Customer Reviews

The Year's Best Science Fiction: Fourteenth Annual Collection

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

A fine Year's Best anthology, averaging 3.88. A few average stories to be found here, but a couple of 5 star, to go along with that, and three on the next level down, as well.

As usual, an interesting introduction, and pointing out two stories were from Omni Online - and the year before's volume had the first online story he had chosen, so this was the start of the increase there, some 10 or more years ago.

All in all, top notch work.

Year's Best Science Fiction 14 : Immersion - Gregory Benford
Year's Best Science Fiction 14 : The Dead - Michael Swanwick
Year's Best Science Fiction 14 : The Flowers of Aulit Prison - Nancy Kress
Year's Best Science Fiction 14 : A Dry Quiet War - Tony Daniel
Year's Best Science Fiction 14 : Thirteen Phantasms - James P. Blaylock
Year's Best Science Fiction 14 : Primrose and Thorn - Bud Sparhawk
Year's Best Science Fiction 14 : The Miracle of Ivar Avenue - John Kessel
Year's Best Science Fiction 14 : The Last H0m0sexual - Paul Park
Year's Best Science Fiction 14 : Recording Angel - Ian McDonald
Year's Best Science Fiction 14 : Death Do Us Part - Robert Silverberg
Year's Best Science Fiction 14 : The Spade of Reason - Jim Cowan
Year's Best Science Fiction 14 : The Cost to Be Wise - Maureen F. McHugh
Year's Best Science Fiction 14 : Bicycle Repairman - Bruce Sterling
Year's Best Science Fiction 14 : The Weighing of Ayre - Gregory Feeley
Year's Best Science Fiction 14 : The Longer Voyage - Michael Cassutt
Year's Best Science Fiction 14 : The Land of Nod - Mike Resnick
Year's Best Science Fiction 14 : Red Sonja and Lessingham in Dreamland - Gwyneth Jones
Year's Best Science Fiction 14 : The Lady Vanishes - Charles Sheffield
Year's Best Science Fiction 14 : Chrysalis - Robert Reed
Year's Best Science Fiction 14 : The Wind Over the World - Steven Utley
Year's Best Science Fiction 14 : Changes - William Barton
Year's Best Science Fiction 14 : Counting Cats in Zanzibar - Gene Wolfe
Year's Best Science Fiction 14 : How We Got in Town and out Again - Jonathan Lethem
Year's Best Science Fiction 14 : Dr. Tilmann's Consultant A Scientific Romance - Cherry Wilder
Year's Best Science Fiction 14 : Schrodinger's Dog - Damien Broderick
Year's Best Science Fiction 14 : Foreign Devils - Walter Jon Williams
Year's Best Science Fiction 14 : In the MSOB - Stephen Baxter
Year's Best Science Fiction 14 : The Robot's Twilight Companion - Tony Daniel

Virtual chimp wetwork vacation.

4 out of 5


Zombies make you obsolete, and sell well as sex toys.

5 out of 5


Unreal, schizo punishment.

4.5 out of 5


Metaspace Marine homecoming cleanout.

4.5 out of 5


Spooky subscription.

3 out of 5


Salvage race scare.

4 out of 5


Future direction past chances.

3.5 out of 5


Politics of everything is a disease.

3 out of 5


Africaforming.

4 out of 5


Short-time spousal subterfuge.

4 out of 5


Random monkey typing godmind program.

4.5 out of 5


Having to eat your dog will make you sad.

3 out of 5


Celibate cycle geek bags black bag babe burglar thanks to baton boo-boo.

4 out of 5


Wartime Children Of the Lens.

4 out of 5


We're On A Space Road To Nowhere.

4 out of 5


Old ways holdout, with heffalump.

4 out of 5


Sword and sorcery virtual sex therapy.

4 out of 5


Invisible ex-spook, now.

3.5 out of 5


Arkship Terran discovery destruction routine.

4 out of 5


Land of the one lost.

4 out of 5


Family cycle.

3.5 out of 5


Android associate sharkfood.

4 out of 5


Scapeathon.

3 out of 5


Downed alien vistitor helped to European mountainside chalet retreat.

3 out of 5


Quantum reality voyaging testing is interesting, apart from the fact if it is you in the testing, you are terminally ill. The cats into dogs trick would be pretty handy, as well.

5 out of 5


Red planet China conflict, in-out.

4 out of 5


Space man end.

4 out of 5


Centre of the earth rescue rangers.

3.5 out of 5

This anthology provides a great variety in style, content, and purpose from established and rising authors in contemporary science fiction. Many of the short stories will tantalize you to the point of wanting more. Each story is accompanied by a short and insightful commentary by the editor. A great collection!

The first couple of short stories in this collection are fun to read but the one I remember most, and it is being made into a movie this year, is a short story by Mr. Cohen (I forgot his first name--sorry), titled "Spade of Reason".

For those science fiction aficionados, I consider "Spade of Reason" just as heartfelt as "Flowers for Algernon". Okay, "Flowers for Algernon" did get a Hugo Award, but I consider "Spade of Reason" to be just as good as that Hugo Award Winner.

The fact that "Spade of Reason" is being made into a movie makes this collection worth while to read the original story before seeing the director's interpretation of the writer's work.

This is a fine collection of SF and since Dozoi has been Editor, it has remained so thru the years. I hope to collect them all. Through Amazon, the best price anywhere!