From pulp adventures such as Edgar Rice Burroughsâs Carson of Venus to classic short stories such as Ray Bradburyâs âThe Long Rainâ to visionary novels such as C. S. Lewisâs Perelandra, the planet Venus has loomed almost as large in the imaginations of science fiction writers as Earthâs next-nearest neighbor, Mars. But while the Red Planet conjured up in Golden Age science fiction stories was a place of vast deserts and ruined cities, bright blue Venus was its polar opposite: a steamy, swampy jungle world with strange creatures lurking amidst the dripping vegetation. Alas, just as the last centuryâs space probes exploded our dreams of Mars, so, too, did they shatter our romantic visions of Venus, revealing, instead of a lush paradise, a hellish world inimical to all life.
But donât despair! This new anthology of sixteen original stories by some of science fictionâs best writersâedited by #1 New York Times bestselling author George R. R. Martin and award-winning editor Gardner Dozoisâturns back the clock to that more innocent time, before the hard-won knowledge of science vanquished the infinite possibilities of the imagination.
Join our cast of award-winning contributorsâincluding Elizabeth Bear, David Brin, Joe Haldeman, Gwyneth Jones, Mike Resnick, Eleanor Arnason, Allen M. Steele, and moreâas we travel back in time to a planet that never was but should have been: a young, rain-drenched world of fabulous monsters and seductive mysteries.
FEATURING ALL-NEW STORIES BY
Eleanor Arnason ⢠Elizabeth Bear ⢠David Brin ⢠Tobias S. Buckell ⢠Michael Cassutt ⢠Joe Haldeman ⢠Matthew Hughes ⢠Gwyneth Jones ⢠Joe R. Lansdale ⢠Stephen Leigh ⢠Paul McAuley ⢠Ian McDonald ⢠Garth Nix ⢠Mike Resnick ⢠Allen M. Steele ⢠Lavie Tidhar
And an Introduction by Gardner Dozois
Stories and Narrators:
Introduction by Gardner Dozois read by Roy Dotrice
âFrogheadsâ read by Jake Weber
âThe Drowned Celestialâ read by Roy Dotrice
âPlanet of Fearâ read by Tisha Donnelly
âGreeves and the Evening Starâ read by Stephen Fry
âA Planet Called Desire â read by Jake Stormoen
âLiving Hellâ read by W. Morgan Sheppard
âBones of Air, Bones of Stoneâ read by Gethin Anthony
âRuinsâ read by Mandy Williams
âThe Tumbledowns of Cleopatra Abyssâ read by Wil Wheaton
âBy Frogsled and Lizardback to Outcast Venusian Lepersâ read by Harry Lloyd
âThe Sunset of Timeâ read by Matt Frewer
âPale Blue Memoriesâ read by Prentice Onayemi
âThe Heartâs Filthy Lessonâ read by Janis Ian
âThe Wizard of the Treesâ read by Michael Dorn
âThe Godstone of Venusâ read by Ron Donachie
âBotanica Veneris: Thirteen Papercutsâ read by Dame Diana Rigg
Interstitial author biographies read by Scott Brick
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Creators
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George R. R. MartinEditor
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Gardner DozoisEditor
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Roy DotriceNarrator
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Jake WeberNarrator
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Tisha DonnellyNarrator
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Stephen FryNarrator
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Jake StormoenNarrator
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W. Morgan SheppardNarrator
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Gethin AnthonyNarrator
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Wil WheatonNarrator
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Janis IanNarrator
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Michael DornNarrator
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Ron DonachieNarrator
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Diana RiggNarrator
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VariousNarrator
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Publisher
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Release date
March 3, 2015 -
Formats
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OverDrive Listen audiobook
- ISBN: 9781101889688
- File size: 641919 KB
- Duration: 22:17:19
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Languages
- English
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Reviews
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Publisher's Weekly
November 10, 2014
Veteran editors Martin and Dozois (Old Mars) assemble an entertaining array of SF stories recalling the heady days of the pulps while exploring provocative themes of alienation, morality, and discovery. The stories range widely in tone: thereâs a Wild West vibe to Lavie Tidharâs âThe Drowned Celestialâ; Mike Resnickâs âThe Godstone of Venusâ is straightforwardly nostalgic; Ian McDonaldâs âBotanica Veneris: Thirteen Papercuts by Ida Countess Rathanganâ is a neo-Victorian travelerâs tale; and Matthew Hughesâs âGreeves and the Evening Starâ is a droll Wodehouse pastiche. Eco-disasters and technical catastrophes drive protagonists to dire straits in Gwyneth Jonesâs âA Planet Called Desireâ and Elizabeth Bearâs âThe Heartâs Filthy Lesson,â while rescue missions reveal the dark extremes of human behavior in Allen M. Steeleâs âFrogheadsâ and Garth Nixâs âBy Frogsled and Lizardback to Outcast Venusian Lepers.â Martin and Dozois celebrate past imaginings of Venus with unlikelyâbut entertaining and thoughtfulânew notions of the second planet as a land of gritty challenge and exotic adventure.
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Formats
- OverDrive Listen audiobook
subjects
Languages
- English
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