The 10 stories in this collection from British author Brown (Engineman
) thoughtfully address questions of morality, life and death while creating deeply personal worlds. Two of the best are "The Children of Winter," about a first contact gone awry and its repercussion years later, and "Hunting the Slarque," about a man brought back from death who hunts down the creature that killed him. Death—or its absence—weaves together three stories set in a post–first contact Earth where the alien Kéthani have abolished death, including "The Kéthani Inheritance," in which a man has to come to terms with his resurrected, abusive father, and "Thursday's Child," in which a terminally ill girl's parents fight over whether to give her the implant that would guarantee her immortality. While some readers may feel the stories stop short of a full resolution, all can appreciate the graceful writing. (Sept.)
