The Best Science Fiction of the Year, Volume 3

by Neil Clarke (Editor), Vina Jie-Min Prasad, Alastair Reynolds

As Earth dies, an architect is commissioned to remote build a monument on Mars from the remains of a failed colony; a man who has transferred his consciousness into a humanoid robot discovers he's missing 30 percent of his memories and tries to discover why; bored with life in the underground colony of an alien world, a few risk life inside one of the whales floating in the planet's atmosphere; an apprentice librarian searching through centuries of SETI messages from alien civilizations makes an ominous discovery; a ship in crisis pulls a veteran multibot out from storage with an unusual assignment: pest control; the dead are given a second shot at life, in exchange for a five-year term in a zombie military program.

For decades, science fiction has compelled us to imagine futures both inspiring and cautionary. Whether it's a warning message from a survey ship, a harrowing journey to a new world, or the adventures of well-meaning AI, science fiction inspires the imagination and delivers a lens through which we can view ourselves and the world around us. With The Best Science Fiction of the Year: Volume 3, award-winning editor Neil Clarke provides a year-in-review and 27 of the best stories published by both new and established authors in 2017.

Table of Contents:

“A Series of Steaks” by Vina Jie-Min Prasad (Clarkesworld, January 2017)
“Holdfast” by Alastair Reynolds (Extrasolar, edited by Nick Gevers)
“Every Hour of Light and Dark” by Nancy Kress (Omni, Winter 2017)
“The Last Novelist, or a Dead Lizard in the Yard” by Matthew Kressel (Tordotcom, March 2017)
“Shikasta” by Vandana Singh (Visions, Ventures, Escape Velocities, edited by Ed Finn and Joey Eschrich)
“Wind Will Rove” by Sarah Pinsker (Asimov’s Science Fiction, September/October 2017)
“Focus” by Gord Sellar (Analog Science Fiction and Fact, May/June 2017)
“The Martian Obelisk” by Linda Nagata (Tordotcom, July 2017)
“Shadows of Eternity” by Gregory Benford (Extrasolar, edited by Nick Gevers)
“The Worldless” by Indrapramit Das (Lightspeed, March 2017)
“Regarding the Robot Raccoons Attached to the Hull of My Ship” by Rachael K. Jones and Khaalidah Muhammad-Ali (Diabolical Plots, June 2017)
“Belly Up” by Maggie Clark (Analog Science Fiction and Fact, July/August 2017)
“Uncanny Valley” by Greg Egan (Tordotcom, August 2017)
“We Who Live in the Heart” by Kelly Robson (Clarkesworld, May 2017)
“A Catalogue of Sunlight at the End of the World” by A.C. Wise (Sunvault, edited by Phoebe Wagner and Bronte Christopher Wieland)
“Meridian” by Karin Lowachee (Where the Stars Rise, edited by Lucas K. Law and Derwin Mak)
“The Tale of the Alcubierre Horse” by Kathleen Ann Goonan (Extrasolar, edited by Nick Gevers)
“Extracurricular Activities” by Yoon Ha Lee (Tordotcom, February 2017)
“In Everlasting Wisdom” by Aliette de Bodard (Infinity Wars, edited by Jonathan Strahan)
“The Last Boat-Builder in Ballyvoloon” by Finbarr O’Reilly (Clarkesworld, October 2017)
“The Speed of Belief” by Robert Reed (Asimov’s Science Fiction, January/February 2017)
“Death on Mars” by Madeline Ashby (Visions, Ventures, Escape Velocities, edited by Ed Finn and Joey Eschrich)
“An Evening with Severyn Grimes” by Rich Larson (Asimov’s Science Fiction, July/August 2017)
“ZeroS” by Peter Watts (Infinity Wars, edited by Jonathan Strahan)
“The Secret Life of Bots” by Suzanne Palmer (Clarkesworld, September 2017)
“Zen and the Art of Starship Maintenance” by Tobias S. Buckell (Cosmic Powers, edited by John Joseph Adams)

Genres: Science Fiction, Short Stories, Anthologies, Fiction, Audiobook, Fantasy, Collections

31 pages, Audible Audio

First published June 16, 2017

About the author

Neil Clarke is best known as the editor and publisher of the Hugo and World Fantasy Award-winning Clarkesworld Magazine. Launched in October 2006, the online magazine has been a finalist for the Hugo Award for Best Semiprozine four times (winning three times), the World Fantasy Award four times (winning once), and the British Fantasy Award once (winning once). Neil is also a ten-time finalist for the Hugo Award for Best Editor Short Form (winning once in 2022), three-time winner of the Chesley Award for Best Art Director, and a recipient of the Kate Wilhelm Solstice Award. In the fifteen years since Clarkesworld Magazine launched, numerous stories that he has published have been nominated for or won the Hugo, Nebula, World Fantasy, Sturgeon, Locus, BSFA, Shirley Jackson, WSFA Small Press, and Stoker Awards.

