Search Worlds Without End

Like an elegantly chilling postscript to The Metamorphosis, this classic of postwar Japanese literature describes a bizarre physical transformation that exposes the duplicities of an entire world. The narrator is a scientist hideously deformed in a laboratory accident–a man who has lost his face and, with it, his connection to other people. Even his wife is now repulsed by him.

His only entry back into the world is to create a mask so perfect as to be undetectable. But soon he finds that such a mask is more than a disguise: it is an alternate self–a self that is capable of anything. A remorseless meditation on nature, identity and the social contract, The Face of Another is an intellectual horror story of the highest order.

Here is life on another world, in another place, another time. Here is what it is like to wear an alien skin. Here are new concepts, new vistas, magic..."Why read science fiction?" It's alive in a world of dead art, dead minds, dead institutions; it's a bright-eyed, irreverent little animal scurrying through a petrified landscape of old dead trees; it's unashamedly potent and prolific in a world that grows increasingly weary and sterile; it dares to raise its voice in boisterous joy, sorrow, and anger in a place full of sour silence and dead echoes.

Table of Contents:

• Introduction - (1977) - essay by Gardner Dozois
• The Oldest Soldier - (1960) - short story by Fritz Leiber
• After the Myths Went Home - (1969) - short story by Robert Silverberg
• The Stars Below - (1974) - short story by Ursula K. Le Guin
• Straw - (1975) - short story by Gene Wolfe
• On the Gem Planet - (1963) - novelette by Cordwainer Smith
• Beam Us Home - (1969) - short story by James Tiptree, Jr.
• The Barbarian - (1968) - novelette by Joanna Russ
• Among the Hairy Earthmen - (1966) - short story by R. A. Lafferty
• Man in the Jar - (1957) - short story by Damon Knight
• Old Hundredth - (1960) - short story by Brian W. Aldiss
• The Signaller - (1966) - novelette by Keith Roberts
• Reader's Guide to SF - (1977) - essay by uncredited

The discovery of fossils of extinct species like the pterodactyl, iguanodon, and woolly mammoth during the nineteenth century caused an upheaval in the scientific world and challenged long-held religious beliefs about the creation and history of the world. But it also sparked the imaginations of countless writers, and it wasn't long before these prehistoric monsters began to appear in stories of adventure, science fiction, fantasy, and horror, as well as in more surprising forms, such as a ballad sung by an ichthyosaurus or a mock Elizabethan verse drama with a cast of primordial creatures.

This volume collects some of the most fascinating Victorian writing on dinosaurs and other prehistoric monsters, including stories, poems, drama, and essays, and features contributions by well known names like Arthur Conan Doyle, George Sand, and Jack London, along with many other once-popular but now-forgotten writers, and includes a new introduction by Richard Fallon.

A Desperate Mission

One hundred and fifty earth years had passed since Norman Grey first plunged his terran starship into the infinity of outer space. His mission: to find a new world for the people of the doomed earth before mankind was blown to bits.

He had visited many strange and cruel worlds during his endless journey. He had seen creatures more horrible and weird than any human mind could imagine. Still he hadn't found a new home for the human race. And time was running out.

This short story originally appeared in the anthology Glitter & Mayhem (2013), edited by John Klima, Lynne M. Thomas and Michael Damian Thomas, and was reprinted in Uncanny Magazine, Issue 9, March-April 2016.

Read the full story for free at Uncanny Magazine.

There's a killer loose in Los Angeles and super-sleuth L is on the case.

The story is narrated by Mello. It recounts the time the detective L worked with FBI agent Naomi Misora to stop a violent serial killer. The murderer turns out to be one of the original children raised to succeed L in his detective work: B, who calls himself "Beyond Birthday", or BB.

On hearing about the murders, L recruits Misora to investigate. She meets a detective who introduces himself as Rue Ryuzaki. The investigation reveals that each murder leaves clues to the next, and Misora and Ryuzaki follow the trail to the point where they can predict the final murder.

At the end of the story, Misora meets a strange young man who reminds her of B. Despite Misora's belief that she never spoke to L in person, this anonymous encounter might be their only face-to-face meeting.

Horror: Another 100 Best Books features one hundred of the top names in the horror field discussing one hundred of the most spine-chilling novels ever written. Each entry includes a synopsis of the work as well as publication history, biographical information about the author of each title, and recommended reading and biographical notes on the contributor. Author Ramsey Campbell also offers a new foreword to the book describing the evolution of horror over the past two decades — from the way it's written by a crop of new and exciting writers to the way it's received by a new market of readers. Horror: Another 100 Best Books will be the definitive guide to the tremendous library of horror fiction available today —a reference that no fan can live without.

Selections range from Tourneur/Middleton's The Revenger's Tragedy (1607) to Michael Marshall Smith's More Tomorrow & Other Stories (2003).

Nebula Award winning and Hugo Award nominated novella. It originally appeared in The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction, September 1982. The story can also be found in the anthologies The Year's Best Fantasy Stories: 9 (1983) edited by Arthur W. Saha, and The Nebula Awards #18 (1983), edited by Robert Silverberg. It is included in the collections Meeting in Infinity: Allegories & Extrapolations (1992) and The Collected Kessel (2012).

Save the World... With Pizza?!

After being struck and killed by a delivery bike, Kaito is given the opportunity to be reborn in an alternate world as one of three "hero" classes:

1. A swordsman
2. A magician
3. A hero who saves the world with pizza

When the first two options are quickly taken, Kaito is forced to live his second life as a hero endowed with the power of pizza in a land of herbivorous elves...one of whom happens to be his new wife! What kinds of pizza-related adventures lie ahead for our High-Calorie Hero and his food-obsessed elf bride?

This novelette originally appeared in Future Visions: Original Science Fiction Inspired by Microsoft (2015), edited by Jennifer Henshaw and Allison Linn (and can be obtained for free at the Kindle link above). It can also be found in the anthologies The Best Science Fiction and Fantasy of the Year: Volume Ten, edited by Jonathan Strahan, The Best Science Fiction of the Year: Volume 1 (2016), edited by Neil Clarke, and The Year's Best Science Fiction: Thirty-Third Annual Collection (2016), edited by Gardner Dozois.

This is the unusual and sensual story of David Loring, an artist, and his beautiful fiancée, Janice Reece. David loved Janice but the Martian Empire had a plan to entice David away from his beloved. With their plan for world domination at stake the Martians selected these two lovers' for their first attack. Together, David and Janice became involved in a highly emotional and physical conflict that broke through the barriers of outer space itself.

Giant Lizards from Another Star is an anthology containing poems, short stories, convention reports, and essays, as well as the novellas "The Human Front" and "Cydonia".

Table of Contents:

• Caesarian - (2006)
• The Second Law - (2006)
• Birds and Bees and That - (2006)
• Succession - (2006)
• Goddess on Our Side - (2006)
• Jo's Trees - (2006)
• Looking Backward on the Year 2000 - (2006)
• Fall 1991 - (2006)
• The Morlock's Arms - (2006)
• After Burns: 11 September 2002 - (2006)
• One for the Carpenter - (2006)
• Scots Poet, Not - (2006)
• Cydonia - [Web - 8] - (1998)
• The Oort Crowd - (2000)
• Undead Again - (2005)
• Tairlidhe - (2006)
• The Human Front - (2001)
• A Case of Consilience - (2005)
• A Fish Dinner in Helsinki: A Report on Millennium Finncon, 18-20 Aug 2000, Helsinki Finland - (2006)
• 'I Had Seen a Better World' - (2006)
• Seeing Mars from Uppsala - (2006)
• Eight Days in Zagreb - (2006)
• Forty Whacks - (2006)
• Space Station Hinckley - (2006)
• Libertarianism, the Loony Left and the Secrets of the Illuminati - (2006)
• The Falling Rate of Profit, Red Hordes and Green Slime - (2006)
• Science Fiction, Liberty, and Literature - (2006)
• A Brief Critique of Nineteen Eighty-Four as Science Fiction - (2006)
• Trends in Science Fiction - (2006)
• Utopias - (2006) - essay
• Review of The Encyclopaedia of Fantasy - (2006)
• Review: The Encyclopaedia of Fantasy by John Clute and John Grant
• Review of Whole Wide World - (2006)
• Review: Whole Wide World by Paul McAuley - (unknown)
• Singularity Skies - (2003)
• Does Science Fiction Have to Be About the Present? - (2004)
• The Inhabitants of the Planets and the Bottom of the Sea - (2006)
• Not a Good Word to Say - (2006)
• Rewriting Humanity - (2006)
• Space - (2006)
• The Scientist's Apprentice - (2006) - essay
• Scotland and Europe - (2006) - essay
• The Scottish Revolution - (2006) - essay
• Their Snuff-filled Rooms, and A' That - (2006) - essay
• Islands, Funerals, and the Footnotes of Buckle - (2006) - essay
• The Strange Death of Socialist Scotland - (2006) - essay
• The Earth Question - (2006) - essay
• Scottish Politics - (2006) - essay
• Another View of Russian Capitalism - (2006) - essay
• The Joy of Sects - (2006) - essay
• The Pro-War Left and the Anti-War Right - (2006) - essay
• Conspiracy in the Shadow of Hierarchy - (2006) - essay
• The Midnight Fathers - (2006) - essay
• A Canticle for Wojtyla - (2006) - essay
• 2001 and All That - (2006) - essay
• Vietnam War Hero Disappoints War Hawks - (2006) - essay
• Molvania Calls - (2006) - essay
• Free-Market Think-Tanks Out-sourced - (2006) - essay

This short story oriignally appeared in Not One of Us, #42, 2009, and was reprinted in Lightspeed, February 2014.

