality of the stories is high, and a fine collection showcasing primarily British authors, although perhaps just a tad below the quality of last year’s ‘Constellations’.
If it’s SFnal bang for your buck you’re after, you won’t get much better value for money than this during 2005.
Prolific British SF writer Stephen Baxter has an increasingly impressive body of work to his
Stories by : Carol Emshwiller, Charles Stross, Christopher Rowe, Gene Wolfe., James Patrick Kelly, Jeff VanderMeer, Joe Haldeman, M. John Harrison, Nancy Kress, Paolo Bacigalupi, Robert Reed, Stephen Baxter, Walter Jon Williams.
Stories by : Cory Doctorow and Charles Stross, David D. Levine, George Saunders, Howard Waldrop, James Patrick Kelly, Jeffrey Ford, Lucius Shepard, Michael Swanwick, Neil Gaiman, Paolo Bacigalupi, Stephen Baxter, Susan Mosser, Ursula K. Le Guin, Vernor Vinge.
Stories by : Dan Simmons, Gregory Benford, Ian Watson, James Patrick Kelly, Jim Grimsley, Michael Blumlein, Michael Swanwick, Nancy Kress, Richard Wadholm, Robin Wayne Bailey, Stephen Baxter.
Stories by : Bradley Denton, Charles Stross, Daniel Abraham, Eleanor Arnason, Gardner Dozois, George RR Martin, Gregory Feeley, Ian McDowell, James Patrick Kelly, Judith Berman, Patricia A. McKillip, Stephen Baxter.
Stories by : Bruce Sterling, Gene Wolfe., Greg Egan, Gregory Benford, Gwyneth Jones, Ian McDonald, James Van Pelt, Johanna Sinisalo, John Hemry, John Kessel, Kage Baker, Karen Joy Fowler, Kathleen Ann Goonan, Ken MacLeod, Marc Laidlaw, Nancy Kress, Palle Juul Holm, Peter Watts, Robin Hitchock, Stephen Baxter, Terry Bisson, Tim Pratt, Tony Ballantyne, William Shunn.
Stories by : Alastair Reynolds, Carol Emshwiller, Charlie Rosenkrantz, Claude Lalumiere, Cory Doctorow, Daryl Gregory, Edd Vick, Eileen Gunn, Gardner R Dozois, Gregory Benford, Heather Lindsley, Ian Creasey, Ian R. Macleod, Joe Haldeman, Kameron Hurley, Liz Williams, Mary Rosenblum, Michael Flynn, Michael Swanwick, Nancy Kress, Paul J. McAuley, Robert Reed, Rudy Rucker, Stephen Baxter, Terry Bisson, Wil McCarthy.
Stories by : Adam Roberts, Alastair Reynolds, Alaya Dawn Johnson, Bruce Stirling, Bud Sparhawk, Cory Doctorow, Daryl Gregory, David Langford, Gardner R Dozois, Greg Bear, Gregory Benford, Hannu Rajaniemi, James Patrick Kelly, Joe Haldeman, Justina Robinson, Ken MacLeod, Larissa Lai, Lauren McLaughlin, Liz Williams, Matthew Jarpe, Michael Swanwick, Neal Asher, Oliver Morton, Paul McAuley, Peter F. Hamilton, R. Garcia y Robertson, Rudy Rucker, Stephen Baxter, Ted Chiang, Tobias S. Buckell, Vonda N McIntyre.
Stories by : Allen M. Steele, Angelica Gorodischer, Charles Stross, Cory Doctorow, Gene Wolfe., Geoff Ryman, Gregory Benford, Joe Haldeman, Kage Baker, M Rickert, Michael Swanwick, Nancy Kress, Nigel Brown, Octavia E. Butler, Richard de la Casa and Pedro Jorge Romero, Rick Moody, Robert Reed, Stephen Baxter, Tony Ballantyne.
Stories by : Alastair Reynolds, Brian W. Aldiss, David Morrell, Edward M. Lerner, Gene Wolfe., Gregory Benford, James Morrow, James Patrick Kelly, Lisa Goldstein, Michael Swanwick, Nancy Kress, Richard Chwedyk, Simon Ings, Stephen Baxter, Terry Bisson, Terry Dowling, Thomas M. Disch, Ursula K. Le Guin.
