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Further Conflicts
Thirteen tales of conflict, desperate strivings, and resolution, as humankind is pitted against the horrific, the deadly, and the unknown, bringing you such things A beleaguered army unit fighting a very alien war and mourning one of their own.The chilling fate of those crewing a Russian ice submarine in a dystopian world.A view inside the powder-keg environment of an alien prison installation.The experiences of a war artist in a disturbingly plausible future.A warrior returning from galactic conflict only to face his greatest ever challenge.Ridgeway school, whose children must survive attack by the dreaded Harvesters.A missionary doctor harbouring an alien fugitive against all advice and reason...
- GenresScience Fiction
256 pages, Paperback
First published April 22, 2011
1 person is currently reading
27 people want to read
About the author
Ian Whates
122 books81 followersIan Whates lives in a comfortable home down a quiet cul-de-sac in an idyllic Cambridgeshire village, which he shares with his partner Helen and their pets – Honey the golden cocker spaniel, Calvin the tailless black cat and Inky the goldfish (sadly, Binky died a few years ago).
Ian’s earliest memories of science fiction are fragmented. He remembers loving Dr Who from an early age and other TV shows such as Lost in Space and Star Trek, but a defining moment came when he heard a radio adaptation of John Wyndham’s The Chrysalids. From that moment on he was hooked and became a frequent haunter of the local library, voraciously devouring the contents of their SF section.
This early love of science fiction manifested most tellingly during his school days, when he produced an SF murder mystery as homework after being set the essay title “The Language of Shakespeare”, much to the bemusement of his English teacher.
Ian’s first published stories appeared in the late 1980s in small press magazines such as Dream and New Moon Quarterly, after which he took a break from writing in order to research his chosen fields of science fiction and fantasy. In other words, he read copious amounts of both. Clearly the research was extensive, because he published nothing further for some seventeen years. In the early 2000s he made the decision to pursue writing seriously, joining the Northampton SF Writers Group in 2004 after being introduced to its chairman, Ian Watson.
In 2006 he started submitting stories again, and has subsequently been surprised at how many otherwise eminently sensible people have chosen to publish him. A couple have even appeared in the science journal Nature, and one, “The Gift of Joy”, even found its way onto the five-strong shortlist for best short story in the British Science Fiction Association Awards. And it didn’t come last! Ironically, the award was actually won by Ken MacLeod’s “Lighting Out”, a piece Ian had commissioned, edited and published in the NewCon Press anthology disLOCATIONS (2007).
In 2006 Ian launched independent publisher NewCon Press, quite by accident (buy him a pint sometime and he’ll tell you about it). Through NewCon he has been privileged to publish original stories from some of the biggest names in genre fiction, as well as provide debuts to some genuinely talented newcomers. The books, their covers and contents have racked up an impressive array of credits – four BSFA Awards, one BSF Award to date, inclusion in ‘Year’s Best’ anthologies and recommendations and honourable mentions from the likes of Gardner Dozios and Locus magazine.
In addition to his publishing and writing, Ian is currently a director of both the Science Fiction Writers of America (SFWA) and the British Science Fiction Association (BSFA), editing Matrix, the online news and media reviews magazine, for the latter.
His first two completed novels are both due to appear in early 2010: City of Dreams and Nightmare via Harper Collins’ imprint Angry Robot, and The Noise Within from Rebellion imprint Solaris, with sequels to follow. When not pinching himself to make sure this is all really happening, Ian is currently beavering away at the sequels… honest!
Ian’s earliest memories of science fiction are fragmented. He remembers loving Dr Who from an early age and other TV shows such as Lost in Space and Star Trek, but a defining moment came when he heard a radio adaptation of John Wyndham’s The Chrysalids. From that moment on he was hooked and became a frequent haunter of the local library, voraciously devouring the contents of their SF section.
This early love of science fiction manifested most tellingly during his school days, when he produced an SF murder mystery as homework after being set the essay title “The Language of Shakespeare”, much to the bemusement of his English teacher.