Read the full story for free at Lightspeed.

Time of EVE: Another Act explores wrenching emotional conflicts of high schooler Rikuo as he tries to make sense of a world in which androids match humans in terms of intelligence and emotions, and yet they are barred from forming relationships with humans. A mysterious strand of data in the activity log of Sammy, his family's android, leads Rikuo and his pal Masaki to a cafe called "Time of EVE," which blatantly challenges social mores by requiring that humans and androids be treated equally. Initially suspicious of the cafe, Rikuo and Masaki soon become regulars as they are charmed by the charismatic proprietress Nagi and get to know the other patrons. In this new environment, Rikuo comes to see to that androids are different from, but not inferior to, humans. And, he is challenged to confront a traumatic experience from his past...

This novel is based on Yoshiura Yasuhiro's classic anime ONA and movie Time of EVE.

WFA nominated novella.

It starts with a mystery: an old manor house is surrounded by an impenetrable bubble, and all that lives within it seems to wither and die. Investigating, the Army find two men inside the house: men who vanished some 100 years ago but who have now reappeared, and as young as the day they disappeared. There are rumours of a machine which could puncture the dimensions, allowing man to travel beyond the bounds of the Earth... and for other things to travel here. Another day, another war.

"Do you remember when we had the vote?"

In a world that's just a step away from our own, time travel is possible. But war is brewing - a secret group is trying to destroy women's rights, and their access to the timeline. If they succeed, only a small elite will have the power to shape the past, present, and future.

Our only hope lies with an unlikely group of allies, from riot grrls to revolutionaries, their lives separated by centuries, battling for a world where anyone can change the future. A final confrontation is coming.

This novelette originally appeared in The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction, October-November 2009. It can also be found in the anthologies Year's Best SF 15 (2010), edited by David G. Hartwell and Kathryn Cramer, and War & Space: Recent Combat (2012), edited by Rich Horton and Sean Wallace.

What if the Second Coming didn't quite come off as advertised? What if "the Corpse" on display in that funky roadside zoo is really who they say it is--what does that portend for the future of western civilization? And what if a young clairvoyant named Amanda reestablishes the flea circus as popular entertainment and fertility worship as the principal religious form of our high-tech age? Another Roadside Attraction answers those questions and a lot more. It tell us, for example, what the sixties were truly all about, not by reporting on the psychedelic decade but by recreating it, from the inside out. In the process, this stunningly original seriocomic thriller is fully capable of simultaneously eating a literary hot dog and eroding the borders of the mind.

WFA and Sturgeon Award nominated short story. It originally appeared in The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction, August 2006. The story can aslo be found in the anthologies Science Fiction: The Best of the Year, 2007 Edition (2007), edited by Rich Horton, The Best Science Fiction and Fantasy of the Year: Volume One (2007), edited by Jonathan Strahan, The Year's Best Fantasy and Horror: Twentieth Annual Collection (2007), edited by Ellen Datlow, Gavin J. Grant and Kelly Link, and Telling Tales: The Clarion West 30th Anniversary Anthology (2013), edited by Ellen Datlow. It is included in the collection Telling the Map: Stories (2017).

Table of Contents:

• Introduction - essay
• Introduction to In Another Country - (1990) - essay
• In Another Country - (1989) - novella
• The Way to Spook City - (1992) - novella
• They Hide, We Seek - (1990) - novella
• This Is the Road - (1973) - novella

Hugo and World Fantasy Award-nominated Short Story

Anger is an energy. A young girl, a slave in the South, is presented with a moment where she can grasp for freedom, for change, for life. She grabs it with both hands, fiercely and intensely, and the spirit world is shaken.

This story was originally published on Tor.com, July 24, 2019.

Read this story for free at Tor.com.

This novelette originally appeared in Rod Serling's The Twilight Zone Magazine, June 1989 and was reprinted in Lightspeed, August 2011. It can also be found in the anthology The Year's Best Science Fiction: Seventh Annual Collection (1990), edited by Gardner Dozois. The story is included in the collection The John Varley Reader (2004).

Read the full story for free at Lightspeed.

Seven hundred times he had deliberately tried to die and each time his Probe had brought him back. And yet Adamson had actually died, dissolved, dissoluted thousands of times. And thousands of times the Probe had helped him grope his way back to the eternal search. The search for life.

Contents:

• Introduction (View from Another Shore, 2nd edition) - essay by Franz Rottensteiner
• 1 - In Hot Pursuit of Happiness - [Cyberiada (The Cyberiad)] - (1973) - novelette by Stanislaw Lem (trans. of Kobyszcze 1971) [as by Stanislaw Lem ]
• 42 - The Valley of Echoes - (1973) - shortstory by Gérard Klein (trans. of La vallée des échos 1959)
• 51 - Observation of Quadragnes - (1971) - shortstory by Jean-Pierre Andrevon (trans. of Observation des Quadranges) [as by J. P. Andrevon ]
• 69 - The Good Ring - (1970) - shortstory by Svend Åge Madsen (trans. of Den gode ring)
• 82 - Slum - (1970) - shortstory by Herbert W. Franke (trans. of In den Slums)
• 87 - The Land of Osiris - (1985) - novella by Wolfgang Jeschke (trans. of Osiris Land 1982)
• 143 - Captain Nemo's Last Adventure - (1973) - novelette by Josef Nesvadba (trans. of Posledni dobrodruzství kapitána Nemo 1964)
• 167 - The Altar of the Random Gods - (1973) - shortstory by Adrian Rogoz (trans. of Altarul zeilor stohastici 1970)
• 175 - Good Night, Sophie - (1973) - novelette by Lino Aldani (trans. of Buonanotte Sofia 1963)
• 198 - The Proving Ground - (1973) - novelette by Sever Gansovsky (trans. of ??????? 1966)
• 215 - Sisyphus, the Son of Aeolus - (1973) - shortstory by Vsevolod Ivanov (trans. of ? 1964)
• 233 - A Modest Genius - (1973) - shortstory by Vadim Shefner (trans. of ? 1963)

In the spring of 1998, Koichi Sakakibara transfers to Yomiyama North Middle School. In class, he develops a sense of unease as he notices that the people around him act like they're walking on eggshells, and students and teachers alike seem frightened. As a chain of horrific deaths begin to unfold around him, he comes to discover that he has been placed in the cursed Class 3 in which the student body head count is always one more than expected. Class 3 is haunted by a vengeful spirit responsible for gruesome deaths in an effort to satisfy its spite. To stop the vicious cycle gripping his new school, Koichi decides to get to the bottom of the curse, but is he prepared for the horror that lies ahead...?

Summer, 1998. Mei Misaki, age fifteen, has gone with her family to their seaside vacation home. There she meets the ghost of Teruya Sakaki, her classmate from Yomiyama North Middle School Class 3-3 who, like Mei, witnessed the mysterious events that had transpired at the school. There begins an adventure of memory and mystery as they search for the ghost's body and his memories alike.

IT HAS BEEN THREE YEARS since the "calamity" of 1998 that claimed the lives of many students in Yomiyama North Middle's Class 3. After Sou Hiratsuka, an acquaintance of 1998 survivor Mei Misaki, discovers that he's being placed into the cursed class, he and his peers develop a series of countermeasures to avert a new tragedy. But when Sou's classmates and their family members begin dying in a series of horrific "accidents," he and Mei realize that the calamity has taken hold of their town once again. To stem the tides of death, the pair will be forced to reckon with Yomiyama's deepest mysteries...

Reminiscent of the edgy, offbeat humor of Chris Moore and Matt Ruff, the first entry in a whimsical, fast-paced supernatural series from the New York Times bestselling author of the Sandman Slim novels--a dark and humorous story involving a doomsday gizmo, a horde of baddies determined to possess its power, and a clever thief who must steal it back... again and again.

22000 B.C. A beautiful, ambitious angel stands on a mountaintop, surveying the world and its little inhabitants below. He smiles because soon, the last of humanity who survived the great flood will meet its end, too. And he should know. He's going to play a big part in it. Our angel usually doesn't get to do field work, and if he does well, he's certain he'll get a big promotion.

And now it's time....

