Editors blend speculative fiction with other genres to create anthologies with broad appeal.
Sideways in Crime
Edited by Lou Anders
. Solaris
(www.solarisbooks.com
), $15 paper (368p) ISBN 978-1-84416-566-7
Fans of alternate history and crime fiction should enjoy this high-quality anthology from noted editor Anders (Outside the Box
). The tone of the 15 contributions ranges from the tongue-in-cheek (Mike Resnick and Eric Flint's “Conspiracies: A Very Condensed 937-Page Novel,” featuring an alien abduction of Jimmy Hoffa) to serious political theory (Stephen Baxter's “Fate and the Fire-lance,” a whodunit set in a 20th-century Roman Empire). Jon Courtenay Grimwood weighs in with “Chicago,” a twisty tale in which technological advances allow the narrator to plot a perfect murder. The standouts are S.M. Stirling's “A Murder in Eddsford,” which could be at home in a collection of English cozies, and Mary Rosenblum's “Sacrifice,” which marries a vision of advanced Aztec civilization to an intricate plot. (June)
