Drowned Worlds

Released 14 July 2016

By Jonathan Strahan

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Pre-order: UK|uS

Last call for the Gone World...

We live in a time of change. The Anthropecene Age - the time when human-induced climate change radically reshapes the world - is upon us.  Sea water is flooding the streets of Florida, island nations are rapidly disappearing beneath the waves, the polar icecaps are a fraction of what they once were, and distant, exotic places like Australia are slowly baking in the sun.

Drowned Worlds asks over a dozen of the top science fiction and fantasy writers working today to look to the future, to ask how will we survive? Do we face a period of dramatic transition and then a new technology-influenced golden age, or a long, slow decline?  Swim the drowned streets of Boston, see Venice disappear beneath the waves, meet a woman who's turned herself into a reef, traverse the floating garbage cities of the Pacific, search for the elf stones of Antarctica, and spend time in the new, dark Dust Bowl of the American mid-west.  See the future for what it is: challenging, exciting, filled with adventure, and more than a little disturbing.

Whether here on Earth or elsewhere in our universe, Drowned Worlds give us a glimpse of a new future, one filled with romance and adventure, all while the oceans rise...

UK ISBN: 9781781084502
US ISBN: 9781781084519

Jonathan Strahan

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Jonathan Strahan is an award-winning editor, anthologist, and podcaster. Since 1997 he has has edited more than forty anthologies including The Best Science Fiction and Fantasy of the Year, Infinity, New Space Opera, and Eclipse anthology series. He is the recipient of the World Fantasy Award, a three-time winner of the Locus Award, a four-time winner of the Aurealis Award, and an eight-time Hugo Award nominee.  He is the reviews editor of Locus, and the co-host of The Coode Street Podcast. He lives in Perth, Western Australia with his wife and their two daughters.

Follow Jonathan on Twitter, and for more information visit the official Jonathan Strahan website. 

Review round-up: The Best Science Fiction & Fantasy of the Year

5 years ago - posted by

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Review Round-Up: The Best Science Fiction and Fantasy of the Year Volume 8

As soon as we knew Jonathan Strahan's world-renowned series The Best Science Fiction and Fantasy of the Year Volume 8 was going to find a new home at Solaris we were overjoyed. Not just because it adds to our growing list of anthologies such as the Infinity and Solaris Rising series, and our horror/magic titles, but also because it continues the oldest science fiction tradition of them all - the short story.

The very foundations of SF are built of short stories but it's a tradition that has faded over the past few decades in favour of the novel. That's a real shame because not only did the greats cut their teeth on this format, they also demonstrated storytelling abilities that many novelists would struggle to replicate. It's a point that Blackgate.com made in a recent article, in which they were so very nice about us.

So it's wonderful for us to see such a warm reception for The Best SFF of the Year Volume 8 from reviewers, who seems to share our passion for the short story.

Jonathan has also talked a little about his career, The Best SFF 8, and the direction and future of the SFF field and it's pleasing that his editorial efforts have been recognised - he's been named as winner of the Peter McNamara Convenors’ Award for Excellence from Aurealis.

"Strahan remains confident and competent following his series’ move to a new publisher. Strahan’s work ... compares favorably with Hartwell’s steadfast traditionalism and Dozois’s weighty tomes"
- Publishers Weekly

"...in the end it is a rich collection of stories which every reader can find something enjoyable within."
- Speculiction

"What I found in this continuation of Jonathan Strahan’s series of ‘Best of the Year’- anthologies with a new publisher, was a fantastic set of stories ... The Best Science Fiction and Fantasy of the Year volume 8 is an excellent place to start."
- A Fantastical Librarian

"What’s going on here? Is Solaris really trying to make a go of three mass market original anthology series(es)? Don’t they know that those days are over? Well, it’s obvious they never got that memo. And if it’s true that the primary ingredient in commercial success is the editor, I think they’ve make solid choices in their two, Ian Whates and Jonathan Strahan. But the very fact that Solaris is making such a determined attempt — series of attempts, really, since the first volume of The Solaris Book of New Science Fiction appeared in 2007 — tells me that I overlooked another essential ingredient: a publisher willing to take risks and one clearly willing to experiment, to find the right way to sell short fiction in paperback format to a modern audience . Solaris looks like exactly that publisher."
- Blackgate.com

"Like any grab-bag, short story collections will necessarily have some stories that appeal and some that don't; they're usually guaranteed to have at least one story that suits each reader and one story that repels them. For me, this anthology was a remarkably good fit; there are a few real gems in the collection, and it left me with a host of new authors to explore. No matter your tastes, if you're a fan of fantasy or science fiction, I would bet that at least one of these stories will leave you enthralled."
- Bookaneer