The angel reaches into his pocket for the instrument of humanity's doom. Must be in the other pocket. Then he frantically begins to pat himself down. Dejected, he realizes he has lost the object. Looking over the Earth at all that could have been, the majestic angel utters a single word.

"Crap."

2015. A thief named Coop--a specialist in purloining magic objects--steals and delivers a small box to the mysterious client who engaged his services. Coop doesn't know that his latest job could be the end of him--and the rest of the world. Suddenly he finds himself in the company of The Department of Peculiar Science, a fearsome enforcement agency that polices the odd and strange. The box isn't just a supernatural heirloom with quaint powers, they tell him.

It's a doomsday device. They think...

And suddenly, everyone is out to get it.

In this fast paced sequel to The Everything Box--the second entry in New York Times bestselling author Richard Kadrey's comedic supernatural series--chaos ensues when Coop and the team at DOPS steal a not-quite-dead and very lovesick ancient Egyptian mummy wielding some terrifying magic.

Coop, a master thief sort of gone legit, saved the world from an ancient doomsday device--heroism that earned him a gig working for the Department of Peculiar Science, a fearsome top secret government agency that polices the odd and strange. Now Woolrich, Coop's boss at the DOPS, has Coop breaking into a traveling antiquities show to steal a sarcophagus containing the mummy of a powerful Egyptian wizard named Harkhuf. With the help of his pals Morty, Giselle, and a professor that's half-cat, half-robotic octopus, Coop pulls off the heist without a hitch.

It's not Coop's fault that when DOPS opened the sarcophagus they didn't find the mummy they were expecting. Well, it was the right mummy, but it wasn't exactly dead--and now it's escaped, using a type of magic the organization hasn't encountered before. Being a boss, Woolrich blames his underling for the screw up and wants Coop to find the missing Harkhuf and make it right, pronto.

Digging into Harkhuf's history, Coop thinks the mummy is hunting for an ancient magical manuscript that will help him bring his old lover back to life.

Which wouldn't be so bad if she wasn't a warrior sorceress hell-bent on conquering the world with her undead armies.

Coop would very much like to run from the oncoming chaos. It's one thing to steal a mummy, but another to have to deal with head-hunting bureaucrats, down-on-their luck fortune tellers, undead mailroom clerks, and a rather unimpressed elephant. Unfortunately, there's nowhere to run. If he wants the madness to stop, he's going to have to suck it up and play hero one more time. But if Coop manages to save the world AGAIN, he's definitely going to want a lot of answers. And a raise.

Ten years ago this season, Gregory Maguire wrapped up the series he began with Wicked by giving us the fourth and final volume of the Wicked Years, his elegiac Out of Oz.

But "out of Oz" isn't "gone for good." Maguire's new series, Another Day, is here, twenty-five years after Wicked first flew into our lives.

Volume one, The Brides of Maracoor, finds Elphaba's granddaughter, Rain, washing ashore on a foreign island. Comatose from crashing into the sea, Rain is taken in by a community of single women committed to obscure devotional practices.

As the mainland of Maracoor sustains an assault by a foreign navy, the island's civil-servant overseer struggles to understand how an alien arriving on the shores of Maracoor could threaten the stability and wellbeing of an entire nation. Is it myth or magic at work, for good or for ill?

The trilogy Another Day will follow this green-skinned girl from the island outpost into the unmapped badlands of Maracoor before she learns how, and becomes ready, to turn her broom homeward, back to her family and her lover, back to Oz, which--in its beauty, suffering, mystery, injustice, and possibility--reminds us all too clearly of the troubled yet sacred terrain of our own lives.

The Oracle of Maracoor, the second in the trilogy called Another Day, continues the story of Elphaba's green-skinned granddaughter, Rain. That strange land, Maracoor--across the ocean from Oz--is beset by an invading army. In the mayhem, Rain and Cossy, a child felon, break out of prison. Helped by a few flying monkeys, they struggle to escape the city before it falls under siege. Their arresting officer, Lucikles, also retreats with his family to a highland redoubt. But safety eludes them all. Chaos thunders upon them in the form of warriors, refugees, and brigands. The very fabric of reality loosens, liberating creatures of myth and legend--huge blue wolves, harpies, and giants made of the very landscape.

Cued in by secrets known only to the most highly placed members of the royal court, Rain and her companions hunt the fabled Oracle of Maracoor for guidance and soothsaying. Rain has to recover her forgotten past if she is to consider returning home. Cossy, the ten-year-old convicted of murder, must become invisible to avoid being taken into custody again. Meanwhile, the Fist of Mara, an arcane artifact that renders all around it barren, hammers against human lives. If the reclusive Oracle should spin a prophecy, might the desperate wicked years promise another day, one less perilous?

Following a confrontation with her reclusive great-grandfather, the one-time Wizard of Oz, Rainary Ko--the granddaughter of Oz's Wicked Witch of the West--has re-upped in a mission to settle a few scores and right a wrong or two. Her memory and her passions reviving, Rain turns her gaze back to her native Oz. Though the Grimmerie, which she had cast into the sea, retains its arcane power over her, the lover she left behind in Oz proves no less haunting. Traveling companions and arrivistes can befuddle a young witch coming into her own, but Rain marshals a steely determination to stare her troubles in the eye and see who blinks first.

In the Another Day cycle, a lost young woman grows through a cautious adolescence into an adult state of fervor and daring. Enchantment imprisons and it also liberates. Pay heed, pay respect, but above all, pay attention.

History is just one damned thing after another - Arnold Toynbee

Behind the seemingly innocuous façade of St Mary's, a different kind of historical research is taking place. They don't do "time-travel" - they "investigate major historical events in contemporary time". Maintaining the appearance of harmless eccentrics is not always within their power - especially given their propensity for causing loud explosions when things get too quiet.

Meet the disaster-magnets of St Mary's Institute of Historical Research as they ricochet around History. Their aim is to observe and document - to try and find the answers to many of History's unanswered questions... and not to die in the process.

But one wrong move and History will fight back - to the death. And, as they soon discover, it's not just History they're fighting.

Follow the catastrophe curve from eleventh-century London to World War I, and from the Cretaceous Period to the destruction of the Great Library at Alexandria. For wherever Historians go, chaos is sure to follow in their wake...

At long last it's all over. Job done. Max has her life back and everything is set for the traditional happy ending. Except, this is St Mary's and if something can go wrong, it will.

Disaster is piled upon catastrophe. A new Head of Security. A new Director of St Mary's. Historians lost in time. And Max dishonourably discharged.

Jobless and homeless, she receives an offer she cannot refuse and suddenly finds herself in another time and another place. Just a way to pass the weeks until she can reunite with Leon - or so she thinks. Because events are on the move and, as usual, St Mary's is at the centre of the storm.

A baboonery in Africa becomes a laboratory for terrifying extraterrestrial experiments.

Fugitive Rachel Nolander is a newcomer to the city of Dogsland, where the rich throw parties and the poor just do whatever they can to scrape by. Supported by her brother Djoss, she hides out in their squalid apartment, living in fear that someday, someone will find out that she is the child of a demon. Corporal Jona Lord Joni is a demon's child too, but instead of living in fear, he keeps his secret and goes about his life as a cocky, self-assured man of the law. The first book in the Dogsland Trilogy, Never Knew Another is the story of how these two outcasts meet.

When corporate drone Reiji wakes up in another world, he come face-to-face with a fatally wounded werewolf. Thankfully, Reiji's new Medicine Making skill enables him to brew uniquely effective potions. Alongside his new wolf-girl friend, Reiji and his amazing cures are ready to revolutionize this fantasy world. Be they an old man seeking the secret of youth or an elven archer with blurry vision, all comers are welcome to his countryside pharmacy.

A CURE FOR WHAT AILS YOU

Former corporate cog Reiji has settled down with the otherworldly drugstore he founded. With the help of his employees, cute werewolf Noela and ghost girl Mina, Reiji's finest potions and cures can fix magical and mundane problems alike. A stressed-out shopkeeper, a local lord with parenting woes, and even the Demon King himself are just a few of the customers who make their way to the Drugstore in Another World!

LAUGHTER IS THE BEST MEDICINE

Business is booming at Reiji's magical drugstore. The staff has expanded yet again: a fairy named Bibi has joined the crew, and the new part-timer is none other than the Demon King himself! With a steady stream of customers looking for magical cures, Reiji has his hands full keeping his menagerie of friends and acquaintances happy and healthy!

GRILLING AND CHILLING

Reiji has settled into the routine of his new life as a pharmacist in a fantasy world, and he's comfortable enough that he wants to introduce some Earth customs to the residents of his new home. But how will a bunch of elves, demons, and werewolves react when Reiji introduces them to the strange, otherworldly ritual of... barbeque?!

LET'S GET TOGETHER

Reiji teams up with the town toolmaker on a new invention, which brings everyone together for a wet 'n' wild battle royale! After all the excitement, he and his employees take a day off to enjoy a group hike. The crew's new griffin companion helps them out in all sorts of ways... Wait, what's that smell? It's gotta be progress!

