An unabridged collection spotlighting the best hard science fiction stories and novellas published in 2022 by current and emerging masters of the genre, edited by Allan Kaster.
"The Lichens" by
Nina Allan
- A 22nd century botanist asks a teacher in Scotland, at the time of Culloden, for help with her research.
"Beneath the Surface, a Womb of Ice" by
Deborah L. Davitt
- A biochemist involved in the search for underground water on Mars finds refuge in the mechanics of science.
"A Stone's Throw" by
Gregory Feeley
- Romance burns hot amidst the cold moons of Neptune.
"The Wine-Dark Deep" by
Sheila Finch
- A cephalopod researcher discovers petroglyphs on the walls of a deep underwater cave.
"Cloudchaser" by Tom Jolly
- A collector of rare artifacts hides his valuables on darkworlds.
"
The Ploughshare and the Storm
" by
Gwyneth Jones
- Post-humans find a time capsule on Europa.
"Nonstandard Candles" by
Yoon Ha Lee
- A cartographer and her apprentice map the outer darkness of space.
Timekeepers' Symphony
Ken Liu
- The colonization of the cosmos transforms humanity's sense of time.
"Maryon's Gift" by Paul McAuley
- Set in the author's Jackaroo series, monks fight to keep a newly discovered pristine world free of humans.
"Goldie" by
Sean Monaghan
- Scientists learn a lot about themselves while studying the ecosystems of an alien planet.
"The Abacus and the Infinite Vessel" by Vikram Ramakrishnan
- A scientist recalls the struggles of her and her mother after immigrating to Mars.
"I Give You the Moon" by Justina Robson
- A history student yearns for a dose of reality in an AR-immersed future.
"The Difference Between Love and Time" by Catherynne M.
Valente
- A woman has a relationship with the space-time continuum that's a bit different than most of us.
"Critical Mass"
- An avant-garde artist, past his prime, discovers his works are being vandalized.
"Communion"
- A pilot is caught in a life and death struggle between his ship's AI and an alien microbe after crash landing on an ice moon.