Additionally, Neil edits  Forever —a digital-only, reprint science fiction magazine he launched in 2015. His anthologies include: Upgraded, Galactic Empires, Touchable Unreality, More Human than Human, The Final Frontier, Not One of Us,  The Eagle has Landed, , and the Best Science Fiction of the Year series. His next anthology, The Best Science Fiction of the Year: Volume Seven will published in early 2023.

He currently lives in New Jersey with his wife and two sons.

Reviews

[Bradley · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thanks to Edelweiss for a review copy of this short SF collection!

Like so many "best of" collections, it's often a grab-bag. Like some, and not so much with others.

Fortunately, there are a number of these I live very much and they all happen to hit the hard SF spectrum for me. Maybe this is just a personal preference and perhaps they were objectively a lot more original and creative than the others. Again, this could entirely be my preference-of-the-moment and not a reflection on the quality of the rest.

Which ones stood out, though?

A Series of Steaks - Vina Jie-Min Prasad - Flesh printing and con-jobs. I was rather amused and thrilled by the scope of this one.

Holdfast - an Alastair Reynolds hard take on Enemy Mine... was brilliant in every way and deliciously hard-core on every level. An easy favorite.

Every Hour of Light and Dark - Nancy Kress - It was an okay treatise on forgeries and time travel. Not my favorite story, alas.

The Last Novelist (or a dead lizard in the yard) - Matthew Kressel - Seemed to have a pretty interesting premise and light tone, but I didn't really get into it too much.

Shikasta - Vandana Singh - Pretty cool biology stuff and exploration tech, but its strength was in the diversity of its intellectual digressions even as they explored a new world and biology... not to mention the interesting AI vs human intelligence.

Wind Will Rove - Sarah Pinsker - This one was probably the most compelling non-hard-SF story of the bunch following a colony that had lost all of the cultures it had brought from Earth, desperately attempting to recreate what they had from memory as they moved forward.

Focus - Gord Sellar - Fairly interesting phone SF... but only mildly.

The Martian Obelisk - Linda Nagata - Building a Mars monument. Cool characters. Colonization. Tragedy :)

Shadows of Eternity - Gregory Benford - Lots of tech, exploration. Decent, pretty creative, wormholes, ancient civs, but mostly all about discovery.

The Wordless - Indrapramit Das - A lot more hard-SF and also quite interesting, dark ending.

Regarding the Robot Raccoons Attached to the Hull of My Ship - Jones and Muhamad-Ali - Good epistolary short full of conversation and interesting world-building and relationships. I think I liked these characters among the best in this collection.

Belly Up - Maggie Clark - I think I wanted to like this one more than I did based solely on the good pacing, but that wasn't enough in the end. I didn't really connect.

Uncanny Valley - Greg Egan - This one really stood out for me. Residual Human consciousness mixed into an old love story, degraded rights, a murder mystery, and great old Hollywood charm.

We Who Live in the Heart - Kelly Robson - This one was probably my favorite of all the stories. It had a fantastic mix of blow-you-away imagination and worldbuilding, brilliant setup, fantastic characters, great theme, and an even greater twist. I'm going to be looking out for more of her work for sure.

A Catalogue of Sunlight at the End of the World - A. C. Wise - A rather introspective piece on saving parts of the future and remembering the past with a solid science bent and decent characterization.

Meridian - Karin Loachee - This one snuck up on me but it was a nice twist of stowaways and brotherhood. Great worldbuilding.

The Tale of Alcubierre Horse - Kathleen Ann Goonan - Probably my second favorite story in the book, it's like a twist of Pohl's Starburst and a kidnapping and a wild psychology lesson with heart... ending with colonization. I really enjoyed the full storytelling experience with this one.

Extracurricular Activities - Yoon Ha Lee - Young Jedao. Need I say more?

In Everlasting Wisdom - Aliette de Bodard - Lots of station and setting, pretty interesting cultural worldbuilding, but it didn't quite strike any chords in me.

The Last Boat-builder in Ballyvoloon - Finbarr O'Reilly - A twist on stories from a bar with a future history and great atmosphere.

The Speed of Belief - Robert Reed - Machine souls and exploration, more focused on immortality versus waterbags, diplomacy, species-killers, and alternate intelligences.

Death on Mars - Madeline Ashby - Very interesting intersection between a Mars trip and inoperable cancer. This one might stick with me for a while.

An Evening with Severyn Grimes - Rich Larson - An almost Noir feel with high tech hijinx. Lots of great descriptions.

Zeros - Peter Watts - For outright great science, fantastic zombie characters turned cyborgs, existential horror with programming, and the ennui of war, I had to debate with myself whether this one was topping the whole list of short stories. It's truely great and I'm totally a fanboy of this author.

The Secret Life of Bots - Suzanne Palmer - I wanted to like this more than I did. Still, pretty fun to see the underbelly of the workforce. Shame there is so much stratification, but I guess it drives a story.

Zen and the Art of Starship Maintenance - Tobias S. Buckell - Far future SF that I fairly rocked to. I liked feel of the end. :)

[Cathy · Rating 5 out of 5]

26 stories. Many I hadn't’t read yet, some I did because I just went though the Locus recommended reading list. (I think Clarke is one of the people who chooses those too. Their poll results aren’t in yet so I don't know who was actually nominated.) I'm very very happy to own this, there are so man good stories that I'll want to refer back to in the future. 15 female authors, at least 10 POC that I know of, could be more. 13 difference sources: 10 online, 6 print and 10 anthologies. 2 novellas, 11 novelettes and 13 short stories. 7 of 10 anthology sources were small press.