CONTEXTUAL HEALING

Reiji and his friends cozy up at camp with a new invention, inspiring the people of Kalta to enjoy the great outdoors! Later, Reiji's trusty medicine-making skill comes in handy when Elaine's dizziness prevents her from attending a party. But how will he help Mina, who doesn't know how to swim? And what balm will soothe the worries of a wind spirit?

Sturgeon Award nominated novelette. It appeared in Tomorrow Speculative Fiction, August 1994. The story can also be found in the anthologies Timegates (1997), edited by Gardner Dozois and Jack Dann, The Best Time Travel Stories of the 20th Century (2004), edited by Harry Turtledove and Martin H. Greenberg, The James Tiptree Award Anthology 2 (2006), edited by Debbie Notkin, Pat Murphy, Karen Joy Fowler and Jeffrey D. Smith and The Time Traveler's Almanac (2014), edited by Jeff and Ann Vandermeer. It is included in the collection A Fisherman of the Inland Sea (1994).

It's a war of fantasy vs. future!

Seven Japanese teenagers with incredible and unique talents barely survive a mysterious plane crash and awaken in a fantasy world! Contending with corrupt rulers and dangerous monsters, the septet of High School Prodigies sets to work improving the lives of those in Elm Village while searching for a way home. These brilliant students are poised to change the face of their new world-but is it ready for them?

The People's Revolution has begun!

By presenting themselves as angels, with Akatsuki the magician as their god, the High School Prodigies have been steadily winning over the people and growing their new democracy. While Tsukasa believes the tyrannical empire won't make a move until spring, he's proven wrong when Duke Oslo el Gustav launches a seemingly unstoppable magic attack on Dormundt City. With Shinobu taken hostage behind enemy lines, the seven extraordinary teenagers from Earth will need to pull off a miracle just to survive!

Love Huntress Ringo

It's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to win Tsukasa's heart when Ringo finally goes on a date with him. Can the genius scientist overcome her shyness to tell her longtime crush how she feels, though? Meanwhile, the war against Oslo el Gustav finally comes to a close, but Shinobu is still suspicious of Gustav's supposed demise. As the Prodigies' new nation grows, so too does the chance of retaliation from the wicked Freyjagard Empire. Are the high schoolers from Earth truly ready for such a powerful opponent?

A Currency Crisis!

After securing a cease-fire with (and learning some startling things from) Grandmaster Neuro, the Prodigies begin the process of handing over Elm's government to the people. An important step in that transition is the creation of a national coinage--the goss. Unfortunately, the rest of the world isn't exactly keen on this fledgling nation introducing a new currency into the market. With conspiracies running every which way, Masato, the Devil of Finance, is forced to step in. With the master businessman on the case, his opponents will be lucky to survive with a single coin to their names!

A Cry for Freedom

As Tsukasa and the other Prodigies prepare for the Republic of Elm's first-ever election and the transfer of power to the public, a new problem arises in the form of Princess Kaguya. The ousted royal is from Yamato, a nation subjugated by the Freyjagard Empire. She pleads that if the Prodigies truly believe in equality for all, then they must help liberate her country. Not everyone agrees that aiding Yamato is a wise decision, however. And no matter what Tsukasa decides, the choice will impact the future of the world... and his friends!

Despite Princess Kaguya's claims, everything in Yamato appears wonderful to Tsukasa and the other Prodigies. Could a nation living beneath the heel of the Freyjagard Empire truly be happy, or is there more to the seemingly idyllic situation than meets the eye? Meanwhile, the Republic of Elm's election has begun, and tensions between the Principlists and Reformists continue to escalate. To hold the nation together, Akatsuki will have to step up and make a tough call, but will it be the right one?

FREEDOM AND SECRETS

Under Tsukasa's brilliant leadership, the Yamato Resistance enacts its plan to wrest control of their nation from the Freyjagard Empire and the traitorous Princess Mayoi. The key to their plan is the artifact that is the source of Mayoi's mind-control magic, but will it really be as simple as destroying the object? And is returning to the old government truly the best thing for Yamato? Mayoi wasn't born hating her own people, after all. Something must have spurred the girl to turn against her homeland...

THE ORIGIN OF THE SEVEN LUMINARIES

Now that Yamato is free, the Prodigies head for an ancient elf village to learn why they were summoned to this world. The surprising truth they uncover confirms what Tsukasa has suspected all along: Time is running out. The evil dragon's forces are working to revive their master, and stopping them is the only way the high schoolers can return home. However, one in their group is missing. Can Masato be persuaded to rejoin the others before it's too late?

TANGLING WITH THE GRANDMASTER

Neuro has ordered that the empire invade and reclaim Yamato in a bid to catch Lyrule, who is the key to reviving his master. Freyjagard has greater troops and resources than Yamato, seemingly guaranteeing the grandmaster's victory. However, the Prodigies aren't going to surrender their friend without a fight! Tsukasa has a plan to turn things in their favor, but he's up against a homunculus servant of the evil dragon. Who knows what Neuro is capable of when pushed to desperation? Neuro has ordered that the empire invade and reclaim Yamato in a bid to catch Lyrule, who is the key to reviving his master. Freyjagard has greater troops and resources than Yamato, seemingly guaranteeing the grandmaster's victory. However, the Prodigies aren't going to surrender their friend without a fight! Tsukasa has a plan to turn things in their favor, but he's up against a homunculus servant of the evil dragon. Who knows what Neuro is capable of when pushed to desperation?

The Final Battle Emperor Lindworm is here.

Neuro's final act brought the greatest threat in the world right to the Prodigies. Although they fight desperately to keep him from Lyrule, a betrayal from one of their own seals the girl's fate. In the ensuing chaos, only Akatsuki and Shinobu manage to escape. Lindworm plans to subjugate this world and Earth, and with the strength he possesses, it's only a matter of time until he succeeds. Their only hope is to convince him to change his ways, but what chance do the Prodigies have against a man with the power of the evil dragon?

A Chance to Come Back!

A mysterious door stands open, inviting a boy who's been brutally bullied all his life to take a courageous step forward into the unknown. On the other side, he finds a hoard of priceless artifacts and a world as filled with magic as it is with monsters. The most shocking revelation, however, is that he can bring whatever he wants back with him when he returns to Earth. It won't be long before this double life changes him forever...

Leveling up has truly changed Yuuya's life. In the real world, things have done a complete 180. He's getting used to his new school and making fast friends?which includes a fluffy companion in the other world. Meanwhile, thanks to his physical prowess and good looks, his popularity is through the roof (though he's oblivious to this). He's also finally learned how to use magic! Will it be enough to help him survive fires, assassins, and trials in the wilderness?!

Next level up--become "god's" pupil!

Yuuya Tenjou has obtained all kinds of powerful skills and abilities and continues to live his new lifestyle in both the other world and his home world. In the Weald, he comes across a "divine beast" rabbit! "I'll train you. In exchange, teach me how to use [magic]." He becomes the pupil of the unrivaled rabbit, and at the same time becomes a teacher to a divine beast. Back in his world, the Ousei Academy Sports Day begins but paparazzi aiming to get full coverage of Yuuya show up! Yuuya carelessly ends things with a single hit, sending the school into an uproar.

A Knight in Shining... Thunderbolt Armor?!

After stopping an assassination attempt on King Arnold and Princess Lexia, Yuuya is roped into the hunt for the traitorous Prince Reigar. In the ensuing chaos, a mysterious girl attacks without warning. Her goal? Destroy the world! To have any chance of holding his own against this new foe who is on par with Master Rabbit, Yuuya will have to think fast--as fast as lightning. Hopefully, his quick thinking will be just as useful on Earth, because when Kaori visits his place to study for midterms, she accidentally stumbles upon the door to the other world!

Fifteen-year-old Touya Mochizuki is accidentally killed by God. As an apology, God allows him to be resurrected, but since he cannot send him back to his old world, he instead reincarnates him into a fantasy world along with any special requests. Touya requested to bring his smartphone into the new world with him.

An epic tale of swords, sorcery, and smartphone apps begins!

After a freak accident involving some lightning winds up zapping him dead, 15-year-old Mochizuki Touya wakes up to find himself face-to-face with God. "I am afraid to say that I have made a bit of a blunder..." laments the old coot. But all is not lost! God says that he can reincarnate Touya into a world of fantasy, and as a bonus, he gets to bring his smartphone along with! So begins Touya's adventure in a new, anachronistic pseudo-medieval world. Friends! Laughs! Tears! Inexplicable Deus ex Machina! He sets off on a journey full of wonder as he absentmindedly travels from place to place, following whatever goal catches his fancy.

Fifteen-year-old Touya Mochizuki is accidentally killed by God. As an apology, God allows him to be resurrected, but since he cannot send him back to his old world, he instead reincarnates him into a fantasy world along with any special requests. Touya requested to bring his smartphone into the new world with him.

