Welcome to this week’s post. Last week, I wrote about a short story series that I found on Amazon: The Far Reaches. Today I am showing you another, similar set: The Forward Collection. Both series are science fiction of various types and by terrific authors.

Again, like last week, I have been suffering from a nasty virus, so have been struggling to concentrate. Short stories were just the perfect answer for my reading dilemma! Here are the book covers:

I will show you the blurb for each story. I am not reviewing the stories on Goodreads, really struggling with my memory and brainpower, but I have given each one a star rating.

Ark by Veronica Roth

“On the eve of Earth’s destruction, a young scientist discovers something too precious to lose, in a story of cataclysm and hope by the #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Divergent trilogy.

It’s only two weeks before an asteroid turns home to dust. Though most of Earth has already been evacuated, it’s Samantha’s job to catalog plant samples for the survivors’ unknowable journey beyond.

Preparing to stay behind and watch the world end, she makes a final human connection.

As certain doom hurtles nearer, the unexpected and beautiful potential for the future begins to flower.”

I awarded this ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ stars, Goodreads gives this 3.6.

Summer Frost by Black Crouch

“A video game developer becomes obsessed with a willful character in her new project, in a mind-bending exploration of what it means to be human by the New York Times bestselling author of Recursion.

Maxine was made to do one thing: die. Except the minor non-player character in the world Riley is building makes her own impossible decision—veering wildly off course and exploring the boundaries of the map. When the curious Riley extracts her code for closer examination, an emotional relationship develops between them. Soon Riley has all new plans for her spontaneous AI, including bringing Max into the real world. But what if Max has real-world plans of her own?”

I awarded this the full ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ stars, Goodreads gives this 4.1.

Emergency Skin by N K Jemisin

“What will become of our self-destructed planet? The answer shatters all expectations in this subversive speculation from the Hugo Award–winning author of the Broken Earth trilogy.

An explorer returns to gather information from a climate-ravaged Earth that his ancestors, and others among the planet’s finest, fled centuries ago. The mission comes with a warning: a graveyard world awaits him. But so do those left behind—hopeless and unbeautiful wastes of humanity who should have died out eons ago. After all this time, there’s no telling how they’ve devolved. Steel yourself, soldier. Get in. Get out. And try not to stare.”

I awarded this the full ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ stars, Goodreads gives this 4.03.

You Have Arrived at Your Destination by Amor Towles

“Nature or nurture? Neither. Discover a bold new way to raise a child in this unsettling story of the near future by the New York Times bestselling author of A Gentleman in Moscow.

When Sam’s wife first tells him about Vitek, a twenty-first-century fertility lab, he sees it as the natural next step in trying to help their future child get a “leg up” in a competitive world. But the more Sam considers the lives that his child could lead, the more he begins to question his own relationships and the choices he has made in his life.”

I awarded this the lower mark of ⭐️⭐️⭐️ stars. Goodreads gives it 3.48.

The Last Conversation by Paul Tremblay

“What’s more frightening: Not knowing who you are? Or finding out? A Bram Stoker Award–winning author explores the answer in a chilling story about identity and human consciousness.

Imagine you’ve woken up in an unfamiliar room with no memory of who you are, how you got there, or where you were before. All you have is the disconnected voice of an attentive caretaker. Dr. Kuhn is there to help you—physically, emotionally, and psychologically. She’ll help you remember everything. She’ll make sure you reclaim your lost identity. Now answer one question: Are you sure you want to?”

I awarded this the full ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ stars, Goodreads gives this 3.76.

Randomize by Andy Weir

“In the near future, if Vegas games are ingeniously scam-proof, then the heists have to be too, in this imaginative and whip-smart story by the New York Times bestselling author of The Martian.

An IT whiz at the Babylon Casino is enlisted to upgrade security for the game of keno and its random-number generator. The new quantum computer system is foolproof. But someone on the inside is no fool. For once the odds may not favor the house—unless human ingenuity isn’t entirely a thing of the past.”

I awarded this ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ stars. Goodreads gives this 3.53.

Thankfully, I am now starting to feel quite a lot better and, perhaps, ready for a full book. It will need to be really gripping, though. Fantasy this time? We shall see.

Happy Reading to you all!

Love and best wishes,

Anne

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