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The twenty-eight stories in this collection imaginatively take us far across the universe, into the very core of our beings, to the realm of the gods, and the moment just after now. Included here are the works of masters of the form and of bright new talents, including: * Cory Doctorow * Robert Charles Wilson * Michael Swanwick * Ian McDonald * Benjamin Rosenbaum * Kage Baker * Bruce McAllister * Alastair Reynolds * Jay Lake * Ruth Nestvold * Gregory Benford * Justin Stanchfield * Walter Jon Williams * Greg Van Eekhout * Robert Reed * David D. Levine * Paul J. McAuley * Mary Rosenblum * Daryl Gregory * Jack Skillingstead * Paolo Bacigalupi * Greg Egan * Elizabeth Bear * Sarah Monette * Ken MacLeod * Stephen Baxter * Carolyn Ives Gilman * John Barnes * A.M. DellamonicaSupplementing the stories are the editor's insightful summation of the year's events and a list of honorable mentions, making this book a valuable resource in addition to serving as the single best place in the universe to find stories that stir the imagination and the heart.… (more)
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My personal favourites, must-reads:
Incarnation Day by Walter Jon Williams
Damascus by Daryl Gregory
Also really
Tin Marsh by Michael Swanwick
Where The Golden Apples Grow by Kage Baker
Signal To Noise by Alastair Reynolds
Bow Shock by Gregory Benford
In The River by Justin Stanchfield
Far As You Can Go by Greg Van Eekhout
Dead Man Walking by Paul J. McAuley
Home Movies by Mary Rosenblum
Life On The Preservation by Jack Skillingstead
Yellow Card Man by Paolo Bacigalupi
The Pacific Mystery by Stephen Baxter
Nightingale by Alastair Reynolds
Really awful, as far as I'm concerned:
The Big Ice by Jay Lake and Ruth Nestvold
The Ile of Dogges by Elizabeth Bear and Sarah Monette
Every Hole Is Outlined by John Barnes
The story Kin, by Bruce McAllister was a 2007 Hugo nominee for Best Short Story, but was definitely not amongst my favourites. The 2007 Hugo winner for Best Novelette was The Djinn's Wife, which, again, didn't make my list. The nominee Yellow Card Man might have made my shortlist.
I felt like this book offered several stories which started with promising enough concepts, but then gave us unconvincing people who did unbelievable things. Some of the biggest disappointments for me were Alistair Reynolds “Signal to Noise,” in which a man has a chance to strive for closure with an alternate universe version of his recently deceased wife; David Levine’s “I Hold My Father’s Paws,” in which a man strives for closure with his long estranged, about-to-be-turned-into-a-dog (I kid you not), father; and even Ian McDonald’s Hugo Award winning “The Djinn’s Wife,” which left me utterly unconvinced, even if I didn’t really hate it.
Having said all that, one of the best things about these annual collections is always finding authors new to me, and that was the case again here. Three of my favorite stories in the book were from authors I had not previously read: Paolo Bacigalupi’s "Yellow Card Man," Benjamin Rosenbaum’s "The House Beyond Your Sky,” and Cory Doctorow’s very funny “I, Row-boat.” Other favorites were the always reliable Robert Reed’s “Good Mountain,” and Walter Jon Williams’ “Incarnation Day.”