Clarke’s pick for best new anthology - Extrasolar edited by Nick Gevers for PS Publish but only available as an expensive UK hardcover so far.

Clarke’s pick for best new writer - He agreed with me! Vina Jie-Min Presad is brilliant and so clever. I didn’t realize that “Steaks” was her first professional sale, so impressive a debut. You have to read Fandom for Robots too, it’s so cute, a really fun story for all fans.


Vina Jie-Min Presad - A Series of Steaks - Nebula and Hugo nominated, on the Locus recommended reading list. Such a clever story. It felt like a very believable projection of where many aspects of society could go, and the characters were terrific.

Opening line: “All known forgeries are tales of failure.” Yup, you aren’t supposed to get caught.

Alastair Reynolds - Holdfast - Battle-Mother and maggot Greymouth are the only survivors of their enemy squadrons. On a mysterious gas giant they discovered floating mountains and an unusual organism that forced them to take an accounting of each other and the paths their people chose. Good story. Good ending, which is all too rare in short stories.

Nancy Kress - Every Hour of Light and Dark - In the year 1668 artist Johannes realized that one of his patron's paintings of his now has an excellent forgery hanging in its place. In 2270 the Gallery chose Tulia’s piece and Cran was jealous. And in 2018 something happened to a guard at the National Gallery in DC when he checked on the Vermeers. Cran and Tulia lived on Luna and worked for the Project, which substituted forgeries for originals throughout time in an attempt to bring the originals to the future to rescue them from a destroyed Earth. I can sympathize with their desire to rescue art from the past. It had a similar theme in that way to Wind Will Rove about how much art means to us. Cran’s passion for the painting was relatable, if his actions were not. It was quite a good story.

Matthew Kressel - The Last Novelist (or A Dead Lizard in the Yard) - Nebula nominated. Very memorable. Tor.com’s description: “A dying writer tries to finish one last story on the planet he settled on for his demise. An encounter with a young girl triggers one last burst of creativity.” Fish was a doll. A bittersweet little story.

Vandana Singh - Shikasta - Originally written for Visions, Ventures, Escape Velocities: A Collection of Space Futures, a free download. The anthology is a kind of a follow-up to Hieroglyph.

She’s such a beautiful writer, without being flowery or heavy. Just lovely. Three scientists write to their dead fourth partner now that their AI robot has landed on Shikasta, only 4 lightyears away. The mission was crowdsourced and entirely transparent. Though life is more likely on the water worlds that other more developed/funded projects have set out to explore, this team hoped a different and unfamiliar kind of life could be found in the band around the middle of Shikasta between the frozen side and magma side. Then the robot began acting weird and they suspect it’s learned enough to be sentient in part because of communicating with whatever magnetic kind of life forms were there. It was such a rich story with Native American, Indian, another indigenous culture and so much physical science and social science. Complex and smart yet easy to read and very well done.

Sarah Pinsker - Wind Will Rove - Nebula and Hugo nominated. Super memorable, and when I remember, I feel it. It was emotional and evocative. A generation ship. Computer sabotage and loss of Earth media especially movies and music. The fiddler, her grandmother, and her kid. Such a good story, it may well win a lot of awards. My notes from the first time I read it, “People on a colony ship try to keep their arts alive a couple of generations away from Earth. The MC inherited her fiddle from her grandmother, original crew, who’s favorite song was Wind Will Rove. She teaches 10th grade history and her students don’t understand why they have to learn about a place they have and will never see.”

It felt like a very personal story. Pinsker’s love of music and performing informed every aspect of the story. Such a lovely story, very deserving of nomination.“

Gord Seller - Focus - This was an AnLab nominated story (Analog Magazine awards). Korean and Vietnamese people rebelling against almost mandatory use of Focus concentration drug in schools, factories, etc. It was fast-paced and interesting until it very abruptly just ended. Major short story crappy ending syndrome. But the idea of Focus and how it could be abused felt all too possible. This is the kind of sci-fi we need, examining real issues that can affect us now and in the near future so that when things happen it isn’t a shock and has been debated and analyzed a bit already.

Linda Nagata - The Martian Obelisk Hugo nominated and on the Locus recommended reading list. She’s a great writer, I love her military SF, which is unexpected because I’m not much of a military SF fan. I get totally sucked into the characters and her informed ideas about the near future of tech and war.

As for this story, Earth is slowly dying from climate change and other complications. A rich guy, Nathaniel, asked an architect, Susannah, 17 yrs ago what her dream project would be. She said to create the a monument that would be huge and perfect and would last 100,000 years, long beyond humans and anything else of Earth. All 4 Mars colonies collapsed but one is was used for the obelisk, created via AI operated machinery. But suddenly 9 months after the last colony collapsed a vehicle from that site showed up at the project. Did someone survive? A very good story.