Stories by : Brian Stableford, Brian W. Aldiss Steppenpferd, Charles Dexter Ward, Chris Beckett, Dan Simmons, Darrell Schweitzer, David Brin, David Langford, Greg Egan, Howard Waldrop, Joan Slonczewski, John M. Ford, Ken MacLeod, M. Shayne Bell, Michael F. Flynn, Nancy Kress, Norman Spinrad, Paul J. McAuley, Robert Charles Wilson, Robert Reed, Robert Sheckley, Robert Silverberg, Stephen Baxter, Stephen Dedman, Tananarive Due, Ted Chiang, Ursula K. Le Guin
Stories by : Barry N. Malzberg, Brian Aldiss, Brian M. Stableford, Chris Beckett, Chris Lawson, Cory Doctorow, Curt Wohleber, Elisabeth Malartre, Fred Lerner, G. David Nordley, Gene Wolfe, Geoff Ryman, Greg Egan, Hiroe Suga, Kim Stanley Robinson, Lucy Sussex, Mary Soon Lee, Michael Bishop, Michael Swanwick, Robert J. Sawyer, Robert Reed, Sarah Zettel, Stephen Baxter, Terry Bisson, Tom Purdom
Stories by : Alexander Jablokov, Bruce Sterling, David Brin, David Langford, Dominic Green, Gregory Benford, Jean-Claude Dunyach, Mark S. Geston, Mary Rosenblum, Mary Soon Lee, Michael F. Flynn, Michael Skeet, Michael Swanwick, Nancy Kress, Norman Spinrad, Rob Chilson, Robert Reed, Ron Goulart, Stephen Baxter, Ted Chiang.
Stories by : Allen Steele, Brian Stableford, Bruce Sterling, Connie Willis, Damon Knight, Dave Wolverton, David Langford, Gene Wolfe., Gregory Benford, Gwyneth Jones, James Patrick Kelly, Joanna Russ, John Brunner, Kate Wilhelm, Kathleen Ann Goonan, Robert Reed, Sheila Finch, Stephen Baxter, Terry Bisson, Yves Meynard.
Stories by : Gene Wolfe, Gregory Benford, James Patrick Kelly, Joan Slonczewski, Joe Haldeman, Nancy Kress, Patricia A. McKillip, Robert Sheckley, Robert Silverberg, Roger Zelazny, Stephen Baxter, Ursula K. Le Guin, William Barton, William Browning Spencer
As ever, chock full of high quality SF, with the annual summation providing SF with an ongoing reference and reading tome which we should not take for granted. Here’s to the next 25 years! Stories by : Alastair Reynolds, Benjamin Rosenbaum and David Ackert, Brian Stableford, Bruce Sterling, Chris Roberson, David Moles, Elizabeth Bear, Greg Egan, Gregory Benford, Gwyneth Jones, Ian McDonald, James Van Pelt, John Barnes, Justin Stanchfield, Kage Baker, Keith Brooke, Ken MacLeod, Kristine Kathryn Rusch, Michael Swanwick, Nancy Kress, Neal Asher, Pat Cadigan, Robert Reed, Robert Silverberg, Stephen Baxter, Ted Chiang, Ted Kosmatka, Tom Purdom, Una McCormack, Vandana Singh
Stories by : A.M. Dellamonica, Alastair Reynolds, Benjamin Rosenbaum, Bruce McAllister, Carolyn Ives Gilman, Cory Doctorow, Daryl Gregory, David D. Levine, Elizabeth Bear and Sarah Monette, Greg Egan, Greg van Eekhout, Gregory Benford, Ian McDonald, Jack Skillingstead, Jay Lake and Ruth Nestvold, John Barnes, Justin Stanchfield, Kage Baker, Ken MacLeod, Mary Rosenblum, Michael Swanwick, Paolo Bacigalupi, Paul J. McAuley, Robert Charles Wilson, Robert Reed, Stephen Baxter, Walter Jon Williams
Stories by : Alastair Reynolds, Bruce Sterling, Chris Beckett, Chris Roberson, Daryl Gregory, David Gerrold, David Moles, Dominic Green, Elizabeth Bear, Gene Wolfe., Gwyneth Jones, Hannu Rajaniemi, Harry Turtledove, Ian McDonald, James Patrick Kelly, Jay Lake and Ruth Nestvold, Joe Haldeman, Ken MacLeod, Liz Williams, Mary Rosenblum, Michael Swanwick, Neal Asher, Paolo Bacigalupi, Peter Watts and Derryl Murphy, Robert Reed, Stephen Baxter, Stephen Popkes, Vonda N McIntyre, William Sanders
Stories by : Albert E Cowdrey, Benjamin Rosenbaum, Brendan Dubois, Caitlin R. Kiernan, Christopher Rowe, Colin P. Davies, Daniel Abraham, David Moles, Eleanor Arnason, James Patrick Kelly, James. L. Cambias, Kage Baker, M. John Harrison, Mary Rosenblum, Michael F. Flynn, Nancy Kress, Paolo Bacigalupi, Pat Murphy, Paul Di Filippo, Paul Melko, Peter F. Hamilton, Robert Reed, Stephen Baxter, Terry Bisson, Vandana Singh, Vernor Vinge, Walter Jon Williams, William Sanders.
