Michael G. Coney: SF Gateway Omnibus

A decade after Coney’s death in 2005, this omnibus collects three of his finest short novels in one edition for a new generation of readers. “Mirror Image,” Coney’s first novel, follows colonists to a hostile planet populated with telepathic shapeshifters. “Charisma” remains Earth-bound to explore two lovers’ adventures traveling between parallel universes. “Brontomek!” borrows threads of both previous novels to weave another tale of starfaring colonization. Coney’s gloomy outlook on unchecked capitalism and the inhumanity of free-market dogma makes for absorbing reading across all three books, as each protagonist inevitably falls prey to internal and external forces of greed and corruption; noir fans will be particularly enamored of the fatalism at play in “Charisma.” Less impressive is the casual sexism that permeates this collection—commonplace when Coney wrote his tales in the 1970s, but distasteful to today’s readers. Still, Coney’s imaginative (but always grounded) characters and deftly constructed plots are sure to enchant those who enjoy a good cautionary tale. Agent: Dorian Literary Agency (U.K.). (May)