Ian’s first published stories appeared in the late 1980s in small press magazines such as Dream and New Moon Quarterly, after which he took a break from writing in order to research his chosen fields of science fiction and fantasy. In other words, he read copious amounts of both. Clearly the research was extensive, because he published nothing further for some seventeen years. In the early 2000s he made the decision to pursue writing seriously, joining the Northampton SF Writers Group in 2004 after being introduced to its chairman, Ian Watson.
In 2006 he started submitting stories again, and has subsequently been surprised at how many otherwise eminently sensible people have chosen to publish him. A couple have even appeared in the science journal Nature, and one, “The Gift of Joy”, even found its way onto the five-strong shortlist for best short story in the British Science Fiction Association Awards. And it didn’t come last! Ironically, the award was actually won by Ken MacLeod’s “Lighting Out”, a piece Ian had commissioned, edited and published in the NewCon Press anthology disLOCATIONS (2007).
In 2006 Ian launched independent publisher NewCon Press, quite by accident (buy him a pint sometime and he’ll tell you about it). Through NewCon he has been privileged to publish original stories from some of the biggest names in genre fiction, as well as provide debuts to some genuinely talented newcomers. The books, their covers and contents have racked up an impressive array of credits – four BSFA Awards, one BSF Award to date, inclusion in ‘Year’s Best’ anthologies and recommendations and honourable mentions from the likes of Gardner Dozios and Locus magazine.
In addition to his publishing and writing, Ian is currently a director of both the Science Fiction Writers of America (SFWA) and the British Science Fiction Association (BSFA), editing Matrix, the online news and media reviews magazine, for the latter.
His first two completed novels are both due to appear in early 2010: City of Dreams and Nightmare via Harper Collins’ imprint Angry Robot, and The Noise Within from Rebellion imprint Solaris, with sequels to follow. When not pinching himself to make sure this is all really happening, Ian is currently beavering away at the sequels… honest!
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
July 24, 2011
Review originally published on my blog : http://killie-booktalk.blogspot.com/
Further Conflicts is an anthology of Sci-Fi short stories that are thematically linked by various forms of conflict. However, don't think that this is just a selection of the usual military sci-fi stories full of explosions and space battles. Many of the stories are actually low on the action front and instead focus on being thought provoking and subtle in their depiction of conflict. The range and breadth of stories held in this collection was a pleasure to see as there was stories involving AIs fleeing servitude, mutants stealing children in a decaying future, dead soldiers returning to life, the interrogation of a political prisoner, etc.
I will admit that I have actually never read any of the other work created by the authors in this collection but I actually think that is one of the main reasons why people should read anthologies such as this. It opens up some new and contemporary writers to the reader, which considering most of us can end up reading the same type of things over and over again has to be a good thing. All I know is that after reading the stories in this collection and being impressed by the high standard they all were I will be sure to pick up some of the various authors' more lengthy work in the future.
In regards to the stories themselves, it is actually hard to specify a favourite because they are all enjoyable but yet very different from each other. However, I will highlight a few because it will help show the range of stories actually present.
"The Wake" by Dan Abnett is a story full of testosterone and camaraderie as we witness a group of tough soldiers watching over the body of a fallen brother in arms and drinking to his memory. The story does involve some action though as strange happenings occur and the soldiers respond in a paranoid and cynical manner. Overall, I liked how we got to see behind the mask of a hardened solder and witnessed the brotherhood and friendship they all shared.
The next story I will highlight is "The War Artist" by Tony Ballantyne which takes us into the world of propaganda and the manipulation of information flow. It is set in a world where countries have had their infrastructures torn apart by hackers. We follow a journalist embedded with a group of soldiers who go in to secure a country that has descended into chaos following a hacking attack. It progresses at a good pace and I found the ending to be very satisfying.
The final story I am going to mention is "Extraordinary Rendition" by Steve Longworth which is set in a prison on the Moon. The back and forth discussion as an interrogator tries to obtain information from his political prisoner is thought provoking and enjoyable to read. The story is completed though by a superbly delivered ending that had an unexpected twist.
