L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future, Volume 23

I love a good short story, and I must say, this is the best anthology I have ever read. Interesting and engagingly written all through, there was maybe 1 or 2 stories out of 13 I thought weren't quite up to par. Usually an anthology fluctuates alot more than that for me, let me tell you.

I found this more enjoyable than any anthology I've read with contributions from established authors. I'm going to start hunting the other editions of this down.

Disclaimer: I received this book, gratis, in the hopes that I would review it.

L.Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future is a series of year anthologies showcasing new writers. This year's edition was edited by Algis Budrys.

As I have said many times before, anthologies are tricky things and even the best of anthologies by the best of writers can have hit or miss stories. Individual tastes can vary, and sometimes a writer can have a bad day.

So I will focus on the stories I liked out of the volume.

I particularly enjoyed the first story, Primetime, a view to using time travel as a device for mass entertainment. I felt the ending was a bit weak and didn't seem to follow the rest of the story, but I enjoyed it overall to mention. The show more Frozen Sky, a survival story on Callisto (a popular choice these days in fiction and non fiction alike) was another good read. Tony Pi's the Stone Cipher, although well written, felt a little lacking to me. The Gas Drinkers, a story within a story, felt like a modern Moon update of the classic motif where a group of strangers explain how they got to that location.

The stories in volume 23:

PrimeTime, by Douglas Texter

Mass entertainment of the future is filming battles and other notable historical events. Trouble arises when an ambitious filmer is asked to go back to Hiroshima, and the atomic blast.

The Sun God at Dawn, Rising from a Lotus Blossom, by Andrea Kail

Historical characters from the past are brought to life in an epistolary tale told by King Tutankhamen.
The Frozen Sky, by Jeff Carlson

Survival and danger as explorers search for signs of life in the ice of Callisto.

The Stone Cipher, by Tony Pi

When the statues around the world start to speak...slowly, its a race to determine what precisely they are saying, and why.

Obsidian Shards, by Aliette de Bodard

A story invovling Aztec gods and dark magic set in an indeterminate Aztec-like time and place.

Ripping Carovella, by Kim Zimring

Ripping out skills and transplanting them into others from the talented is high art--but it carries a price for all concerned.

Our Last Words, by Damon Kaswell

Another time tale, reminding me of "Flight into Forever" as a man is put into a field that allows time inside to pass much more slowly than the outside world, creating a one way time machine.

Saturn in G Minor by Steve Kotowych

A future musician's most ambitious piece yet brings visitors to his lonely abode.

By the Waters of the Ganga by Steven Gaskell

An alien spends a life reincarnated or re-embodied as a Hindu in 19th century India.

Pilgrimage by Karl Bunker

A ritual on an alien planet recalls an old story of survival by post-humans.

The Gas Drinkers, by Edward Sevcik

A group of people meet in a place of refuge on the moon, as one of them tells the long story of how he came to the remote location.

The Phlogiston Age by Corey Brown

A steampunk like world, where a phlogiston powered spaceship maiden launch is the scene and setting for intrigue.

Mask Glass Magic by John Burridge

A fantasy story, where a glass blower discovers a new employer, and a very unusual manner of magic behind him. show less