The curtains lift once again on an epic tale of sorcery, smartphone apps, and... gunblades?!

Undeterred by his untimely death on Earth, 15-year-old Mochizuki Touya continues to meander around in another world! After a series of misadventures, the young man has assembled a motley crew of adventurers including the timid mage Linze, the feisty brawler Elze, the ever-hungry samurai Yae, and even the young archer Yumina, heir to the Belfast throne. Together with his party (and a divine white tiger), Touya sets his sights on the horizon, heading for the demi-human kingdom of Mismede! But all is not what it seems... the beastman king issues a personal challenge, and a black-scaled dragon could soon spell out Touya's doom!

Fifteen-year-old Touya Mochizuki is accidentally killed by God. As an apology, God allows him to be resurrected, but since he cannot send him back to his old world, he instead reincarnates him into a fantasy world along with any special requests. Touya requested to bring his smartphone into the new world with him.

Once more the sun rises upon an epic tale of sorcery, smartphones, and floating cities!

Stalwart as ever, 16-year-old Mochizuki Touya heads off to the far eastern land of Eashen with his party in tow. For what purpose? The Matriarch of the Fairy Clan wishes to delve into some ancient ruins, of course! But it's never quite that simple for Touya and his friends, oh no. The party is thrust into the midst of a clash between the warlords Takeda Schingen and Tokugawa Ieyahsu, while a nefarious necromancer makes his move in the shadows...

Throw in a Gynoid or two, an ancient legacy, another ridiculous summoning pact, and you've got yourself a brand new recipe for disaster!

Fifteen-year-old Touya Mochizuki is accidentally killed by God. As an apology, God allows him to be resurrected, but since he cannot send him back to his old world, he instead reincarnates him into a fantasy world along with any special requests. Touya requested to bring his smartphone into the new world with him.

The curtains rise one more on a tale of swords, sorcery, and unnecessary housing renovations!

16-year-old Mochizuki Touya marches across the blazing desert sands toward the Burning Kingdom of Sandora. His goal? The Second Babylon. But once again, his journey is not so simple. The land is fraught with danger, and the cryptic words of an ancient doctor echo in the back of his mind. The Phrase rear their ugly heads, the dimensional boundary of the world begins to strain, and the mysterious monochrome boy, Ende, appears once more to puzzle Touya and friends. To make matters worse, a government starts to crumble, falling on the cusp of a military coup! Can Touya and his ever-growing band of adventurers stand against the combined forces of chaotic fate? Or will he finally meet his match?

Fifteen-year-old Touya Mochizuki is accidentally killed by God. As an apology, God allows him to be resurrected, but since he cannot send him back to his old world, he instead reincarnates him into a fantasy world along with any special requests. Touya requested to bring his smartphone into the new world with him.

The bells toll for a riveting tale of swords, sorcery, and... savage tribals?!

The newly-crowned 16-year-old Grand Duke of Brunhild, Mochizuki Touya, is just starting to get the hang of managing a nation. What better way to christen his Duchy than to host a party with all the other royals in the region? Laughter! Fun! Pinball! But it's not all fun and games, Touya's search to uncover the truth behind the Phrase and Babylon bring him to the depths of the darkest forests, and the caps of the snowiest mountains. Not only that, but new territory means new responsibilities, and soon enough the eyes of the Vatican fall upon him. "Blasphemy!" they scream, "God is no old man, he is a magnificent being of light!" How will Touya react when even the Pope challenges the honor of the old man that gave him a new lease on life.

Fifteen-year-old Touya Mochizuki is accidentally killed by God. As an apology, God allows him to be resurrected, but since he cannot send him back to his old world, he instead reincarnates him into a fantasy world along with any special requests. Touya requested to bring his smartphone into the new world with him.

All systems standby for a tale of swords, sorcery, and oversized wrenches!

16-year-old Mochizuki Touya continues everyday life in his new world, well aware that it could all come tumbling down at any moment. He's the budding administrator of Babylon, the fledgling grand duke of Brunhild, and now he's a... mecha pilot? Desperate to find a way to halt the incoming Phrase onslaught, Touya makes a mad dash for the Hangar of Babylon, hoping it can give him the edge he needs. What he finds is the Frame Gear, an ancient humanoid fighting machine! Join Touya and his ever-growing band of wives as they tap into their mechanical sides.

Fifteen-year-old Touya Mochizuki is accidentally killed by God. As an apology, God allows him to be resurrected, but since he cannot send him back to his old world, he instead reincarnates him into a fantasy world along with any special requests. Touya requested to bring his smartphone into the new world with him.

Brace yourself... for a tale of swords, sorcery, and absolute calamity.

16-year-old Mochizuki Touya has it all. Grand Duke of an upstart nation, inventor of goods ranging from hula hoop to caramelized popcorn, administrator of Babylon, and pilot of the Anti-Phrase Frame Gears. The western nations love him... but darker machinations unfurl in the far east. Yulong, the glorious Empire of Heaven, regards Touya with envious eyes, brazen enough to send assassins into Brunhild! To make matters worse, the mysterious young girl known as Sakura seems to have a connection with these dark assailants. In the background, dark forces gather. Something big approaches. Something far greater than anything Touya has ever faced before.

Fifteen-year-old Touya Mochizuki is accidentally killed by God. As an apology, God allows him to be resurrected, but since he cannot send him back to his old world, he instead reincarnates him into a fantasy world along with any special requests. Touya requested to bring his smartphone into the new world with him.

Prepare your best dice rolls for a hair-raising tale of swords, sorcery, and forbidden knowledge!

16-year-old Mochizuki Touya continues his noble quest to delve into the Babylon Ruins, but a deadly tabletop session could easily spell turmoil for the boy and his party. Meanwhile, Leen the fairy makes some considerations with far-reaching implications...

Fifteen-year-old Touya Mochizuki is accidentally killed by God. As an apology, God allows him to be resurrected, but since he cannot send him back to his old world, he instead reincarnates him into a fantasy world along with any special requests. Touya requested to bring his smartphone into the new world with him.

Put on your thinking caps for a tale of swords, sorcery, and custom-built mechatronics!

Mochizuki Touya continues his work as grand duke of Brunhild. He's the proud inheritor of the (almost) complete Babylon Islands, the mighty master of the Frame Gear Mechs, and a slowly flowering bud of divine power, but that doesn't mean he has any room to relax! The time has come for answers! A new threat emerges within the Roadmare Union! But can Touya convince the mighty doge that his Frame Gears are the right method to deal with the oncoming danger? Just who is the enigmatic Ende, and what does he have to do with the crystal creatures that so recklessly bring the world closer to despair? Just what is the secret of Touya's divinity?

Fifteen-year-old Touya Mochizuki is accidentally killed by God. As an apology, God allows him to be resurrected, but since he cannot send him back to his old world, he instead reincarnates him into a fantasy world along with any special requests. Touya requested to bring his smartphone into the new world with him.

Set a very cautious course for a tale of swords, sorcery, and advanced cryogenics!

Spring has sprung in Brunhild, and Mochizuki Touya continues to live his happy-go-lucky life. Flowers bloom, parties come and go, and everything seems just about fine... But wait! The mysterious pink-haired girl, Sakura, is identified by someone. Just what could this mean for her? Who exactly is Farnese Forneus, and what is her connection to the overlord of Xenoahs? But wait, a more pressing issue is the final piece of Babylon, and the remarkably twisted secret it has in store for our heroes...

Fifteen-year-old Touya Mochizuki is accidentally killed by God. As an apology, God allows him to be resurrected, but since he cannot send him back to his old world, he instead reincarnates him into a fantasy world along with any special requests. Touya requested to bring his smartphone into the new world with him.

The population of Brunhild is booming, which can mean only one thing. Guards, guards! We need more guards! A mass call is set out. "Knights Wanted: Apply Within!" But Touya might end up with more than he bargained for... Meanwhile, in the floating halls of Babylon, a certain resurrected doctor begins her mad machinations... Just what kind of crazy machine does she intend to build next? Set a chivalrous course for a tale of swords, sorcery, and burning sands!

Fifteen-year-old Touya Mochizuki is accidentally killed by God. As an apology, God allows him to be resurrected, but since he cannot send him back to his old world, he instead reincarnates him into a fantasy world along with any special requests. Touya requested to bring his smartphone into the new world with him.

Mochizuki Touya carries on his carefree life in another world, the looming birth of a wicked god and the peculiar behavior of the intelligent Phrase are no reason for him to panic! A distress call from a mysterious island forces him to jump into action, but what he discovers there may very well flip his entire world upside down... Pass through the open door to find a tale of swords, sorcery, and ancient legacies of antiquated mystery!

Fifteen-year-old Touya Mochizuki is accidentally killed by God. As an apology, God allows him to be resurrected, but since he cannot send him back to his old world, he instead reincarnates him into a fantasy world along with any special requests. Touya requested to bring his smartphone into the new world with him.