The only sad feeling I had when reading this anthology was when I finished some of the stories. The worlds created were very interesting and I really wish they could have been explored more. This however isn't anything new from many other short story anthologies that aren't set in an already developed world and to be honest I think it shows how good the stories were that I wanted more.
All in all, I enjoyed all the stories in the collection and liked the fact that each one was so very different. This book is a good way to explore and immerse yourself in the writings of various authors and hopefully find someone whose work you want to read more of. If you enjoy reading sci-fi stories set around conflict, threats and danger then I think you will enjoy this collection. In addition, if you have never tried reading conflict driven stories but are curious in giving it a try then I think this book would also be a good way to explore some of the options available.
Further Conflicts is an anthology of Sci-Fi short stories that are thematically linked by various forms of conflict. However, don't think that this is just a selection of the usual military sci-fi stories full of explosions and space battles. Many of the stories are actually low on the action front and instead focus on being thought provoking and subtle in their depiction of conflict. The range and breadth of stories held in this collection was a pleasure to see as there was stories involving AIs fleeing servitude, mutants stealing children in a decaying future, dead soldiers returning to life, the interrogation of a political prisoner, etc.
I will admit that I have actually never read any of the other work created by the authors in this collection but I actually think that is one of the main reasons why people should read anthologies such as this. It opens up some new and contemporary writers to the reader, which considering most of us can end up reading the same type of things over and over again has to be a good thing. All I know is that after reading the stories in this collection and being impressed by the high standard they all were I will be sure to pick up some of the various authors' more lengthy work in the future.
In regards to the stories themselves, it is actually hard to specify a favourite because they are all enjoyable but yet very different from each other. However, I will highlight a few because it will help show the range of stories actually present.
"The Wake" by Dan Abnett is a story full of testosterone and camaraderie as we witness a group of tough soldiers watching over the body of a fallen brother in arms and drinking to his memory. The story does involve some action though as strange happenings occur and the soldiers respond in a paranoid and cynical manner. Overall, I liked how we got to see behind the mask of a hardened solder and witnessed the brotherhood and friendship they all shared.
The next story I will highlight is "The War Artist" by Tony Ballantyne which takes us into the world of propaganda and the manipulation of information flow. It is set in a world where countries have had their infrastructures torn apart by hackers. We follow a journalist embedded with a group of soldiers who go in to secure a country that has descended into chaos following a hacking attack. It progresses at a good pace and I found the ending to be very satisfying.
The final story I am going to mention is "Extraordinary Rendition" by Steve Longworth which is set in a prison on the Moon. The back and forth discussion as an interrogator tries to obtain information from his political prisoner is thought provoking and enjoyable to read. The story is completed though by a superbly delivered ending that had an unexpected twist.
The only sad feeling I had when reading this anthology was when I finished some of the stories. The worlds created were very interesting and I really wish they could have been explored more. This however isn't anything new from many other short story anthologies that aren't set in an already developed world and to be honest I think it shows how good the stories were that I wanted more.
All in all, I enjoyed all the stories in the collection and liked the fact that each one was so very different. This book is a good way to explore and immerse yourself in the writings of various authors and hopefully find someone whose work you want to read more of. If you enjoy reading sci-fi stories set around conflict, threats and danger then I think you will enjoy this collection. In addition, if you have never tried reading conflict driven stories but are curious in giving it a try then I think this book would also be a good way to explore some of the options available.
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May 25, 2012The best Sci Fi anthology I've read in years. Such a variety of styles too. I would rate it 5-stars if I could on the basis of all the stories up to the final one. I don't feel I can add a rating, though, because I wrote the closing story.
My favourite story was Yakker Snak by Andy Remic. Thought it was going to be a little cheesy to begin with, but the sheer exuberance of the story won me over. Dan Abnett's was a high point too.
My favourite story was Yakker Snak by Andy Remic. Thought it was going to be a little cheesy to begin with, but the sheer exuberance of the story won me over. Dan Abnett's was a high point too.
July 18, 2013
This is a brilliant collection. Full review: http://www.warpcoresf.co.uk/further-c...
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews