The Year's Best Fantasy and Horror: Third Annual Collection [Paperback]

Terri Windling (Author), Ellen Datlow (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 15, 1990

Collecting the creme de la creme of the horror and fantasy fields, this third volume amasses the best from 1989, including works by Scott Baker, Pat Cadigan, Joe Haldeman, Tanith Lee, Jonah Carroll, Robert McCammon and Bruce Sterling, as well as extensive overviews of the year in horror and fantasy, and Ed Bryant's survey of the year's movies.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

The collaborative efforts of Ellen Datlow (horror) and Terri Windling (fantasy) are becoming something of a legend, as year after year they deliver the best horror and fantasy short fiction in a fat (500 double-length pages) anthology that avoids pigeonholes with its mingled, unlabeled sample of the two genres. As in previous years, this volume includes more than 100 pages of summaries about the year 1997 in horror and fantasy publishing, horror and fantasy in the media, and comics. The fiction includes 18 stories and 8 poems with just Terri Windling's initials, and 18 stories and 1 poem with Ellen Datlow's initials, with some (presumably dark fantasy) that are tagged by both.

Even more than usual, Ellen Datlow's horror selections introduce a remarkable variety of types of stories. One of the best tales is Molly Brown's "The Psychomantium," about a mirror that allows alternative time lines to intersect, creating double fates for the characters. "The Skull of Charlotte Corday" (photos included) by Leslie Dick takes an essayistic approach to a famous female assassin and some creepy details in the history of sexual surgery. Douglas Clegg's "I Am Infinite, I Contain Multitudes" is a striking body-horror tale that was nominated for a Bram Stoker Award. Christopher Harman, P.D. Cacek, Joyce Carol Oates, and Vikram Chandra contribute old-fashioned ghost stories. Gary Braunbeck's "Safe" is reminiscent of the best of Stephen King in its portrayal of realistic horror in a small town. Michael Chabon's "In the Black Mill" more than proves that Lovecraftian horror can transcend shallow pastiche. And other horror notables--such as Michael Cadnum, Christopher Fowler, Caitlín Kiernan, Stephen Laws, Kim Newman, Norman Partridge, and Nicholas Royle--make appearances.

Terri Windling's selections include familiar fantasy names such as Peter Beagle, Charles de Lint, Karen Joy Fowler, and Jane Yolen, and famous genre-crossers such as Ray Bradbury, Howard Waldrop, and Jack Womack. She also provides welcome space for fantasy poetry--charming pieces with images of the Trickster Coyote, Sheela Na Gig, and a mermaid, and titles like "Coffee Jerk at the Gates of Hell." The Pulitzer Prize-winning Steven Millhauser contributes an enchanting tale that originally appeared in the New Yorker. Other tales are inspired by an intriguing range of sources: Gulliver's Travels, Marilyn Monroe, the Scottish legend of the Sineater, the art of glass blowing, Aztec myth, and ancient Jewish lore.

There's no better way to take in the best of these two genres, both for the great selections and the ample pointers to 1997's novels, magazines, art, movies, and comics that you may not have heard about. --Fiona Webster --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Booklist

Datlow and Windling's annual is as stout as ever, which is good. The yearly summations--Datlow on horror, Windling on fantasy, Edward Bryant on the media, Seth Johnson on comics, and James Frenkel's obituaries--are all by writers who have their crotchets, as all experienced critics and acute analysts will, as well as enough room to provide invaluable amounts of information. As to the stories and poems, there are 49, with more listed in an appendix of "Honorable Mentions." They show enough variety and display many virtues and very few sins, venial at worst. Five definitely virtuous stories are Mary Sharratt's "The Anatomy of a Mermaid," Patricia A. McKillip's "Toad," Gene Wolfe's "The Tree Is My Hat," Ursula K. LeGuin's "Darkrose and Diamond," and Linnet Taylor's "The Wedding at Esperanza." But all other serious fantasy and horror readers will compile their own short lists of favorites, and all will respect the work of both editors and contributors. Roland Green
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 568 pages
• Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin; 3 edition (July 15, 1990)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 031204450X
• ISBN-13: 978-0312044503
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.1 x 1.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,763,847 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars One of the best anthology series ever, December 10, 1999

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Rahlyns (Omaha, Nebraska) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Year's Best Fantasy and Horror: Third Annual Collection (Paperback)

Ellen Datlow and Terri Windling have once again filled the pages of this volume with excellent stories that compell and enlighten. As with any anthology there are hits and misses, but one person's favorite might be another's dissapointment. Each year they present a collection that will thrill.