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The Year’s Best Science Fiction & Fantasy, 2020
This eleventh volume of the year's best science fiction and fantasy features twenty-six stories by some of the genre's greatest authors, including Marie Brennan, Maurice Broaddus, John Crowley, Theodora Goss, Xia Jia, John Kessel, Kelly LInk, Sam J. Miller, Michael Swanwick, Fran Wilde, E. Lily Yu, and many others. Selecting the best fiction from Analog, Asimov's, Clarkesworld, Lightspeed, Uncanny, and other top venues, The Year's Best Science Fiction & Fantasy is your guide to magical realms and worlds beyond tomorrow.
497 pages, Kindle Edition
First published December 22, 2020
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
March 13, 2021
THE YEAR'S BEST SCIENCE FICTION & FANTASY, 2020 EDITION IS RATED 80%.
33 STORIES: 2 GREAT / 21 GOOD / 7 AVERAGE / 3 POOR / 0 DNF
Thirty-three stories was probably too many for a Years’ Best of 2019 .. and it was probably not the best idea to include Fantasy. There were a lot of good stories year, but quality of the fantasy was quite inferior to that of the science fiction, and it dragged down the overall reading experience. A 15 story collection at half the page count would have been a much stronger book.
Yet, the anthology does represent the state of modern SFF. Diverse, inclusive, unsubtle, occasionally preachy, and with a solid professionalism of prose quality. I just wish there was a bit more science in this current crop of Science Fiction.
The book opens with incredible strength. Two great stories:
“Green Glass: A Love Story” by E. Lily Yu. One of the biggest compliments that I can give a story is that it has the creativity and invention of a lesser author’s 7 book series. That is abundant here as Yu is sharing her imagination like a defective vending machine. This story is an indictment of the ultra rich, a vision of climate change disasters, and very funny.
“At the Fall” by Alec Nevala-Lee. It’s a SF “Incredible Journey,” but instead of animals, sentient undersea robots must adventure across great distances to reconnect with their humans. Immersive (pun intended) in the world building. Really enjoyable.
***
THE YEAR'S BEST SCIENCE FICTION & FANTASY, 2020 EDITION IS RATED 80%.
33 STORIES: 2 GREAT / 21 GOOD / 7 AVERAGE / 3 POOR / 0 DNF
“Green Glass: A Love Story” by E. Lily Yu
Great. A wild satire of the ultra-rich, disguised as an upper-class romance, and jammed with an ocean of sharp SF speculation.
“At the Fall” by Alec Nevala-Lee
Great. Sentient underwater robots make a fateful trek across the ocean to reconnect to their humans.
“The Fine Print” by Chinelo Onwualu
Good. An Arabian man got his fox-wife from the Djinn, but they want payment in his sun. Probably fantasy, but there is nothing in the story that prevents this being SF.
“Fix That House!” by John Kessel
Average. Hipsters restoring an antebellum mansion get a bit out of control.
“Mighty Are the Meek and the Myriad” by Cassandra Khaw
Good. The peace treaty between the robots and people is starting to fray in the UK
“The Savannah Problem” by Adam-Troy Castro
Good. A thrilling SF adventure around the capture and transportation of a skilled professional killer.
“How to Kiss a Hojacki” by Debbie Urbanski
Good. Brutal with content warnings galore! A man’s wife is turning into an alien thing that doesn’t want to have sex with him. He can’t understand it and becomes monstrous himself.
“Tourists” by Rammel Chan
Good. Alien tourists take human form to blend in, but also to hide from those that would hurt them.
“Vīs Dēlendī” by Marie Brennan
Poor. A very generic “magic academy’ story about love and hubris.
“Cloud-Born” by Gregory Feeley
Average. Plotless character study of children born on a colony ship. Believable angst.
“Give the Family My Love” by A.T. Greenblatt
Good. The last astronaut of earth tries to enter an alien library in the hope of saving earth.
“The Archronology of Love” by Caroline M. Yoachim
Good. While mourning her lost love, a woman tries to investigate what killed him and the whole colony.
“The Migration Suite: A Study in C Sharp Minor” by Maurice Broaddus
Good. A few musical movements take this story from prehistoric Ghana to a space colony - with lots of racism along the way.
“Secret Stories of Doors” by Sofia Rhei
Good. In an alternate 20th century, a writer hides stories of a fake writer in the official histories.
“The Ocean Between the Leaves” by Ray Nayler
Good. In a future Istanblum, a man is working himself to death as a form of a bounty-hunter, to pay for his sister’s medical care.
