Simply the Best

Jonathan Strahan (ed) “The Best Science Fiction and Fantasy of the Year: Volume Eleven” (Rebellion, 2017)

How do we evaluate something that purports to represent the “best” in science fiction and fantasy? This isn’t sportsball – there are no scores or stats to compare.

So “best” then may be an overreach. But we all know the intent. And I think that we can judge that intent. Does this anthology show a selection of work from great writers?

A quick caveat is that I don’t really follow the short fiction market. But I do read my share of longer works. And I try to stay more or less up to date in the field.

So the question is: what do I think of the authors included? And is their work what I would expect from them?

Strahan has assembled a great lineup of writers. The established pros include Joe Abercrombie, Nina Allen, Paolo Bacigalupi, Aliette de Bodard, Daryl Gregory, NK Jemisin, Caitlin R Kiernan, Ken Liu, Naomi Novik, Lavie Tidhar, Catherynne M Valente, Genevieve Valentine, & Charles Yu. It’s a strong strong collection of writers. And does their work hold up? Absolutely!

The best thing is that not only is there work by all these authors that you already know are good, but there is still more! Another assortment of writers that I was not familiar with, who all hold their own.

This is a great collection! As with anything of it nature, you are probably not going to like all the stories. But there is more than enough for anyone to find lots to enjoy!

Thanks to Rebellion and NetGalley for a review copy.