The Best Science Fiction and Fantasy of the Year, Volume 7

In print and on-line, science fiction and fantasy is thriving as never before. A multitude of astonishingly creative and gifted writers are boldly exploring the mythic past, the paranormal present, and the promises and perils of myriad alternate worlds and futures. There are almost too many new and intriguing stories published every year for any reader to be able to experience them all. So how to make sure you havent missed any future classics? Award-winning editor and anthologist Jonathan Strahan has surveyed the expanding universes of modern sf and fantasy to find the brightest stars in todays dazzling literary firmament. From the latest masterworks by the acknowledged titans of the field to fresh visions from exciting new talents, this outstanding collection is a comprehensive showcase for the current state of the art in both science fiction and fantasy. Anyone who wants to know where the future of imaginative short fiction is going, and treat themselves to dozens of unforgettable stories, will find this years edition of Best Science Fiction and Fantasy to be just what theyre looking for! The Woman Who Fooled Death Five Times, Eleanor Arnason Great Grandmother in the Cellar, Peter S. Beagle Immersion, Aliette de Bodard Troll Blood, Peter Dickinson Close Encounters, Andy Duncan Blood Drive, Jeffrey Ford Adventure Story, Neil Gaiman The Grinnell Method, Molly Gloss Beautiful Boys, Theodora Goss The Easthound, Nalo Hopkinson Mantis Wives, Kij Johnson Bricks, Sticks, Straw, Gwyneth Jones Goggles c 1910, Caitlin R. Kiernan The Education of a Witch, Ellen Klages The Color Least Used by Nature, Ted Kosmatka Significant Dust, Margo Lanagan Two Houses, Kelly Link Mono No Aware, Ken Liu Macy Minnots Last Christmas on Dione, Ring Racing, Fiddlers Green, the Potters Garden, Paul McAuley Swift, Brutal Retaliation, Megan McCarron About Fairies, Pat Murphy Nahiku West, Linda Nagata Let Maps to Others, K.J. Parker Jack Shade in the Forest of Souls, Rachel Pollack Katabasis, Robert Reed What Did Tessimond Tell You?, Adam Roberts The Contrary Gardener, Christopher Rowe Joke in Four Panels, Robert Shearman Domestic Magic, Steve Rasnic Tem & Melanie Tem Reindeer Mountain, Karin Tidbeck Fade to White, Catherynne M. Valente A Bead of Jasper, Four Small Stones, Genevieve Valentine Darkness, both literal and psychological, holds its own unique fascination. Despite our fears, or perhaps because of them, readers have always been drawn to tales of death, terror, madness, and the supernatural, and no more so than today when a wildly imaginative new generation of dark dreamers is carrying on in the tradition of Poe and Lovecraft and King, crafting exquisitely disturbing literary nightmares that gaze without flinching into the abyssand linger in the mind long after. Multiple award-winning editor Ellen Datlow knows the darkest corners of fiction and poetry better than most. Once again, she has braved the haunted landscape of modern horror to seek out the most chilling new works by both legendary masters of the genre and fresh young talents. Here are twisted hungers and obsessions, human and otherwise, along with an unsettling variety of spine-tingling fears and fantasies. The cutting edge of horror has never cut deeper than in this comprehensive showcase of the very best the field has to offer. Enter at your own risk. Skyhorse Publishing, under our Night Shade and Talos imprints, is proud to publish a broad range of titles for readers interested in science fiction (space opera, time travel, hard SF, alien invasion, near-future dystopia), fantasy (grimdark, sword and sorcery, contemporary urban fantasy, steampunk, alternative history), and horror (zombies, vampires, and the occult and supernatural), and much more. While not every title we publish becomes a New York Times bestseller, a national bestseller, or a Hugo or Nebula award-winner, we are committed to publishing quality books from a diverse group of authors. Presents A Collection Of Twenty-eight Horror Stories Published In 2012, Along With An Essay That Summarizes The Achievements In The Horror Genre For Novels, Anthologies, Magazines, Poetry Journals, And Nonfiction Works. Nikishi / Lucy Taylor -- Little America / Dan Chaon -- A Natural History Of Autumn / Jeffrey Ford -- Mantis Wives / Kij Johnson -- Tender As Teeth / Stephanie Crawford And Duane Swierczynski -- The Callers / Ramsey Campbell -- Two Poems For Hill House / Kevin Mccann -- Mariners' Round / Terry Dowling -- Nanny Grey / Gemma Files -- The Magician's Apprentice / Tamsyn Muir -- Kill All The Monsters / Gary Mcmahon -- The House On Ashley Avenue / Ian Rogers -- Dead Song / Jay Wilburn -- Sleeping, I Was Beauty / Sandy Leibowitz -- Bajazzle / Margo Lanagan -- The Pike / Conrad Williams -- The Crying Child / Bruce Mcallister -- This Circus The World / Amber Sparks -- Some Pictures In An Album / Nathan Ballingrud -- Final Exam / Megan Arkenberg -- None So Blind / Stephen Bacon -- The Ballad Of Boomtown / Priya Sharma -- Pig Thing / Adam L. G. Nevill -- The World-made Flesh / Richard Gavin -- Into The Penny Arcade / Claire Massey -- Magdala Amygdala / Lucy A. Snyder -- Frontier Death Song / Laird Barron. Edited By Ellen Datlow. Includes Bibliographical References.