“The Virtue of Unfaithful Translations” by Minsoo Kang
Poor. In cold academic prose the story of translators who lie to their leaders end up preventing a war.
“Shucked” by Sam J. Miller
Good. A creepy bit of horror as an older man offers a young couple lots of money for one hour of the boyfriend’s time. But not for the reason you think!
“Empty Box” by Allison Mulvihill
Average. Artificial intelligence and long distance relationships in the near future.
“The Girl Who Did Not Know Fear” by Kelly Link
Average. Lesbian gets stranded in Detroit because of some reason. She does a lot of swimming in the pool to help her sleep. Her daughter is having prophetic dreams.
“Ink, and Breath, and Spring” by Frances Rowat
Good. Fantasy murder mystery set in and around a very strange library.
“The Death of Fire Station 10” by Ray Nayler
Good. An almost-great story about emerging AI from within smart-buildings like the Fire Station of the title.
“Love in the Time of Immuno-Sharing” by Andy Dudak
Average. Immuno-Sex has replaced reproductive-sex in a disease ravaged future. A small group of revelers leaves their floating worlds for the madness on shore.
“Bark, Blood, and Sacrifice” by Alexandra Seidel
Good. A creepy bit of horror surrounding a girl named Labyrinth, a sentient and demanding house, and a man drawn to visit.
Mnemosyne by Catherine MacLeod
Good. A really sharp and tight story about a woman who is a ghost catcher - storing and transporting ghosts in her head.
Cloud by Michael Swanwick
Average.. A man meets his wife’s ultra-rich family.
A Country Called Winter by Theodora Goss
Average. A young woman has immigrated from Winter. She has a few love affairs and goes to college before ‘fulfilling her destiny.”
And Now His Lordship is Laughing by Shiv Ramdas
Good. Brutal and angry story of a old Indian woman who takes magical revenge on the British Colonial leadership.
Knowledgeable Creatures by Christopher Rowe
Good. Fun little hard boiled detective story with a detective dog, some humans, and super-smart mice.
The Visible Frontier by Grace Seybold
Good. Baroque world building. A young sailor is fascinated with the stars and discovers different perspectives on them each time he comes ashore.
A Catalog of Storms by Fran Wilde
Good. In face of the future’s violent storms, some young people become ‘weathermen’ with the purpose of screaming back at the storm. Very well written fantasy.
At the Old Wooden Synagogue on Janower Street by Michael Libling
Poor. Yuck. This gimmick story exploits the Holocaust when a jewish family walks into a diner.
miscellaneous notes from the time an alien came to band camp disguised as my alto sax by Tina Connolly
Good. Scatterbrained fun with weird shapeshifting aliens, teen sex, and band camp.
Anosognosia by John Crowley
Good. Gentle and strange. A high-school boy recovers from a coma of starts to believe that he is living his life for a second time. A long story that would benefit from novel length.
33 STORIES: 2 GREAT / 21 GOOD / 7 AVERAGE / 3 POOR / 0 DNF
Thirty-three stories was probably too many for a Years’ Best of 2019 .. and it was probably not the best idea to include Fantasy. There were a lot of good stories year, but quality of the fantasy was quite inferior to that of the science fiction, and it dragged down the overall reading experience. A 15 story collection at half the page count would have been a much stronger book.
Yet, the anthology does represent the state of modern SFF. Diverse, inclusive, unsubtle, occasionally preachy, and with a solid professionalism of prose quality. I just wish there was a bit more science in this current crop of Science Fiction.
The book opens with incredible strength. Two great stories:
“Green Glass: A Love Story” by E. Lily Yu. One of the biggest compliments that I can give a story is that it has the creativity and invention of a lesser author’s 7 book series. That is abundant here as Yu is sharing her imagination like a defective vending machine. This story is an indictment of the ultra rich, a vision of climate change disasters, and very funny.
“At the Fall” by Alec Nevala-Lee. It’s a SF “Incredible Journey,” but instead of animals, sentient undersea robots must adventure across great distances to reconnect with their humans. Immersive (pun intended) in the world building. Really enjoyable.
***
THE YEAR'S BEST SCIENCE FICTION & FANTASY, 2020 EDITION IS RATED 80%.
33 STORIES: 2 GREAT / 21 GOOD / 7 AVERAGE / 3 POOR / 0 DNF
“Green Glass: A Love Story” by E. Lily Yu
Great. A wild satire of the ultra-rich, disguised as an upper-class romance, and jammed with an ocean of sharp SF speculation.
