Wishful thinking is a powerful curse, almost as bad as storytelling.—from "They Shall Salt the Earth with Seeds of Glass," by Alaya Dawn Johnson, p.245I had previously read, and really liked, 2011's entry in Rich Horton's annual anthology series, and am happy to report that I'm just as impressed with The Year's Best Science Fiction & Fantasy 2014. This volume showcases Horton's dedication and wide-ranging taste just as well as, if not better than, the earlier one I read. And the individual stori...

My diverse reading (which extends well beyond SF/F) makes it unfeasible for me to catch everything of interest or of merit. I, thus, appreciate the multiple anthologies each year that offer their unique selections of noteworthy short stories. This marks the sixth year of Horton’s relatively young Year’s Best Science Fiction and Fantasy series, but it happens to be the first one that I’ve read. It will be hard to fit in past years to catch up, but I’m going to strive to make it part of the future...

I liked "A Brief History of the Trans-Atlantic Tunnel" by Ken Liu, "A Stranger from a Foreign Ship" by Tom Purdom, "Social Services" by Madeline Ashby, and "Out in the Dark" by Linda Nagata.

Featuring thirty-four short stories selected as the best from 2014, this anthology showcases the best and brightest of the past twelve months. The stories selected show a real range in perspectives- it is wonderful to see an anthology with plenty of stories from international talents.Some of my personal favourites are:"Effigy Nights" Yoon Ha Lee"Loss with Chalk Diagrams" by E. Lily Yu"The Memory Book" by Maureen McHugh"Call Girl" by Tang Fei"Town's End" by Yukimi Agawa This anthology gives a rea...

I received a copy from Netgalley in exchange for my honest review.I found this collection to be astonishingly good. Each story is well put together and deserved to be high-lighted in this year's edition. The introduction emphasized the global scope of the works. I would have loved a separate introduction to each story. Nothing huge, but some background on the author. Was the story translated and from which language? Are there any common challenges with translation? I appreciate this is informati...

DNF; just sort of lost motivation to keep reading it. Will return once my TBR shelves dwindles enough to allow me to do so.

Another good collection of SF&F short stories. My favorites:Effigy Nights (Yoon Ha Lee): In a dire time, effigies cut out of stories are unleashed to defend the city. But then, the stories take on a life of their own. What could go wrong?Grizzled Veterans of Many and Much (Robert Reed): A new technology is developed that allows you to "transcend" and generate a burst of productivity, creativity, and thought, but at the cost of life itself. How does that change what it means to live?Loss, with Ch...

This is the first such collection which seems to be consciously aware of non-Anglophone writers, and it shows in the incredibly variety of themes and characters. From inadvertent rebellion against a caste system or bodyswapping to the more traditional worlds in danger, these strange stories bring new meaning to the term "liking your drink too much". New moral dilemmas are introduced, new histories are created, unlikely heroes emerge, and finally I found a realistic dragon hunt. As always with an...

A good - and very extensive - overview of the short SFF published during the year. Recommended for anyone who enjoys quality SFF and is interested in keeping up with the current writers...**** “Soulcatcher” by James Patrick Kelly (Clarkesworld)A woman is on a mission to rescue her sister, who's been made the pet of a charismatic alien. But what is the sister doesn't want to be rescued? Thought-provoking story, which does an excellent job of evoking large and strange worlds, with an economy of la...

The science fiction and fantasy anthology offers some equally big names—Geoff Ryman’s “Rosary and Goldenstar,” which gives us an alternative history of the Renaissance, and the source for Rosencrantz and Guildenstern; Ken Liu (again), in “A Brief History of the Trans-Pacific Tunnel,” with a techno-turn for 20th century history; Maureen McHugh’s weird and scary “The Memory Book” (which is actually moving into the realm of dark fantasy); and Harry Turtledove’s kinda funny dystopian future, “It’s t...

I finally, finally finished this book. I nearly gave up on it in the middle, because of some stories I hated, but I'm glad I stuck with it, because some of my favorite stories were towards the end. Overall these stories were totally hit or miss. Here's my recommendations:Recommend:• Trafalgar and Josephina by Angélica Gorodischer (4.5*'s)• Blanchefleur by Theodora Goss (4*)• Such & Such Said to So & so by Maria Dahnana Headly(4*)• Grizzled Veterans of Many and Much (5*)• The Dragonslayer of Mere...

something here for everyonethis anthology reflects the range available, the dross as well as the brilliant. I really five star rated four stories and hated about the same number but only gave up on one. that's well and truly par so the overall volume gets e worth buying rating from this seventh decade genre reader.this

Soulcatcher by James Patrick Kelly – A woman tries to find and free her twin, who is a slave. I liked all the artifacts in the antique shop. Really cool ideas there. I don’t generally like the evil Fae as a subgenre. Some cool visuals but I didn’t get enough of a grasp as to why things were happening the way they were. How did she and her sister get separated? Why was her sister enslaved to begin with? Why must the Fae be SO evil? Meh. CTrafalgar and Josefina by Angélica Gorodischer – South Amer...

The fun of reading anthologies , especially those claiming to be the year's best, is the diversity of stories the reader get to peruse. The reader gets an introduction to new authors, new situations, and maybe stretch their reading tastes. The problem with this volume is the sheer number of tales included. Almost three dozen stories strains the reader's credulity that these are all "year's best" tales. Some are good. Some are memorable. And some are just worth dipping into to see if you should j...

Disclaimer: This review is based on the reading of the advanced reader's edition of this novel provided by the publisher via NetGalley. The review, in its entirety, is of my own opinion of the novel.The Year's Best Science Fiction & Fantasy 2014 Edition is a book of short stories in the genres of science fiction and fantasy from various authors. There are stories that range from dragonslayers to a man that can switch consciousness with others. Hell, as a science fiction fan, how could you not li...

A highlight of the short story year for me is this anthpology of new stories from established and up and coming authors. It is not an exaggeration to say this is a book with as wide a variety of authors as possible within the genre and it is a hefty, and worthwhile read.I woudl genuinely struggle to find a favourite and it is always good to find new authors you haven't come across yet. Many thanks Netgalley for letting me read it!

I ordered this without reading for my Fall 2015 Science fiction class-- but almost all of the stories were dark and depressing and long-- not appropriate for class. Plus, I am irritated that Rich Horton does not give even brief bios of the authors, which would be very helpful for a class. Unfortunate waste of $-- mine and my students' :-(

I've been reading a lot of anthologies lately, including another of the several "Year's Best" collections (the Jonathan Strahan one). I was pleased to find that, unlike some of the others, this one matched my tastes fairly well for the most part.I enjoy stories in which capable, likeable or sympathetic characters, confronted by challenges, confront them right back and bring the situation to some sort of meaningful conclusion. I was worried when I read the editor's introduction and saw him praisi...

Upon further thought, I am upgrading this to five stars, as I believe I liked more than 80% of the stories in this collection. This is the first year I have really focused on short fiction, and this collection has convinced me I need to continue to do so in the future.Favorites:Soulcatcher by James Patrick Kelly: God, this was a disturbing story. It's an excellent introduction to the collection, signalling that many of the later stories will not be ones that necessarily sit comfortably. Blanchef...