Anthologies

Stories by David Drake, Peter Morwood, Robert Sheckley, Steve Perry, and Bill Fawcett highlight a shared-concept anthology about a far distant group of space colonists who are facing the threat of the Gerins, a merciless race of alien invaders bent on total destruction

We asked Christopher Stasheff to start a war ... the result is ... THE SIEGE OF ARISTA A DESPERATE LAST-CHANCE BATTLE FOR THEIR HOMEWORLD ... The Hothri have come to Arista . . . and the Siege has begun. For almost a hundred years, the Hothri waged a war of conquest against humanity’s strongholds in deep space. Greed upon the part of the humans of the Aristan trade empire triggered the war with the aliens, and that same greed led to treachery and incompetence, to soldiers denied the resources they needed to fight. Human world after human world fell under the ruthless, destructive domination of the Hothri, until ... Forced back to their homeworld by vast fleets of Hothri warships, the leaders of the Aristan financial empires realized that they must look beyond the acquisition of wealth toward another goal—victory in a desperate, last-ditch defense against a foe that had never been defeated. Christopher Stasheff and Bill Fawcett have created this high-tech far-future war, featuring stories by some of the most imaginitive science fiction writers working at their military best. With stories by Christopher Stasheff, Bill Fawcett, Elizabeth Moon, Janet Morris, William C. Dietz, Steve Perrry, S.N. Lewitt, Robert Sheckley and Jody Lynn Nye. THEIR SHIP SLAMMED INTO THE ALIEN CRUISER . . . The soldiers could hear Master Sergeant Pepe Stuart bellow, “In!” Then Pepe himself was hurtling forward, his shoulder slamming into a Hothri’s midriff and its roar echoing around him in the pea soup the aliens called atmosphere. Pepe saw a sword-tipped barrel slashing toward his eyes, and he rolled aside, pulling the trigger of his own rifle. The Hothri’s head vanished in a splatter that Pepe didn’t stay to see, but another Hothri blasted him with a scatter gun. There was a sharp sting in his shoulder, a reek of methane in his nose, and he knew his helmet had been holed. He knocked the Hothri’s shotgun up with his rifle barrel, slammed the butt into the cricket’s helmet, reversed the weapon and pulled the trigger. The white hot fury seared through his back and everything went black . . .

In the winter of 2005, after the horrifying natural disaster of the tsunami in Southeast Asia, Steve Savile and Alethea Kontis joined forces to raise money to help the distressed survivors and have created Elemental. They solicited SF and fantasy stories, all new and never published elsewhere, from many of the top writers in the genres today, and received immediate responses in the form of the excellent stories here in this book. Elemental has an introduction by Arthur C.Clarke and more than twenty stories by Brian Aldiss, David Drake, Jacqueline Carey, Martha Wells, Larry Niven, Joe Haldeman, Eric Nylund, Sherrilyn Kenyon writing as Kinley MacGregor, and a Dune story by Brian Herbert & Kevin J. Anderson, and many others. They created in Elemental one of the most important genre anthologies of the year, but more than that: in giving real value for the purchase price, everyone who sells this book can be proud, and everyone who buys it will be richly rewarded for supporting the tsunami relief effort. At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.

Some Mysteries Should Not Be Disturbed Uncanny contraptions, weird devices, technologies beyond the control of humanity abound in the universe. Sometimes there are things that resist discovery. When science pushes the boundaries of understanding, terrible things push back. Often knowledge comes at a great cost.21 unsettling tales of dark fiction are gathered in this volume, exploring the horrors beyond our reality. Mad science, terrifying creatures, dangerous discoveries, stretched across a landscape of time and space. Explore the secrets hidden within the folds of the world unseen.

Five by Five: No Surrender is the second collection in the series of short novels by five masters of military science fiction. In these pulse-pounding tales, the best (or worst) soldiers in the galaxy are pitted against powerful aliens on distant battlefields. In William C. Dietz’s Legion of the Damned® story, Legio Patria Nostra , the insectoid Ramanthians have occupied Earth, and the Confederacy of Sentient Beings turn to the xenophobic Hudathans for help. But Hudathan relics have been stolen by ex-legionnaire thieves—and the Hudathans won't join the Confederacy unless Legion Captain Deacon Smith can get them back. Set in the world of Harlan Ellison’s classic Outer Limits episode “Soldier,” Kevin J. Anderson’s Prisoner of War follows a set of warriors in a never-ending future war, men bred for nothing but the battleground, and how they cope with the horrors of peace. When expensive, classified shipments of military hardware go missing, Conflux Armed Forces policewoman Kalliope Reardon follows the trail far outside the boundaries of the civilized galaxy, and into the heart of occupied enemy territory in Brad R. Torgersen’s Reardon’s Law . When A. C. Cade was exposed as a fraud, Cade’s son makes himself into the elite father pilot he believed his father was, defending Earth against a desperate alien invader which has no use for humankind and absolutely nothing to lose in Dagger Team Seven by R. M. Meluch. In Coffee Black Sea , the saga of the Dollgangers from Aaron Allston’s Big Plush ( Five by Five Vol. 1 ) continues. Bow, BeeBee, Lina, and new ’gangers escalate the risks of their quest for survival . . . by turning their eyes to the stars.