Gregory Benford - Shadows of Eternity - Man, you can tell he’s a scientist! Great mix of hard science and space exploration as a SETI Library Trainee on the Moon explored transmissions from robotic scouts from occupied planets across the universe and discovers something no one else noticed. A good story, it felt classic and modern at the same time.

Indrapramit Das - The Worldless - This was on the Locus recommended reading list. Usually I love his work but this was a bit of an odd story. NuTay and their child Satlyt sold chai to wayfarers on a desert planet where their people, dunyshar, were effectively slaves, trapped into service. They longed for Earth and a real planet full of life and not those blasted dun colored hills. it was well done and I can see why some people would love it. I just prefer things a bit more concrete and easier to understand. People who love Sofia Samatar and Amal El-Mohtar should love it.

Rachael K. Jones and Khaalidah Muhammad-Ali - Regarding the Robot Raccoons Attached to the Hull of My Ship - I read Muhammad-Ali’s story Concessions for the Locus list (about the doctor who in trying to cure cancer created nanites as a side effect destroyed fertility, good story) and was instantly a big fan. This story is about the love-hate relationship between sisters who differ about terraforming Mars, told through letters back and forth as they travel toward the red planet. “Our hatred has been our brilliance, our secret genius, the harsh red desert that pushed and pinched and goaded us to build towers you can see from the Moon. Imagine what a lifetime of love might have accomplished.” What a lovely story, something anyone with a sibling will relate to on a deep level. Thanks, Neil.

Maggie Clark - Belly Up - A kid wanted revenge on the “declawed” addict who killed his mother. But Imbra, the murderer, didn’t want to ruin the kid’s life a second time. It had two more major sections and ended with me totally not getting it. It wasn't great for me, slow and unsatisfying.

Greg Egan - Uncanny Valley - On the Locus recommended reading list. The main character is Adam the Younger because he was the successor not son of the old man. Not a clone, cybernetic. No wonder he isn’t a legal person. A nice story, a bit of a mystery but mostly an exploration of what it might mean to succeed an identity.

Kelly Robson - We Who Live in the Heart -A Locus recommended reading list story. A weird story about a small group of people who lived in a floating whale. Not actually a whale, it’s just called that. It was a weird story. I didn’t get most of it. I usually love her stuff a lot and appreciate how creative and varied her work is, so it’s fine that this wasn’t a match for me.

A.C. Wise - A Catalogue of Sunlight at the End of the World - I loved this story a lot. A man remembered his life through the way the sun looked on different occasions and made a catalog of sunlight for the generation ship that was about to depart. Life and love and grief and memory and complex family dynamics. There was so much that rang true and that I really related to. Such a lovely little story. She’s such a beautiful writer. “I may be alone but I’m not lonely. I have everything I need.” I’m really surprised it wasn’t nominated.

It was first published here: “Sunvault: Stories of Solarpunk and Eco-Speculation is the first English-language anthology to broadly collect solarpunk short fiction, artwork, and poetry. A new genre for the 21st Century, solarpunk is a revolution against despair. Focusing on solutions to environmental disasters, solarpunk envisions a future of green, sustainable energy used by societies that value inclusiveness, cooperation, and personal freedom.”

Karin Lowachee - Meridian - A boy’s family and settlement were killed by space pirates when he was four. The family that rescued him adopted him but he was unmanageable, at least by them, and they basically sold him to a drug queen. One day he found out that somehow his middle brother lived. How the kid dealt with his rage really rang true.

Kathleen Ann Goonan - The Tale of the Alcubierre Horse - Too abstract and confusing for me. But basically Pele worked on a ship that became the Disney of the future combined with a serious research facility. They kept postponing going off into space as was intended. Until a group of genius kids, many on the autism spectrum, forced the issue. She ended up being the only adult to go with them. It kept getting weirder and it ws almost cool but not quite for my taste. I liked the ideas of nanites, time, fairy tales and old books being important but was confused by how she put it all together.

Yoon Ha Lee - Extracurricular Activities - Hugo nominated & on the Locus recommended reading list. Which is no surprise because Lee is a master at short fiction. There was an extraordinary amount of worldbuilding in such a short story. I feel like I absorbed a 400+ page novel so easy and smooth, it was really remarkable. It was super cute, fast-paced, detailed but easy to follow. Fun. And it wasn’t depressing! Unlike so many nominated stories every year.

Duh, it took me forever to realize that this reminded me of NinefoxGambit because it’s part of that series. On the other hand, I only read the beginning of book one so far, so maybe it’s understandable. This was a big incentive to get back into it.

Aliette de Bodard - In Everlasting Wisdom - This was in infinity Wars, which was on the Locus recommended reading list. A subject of the Everlasting Emperor accepted a symbiotic relationship with an appeaser, which let her harmonize/brainwash people to feel peace. War is with Quynh Federation. I love de Bodard.

Finbarr O’Rielly - The Last Boat Builder in Ballyvoloon - A Locus recommended story. And maybe it was nominated for something? I was interested in his idea about unintended consequences of technology possibly being like invasive species that are imported to solve a problem but cause worse ones. People created “squid” to clean the oceans, lakes and rivers of all of the crap we dumped in them. But like all life, they weren’t predictable. They killed fish to get to the plastic in their flesh. They killed kids who used suntan lotion with petrol in it. But the waters were clean at least. It was OK but I didn’t love it.

Robert Reed - The Speed of Belief - A Great Ship story. I’ve read several that I liked but this was much too long and slow for me.

Madeline Ashby - Death on Mars - Dear friends. When you find out that a loved one is sick or dying, please don’t make it ALL about you. There was a lot to like with this one. Group dynamics, Mars exploration, choices are illness and dying and how different people react to both. Good story.

Rich Larson - An Evening with Severyn Grimes - I admit it, I didn’t read it. I was ready to move on to another book by this point. Sorry, Rich! I usually really like his work. Get the book, read it, and let me know how it is, OK?

Peter Watts - ZeroS - A Locus recommended reading list story twice over, because the book it’s from, Infinity Wars, was also on the list. It was about super augmented soldiers, so much that their superiors control them during action entirely in zombie mode. An OK story.

Suzanne Palmer - The Secret Life of Bots - I really liked this one, and it’s very memorable. On the Locus recommended reading list and Hugo nominated. The secret network the bots used to talk to each other reminded me of Ian Tregillis’s The Mechanical books, because of course subjugated people would want to talk privately. Not that these bots seem to mind as much. It was a charming tale. The main character was one tiny but mighty little bot. I liked how the “person”alities of the Bots that were shaped by their function, so different than humans. Themes: Being old isn’t a crime and often makes your contributions more valuable. And support staff matters!

Tobias S. Bucknell - Zen and the Art of Starship Maintenance - It was on the Locus list, as was the anthology it appeared in, Cosmic Powers (very good). For some reason I didn’t make any notes when I read it. I seem to recall it being OK. Sorry Mr. Bucknell.

[Fred Hughes · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a nice collection of mostly science fiction stories with some fantasy tales included.

A good value

[Amy Mills · Rating 4 out of 5]

Overall, most of the stories in this are quite good. Standouts for me were Holdfast, Shikasta, Extracurricular Activity, and In Everlasting Wisdom, but I enjoyed all but a very few of them. Of those I didn't enjoy, one was just so over-the-top that I couldn't relate to it in any way, one just never drew me in enough to do more than skim, and one made me want to punch the author (but was probably included for a fascinating sentient race). As a whole, I recommend the collection. Read down for more specifics about individual stories.

