Long Hidden: Speculative Fiction from the Margins of History

This all-original anthology, edited by author Older (Salsa Nocturna) and PW reviews editor Fox, expands the focus of Anglophone speculative fiction beyond protagonists who are white, straight, cisgender, and male. Highlights among the 27 selections include “Free Jim’s Mine,” Tananarive Due’s tale of batrachian horror, set in 1838 Georgia, in which a pregnant woman escaping slavery and her Cherokee husband find no safety in a promised refuge; “Each Part Without Mercy,” Meg Jayanth’s exploration of uncoiling power, a striking coming-of-age tale about a young biracial woman who harnesses dream magic amid the political unrest of 1746 Madras; and “Diyu,” Robert William Iveniuk’s story of exploited immigrants in 1883 British Columbia. Also of note are Benjamin Parzybok’s “The Colts,” a grim tale of peasants hungry for revenge after the stymied Hungarian rebellion of 1514, and Victor LaValle’s “Lone Women,” in which one monstrous family encounters another that is even worse on the snowy expanses of Montana in 1914. Although this volume succeeds in being more inclusive than many previous anthologies, more contributions from authors outside of Europe and North America would have been welcome. Such shortcomings are but a challenge for future works. Fox and Older have taken a grand task upon themselves, and the results are laudable. (May)