A collection of sixty-seven contemporary American science fiction stories includes contributions by Poul Anderson, Margaret Atwood, Octavia Butler, Samuel R. Delany, and Philip K. Dick

Star Soldiers

In the early chapters, the author sorts out some of the confusion about the term fantasy, distinguishing the fantastic as a technique from fantasy as a popular formula and a literary genre. Looking back to the early reception of Tolkien's trend-setting epic fantasy, he points out how critical theory at the time was simply unable to account for either the strengths or the weaknesses of The Lord of the Rings. By contrast, critical methods developed for coping with postmodernist metafictions are shown to apply equally well to the genre of fantasy. Having worked primarily with older fantasies in his study of The Fantasy Tradition in American Literature, Attebery focuses here on important recent examples such as Gene Wolfe's Book of the New Sun, Suzette Haden Elgin's Ozark Trilogy, and John Crowley's Little, Big.

When Andas Kastor awakens in an alien land, he must figure out if he’s the true emperor of his home world or an evil double In a stark, arid wasteland, a man awakens from a frozen state. As he stares out his narrow slit of a window, he has no memory of how he got there—or why. All he knows is his name: Andas Kastor, Imperial Prince of Inyanga. But instead of the luxurious trappings of his royal palace, he’s in a hellish, storm-lashed place punctuated by howling winds and shattering streaks of lightning. And he’s not alone. In this uninhabited world, he meets five other survivors, also of noble birth. They include the scaled, emerald-haired Elys of Posedonia and clawed, fanged Lord Yolyos of Sargol. They all speak the same Basic language, as befits those from neighboring spheres. Were they abducted, spirited to this alien planet, and held in mind-lock while evil doppelgangers ruled in their places? After a daring escape, Andas returns to Inyanga—only to discover that decades have passed and another sits on his throne. Now, hunted across barriers of time, Andas must fight external and internal enemies to save his civilization and uncover the truth about his identity.