Cracking the Sky
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- $7.99
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- $7.99
Publisher Description
Award-winning author Brenda Cooper's first science fiction only collection treats readers to human stories about the future. Meet a physicist who searches across timelines in a desperate attempt to travel across them herself, a young woman who tries to recover the magic of a trip on a river with her grandfather, a young couple who suspect their neighbor child is being raised by robots, and many more...
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
This capable collection of hard SF stories (mostly reprints) focuses squarely on world-building, from the Pacific Northwest of the U.S. to the far reaches of space. Cooper (Edge of Dark) works hard to center each piece on a way that technology has influenced human lives: robot guardians ("The Robot's Girl"), virtual reality for bubble babies ("The War of the Flowers"), living in the ocean ("Trainer of Whales"), serving as a companion to astronauts ("Second Shift"), and AI rights ("Blood Bonds"), to name a few. Affluent college students invade the minds of poor people around the world in the creepy "Riding in Mexico." The flash fiction "My Grandfather's River," featuring a person bringing an old man's memories back to life, is more optimistic. The collection concludes with two strong stories set in a world where robot dogs fight side by side with human soldiers. Though the threats in these final stories are high-tech, Cooper captures the danger of being a grunt, bringing a real emotional zing that's missing from some of the other tales. Those who love technology-driven stories will find a lot to like.