Stories by : Alastair Reynolds, Albert E Cowdrey, Brian Stableford, Charles Stross, Eliot Fintushel., Greg Egan, Ian McDonald, John Kessel, Lucius Shepard, M. Shayne Bell, Michael Swanwick, Nancy Kress, Paul J. McAuley, Peter F. Hamilton, Rick Cook and Ernest Hogan, Robert Charles Wilson, Severna Park, Stephen Baxter, Steven Utley, Susan Palwick, Tananarive Due, Ursula K. Le Guin.
Stories by : Alastair Reynolds, Ben Bova, Charles Sheffield, Chris Lawson, David Marusek, Eleanor Arnason, Frederik Pohl, Geoff Ryman, Greg Egan, Hal Clement, James Patrick Kelly, Kage Baker, Karl Schroder, Kim Stanley Robinson, M. John Harrison, Michael Swanwick, Mike Resnick, Paul J. McAuley, Richard Wadholm, Robert Grossbach, Robert Reed, Robert Silverberg, Sage Walker, Sean Williams, Stephen Baxter, Tanith Lee, Walter Jon Williams.
Stories by : Bruce Sterling, Cherry Wilder, Chris Lawson, Cory Doctorow, Geoffrey A. Landis, Greg Egan, Gwyneth Jones, Howard Waldrop, Ian McDonald, Ian R. Macleod, Jim Grimsley, Liz Williams, Michael Swanwick, Paul J. McAuley, Rob Chilson, Robert Charles Wilson, Robert Reed, Stephen Baxter, Tanith Lee, Ted Chiang, Tony Daniel, Ursula K. Le Guin, William Barton, William Browning Spencer
Stories by : Bill Johnson, Brian Stableford, Carolyn Ives Gilman, David Marusek, G. David Nordley, Geoffrey A. Landis, Greg Egan, Gregory Benford and Elisabeth Malartre, Gwyneth Jones, Howard Waldrop, Ian McDonald, Ian R. Macleod, James Patrick Kelly, John Kessel, Michael Swanwick, Nancy Kress, Paul J. McAuley, Peter F. Hamilton, Robert Reed, Robert Silverberg, Sean Williams and Simon Brown, Simon Ings, Stephen Baxter, Walter Jon Williams, William Sanders.
Stories by : Bruce Sterling, Bud Sparhawk, Charles Sheffield, Cherry Wilder, Damian Broderick, Gene Wolfe., Gregory Benford, Gregory Feeley, Gwyneth Jones, Ian McDonald, James P Blaylock, Jim Cowan, John Kessel, Jonathan Lethem, Maureen F. McHugh, Michael Cassutt, Michael Swanwick, Mike Resnick, Nancy Kress, Paul Park, Robert Reed, Robert Silverberg, Stephen Baxter, Steven Utley, Tony Daniel, Walter Jon Williams, William Barton.
Stories by : Brian Stableford, Eliot Fintushel., Geoff Ryman, George Turner, Greg Egan, Howard Waldrop, Joe Haldeman, Katherine Kerr, Lisa Goldstein, Mary Rosenblum, Maureen F. McHugh, Michael Bishop, Michael F. Flynn, Mike Resnick, Nancy Kress, Pat Cadigan, Robert Reed, Stephen Baxter, Terry Bisson, Ursula K. Le Guin, Walter Jon Williams, William Sanders
Stories by : Brian W. Aldiss, Bruce Sterling, Charles Sheffield, Connie Willis, Dan Simmons, Don Webb, G. David Nordley, Greg Egan, Ian R. Macleod, Jack Cady, Joe Haldeman, Jr, Mark Rich, Maureen F. McHugh and David B. Kisor, Mike Resnick, Nancy Kress, Neal Barrett, Pat Cadigan, Rebecca Ore, Robert Reed, Stephen Baxter, Steven Utley, Walter Jon Williams, William Browning Spencer
A nice volume to have on the shelves, with a wide range of quality content which showcases a wide range of SF, and high production values. The high price and limited print run will restrict the volume to collectors, but as the stories aren’t originals, we can’t complain that the average SF reader is being deprived.
All in all, an interesting varied collection, and well worth the shelf-space.
This is a handsome hard-back book which would grace any shelf (albeit that the shape of the book will require a deep shelf!). The stories are of high quality, offering a lot of vision, and work together well. A recommended purchase for those of you who haven’t got the stories in their PS Publishing format.
Stirring stuff, with the ending, in which the two humans stand there helpless, almost reaching the peaks of Arthur C Clarke (one to whom Baxter is often compared).
Thsi classy paperback (David Hardy artwork) reeks of class.
The Ant-Men of Tibet. Stephen Baxter Originally in Interzone #95, May 1995. Baxter pays a