“At the Fall” by Alec Nevala-Lee
Great. Sentient underwater robots make a fateful trek across the ocean to reconnect to their humans.
“The Fine Print” by Chinelo Onwualu
Good. An Arabian man got his fox-wife from the Djinn, but they want payment in his sun. Probably fantasy, but there is nothing in the story that prevents this being SF.
“Fix That House!” by John Kessel
Average. Hipsters restoring an antebellum mansion get a bit out of control.
“Mighty Are the Meek and the Myriad” by Cassandra Khaw
Good. The peace treaty between the robots and people is starting to fray in the UK
“The Savannah Problem” by Adam-Troy Castro
Good. A thrilling SF adventure around the capture and transportation of a skilled professional killer.
“How to Kiss a Hojacki” by Debbie Urbanski
Good. Brutal with content warnings galore! A man’s wife is turning into an alien thing that doesn’t want to have sex with him. He can’t understand it and becomes monstrous himself.
“Tourists” by Rammel Chan
Good. Alien tourists take human form to blend in, but also to hide from those that would hurt them.
“Vīs Dēlendī” by Marie Brennan
Poor. A very generic “magic academy’ story about love and hubris.
“Cloud-Born” by Gregory Feeley
Average. Plotless character study of children born on a colony ship. Believable angst.
“Give the Family My Love” by A.T. Greenblatt
Good. The last astronaut of earth tries to enter an alien library in the hope of saving earth.
“The Archronology of Love” by Caroline M. Yoachim
Good. While mourning her lost love, a woman tries to investigate what killed him and the whole colony.
“The Migration Suite: A Study in C Sharp Minor” by Maurice Broaddus
Good. A few musical movements take this story from prehistoric Ghana to a space colony - with lots of racism along the way.
“Secret Stories of Doors” by Sofia Rhei
Good. In an alternate 20th century, a writer hides stories of a fake writer in the official histories.
“The Ocean Between the Leaves” by Ray Nayler
Good. In a future Istanblum, a man is working himself to death as a form of a bounty-hunter, to pay for his sister’s medical care.
“The Virtue of Unfaithful Translations” by Minsoo Kang
Poor. In cold academic prose the story of translators who lie to their leaders end up preventing a war.
“Shucked” by Sam J. Miller
Good. A creepy bit of horror as an older man offers a young couple lots of money for one hour of the boyfriend’s time. But not for the reason you think!
“Empty Box” by Allison Mulvihill
Average. Artificial intelligence and long distance relationships in the near future.
“The Girl Who Did Not Know Fear” by Kelly Link
Average. Lesbian gets stranded in Detroit because of some reason. She does a lot of swimming in the pool to help her sleep. Her daughter is having prophetic dreams.
“Ink, and Breath, and Spring” by Frances Rowat
Good. Fantasy murder mystery set in and around a very strange library.
“The Death of Fire Station 10” by Ray Nayler
Good. An almost-great story about emerging AI from within smart-buildings like the Fire Station of the title.
“Love in the Time of Immuno-Sharing” by Andy Dudak
Average. Immuno-Sex has replaced reproductive-sex in a disease ravaged future. A small group of revelers leaves their floating worlds for the madness on shore.
“Bark, Blood, and Sacrifice” by Alexandra Seidel
Good. A creepy bit of horror surrounding a girl named Labyrinth, a sentient and demanding house, and a man drawn to visit.
Mnemosyne by Catherine MacLeod
Good. A really sharp and tight story about a woman who is a ghost catcher - storing and transporting ghosts in her head.
Cloud by Michael Swanwick
Average.. A man meets his wife’s ultra-rich family.
A Country Called Winter by Theodora Goss
Average. A young woman has immigrated from Winter. She has a few love affairs and goes to college before ‘fulfilling her destiny.”
And Now His Lordship is Laughing by Shiv Ramdas
Good. Brutal and angry story of a old Indian woman who takes magical revenge on the British Colonial leadership.
Knowledgeable Creatures by Christopher Rowe
Good. Fun little hard boiled detective story with a detective dog, some humans, and super-smart mice.
The Visible Frontier by Grace Seybold
Good. Baroque world building. A young sailor is fascinated with the stars and discovers different perspectives on them each time he comes ashore.
A Catalog of Storms by Fran Wilde
Good. In face of the future’s violent storms, some young people become ‘weathermen’ with the purpose of screaming back at the storm. Very well written fantasy.
