Customer Reviews

Ruins Extraterrestrial

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This is a 2008 book I bought and read around publication which was released in e-book form in 2011, and I re-bought together with its companions (Metropolis, Terra) as the price was very low and I wanted to finally read properly Terra and read Metropolis.

I did also a quick reread of this one to write a little on Fantasy Book Critic about it and it was as good as I remembered. The minireview below was originally published on Fantasy Book Critic and all notes and references are to be found there.

Editor Eric T. Reynolds comments on Ruins Extraterrestrial in the introduction.

"We have long been fascinated with ruins. Even people who lived during ancient times were interested in the artifacts left by even more ancient cultures. Ruins hold so much mystery that even the best analysis can give only an impression of a long-vanished culture. Whether future ruins of Earth or those found on distant worlds, their artifacts are small pieces to larger puzzles that can never be absolutely complete. To study them we have to think beyond our present world experience. This is true of earthly ruins as well as those of non-human origin.

Cultures that evolved independently of us will have developed societies far beyond our imagination. And yet, that's what carries us forward and motivates us to take those long trips across the void, confronting unknown obstacles in order to bring back knowledge from the remnants of a vanished civilization. How safe the visits will be will vary. Exploring alien ruins can be dangerous, both unintentionally on the part of those who left them, as well as by design. Some might still have a presence that can be triggered by the arrival of an unsuspecting archaeological team. Others will be completely dead."

Table of Contents: Ruins Extraterrestrial:

Introduction by Eric T. Reynolds
Stonework by Wendy Waring
Beyond the Wall by Justin Stanchfield
The Empty Utopia by Christopher McKitterick
Borrowed Time by Gustavo Bondoni
Charybdis by Sue Blalock
Introduction to the Findings of Team 150B-T.2U by Raiden Mesc Gerarti by Elizabeth Kate Switaj
The Dam by Harvey Welles and Philip Raines
The Fateful Voyage of Dame La Liberté by Lavie Tidhar
Memories by Robert B. Marcus, Jr.
Watcher in the Dark by Suanne Warr
Jigsaw by Douglas Smith
Heartcry by Willis Couvillier
When All Is Known by Cheryl McCreary
Red City by Rob Riel
Combustible Eden by Davin Ireland
The Price of Peace by Tristan S. Davenport
Song of the Child-Prophet by Jonathan Shipley
Flies by Paul L. Bates
Planetfall by Jack Hillman
Inheritance by Trent Walters
Inclusions by Camille Alexa
I, Fixit by Ted Stetson
Among the Shards of Heaven by Jennifer Crow

Looking back at the anthology I notice some familiar names that have become mainstays in the sff community since I've read the book, most notably Lavie Tidhar and Douglas Smith, while I also got and plan to soon read Christopher McKitterick's 2010 novel Transcendence.

The stories range from dark to humorous, from human perspective to alien one, from explorers from civilizations that are like ours, to explorers that come from strange cultures, from pure exploration to accidental findings and from peaceful settings to warlike ones. As they are only a few pages short, the stories feature usually only a few characters but almost always something interesting either happens or is discovered, so there are a few twists, great atmosphere and world building that is just exceptional given the few pages each author has to work with. There is even a two pages story where the place is the only character!

Overall I would say that Ruins Extraterrestrial (highly recommended) is the perfect place to start the exploration of this superb trio of anthologies.

This book contains a nice blend of different authors with very different styles and content. I think this book has a little something for all Sci-Fi fans. Of particular note was "Memories" by Robert B. Marcus Jr. The story is wonderfully plotted and written. Marcus is a true author in every sense of the word. If for no other reason, the book was worth buying just for Marcus' work. His work was right up there with his novel, "Shadow on the Stars" which still remains as one of my all time favorites.

This appears to be one of those invitational anthologies that solicits up-and-comers who are willing to work cheap or free in order to get their names out to the reading public. I read a lot of cutting-edge and independent science fiction but I have never heard of a single one of the authors in this collection, nor many of the obscure e-zines and other invitational anthologies in which some of them have achieved prior publication. Of course, there's absolutely nothing wrong with being new. Everyone has to start somewhere, and adventurous readers can often find next-big-things and diamonds-in-the-rough in this type of collection. There are a few winners in this book but unfortunately most of its stories are from hobbyists who have attained competence but haven't yet made the leap to extraordinary (i.e. beyond the predictable) creativity.

This anthology's titular theme can inspire some great sci-fi ideas, and editor Eric T. Reynolds kept things loose by collecting stories of mysterious alien ruins discovered by humans, human ruins re-discovered by long-lost colonists, and even human ruins discovered by aliens or robots. But most of the writers here deliver typically archetypal space operas or first-contact tales that might as well be classic Star Trek episodes. Sadly, that is the overall impression made by this book, with few of the stories offering truly compelling themes or intriguing discoveries. Granted, there are a few authors here who break the mold and are worth checking out, such as Justin Stanchfield, Robert Marcus Jr., Christopher McKitterick, and Trent Walters, all of whom do unexpected things with the anthology's basic theme. This collection can still be a treat for readers who like to prowl for new writers of interest. But many of the other writers herein, and the anthology itself, are likely to remain obscure. [~doomsdayer520~]