A Series of Steaks by Vina Jie-Min Prasad (Clarkesworld, January 2017) {4 stars} - Well-written caper, about forging T-Bone steaks from a cellular printer. It reminded me of The Emperor's Soul, both because of the forgery theme, and because of the intensity of the project. Aside: reading this made me hungry, and I don't even like steak.
Holdfast by Alastair Reynolds (Extrasolar, edited by Nick Gevers) {5 stars} - Wow. At first, I wasn't expecting much. Yeah, yeah, last survivors of warships trying to kill one another, but then it turned into something beautiful.
Every Hour of Light and Dark by Nancy Kress (Omni, Winter 2017) {3 stars} - Well-written and interesting concept, but just didn't really grab me. I liked the idea behind the story better than the story.
The Last Novelist, or a Dead Lizard in the Yard by Matthew Kressel (Tor.com, March 2017) {3.5 stars} - Well written, but very odd. It felt more literary than SF, though it certainly contained obvious SF elements.
Shikasta by Vandana Singh (Visions, Ventures, Escape Velocities, edited by Ed Finn and Joey Eschrich) {5 stars} - Another "wow" one. Absolutely lovely, from the idea of a crowd-funded space probe, to the perspectives of the scientists, each from a different culture/ethnicity. Breathtaking.
Wind Will Rove by Sarah Pinsker (Asimov’s Science Fiction, September/October 2017) {4 stars} - Story about the importance of paying attention to the past while looking to the future, and findind your own place in the present, through the lens of a musician on a generational ship.
Focus by Gord Sellar (Analog Science Fiction and Fact, May/June 2017) {3 stars} - I wanted to like this more than I did. I feel like I'm missing some cultural detail that would make it make more sense to me. As is, I felt like it ended too soon and was in need of more ... something. Near-future piece where companies and schools expect employees/students to use a drug called "Focus".
The Martian Obelisk by Linda Nagata (Tor.com, July 2017) - {3 stars} While I like the idea behind this one, the execution felt really heavy-handed. I have a sneaking suspicion it was written for a themed anthology ... er, no, it was first published on Tor.com. There goes that theory. Still, it feels a bit forced to me, though there's nothing specific I can point at for why it feels that way. ETA: It might have felt less forced if there had been more than one single family as survivors. Not sure.
Shadows of Eternity by Gregory Benford (Extrasolar, edited by Nick Gevers) {3.5 stars} - would be 4 or even 5 stars, but there are a few bizarre turns of phrase that feel utterly out of place in the setting (using "Great Balls of Fire" without establishing that the character likes old music; female character comparing a landscape shape to feminine curves, with no other indication she might be gay, odd interpolation of Shakespeare quotes...). With tighter editing, this would have been excellent. As is, there's an excellent story with unnecessary trappings.
The Worldless by Indrapramit Das (Lightspeed, March 2017) {4 stars} - Hopeful far future story, about outcasts finding a way to freedom. Hopefully. I like the sense of a near-alien perspective, in the off-spellings and the sole use of "they" pronouns.
Regarding the Robot Raccoons Attached to the Hull of My Ship by Rachael K. Jones and Khaalidah Muhammad-Ali (Diabolical Plots, June 2017) {2 stars} - Well, this is the first of these I've actively disliked. As a comedy piece, it kind of works. As anything else, not so much. I don't relate to the over-the-top sisterly banter, at all. YMMV
Belly Up by Maggie Clark (Analog Science Fiction and Fact, July/August 2017) {3.5 stars} - With a less ambiguous ending, I probably would have given this one 4 stars. The idea of making violence-prone people's bodies unable to produce adrenaline and other mood-altering chemicals is interesting, as is the underdog fighting the big empire. The end was a bit of a letdown, though.
Uncanny Valley by Greg Egan (Tor.com, August 2017) {3.5 stars} - Another 4 star story with a few issues dragging my rating down. The first issue is the beginning. I tried to start reading this several times, before deciding I just wasn't getting through section 1, and moving onto section 2, to see if that would draw me in. It did. And most of the rest is a fascinating look at a rich, dying eccentric creating an AI robot of himself. Of course, the old man had his secrets...
We Who Live in the Heart by Kelly Robson (Clarkesworld, May 2017) {3.5 stars} - a fascinating idea stuck in a mediocre story. If the ending had actually been an interesting discovery, rather than a pointless accident, I would have enjoyed this one a lot more. It all felt like it was leading up to a big discovery about the "whales", then ... nope, nevermind, we'll just accidentally kill a few and the others will move. Also, there was no good reason for the POV character's rant about calling them "whales", when she herself used the term in her own thoughts. Delete delete delete, and fix the ending, and this would be quite good.
A Catalogue of Sunlight at the End of the World by A.C. Wise (Sunvault, edited by Phoebe Wagner and Bronte Christopher Wieland) {4 stars} - 5 star writing, but too bittersweet for me to give it five stars. As a (the?) colony ship leaves earth for the stars, someone staying behind reflects on the sun they'll leave behind.
Meridian by Karin Lowachee (Where the Stars Rise, edited by Lucas K. Law and Derwin Mak) {3 stars} - Well-crafted, but bleak. Orphan winds up in the interstellar drug trade, discovers his brother might also have survived.
The Tale of the Alcubierre Horse by Kathleen Ann Goonan (Extrasolar, edited by Nick Gevers) {2 stars?} - This one never drew me in. I wound up skimming to make it through. There were occasional lovely, fascinating passages, with a bunch uninteresting stuff in between. I think it would have worked better if it had stuck with the fairy-tale framing, with a lot less nitty-gritty stuff from the "real" story. I liked the idea of navigating the universe being tied to Polynesian way-finding. I found the story seed implausible (though more might have been explained in the stuff I skimmed past) : wouldn't kids that gifted have figured out that the ship hadn't sailed yet because it was not ready to sail??? So, yeah. Didn't work for me. YMMV. I also can't help but wonder if the kids taking off isn't what eventually led to the nuclear war that destroyed earth. I don't think that was the intent, but it certainly can be read that way.
Extracurricular Activities by Yoon Ha Lee (Tor.com, February 2017) {5 stars} Breath of fresh air after the last one. And one of Lee's best short stories (especially if you already enjoy Jedao from the MoE trilogy). I'd read this one before on Tor.com (and it was one of the reasons I bought this collection when it was on deal). Loved it then, still love it now.
In Everlasting Wisdom by Aliette de Bodard (Infinity Wars, edited by Jonathan Strahan) {5 stars} - Beautifully written, and a fascinating idea: an empire held together by people who bond with telepathic aliens to broadcast, er, correct thought. Of course, nothing "good" lasts forever...
The Last Boat-Builder in Ballyvoloon by Finbarr O’Reilly (Clarkesworld, October 2017) {4 stars} Missed Lovecraftian opportunity, imo, but this one grounds itself more in nostalgia than dread (though I think there was a lot of room for dread). The plastic-eating-squid-that-replicate would make for a good Lovecraftian horror, but here they're just a foil for the boatbuilder. Still lovely, with gorgeous writing, but not quite what I wanted out of it.
The Speed of Belief by Robert Reed (Asimov’s Science Fiction, January/February 2017){1 star} - Well, this is the first of these I've genuinely regretted finishing. There are some interesting creatures (sentient "rivers"), but the plot is utter dreck. Nasty, small-minded mortal pulls it over on too-rational, immortal machines. I would guess the author was going for "rationality and optimism only get you so far," but that could have been done without a loathsome protagonist, and without the objectification of the female "machine". Yikes. Give this one a miss, unless you just skim through for the depictions of the river-creatures. Don't bother with anything else. It's also rather difficult to believe that these immortal, once-human machines have never, over millions of years, dealt with duplicitous races on first-contact. Really? Only the unmodified human would have seen that coming? Really?!??! SMH.
Death on Mars by Madeline Ashby (Visions, Ventures, Escape Velocities, edited by Ed Finn and Joey Eschrich) {4 stars} - Debated between 3 and 4 stars on this, but the writing is 4 stars, so I settled on 4. It just wasn't a plot that strongly interested me. Proto-expedition to Mars has to deal with one of their own having a terminal illness. Nicely written, and manages to be optimistic despite the grim subject matter.
An Evening with Severyn Grimes by Rich Larson (Asimov’s Science Fiction, July/August 2017) {4 stars} - Good use of a cyberpunk setting, with fascinating and believable characters. It's noir enough that it's unclear if you actually want to root for anyone (maybe the bodyguard?), but the characters are still sympathetic enough to feel for. I'd forgotten how much I enjoy well-done cyberpunk.
ZeroS by Peter Watts (Infinity Wars, edited by Jonathan Strahan) {3.25 stars} - Interesting extrapolation from the fact that decisions are made in the brain before we become consciously aware of making those decisions. Unfortunately, it wasn't a plot that actually interested me. Army creates bio-engineered "zombies" (conscious mind not in control) to combat an emergent threat: emergent child-zombies. The nature of the threat took it out of, "ZOMG! Inappropriate use of military force!" territory, at least.
The Secret Life of Bots by Suzanne Palmer (Clarkesworld, September 2017) {4 stars} Rather cute, and a lot of fun. When bots decide to take matters into their own manipulators. Reminds me of the servitors in the Jedao books.
Zen and the Art of Starship Maintenance by Tobias S. Buckell (Cosmic Powers, edited by John Joseph Adams) {3.5 stars} Bit odd, but enjoyable. Former human who has adopted an immortal robot form gets the better of CEO bigoted against robots, in space. The mystical robot confessional seemed like an unnecessary contrivance to me, though.