It's time for the Duchy of Brunhild to host a national festival, and Mochizuki Touya is smack-bang in the middle.

World leaders are in attendance, nobility, traveling adventurers... And even God himself has seen fit to grace the mortal realm with his presence. What will Touya do when the big man upstairs comes downstairs for a change? More importantly, will he have enough dessert?! Meanwhile, in the Reverse World, tragedy strikes... An unusual purple Gollem surfaces alongside a strange, depraved woman... Their actions paint an otherwise calm marketplace deep crimson... Put on your party hats for a tale of swords, sorcery, and tasty snacks!

Fifteen-year-old Touya Mochizuki is accidentally killed by God. As an apology, God allows him to be resurrected, but since he cannot send him back to his old world, he instead reincarnates him into a fantasy world along with any special requests. Touya requested to bring his smartphone into the new world with him.

Mochizuki Touya has no time to rest.

The fate of two worlds hang in the balance, after all. The Metal Devils, guided by Yula and seemingly supported by two mysterious twins, are on the rampage... They've mercilessly targeted the souls of people in both the world Touya knows, and the Reverse World! Armed with his new Frame Gear, Reginleif, will Touya be able to stop the malignant machinations of a wicked god? Fissures in space begin to crack, revealing a story of swords, sorcery, and a corrupted knight!

Fifteen-year-old Touya Mochizuki is accidentally killed by God. As an apology, God allows him to be resurrected, but since he cannot send him back to his old world, he instead reincarnates him into a fantasy world along with any special requests. Touya requested to bring his smartphone into the new world with him.

After a series of troubling events, Mochizuki Touya takes some much-needed downtime. The fate of two worlds still hangs in the balance, he needs to secure more allies in the Reverse World, and Yula and the wicked god continue their dark machinations in the background, but that doesn't mean that our hero can't take a little time for romance and relaxation. But unbeknownst to our crew, another god may have set his eyes on the mortal realm... Lovers waltz and blades clash, unveiling a story of swords, sorcery, and fun in the sun!

Fifteen-year-old Touya Mochizuki is accidentally killed by God. As an apology, God allows him to be resurrected, but since he cannot send him back to his old world, he instead reincarnates him into a fantasy world along with any special requests. Touya requested to bring his smartphone into the new world with him.

Still struggling to unite two worlds, fledgling god Mochizuki Touya carries on with his work. The mutants continue to attack the Reverse World, hungrily devouring the souls of the fallen in service of Yula and the wicked god. And so, it's up to Touya to teach another set of off-worlders how to pilot the Frame Gears! Hopefully he's not too late... Elsewhere, a mystery unfurls regarding a long-lost prince of a devastated kingdom... Perhaps the Mage-King of Isengard has the answers Touya seeks? Chaos runs rampant, tearing open the veil upon a story of swords, sorcery, and heterochromia!

Fifteen-year-old Touya Mochizuki is accidentally killed by God. As an apology, God allows him to be resurrected, but since he cannot send him back to his old world, he instead reincarnates him into a fantasy world along with any special requests. Touya requested to bring his smartphone into the new world with him.

Doctor Babylon creates a new technological breakthrough thanks to the help of Elluka, a renowned Gollem engineer. What is this new invention, you might ask? Why, it's the Core Frame, of course! A new, revolutionary animal-shaped mech that interfaces with the Gollems of the Reverse World. But will they be able to iron out all the kinks before disaster strikes? The golden mutants stand poised to bring the Reverse World to ruin, and they won't wait around for countermeasures to be perfected! Brace yourself for a tale of swords, sorcery, and political powerplays!

Fifteen-year-old Touya Mochizuki is accidentally killed by God. As an apology, God allows him to be resurrected, but since he cannot send him back to his old world, he instead reincarnates him into a fantasy world along with any special requests. Touya requested to bring his smartphone into the new world with him.

The two continents have collided, but a sinister bombardment from the space between worlds casts a shadow on the occasion. What foul machinations has this wicked god orchestrated? Unfortunately, Touya may not live to find out! A new poison has appeared that can render him and everyone he loves completely powerless. Will Touya's budding divinity help him pull through, or has the unstoppable Grand Duke of Brunhild finally met his match? Pack your antidotes and prepare for a tale of swords, sorcery, and drones!

Fifteen-year-old Touya Mochizuki is accidentally killed by God. As an apology, God allows him to be resurrected, but since he cannot send him back to his old world, he instead reincarnates him into a fantasy world along with any special requests. Touya requested to bring his smartphone into the new world with him.

You're Toxic, I'm Slippin' Under

The time has come for the final showdown against the wicked god. There's just one pesky little problem to deal with first?Touya and company need to purify the venom surrounding Isengard! But don't worry, Uncle Kousuke is here to help; he just needs a little assistance nurturing a very special sapling. Meanwhile, Touya thinks back to his life on Earth and wonders about the family he left behind.

At last, the final battle begins, ringing in a story of swords, sorcery, and some very unhelpful Unicorns.

Fifteen-year-old Touya Mochizuki is accidentally killed by God. As an apology, God allows him to be resurrected, but since he cannot send him back to his old world, he instead reincarnates him into a fantasy world along with any special requests. Touya requested to bring his smartphone into the new world with him.

It's a Prehistoric Ritual

The conflict with the wicked god has finally come to an end, and Touya now presides over a unified planet. There may be peace, but this world is still far from a paradise! It's time for him to help resolve centuries-long misunderstandings between feuding nations, deal with new matters of interest in the divine realm, and handle a few small national matters that are tossed his way... all while planning his long-awaited weddings. What's a groom-to-be to do?

Fifteen-year-old Touya Mochizuki is accidentally killed by God. As an apology, God allows him to be resurrected, but since he cannot send him back to his old world, he instead reincarnates him into a fantasy world along with any special requests. Touya requested to bring his smartphone into the new world with him.

A Nice Day for a White Wedding

The time has come: Touya's all set to marry his nine blushing brides! The invites are addressed and stamped, the dinner menu has been set, and the entire nation of Brunhild trembles with anticipation. Can he make it through his big day unscathed? Not if his divine retinue has anything to say about it! And as for the honeymoon, bringing his nine spouses through a spatial tear to vacation on Earth sounds like a nice idea. What could possibly go wrong?

The church bells ring, signaling a tale of swords, sorcery, and smiles!

Fifteen-year-old Touya Mochizuki is accidentally killed by God. As an apology, God allows him to be resurrected, but since he cannot send him back to his old world, he instead reincarnates him into a fantasy world along with any special requests. Touya requested to bring his smartphone into the new world with him.

The Visions Dancing in My Mind...

Touya's honeymoon might be over, but love's still lingering in the air in Brunhild! Can poor Endymion cope with being part of an alien ménage à quatre? Who else might be looking for a match made in heaven? Having sealed the deal on his own romances, Touya's free to stick his nose into the love lives of those around him...but at what cost? Meanwhile, a ripple and quake rip through time, revealing images from a far-flung future. Just what?or who?might emerge?

Find out in this riveting tale of swords, sorcery, and progeny!

Fifteen-year-old Touya Mochizuki is accidentally killed by God. As an apology, God allows him to be resurrected, but since he cannot send him back to his old world, he instead reincarnates him into a fantasy world along with any special requests. Touya requested to bring his smartphone into the new world with him.

Once the Timequake Starts, It Doesn't Stop!

Just as soon as Touya thinks he's adjusted to being a dad, he's bombarded with even more children. What kind of trouble will these time-traveling tykes get into next? And while our hapless hero is distracted with paternal precautions, could something sinister be slinking around in the shadows?

See what's next in this story of swords, sorcery, and parental peril!

Fifteen-year-old Touya Mochizuki is accidentally killed by God. As an apology, God allows him to be resurrected, but since he cannot send him back to his old world, he instead reincarnates him into a fantasy world along with any special requests. Touya requested to bring his smartphone into the new world with him.

Airships in the Sky with... Engineers?

A group of curious Gollem engineers traveling in a great airship arrives in the Duchy of Brunhild. Their sudden appearance alone is puzzling enough, but what do these Seekers want with Yumina's white crown? Are there further secrets lurking within the ancient ruins of Gandhilis? And on top of that, will Yakumo ever come home?

Hold fast for a tale of swords, sorcery, and mechanical marvels!

Fifteen-year-old Touya Mochizuki is accidentally killed by God. As an apology, God allows him to be resurrected, but since he cannot send him back to his old world, he instead reincarnates him into a fantasy world along with any special requests. Touya requested to bring his smartphone into the new world with him.

A world-class magic train between Belfast and Regulus is about to begin its inaugural journey, and Touya's got tickets for the whole family!

Well, his whole family minus his children who are still scattered across the world...

