Solaris Rising 1.5 (22 page)

Then they were in the upper atmosphere of Earth, with the Duke at the controls, searching visually for the motherland of Italy where it lay waiting below.

Ludovico had ceased cranking the no-longer-necessary Gramme Dynamos and was scratching at the tied-off ends of his trousers.

“What’s the matter?” asked Frank.

“I don’t know, but there is a confounded itching on my stumps.”

Frank felt bad. “You must have sustained damage there while rescuing me. Probably frostbite or abrasions. And we never checked. Let me look.”

Frank unknotted one fabric leg and skinned it back.

Ludovico’s stump was no longer a mass of scars and dead cells. The skin gleamed pink and alive, and from the growing surface, five perfect embryonic toes poked forth.

Solaris Rising
presents nineteen stories of the very highest calibre from some of the most accomplished authors in the genre, proving just how varied and dynamic science fi ction can be. From strange goings on in the present to explorations of bizarre futures, from drug-induced tragedy to time-hopping serial killers, from crucial choices in deepest space to a ravaged Earth under alien thrall, from gritty other worlds to surreal other realms, Solaris Rising delivers a broad spectrum of experiences and excitements, showcasing the genre at its very best.

‘What, then, are Solaris publishing? On the basis of this anthology, quite a wide-ranging selection of SF, some of it very good indeed.’

–
SF Site
on
The Solaris Book of New Science Fiction

‘A cliché it may be, but there really is something for everyone here... an ideal bait to tempt those who only read novels to climb over the short fiction fence.’

–
Interzone
on
The Solaris Book of New Science Fiction, Vol. 2

‘The stories presented in this latest volume are intended to showcase the diverse nature of science fiction. Does it succeed? Absolutely.’

–
SF Signal
on
The Solaris Book of New Science Fiction, Vol. 3

www.solarisbooks.com

The universe shifts and changes: suddenly you understand, you get it, and are filled with wonder. That moment of understanding drives the greatest science-fiction stories and lies at the heart of Engineering Infinity. Whether it's coming up hard against the speed of light - and, with it, the enormity of the universe - realising that terraforming a distant world is harder and more dangerous than you'd ever thought, or simply realizing that a hitchhiker on a starship consumes fuel and oxygen with tragic results, it's hard science-fiction where a sense of discovery is most often found and where science-fiction's true heart lies.

This exciting and innovative science-fiction anthology collects together stories by some of the biggest names in the field, including Gwyneth Jones, Stephen Baxter and Charles Stross.

www.solarisbooks.com

Shine - An Anthology of Optimistic Science Fiction

A collection of near-future, optimistic SF stories where some of the genre's brightest stars and most exciting talents portray the possible roads to a better tomorrow. Definitely not a plethora of Pollyannas - but neither a barrage of dystopias -
Shine
will show that positive change is far from being a foregone conclusion, but needs to be hard-fought, innovative, robust and imaginative. Let's make our tomorrows Shine.

www.solarisbooks.com

On the brink of perfecting the long sought-after human/AI interface, Philip Kaufman finds his world thrown into turmoil as a scandal from the past returns to haunt him and dangerous information falls into his hands. Pursued by assassins and attacked in his own home, he flees. Leyton, a government black-ops specialist, is diverted from his usual duties to hunt down the elusive pirate vessel The Noise Within, wondering all the while why this particular freebooter is considered so important. Two lives collide in this stunning space-opera from debut novelist Ian Whates!

www.solarisbooks.com

It's a time of change. While mankind is adjusting to its first encounter with an alien civilisation, black-ops soldier Jim Leyton has absconded from the agency that trained him, and allied himself with a mysterious faction in order to rescue the woman he loves.

Since his death, scientist and businessman Philip Kaufman has realised that there is more to the virtual world than he'd suspected. Yet it soon becomes clear that all is not well in Virtuality.

Both men begin to suspect that the much heralded 'First Contact' was anything but, and that a sinister con is being perpetrated on the whole of humankind. Now all they have to do is prove it.