[Martha · Rating 3 out of 5]

These Sci-Fi anthologies are not leisure listening. You have to pay attention!!!

[Anthony A · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not impressed. This collection contains some of the most boring stories I have ever read. As you may or may not know, I rate each story using a scale from 1 to 10, where 10 is the highest and 1 is the lowest, with 5 being average. When I finish the anthology, I average the scores of all of the stories. The average for this volume of short stories resulted in an average of 4.67. As a result, I will probably read the next volume, Volume Four, and then call it quits on these anthologies - much in the same way that I did with Dozois' annual anthology. It is just no longer worth my time.

[Riju Ganguly · Rating 3 out of 5]

This massive tome contains stories of all sorts, meant for readers whose tastes cover the entire gamut of styles, tropes, themes and approaches. A large number of such works were overlong, tedious to the point of being self-defeating, proving that the authors were taking stuff a bit too seriously, in the process compromising the basic idea of storytelling. Amidst such arid works were scattered few verdant and refreshing works as well. For me, they were~
1. A Series of Steaks— Vina Jie-Min Prasad
2. Holdfast— Alastair Reynolds
3. The Martian Obelisk— Linda Nagata
4. Shadows of Eternity— Gregory Benford
5. Uncanny Valley— Greg Egan
6. Meridian— Karin Lowachee
7. Extracurricular Activities— Yoon Ha Lee
8. In Everlasting Wisdom— Aliette de Bodard
9. An Evening with Severyn Grimes— Rich Larson
10. The Secret Life of Bots— Suzanne Palmer
I can only pray that the editor eschews his agenda-driven preferences for huge but boring works in future. Greater emphasis upon short, sharp, smart and witty works would make these anthologies much more enjoyable, in my opinion.

[Gail Morris · Rating 4 out of 5]

this collection of stories introduced me to some new authors and made me want to read the book ZeroS after reading the short story here. I am not a zombie fan, but the space twist with alien technology helped a lot to make zombies more interesting to me. I will be researching the other authors to find some new books to read soon.

[Vic · Rating 4 out of 5]

I ended up liking a lot more of the stories than I thought I would--if not for plot then for creative structure. I had a lot of fun with this anthology! Definitely a keeper. Thanks to Neil Clarke for introducing me to a couple of my favorite authors too!

[Kieran McAndrew · Rating 5 out of 5]

An interesting and varied collection of short science fiction stories.

Clarke's collation of the best of 2018 is worth diving into and the book is excellent value for money.

[Shyan · Rating 3 out of 5]

A strong collection of fun sci-fi stories, which tends to prioritize good language and evocative writing over particularly compelling ideas. Nine stories in this collection that stood out to me:

1. "A Series of Steaks" by Vina Jie-Min Prasad ~ An odd premise, filled with fun dialogue and casually clever prose.

2. "Every Hour of Light and Dark" by Nancy Kress ~ Art theft in an interesting direction.

3. "Shikasta" by Vandana Singh ~ An excellent story with an interesting emotional angle.

4. "Wind Will Rove" by Sarah Pinsker ~ A simple but impactful story, which contemplates the conflict between preserving old knowledge and creating new ideas.