Can Touya and his wives still have a good time on their trip? Which child will make it to Brunhild next, and what will they bring back with them? Are the wicked devout going to continue their vile machinations for much longer? And most importantly to Touya's wives: will Lu finally be able to bake the perfect zero-calorie cake?!

It's full steam ahead in this tale of swords, sorcery, and sorcerous swords!

Fifteen-year-old Touya Mochizuki is accidentally killed by God. As an apology, God allows him to be resurrected, but since he cannot send him back to his old world, he instead reincarnates him into a fantasy world along with any special requests. Touya requested to bring his smartphone into the new world with him.

One more sun comes sliding down the sky...

Touya's got a kingdom to run, so he can't let familial fuss from eight children keep him away from his civic duties! As domestic and international issues pile up before him, will he be able to manage it all with so many mischievous mouths to feed?

And what of the wicked devout, continuing their malicious machinations under the cover of night? Just how many of them are there now, and what are they plotting in the far west?

Find out in this installment full of swords, sorcery, and flashback episodes!

I'm Jaz Parks. CIA assassin. Black belt. Belly dancer at the Corpus Christi Winter Festival. The last is cover for my latest mission: retrieve a vital piece of biotechnology by killing the maniac who stole it. He's Chien-Lung, an obsessive vamp who's invulnerable while wearing his armor - which is constantly.

Then there are the reavers, ancient fiends who murder innocents and eat their souls. Only I can sense them. So it's not long before they'll want me dead, dead, dead.

Some people think that ghosts are spirits that refuse to go to the other side because they have unfinished business. Take my word--that's true. I should know. I'm a ghost.

I was an ordinary eighties California girl, dead before my time, until psychic Amanda Lee Minter pulled me out of the time loop where I was reliving my death over and over. Now I'm Jensen Murphy, Ghost for Hire. I decided to put my spooky talents to use in helping Amanda Lee track down bad guys and killers (including my own).

It's taken time to figure out exactly how that will work (our first case was definitely a learning experience for all involved), so when a young woman asks Amanda Lee for help convincing her best friend to leave a dangerously hot-tempered boyfriend, I'm ready and willing to use our collective powers on her behalf. But some people are dangerous not only to the living--especially when there are darker forces involved....

LONE WOLF

When sarcastic loner Haruka gets transported with his class to another world, he's not wild about adventuring, but he wouldn't mind having some cool powers. Unfortunately, he's last in line when the magic cheat skills get divvied up, so by the time it's Haruka's turn, there are no good choices left. Now Haruka will have to take on this fantasy world the hard way--on his own, with a hodgepodge of bizarre skills! When infighting and chaos break out among his classmates, can this loner come to the rescue?

LADY OF THE LABYRINTH

Haruka has reunited with his classmates in the city of Omui, but as a loner through and through, it isn't long before their presence starts getting to him. An excursion to a dangerous underground dungeon gives him a much-needed reprieve...when he falls all the way to the bottom level, the domain of the legendary undead Emperor of the Labyrinth! But Haruka won't be alone for long--he'll soon be joined by a powerful skeleton knight who's somehow also a seventeen-year-old girl!

A WATCHER IN THE SHADOWS

With Angelica at his side, Haruka enjoys the spoils of dungeoneering, and even uses his newfound wealth to inject a little modern-day flair into the city of Omui. Life on the frontier is peaceful until Haruka notices a mysterious girl tailing him. She's been sent as a spy by the neighboring nation... and the threat she's scoping out is Haruka! The tale of the lone wolf is just getting started!

A Recipe for Myth-Adventure...

Skeeve is a magician's apprentice (and a wanna-be thief) until an assassin's bolt kills his master, Garkin. Along with Aahz, the green-scaled, purple-tongued demon and master magician summoned by Garkin, he sets out on a quest to get even. The road to vengeance is bound to prove rocky, however, because Skeeve can barely light a candle with his beginning magic, and Aahz has lost his own considerable magical abilities as a consequence of Garkin's summoning spell.

Before they can confront the power-mad wizard who ordered Garkin's assassination, they must survive a trip to a weird alternate dimension, encounters with Impish hit-men and a somewhat dull but persistent demon hunter who rides a friendly war unicorn, outwit a sharp-dealing Deevel, and deal with other uncanny enemies and even stranger friends... all without killing each other in the process!

Reborn as a heroic... skeleton?!

A gamer falls asleep--only to wake up in the world of the game he was playing! Arc has the powerful skills and weapons of his character, but there's just one problem... he's stuck looking like that character, too. An adventure in a fantastical new land awaits him, if he can get used to being a walking skeleton!

MUCH ADO ABOUT KNIGHTING

Arc vowed to avoid drawing attention to himself, but the world has different plans for him! Between hunting magical beasts and unknowingly saving the Queen's retinue, he continues to find himself dragged into one adventure after another, culminating in a reunion with the young catgirl, Chiyome. Follow along as the Skeleton Knight embarks on a quest to set the beastmen free--and perhaps change the world while he's at it.

FIVE HEADS ARE BETTER THAN ONE

En route to save the last of the enslaved elves, Arc and Arianne find themselves having to fight their way through ogres, monsters, and even a demon pirate when Arc's poor sense of direction gets them lost. None of these obstacles, however, compare to what awaits them when they finally reach the Holy Revlon Empire--a beast unlike anything they've ever faced: the five-headed hydra!

IN HOT WATER

Finally arriving at the magical spring that might cure his curse, Arc is astonished to find it is a hot spring! Deciding to give his weary bones a rest, he and Ponta dive right in--only to encounter something entirely unexpected. Meanwhile, Princess Yuriarna challenges Prince Sekt's underhanded bid to take control of the Kingdom. With royalty facing off against royalty, who will emerge victorious?

TOO HOT TO HANDLE

Arc, Arianne, Chiyome, and Goemon voyage to the southern continent in pursuit of Arc's newest culinary obsession: chili peppers! But when a dark figure from Chiyome's past returns to haunt her, and a nightmarish demon lays siege to a human city before the group's eyes, the skeleton knight and his crew realize they might have bitten off more than they can chew.

OF DAMSELS AND DEMONS

Arc and his companions make tracks for the Holy Hilk Kingdom, intent on unearthing the truth behind what happened to Sasuke. What they run into, instead, is yet another princess in need of rescue! Unlike Yuriarna, however, this one has no intention of letting Arc slip away afterwards. Chivalry may be a knight's watchword, but there's only so much a skeleton can do!

HERE THERE BE DRAGONS!

Arc, Arianne, and Chiyome fight their way through hordes of undead to Nohzan's capital, seeking to save Princess Riel--but are waylaid by Cardinal Palurumo, who is revealed to have been an undead creature all along! Meanwhile, another Dragon Lord enters the stage. A gorgeous lady Dragon Lord, who's got her eye on Arc!

CALM BEFORE THE STORM

Elven soldiers, human troops, and even a Dragon Lord come together under the Skeleton Knight's banner to prepare to face the Holy Hilk Kingdom's onslaught. As war looms on the horizon, though, Arc has his first run-in with someone like him--a traveler from another world. What will this unexpected meeting bring?

HUNTING THROUGH HALLOWED GROUND

Thanatos has been defeated, but the war is far from over! Arc and his comrades venture into the ruins of the once holy capital, cutting their way through hordes of undead, rescuing injured civilians, even adding new companions to the party. Can they find the key to the whereabouts of the missing Cardinals? Or does only death await them at the heart of the ruined city?

MERCENARY TACTICS

Arc and his companions chase the one lead they have on the Cardinals--a teleportation stone that spirits them to a small town off in a distant corner of the mysterious Great Revlon Empire. With the Empire on lockdown due to impending war, the Skeleton Knight and his crew must find a way to blend in. The solution? Register themselves as a band of mercenaries and start taking on jobs, of course!

A man uses video game crafting powers to survive a fantasy world--with the help of his beautiful dark elf mistress!

Kousuke suddenly wakes up alone in a vast forest that clearly isn't anywhere on Earth. Now he has to find some way to eat, drink, and survive! Luckily, Kousuke also has the power to craft using a special video game menu that allows him to harvest resources and build whatever he can imagine. However, every time he goes to sleep, he's attacked by one of the many non-human races of this world, all of whom despise humankind. Enter Sylphy, the beautiful dark elf who lays claim to Kousuke and vows to protect him--after all, she's taken him as her property!

ROCK-HARD PROTECTION!

It's official: Sylphy has Kousuke wrapped around her little finger! His beautiful dark elf mistress wants to liberate her kin, and Kousuke's ready to get the job done! Their first order of business is building a giant stone wall around the elven village to keep out any threats. After a hard day's work, Kousuke always finds himself in the arms of a lovely lady or three!

STICKY PREDICAMENT!

Kousuke and Sylphy's Liberation Army are making big moves! But just as they're settling into their newly captured base, betrayal strikes from within their own ranks! What's a crafty survivor from another world to do when he's trapped behind enemy lines and at the mercy of three very slimy sisters? He'll have to go under all sorts of covers if he ever wants to see his dark elf mistress again!