At the Old Wooden Synagogue on Janower Street by Michael Libling
Poor. Yuck. This gimmick story exploits the Holocaust when a jewish family walks into a diner.
miscellaneous notes from the time an alien came to band camp disguised as my alto sax by Tina Connolly
Good. Scatterbrained fun with weird shapeshifting aliens, teen sex, and band camp.
Anosognosia by John Crowley
Good. Gentle and strange. A high-school boy recovers from a coma of starts to believe that he is living his life for a second time. A long story that would benefit from novel length.
February 26, 2021
A crummy actual year - but with good fiction
Like many anthologies (I read 3-4 a year) that I write a blurb review for, I feel this line is copy pasted “a few meh stories amongst the grander total of good ones” and again is true here. A good variety of topics, seemingly a wide representation of authors (race/culture/geographic) which I appreciate.
My minor complaint is the editor repeats some stories from another one of their anthologies for this same year. They are good stories though so not too much fault.
I often see these stories as a reflection of the times in which they are written so I am fine with what others might call “political”. Write the story, let me consume it how I see/feel fit. Some may “oppose” my values or world view and that is fine with me.
Overall: If you like the genres already, read this. If this would be your first exposure and you are willing to give the whole thing a read, read this.
Like many anthologies (I read 3-4 a year) that I write a blurb review for, I feel this line is copy pasted “a few meh stories amongst the grander total of good ones” and again is true here. A good variety of topics, seemingly a wide representation of authors (race/culture/geographic) which I appreciate.
My minor complaint is the editor repeats some stories from another one of their anthologies for this same year. They are good stories though so not too much fault.
I often see these stories as a reflection of the times in which they are written so I am fine with what others might call “political”. Write the story, let me consume it how I see/feel fit. Some may “oppose” my values or world view and that is fine with me.
Overall: If you like the genres already, read this. If this would be your first exposure and you are willing to give the whole thing a read, read this.
own-anthologies
May 3, 2021Rich Horton Science Fiction in a Time of Plague (and Protest and climate Change and Political Reform . . .)
E. Lily Yu Green Glass: A Love Story
In other book
Alec Neval-Lee At the Fall
Chinelo Onwualu the Fine Print
John Kessel Fix that House!!
Cassandra Khaw Mighty are the Meek and the Myriad
Adam-Troy Castro The Savannah Problem
Debbie Urbanski How to Kiss a Hojacki
Rammel Chan Tourists
Marie Brennan Vis Delendi
Gregory Feeley Cloud-Born
A.T. Greenblatt Give the family my love
Caroline M. Yoachim The Archronology of Love
in other book
Maurice Broaddus The Migration Suite: A Study in C sharp minor
Sofia Rhei Secret Stories of Doors
in other book
Ray Nayler The Ocean Between the LEaves
Minsoo Kang The Virtual of Unfaithful Translations
Sam J. Miller Shucked
Allison Mulvihill Empty Box
Kelly Link The Girl Who Did Not Know Fear
Frances Rowat Ink, and Breath, and Spring
Ray Nayler The Death of Fire Station 10
Andy Dudak Love in the Time of Immuno-Sharing
Alexandra Seidel Bark, Blood, and Sacrifice
Catherine MacLeod Mnemosyne
Michael Swanwick Cloud
Thodora Goss A Country Called Winter
Shiv Ramdas And Now His Lordship is Laughing
Christopher Rowe Knowledgeable Creatures
Grace Seybold The Visible Frontier
Fran Wilde A Catalog of Storms
Michael Libling At the Old Wooden Synagogue onJanower Street
Tina Connolly miscellaneous notes
John Crowley Anosognosia
January 17, 2022
Because I never feel that it’s totally fair to rate an anthology only as a whole piece:
Green Glass: A Love Story 3.5
At the Fall 4.5/5
The Fine Print 4
Fix That House! 1.5 (it had *such* possibilities!)