Five short novels by five masters of military science fiction. It’s a war out there. In these pulse-pounding tales, the best (or worst) soldiers in the galaxy are pitted against powerful aliens on distant battlefields. Never before published stories about monsters, deadly combat tech, treachery, and honor: LEGIO PATRIA NOSTRA—by William C. Dietz. The insectoid Ramanthians have occupied Earth, and the Confederacy of Sentient Beings needs assistance from the xenophobic Hudathans in order to survive. But some Hudathan relics have been stolen, and the Hudathans won't join the Confederacy unless Legion Captain Deacon Smith can get them back. And that's going to be difficult because the thieves are ex-legionnaires—and they have a platoon of heavily armed cyborgs! A Legion of the Damned® story. PRISONER OF WAR—by Kevin J. Anderson. Set in the world of Harlan Ellison’s classic Outer Limits episode “Soldier, ” this is a tale about a set of warriors in a never-ending future war, men bred for nothing but the battleground—and how they cope with the horrors of…peace. REARDON’S LAW—by Brad R. Torgersen. When expensive, classified shipments of military hardware go missing, Conflux Armed Forces policewoman Kalliope Reardon is called in to work the case. She gets way more than she bargained for, as the trail takes her far outside the boundaries of the civilized galaxy, and into the heart of occupied enemy territory. DAGGER TEAM SEVEN—by R. M. Meluch. The evidence is clear and damning—A. C. Cade was a fraud. Cade’s son makes himself into the man he used to believe his father was—a pilot of an elite Dagger Team, defending Earth against a desperate alien invader which has no use for humankind and absolutely nothing to lose. COFFEE BLACK SEA—by Aaron Allston. The saga of the Dollgangers from “Big Plush” (Five by Five Vol. 1) continues. Bow, BeeBee, Lina, and new ’gangers escalate the risks of their quest for survival... by turning their eyes to the stars.

An all-star tribute to Gene Wolfe, featuring the work of Neil Gaiman, David Brin, Nancy Kress, and others Perhaps no living author of imaginative fiction has earned the awards, accolades, respect, and literary reputation of Gene Wolfe. His prose has been called subtle and brilliant, inspiring not just lovers of fantasy and science fiction, but readers of every stripe, transcending genre and defying preconceptions. In this volume, a select group of Wolfe's fellow authors pay tribute to the award-winning creator of The Book of the New Sun, The Fifth Head of Cerberus , Soldier of the Mist , The Wizard Knight and many others, with entirely new stories written specifically to honor the writer hailed by The Washington Post as "one of America's finest." Shadows of the New Sun features contributions by Neil Gaiman, David Brin, David Drake, Nancy Kress, and many others, plus two new short stories by Gene Wolfe himself.

MECH: Age of Steel is a collection of 24 mecha-inspired short stories in the spirit of Pacific Rim, Macross, Transformers, Robotech, Gundam, Evangelion, and more. The MECH: Age of Steel anthology features a vast array of tales showcasing giant human-piloted, robot war machines wreaking havoc in blasted cities, or on dystopian landscapes, or around space stations and asteroids against a cosmic backdrop, and more! MECH is anchored by authors such as: • Kevin J. Anderson • Scott Sigler • Ramez Naam • Jason M. Hough • Jeremy Robinson • Jody Lynn Nye • Peter Clines • Martha Wells • Graham McNeill • Jennifer Brozek • James Swallow • and more! This anthology also features illustrations for every story and is the perfect companion to its sister title, Kaiju Rising: Age of Monsters . So strap in. Activate your interface array. And let's rock!

Mother. Warrior. Caregiver. Wife. Lover. Survivor. Trickster. Heroine. Leader. This anthology features 21 stories and six essays about women who defy genre stereotypes. Here, it's not the hero who acts while the heroine waits to be rescued; Hath No Fury's women are champions, not damsels in distress. Whether they are strong, bold warriors, the silent but powerful type, or the timid who muster their courage to face down terrible evil, the women of Hath No Fury will make indelible marks upon readers and leave them breathless for more.

The seductive thrill of uncharted worlds, of distant galaxies… and the unknown threats that lurk in the vastness of the cosmos. From Foundation to Lensman, Star Wars to Guardians of the Galaxy, space opera continues to exert its magnetic pull on us all. INFINITE STARS This is the definitive collection of original short stories by many of today’s finest authors, writing brand new adventures set in their most famous series. Herein lie canonical tales of the Honorverse, the Lost Fleet, Dune, Vatta’s War, Ender Wiggin, the Legion of the Damned, the Imperium, and more. Also included are past masterpieces by authors whose works defined the genre, including a Miles Vorkosigan adventure, a story from the author of the Dragonriders of Pern, and a rare tale co-authored by the screenwriter for The Empire Strikes Back. Nebula and Hugo Award winners, New York Times bestsellers, and Science Fiction Grand Masters—these authors take us to the farthest regions of space.