5. "The Martian Obelisk" by Linda Nagata ~ A story mired in despair, with a strong beginning and end.

6. "Shadows of Eternity" by Gregory Benford ~ Creative use of language. The plot itself is not very thoroughly developed in this short story.

7. "A Catalogue of Sunlight at the End of the World" by A.C. Wise ~ Good emotional storytelling.

8. "Death on Mars" by Madeline Ashby ~ Similar in themes to #7.

9. "The Secret Life of Bots" by Suzanne Palmer ~ Robots given good voices.

[Peter · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another collection of short stories produced in a particular year, this one 2017. Usual mixed bag, some I didn't particularly care for, some that I really liked, and even if you agreed with that assessment you'd probably choose different stories for each category.

I think my favorites of the batch were (in order they appear): "A Series of Steaks" by Vina Jie-Min Prasad, "Regarding the Robot Raccoons Attached To the Hull of My Ship" by Rachael K. Jones and Khaalidah Muhammad-Ali, "Death on Mars" by Madeline Ashby and "ZeroS" by Peter Watts.

There were a few more stories that I've read before than average (including a couple on my favorites list), which is disappointing but I can't really mark it down for. However, in contrast to the previous volume in the series, I'm at least relieved that there were no stories that I classified as outright fantasy, which is a step up. 3 stars.

[Pearse Anderson · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book took me a long, long time to read, and I think I skipped over some of maybe the best stories—I fear that because the book was so long and I jumped around that A Series of Steaks and the Yoon Ha Lee piece and others might've been missed, but again because it was so long and took half the year, with many stories and novellas falling short on catching me and pulling me in, I think it's another sign that this series doesn't click with what I want out of sci-fi. I am about to start Carmen Maria Machado's guest edited antho for 2019 and assume that will be more in line, especially because it covers fantasy and slipstream and such. 6/10 because of how many were duds in my read.

Connection: I went to Shared Worlds and was instructed by some of these authors in one way or another.

[Mike D · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am a huge fan of the "Years Best" collections of short fiction and recently editor Neil Clarke has entered the yearly "best of" collection ring with his series The Best Science Fiction of the Year. This is his third volume and the first from him that I have read, but I am pleased to say that this is one of the best scifi anthologies I have ever read! Strong and varied offerings make this a must read for any type of science fiction fan! Head on over to Signal Horizon to see my full review and many more reasons to add this one to your collection!

[Linda J · Rating 3 out of 5]

Starts out with fascinating stories, many of them from female writers whose characters just happen to have nontraditional relationships or genders. But the middle stories veer into more modernistic story telling, with less narrative or character strength, and by the last few stories we are into the old war/spaceships/alien attack type classic fiction - but at least the narratives are more straightforward. A mixed bag, but some really good ones in here that seem to be SF by accident of setting only.

[Jae · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a lovely collection! So many wonderful portals into speculative realities that really touch on humanity, relationships and agency.

Favs:
A Series of Steaks - Vina Jie-Min Prasad
Holdfast - Alastair Reynolds
Regarding the Robot Racoons Attached to the Hull of my Ship - Rachael K Jones & Khaalidah Muhammad-Adli
Uncanny Valley - Greg Egan
The Last Boat Builder in Ballyvoon - Finnbarr O'Reilly
The Secret Life of Bots - Suzanne Palmer
Zen and the Art of Starship Maintenance - Tobias S. Buckell

[Zu Reviews · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is just a huge anthology and by it's very nature you won't like everything in it.

I can't say I read every story, but I gave everyone a shot. I liked a lot of the stories, mostly those that were more of a snapshot. I wasn't a fan of many with an intergalactic military setting. They felt very predictable and un-interesting. Many were charming though!

[Federico Lucifredi · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great collection — had not read so many good ones since the collected PKD short story volumes at the turn of the millennium.

So many to choose from, I cannot pick a favorite. Suzanne Palmer's “The Secret Life of Bots” is a strong contender — a a veteran multibot comes out from storage with an unusual assignment: pest control. And saves the world in the process!

[Frank · Rating 4 out of 5]

As with most “best of” collections enjoyment of the search story depends upon your ability to get into the mind of the writer to interpret the writer’s intent. For me about 85% of the stories were meh. The last three stories were the best as they were more bounded in viewpoint and therefore the most enjoyable.

[Rachel · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a good collection, exactly the kind of SF I read. But, I'd already read more than half the stories! Not the editor's fault, but trying to remember more about each familiar-sounding story (so I didn't have to re-read it) detracted from my enjoyment.

[Spencer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mixed bag. A few good stories here. My favorite was “an evening with Severyn Grimes” by rich Larson

[Lucía · Rating 4 out of 5]

Adoro estas antologías de ciencia ficción a pesar de que no siempre tienen buenas historias si tienes paciencia puedes encontrar ideas alucinantes y hermosas que nunca te habías podido imaginar.

[Janet Jay · Rating 4 out of 5]

Standouts: Wind Will Rove, regarding the robot raccoons attached to the hull of my ship, the tale of the alcubierre horse