Mighty Are the Meek and the Myriad 2
The Savannah Problem 3.5 (increased 2 points for the ending)
How to Kiss a Hojacki 2
Tourists 5
Ves Dilendi 5
Cloud-Born 2
Give the Family My Love 4.5/5
The Archronology of Love 2.5
The Migration Suite: A Study in C Sharp Minor 3
Secret Stories of Doors 2
The Ocean Between the Leaves 2
The Virtue of faithful Translations 0/3 (I know, confusing, but I almost DNF then really, really liked it, so there you go)
Shucked 3.5
Empty Box 4
The Girl Who Did Not Know Fear 2.5
Ink, and Breath, and Spring 3
The Death of Fire Station 10 4
Love in the Time of Immuno-Sharing 1
Bark, Blood, and Sacrifice 1
Tick-Tock 2.5/3
Mnemosyne 4.5/5
Cloud 3.5
A Country Called Winter 3
And Now His Lordship is Laughing 4.5
Knowledgeable Creatures 5
The Visible Frontier 3.5
A Catalog of Storms 2
The Old Wooden Synagogue on Janower Street 4
Miscellaneous Notes From the Time an Alien Came to Band Camp Disguised as My Alto Sax 4
Anosognosia 3.5/4
Green Glass: A Love Story 3.5
At the Fall 4.5/5
The Fine Print 4
Fix That House! 1.5 (it had *such* possibilities!)
Mighty Are the Meek and the Myriad 2
The Savannah Problem 3.5 (increased 2 points for the ending)
How to Kiss a Hojacki 2
Tourists 5
Ves Dilendi 5
Cloud-Born 2
Give the Family My Love 4.5/5
The Archronology of Love 2.5
The Migration Suite: A Study in C Sharp Minor 3
Secret Stories of Doors 2
The Ocean Between the Leaves 2
The Virtue of faithful Translations 0/3 (I know, confusing, but I almost DNF then really, really liked it, so there you go)
Shucked 3.5
Empty Box 4
The Girl Who Did Not Know Fear 2.5
Ink, and Breath, and Spring 3
The Death of Fire Station 10 4
Love in the Time of Immuno-Sharing 1
Bark, Blood, and Sacrifice 1
Tick-Tock 2.5/3
Mnemosyne 4.5/5
Cloud 3.5
A Country Called Winter 3
And Now His Lordship is Laughing 4.5
Knowledgeable Creatures 5
The Visible Frontier 3.5
A Catalog of Storms 2
The Old Wooden Synagogue on Janower Street 4
Miscellaneous Notes From the Time an Alien Came to Band Camp Disguised as My Alto Sax 4
Anosognosia 3.5/4
February 22, 2021
Continuing my reading all of the SF F 2020 best ofs. Enjoyed but probably had the most of any collections stories I didnt love. Favourites exclusive to this volume include The Savannah Problem by Adam-Troy Castro (he had two different stories in the various best ofs), The Visible Frontier by Grace Seybold and And Now His Lordship is Laughing by Shiv Ramdas. Two stories that I had already read in Some of the Best of Tor.com 2020, and loved , were Laurie Penny's The Hundred House Had No Walls (will be looking out for more from her) and Knowledgeable Creatures by Christopher Rowe
January 12, 2025
Oof. I remember reading these anthologies back in 2014. The stories used to be a lot lighter, or maybe that’s just the 2020 syndrome influencing the works chosen for this collection, particularly in the beginning.
It does get a better balance of straightforward, interesting stories and heady, metaphorical ones as it progresses. If you want to skip the “2020 is here and the world is ending” vibe of the first couple stories (even though they’re well done), there’s some good stuff here.
It does get a better balance of straightforward, interesting stories and heady, metaphorical ones as it progresses. If you want to skip the “2020 is here and the world is ending” vibe of the first couple stories (even though they’re well done), there’s some good stuff here.
April 25, 2021
Wow. What a great collection.
.An assortment spanning traditional SciFi and the previously unimaginable. Thoroughly enjoyed this one. A few stories definitely pushed the boundaries of SciFi well beyond the expected.
.An assortment spanning traditional SciFi and the previously unimaginable. Thoroughly enjoyed this one. A few stories definitely pushed the boundaries of SciFi well beyond the expected.
April 2, 2022
Not as many highs as 2019's collection, but no as many lows either. Highlights include "Tourists," by Rammel Chan, "Tick-Tock," by Xia Jia, translated by Emily Jin, "And Now His Lordship is Laughing," by Shiv Ramdas, and "At the Old Wooden Synagogue on Janower Street," by Michael Libling.
Want to read
September 23, 2021Highlights:
"At the Old Wooden Synagogue on Janower Street" by Michael Libling
"Migration Suite: Study in C Sharp Minor" by Maurice Broaddus
"At the Old Wooden Synagogue on Janower Street" by Michael Libling
"Migration Suite: Study in C Sharp Minor" by Maurice Broaddus
January 2, 2022
I liked "Vis Delendi" by Marie Brennan, and "Knowledgeable Creatures" by Christopher Rowe.
September 21, 2022
An exceptionally good collection of short science fiction.
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews