Sunflower Cycle Series by Peter Watts, Jonathan Strahan, Greg Egan, Aliette de Bodard, Ian McDonald, Karl Schroeder, Pat Cadigan, Karen Lord, Ellen Klages, Adam Roberts, Linda Nagata, Hannu Rajaniemi, Kathleen Ann Goonan, Ken MacLeod, Alastair Reynolds, Neil Clarke, Susan Palwick, J.Y. Yang, Jia Xia, Brendan DuBois, Leigh Kennedy, Alethea Kontis, Ken Liu, Mark Cole, Alvaro Zinos-Amaro, David Conyers, David Kernot

Combining complex science with skillfully executed prose, these edgy, award-winning tales explore the shifting border between the known and the alien. The beauty and peril of technology and the passion and penalties of conviction merge in narratives that are by turns dark, satiric, and introspective... moreCombining complex science with skillfully executed prose, these edgy, award-winning tales explore the shifting border between the known and the alien. The beauty and peril of technology and the passion and penalties of conviction merge in narratives that are by turns dark, satiric, and introspective. Among these bold storylines: a seemingly humanized monster from John Carpenter’s The Thing reveals the true villains in an Antarctic showdown; an artificial intelligence shields a biologically enhanced prodigy from her overwhelmed parents; a deep-sea diver discovers her true nature lies not within the confines of her mission but in the depths of her psyche; a court psychologist analyzes a psychotic graduate student who has learned to reprogram reality itself; and a father tries to hold his broken family together in the wake of an ongoing assault by sentient rainstorms. Gorgeously saturnine and exceptionally powerful, these collected fictions are both intensely thought-provoking and impossible to forget.Contents"The Things""The Island" "The Second Coming of Jasmine Fitzgerald""A Word for Heathens""Home""The Eyes of God" "Flesh Made Word""Nimbus""Mayfly" (with Derryl Murphy) "Ambassador""Hillcrest vs. Velikovsky""Repeating the Past""A Niche""Outtro: En Route to Dystopia with the Angry Optimist" less

Reach For Infinity (Infinity Project, Vol 3) The latest in the Infinity anthology collections edited and comissioned by multiple award-winning anthologist Jonathan Strahan. What happens when humanity reaches out into the vastness of space? The universe shifts and changes: suddenly you understand, you get it, and are filled with a sense of wonder... moreReach For Infinity (Infinity Project, Vol 3) The latest in the Infinity anthology collections edited and comissioned by multiple award-winning anthologist Jonathan Strahan. What happens when humanity reaches out into the vastness of space? The universe shifts and changes: suddenly you understand, you get it, and are filled with a sense of wonder. That moment of understanding drives the greatest science-fiction stories and lies at the heart of Reach for Infinity: an original collection of new short science fiction from the biggest and most exciting names in the genre.Contents: * Introduction (Reach for Infinity) (2014) • essay by Jonathan Strahan * Break My Fall (2014) / novelette by Greg Egan * The Dust Queen (2014) / novelette by Aliette de Bodard * The Fifth Dragon (2014) / novelette by Ian McDonald * Kheldyu (2014) / novelette by Karl Schroeder * Report Concerning the Presence of Seahorses on Mars (2014) / novelette by Pat Cadigan * Hiraeth: A Tragedy in Four Acts (2014) / shortstory by Karen Lord * Amicae Aeternum (2014) / shortstory by Ellen Klages * Trademark Bugs: A Legal History (2014) / shortstory by Adam Roberts * Attitude (2014) / novelette by Linda Nagata * Invisible Planets (2014) / shortstory by Hannu Rajaniemi * Wilder Still, the Stars (2014) / novelette by Kathleen Ann Goonan * The Entire Immense Superstructure': An Installation (2014) / shortstory by Ken MacLeod * In Babelsberg (2014) / shortstory by Alastair Reynolds * Hotshot (2014) / novelette by Peter Watts * About the Authors (Reach for Infinity) (2014) • essay by Jonathan Strahan less

FICTION“Weather” by Susan Palwick“Patterns of a Murmuration, in Billions of Data Points” by JY Yang“Spring Festival: Happiness, Anger, Love, Sorrow, Joy” by Xia Jia, translated by Ken Liu“Falling Star” by Brendan DuBois“Her Furry Face” by Leigh Kennedy“Giants” by Peter WattsNON-FICTION“Flash Gordon, Cardboard Space Stations, and Zero Gravity Sex: Why Science Fiction Isn’t Always to Blame” by Mark Cole“Consciousness as Story: A Conversation with Ann Leckie” by Alvaro Zinos-Amaro“Another Word:... moreFICTION“Weather” by Susan Palwick“Patterns of a Murmuration, in Billions of Data Points” by JY Yang“Spring Festival: Happiness, Anger, Love, Sorrow, Joy” by Xia Jia, translated by Ken Liu“Falling Star” by Brendan DuBois“Her Furry Face” by Leigh Kennedy“Giants” by Peter WattsNON-FICTION“Flash Gordon, Cardboard Space Stations, and Zero Gravity Sex: Why Science Fiction Isn’t Always to Blame” by Mark Cole“Consciousness as Story: A Conversation with Ann Leckie” by Alvaro Zinos-Amaro“Another Word: The Best of All Possible Worlds” by Alethea Kontis“Editor’s Desk: Secret Project!” by Neil Clarke less

Two decades ago astronomers confirmed the existence of planets orbiting stars other than our Sun. Today more than 800 such worlds have been identified, and scientists now estimate that at least 160 billion star-bound planets are to be found in the Milky Way Galaxy alone. But more surprising is just how diverse and bizarre those worlds are... moreTwo decades ago astronomers confirmed the existence of planets orbiting stars other than our Sun. Today more than 800 such worlds have been identified, and scientists now estimate that at least 160 billion star-bound planets are to be found in the Milky Way Galaxy alone. But more surprising is just how diverse and bizarre those worlds are. Extreme Planets is a science fiction anthology of stories set on alien worlds that push the limits of what we once believed possible in a planetary environment. Visit the bizarre moons, dwarf planets and asteroids of our own Solar Systems, and in the deeper reaches of space encounter super-Earths with extreme gravity fields, carbon planets featuring mountain ranges of pure diamond, and ocean worlds shrouded by seas hundreds of kilometres thick. The challenges these environments present to the humans that explore and colonise them are many, and are the subject matter of these tales. Cover illustration by Paul Drummond. The anthology features 15 tales from leading science fiction authors and rising stars in the genre:"Banner of the Angels" by David Brin and Gregory Benford"Brood" by Stephen Gaskell"Haumea" by G. David Nordley"A Perfect Day off the Farm" by Patty Jansen"Daybreak" by Jeff Hecht"Giants" by Peter Watts"Maelstrom" by Kevin Ikenberry"Murder on Centauri" by Robert J. Mendenhall"The Flight of the Salamander" by Violet Addison and David Smith"Petrochemical Skies" by David Conyers and David Kernot"The Hyphal Layer" by Meryl Ferguson"Colloidal Suspension" by Geoff Nelder"Super-Earth Mother" by Guy Immega"Lightime" by Jay Caselberg"The Seventh Generation" by Brian Stableford less