Some see it as the ultimate blessing, others as an intolerable curse. Tempting or terrifying, the idea of immortality has inspired creative souls for thousands of years. In this brilliant collection, some of today's most ingeniously imaginative writers deal with the entrancing theme of eternal possibilities.Features Thomas M. Disch, Greg Egan, Jack Vance, and other acclaimed masters of fantasy and science fiction.

The Man Who Melted is a warning for the future. It is the Brave New World and 1984 for our time, for it gives us a glimpse into our own future — a future ruled by corporations that control deadly and powerful forms of mass manipulation. It is a prediction of what could happen...tomorrow. The Man Who Melted examines how technology affects us and changes our morality, and it questions how we might remain human in an inhuman world. Will the future disenfranchise or empower the individual? Here you'll find new forms of sexuality, new perversions, new epiphanies, and an entirely new form of consciousness.Would you pay to "go down" with the Titanic?In this dystopia the Titanic is brought back from the bottom of the sea and refurbished, only to be sunk again for those who want the ultimate decadent experience. Some passengers pay to commit suicide by "going under" with the ship.The Man Who Melted has been called "one of...

Thirteen spellbinding tales of magical masters of wizardry   Tales of magic, illusion, mages, and dark wizards by such talents as Ursula K. LeGuin, Jack Vance, Theodore Sturgeon, Joe Haldeman, and others highlight a collection of fourteen stories about the world of sorcery   “The Bleak Shore” by Fritz Leiber “O Ugly Bird!” by Manly Wade Wellman “The Power of the Press” by Richard Kearns “The Finger” by Naomi Mitchison “The Word of Unbinding” by Ursula K. Le Guin “His Coat So Gay” by Sterling E. Lanier “Narrow Valley” by R. A. Lafferty “Sleep Well of Nights” by Avram Davidson “Armaja Das” by Joe Haldeman “My Boat” by Joanna Russ “The Hag Seleen” by Theodore Sturgeon and James H. Beard “The Last Wizard” by Avram Davidson “The Overworld” by Jack Vance  

Science Fiction. 3684 words long. First published in Omni, August 1991 Year's Best SF Pick

An anthology of classic and critically acclaimed stories about the felonies and offenses law enforcement authorities will face in a future that's closer than we realize.

Their future depends on ours…    Here, some of the most advanced carbon-based minds in science fiction offer their own unique perspectives on the complex and conflicted future relationships between mankind and his most brilliant creations--some funny, some sad, some bizarre, some terrifying, and all beyond anything ever imagined.   “Itsy Bitsy Spider” by James Patrick Kelly “Robots Don't Cry” by Mike Resnick “London, Paris, Banana . . . “ by Howard Waldrop “La Macchina” by Chris Beckett “Warmth” by Geoff Ryman “Ancient Engines” by Michael Swanwick “Jimmy Guang's House of Gladmech” by Alexander C. Irvine “Droplet” by Benjamin Rosenbaum “Counting Cats in Zanzibar” by Gene Wolfe “The Birds of Isla Mujeres” by Steven Popkes “Heirs of the Perisphere” by Howard Waldrop “The Robot's Twilight Companion” by Tony Daniel  

An anthology of stories Extreme sports. Extreme future. Extreme collection. Science fiction's most expert dreamers envision the computerized, high-risk games of the future in this winning collection. Features Robert Sheckley, Cory Doctorow, Kate Wilhelm, Alastair Reynolds, Vernor Vinge, Jonathan Letham, Gwyneth Jones, William Browning Spencer, Allen Steele, Terry Dowling, and Jason Stoddard.