INTO THE WILD

Kousuke and Melty flee deep into the perilous Solel mountains, with agents of the Holy Kingdom in hot pursuit! The mountains are home to fierce dragons, but crafty Kousuke and mega-mighty Melty are more than a match for these lethal lizards. Or so it seems, until a singular, supreme dragon appears before them! Can Kousuke and Melty survive to tell the tale?

Tim Harper, an agent for the Algheran Time-Travel Project, travels back in time to correct a previous agent's error, only to face Kalm, a telepathic traitor who hunts down Algheran agents.

An Englishman's continuing search through space and time for a decent cup of tea...

Arthur Dent's accidental association with that wholly remarkable book, The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, has not been entirely without incident.

Arthur has traveled the length, breadth, and depth of known, and unknown, space. He has stumbled forward and backward through time. He has been blown up, reassembled, cruelly imprisoned, horribly released, and colorfully insulted more than is strictly necessary. And of course Arthur Dent has comprehensively failed to grasp the meaning of life, the universe, and everything.

Arthur has finally made it home to Earth, but that does not mean he has escaped his fate.

Arthur's chances of getting his hands on a decent cuppa have evaporated rapidly, along with all the world's oceans. For no sooner has he touched down on the planet Earth than he finds out that it is about to be blown up... again.

And Another Thing... is the rather unexpected, but very welcome, sixth installment of the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy series. It features a pantheon of unemployed gods, everyone's favorite renegade Galactic President, a lovestruck green alien, an irritating computer, and at least one very large slab of cheese.

There's a new sheriff in town, and he's got the Nightside's rich and powerful quaking in their boots. He's The Walking Man, and it's his mission to exorcise sinners-with extreme prejudice. Problem is, the Nightside was built on sin and corruption, and The Walking Man makes no distinction between evildoers and those simply indulging themselves. He'll leave the place a wasteland unless someone stops him, and P.I. John Taylor has been handed the job. No known magic or science can affect The Walking Man, and if John can't discover his weakness, he'll be facing the very Wrath of God...

"I'm going to live for myself!"

The greatest assassin on Earth knew only how to live as a tool for his employers--until they stopped letting him live. Reborn by the grace of a goddess into a world of swords and sorcery, he's offered a chance to do things differently this time around, but there’s a catch... He has to eliminate a super-powerful hero who will bring about the end of the world unless he is stopped. Now known as Lugh Tuatha Dé, the master assassin certainly has his hands full, particularly because of all the beautiful girls who constantly surround him. Lugh may have been an incomparable killer, but how will he fare against foes with powerful magic?

The Assassin Meets the Hero

Lugh, Dia, and Tarte enroll in the most elite academy in the Alvanian Kingdom. On the surface, the group is there to learn how to be knights, but Lugh's real goal is to get close to the hero he's been tasked with eliminating. However, Lugh winds up getting more familiar with the hero than first intended, and he learns that the prophesized savior's power comes at a steep price. Being a hero isn't easy, and when trouble strikes, will the assassin have to save the one he's supposed to kill?

To Kill That Which Cannot Die

After his success in battle with a demon, Lugh is made a Holy Knight by the Alvanian Kingdom and tasked with slaying more of the creatures. The problem is, only the hero can actually fell demons. Such a setback isn't going to stop the world's greatest assassin, however, and Lugh gets to work devising a spell to kill the supposedly immortal beings. Unfortunately, the only way to test this new magic is in a real battle! Failure promises certain doom, but triumph may turn out to be just as perilous if Lugh isn't careful...

Unexpected Allies... and Enemies

During a party in the royal capital, Lugh runs into Mina, the mysterious and flirtatious snake demon. Evidently, she's already infiltrated human society, but not to take it over. She's not too thrilled about seeing the Demon King revived and wishes to help Lugh prevent that from happening...or does she? Mina seems to have her hooks in many different important people: nobles, princes, and even Lugh's friends. Will this wolf in sheep's clothing manage to turn classmates against one another?

A wicked plot in the heart of the kingdom!

Three demons have fallen, and Lugh wastes no time preparing new tools to handle the next one. Unfortunately, he's interrupted by a conspiracy in the royal capital. It seems someone wants to frame him for murder. Whoever this cocky person is obviously doesn't know who they're dealing with. In the midst of this, another demon appears, and Lugh receives a visit from the goddess who sent him to this world. The discussion with her leaves him wondering if perhaps there's more to why he was reincarnated than he first presumed...

An impossible assassination!

After Lugh's most recent victory in his battle against the demons, he decides it's time to take his relationships with Dia, Tarte, and Maha to the next level, proposing to all of them. The celebration is brief, however, for the Royal Knights Academy has finished rebuilding, and it's time to return to school. Unfortunately, on Lugh's very first day back, he's given a new assassination target: the hierarch of Alamism. The religious leader has apparently been replaced by a demon in disguise. Lugh can't let a monster control the world's most powerful organization, but killing it will mean infiltrating the Holy Land, the most heavily guarded place in the kingdom. Has the assassin finally met his match?

To Kill A Comrade!

Naoise has turned his back on humanity and become a servant to Mina, the snake demon. Lugh thought he could find a way to stop his way ward friend without killing him, but things come to a head when Naoise turns his sword against his own people. The world's finest assassin has slain wicked aristocrats and monstrous creatures alike, but this is an opponent unlike any other - one he cares about.

Hugo Award winning and Nebula Award nominated novelette. It originally appeared in Isaac Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine, June 1989. The story can also be found in the anthologies Time Gate (1989), edited by Robert Silverberg and Bill Fawcett, The Year's Best Science Fiction: Seventh Annual Collection (1990), edited by Gardner Dozois, and The New Hugo Winners, Volume III: (1989-91) (1994), edited by Connie Willis. It is included in the collections The Collected Stories of Robert Silverberg Volume 1: Secret Sharers (1992), Phases of the Moon (2004) and We Are for the Dark: 1987-90: The Collected Stories of Robert Silverberg, Vol. 7 (2012).

Enemy Mine

Hugo- and Nebula-winning Novella which inspired the 20th Century Fox motion picture starring Dennis Quaid and Lou Gossett, Jr.

This is the story of a man, incomplete in himself, taught to be a human by his sworn enemy, an alien being who leaves with the human its most important possession: its future.

The time is the future and a savage war rages between Earth and the planet Dracon, which is inhabited by intelligent, lizard-like creatures. An earth pilot and a Dracon creature both crash-land on the fiery, barren planet Fyrine IV. The two sworn enemies can think only of destroying each other, until they come to realize the only way either will survive is for both to overcome their undying hatred.

Another Orphan

Hugo-nominated and Nebula-winning Novella

Patrick Fallon is an analyst working on the Chicago stock exchange. An ex 'longhair', the man found himself in need of real employment as the exigencies of life made their demands and the counter-culture movement drew to a close. Starting as a runner, Fallon worked his way up to stock analyst in a few years, and at the opening of the story is leading a standard yuppie life in the metro area with a girlfriend he's unsure he loves. Mundane to the max, Fallon feels little motivation or excitement in life, and moreover, is unaware of the lack.

Waking up on a whaling ship at sea in the opening pages, however, existence takes on a whole new dynamic - one he quickly realizes is a manifestation of Herman Melville's Moby Dick. The novel coming alive around him, life at sea in contrast to life in Chicago, and the questions which arise as a result, provide a context to existence Fallon never had. (synopsis by Speculiction)

Another Orphan can be read online for free here.

Vintage Season:

It's the most beautiful Spring the great metropolis has seen in modern memory. the sun-drenched air seems full of hope, of promise for a better tomorrow. But across the river, in the suburb on the ridge that overlooks the city, Oliver Wilson is perplexed. Who are those elegant, perfectly-poised, almost exotic people to whom he's rented his house? What impending event has drawn them here, to this sleepy suburb, as if it were the best seat in the house for the greatest show on Earth?

In Another Country:

For time-traveling tourists, the rule about affairs with the locals is clear--look but don't touch. To flout that rule is to invite endless paradoxes and complications--as the well-meaning Thimiroi finds out to his dismay, in this all-new tale by SF master Robert Silverberg, written especially for the Tor Doubles as a companion to C. L. Moore's famous original.

A storm is brewing: the water levels of the Bristol Channel are inexplicably rising, and Cardiff Bay is under threat from the worst flooding in years. In the midst of the climate chaos, Torchwood is called to investigate a series of gruesome murders.

Mitsuha is a young girl living in a rural town named Itomori and is fed up with her life. One day, her family and friends notice she's suddenly acting strange. Little do they know, a high school boy from Tokyo named Taki Tachibana found himself randomly switching places with her when he fell asleep. But he has no clue how to act as a high school girl in an unfamiliar place! This is the story of the hit novel your name. from the perspective of Mitsuha's friends and family as they deal with her strange new quirks--and avoid disaster.