The Best of Glen Cook (Night Shade Books, November 24, 2020) Cover by Raymond Swanland

It’s no exaggeration to call short stories the bedrock of sci-fi and fantasy. Over the years, short fiction has been the proving ground for many of our favorite authors. Heck, a ton of great book-length projects were born from short stories. Consider it, if you’ll indulge me, the anvil on which many an awesome idea has been tempered.

But for every “This Immortal Life” and “Sandkings” there are several great tales that have fallen through the cracks. Here are nine stories that in my humble opinion definitely deserve a lot more love.

[Click the images for versions with more love.]

9. “The Good Magician,” by Glen Cook

Where you can find it: Songs of the Dying Earth: Short Stories in Honor of Jack Vance; The Best of Glenn Cook

Occasionally, two great things will come together to form an even greater thing. Think cookies and cream or rice and lamb. “The Good Magician,” in that vein, is what you get when two great authors do a metaphoric fusion dance.

Set in the world of Jack Vance’s legendary Dying Earth novellas, the story was written for an anthology that celebrated Vance’s most famous creation. A ton of authors contributed stories to what would become Songs of the Dying Earth, with George RR Martin himself (who helped make the project a reality) contacting Cook to rope him in.

Cook definitely understood the assignment, crafting a whimsical, wild, and whip-smart story Vance would have been proud of. Not only does he capture the charm of the Dying Earth but even brings back Rhialto, one of the best characters from the original novellas. While it’s ending is abrupt, everything but the story’s last paragraph is SFF gold. Definitely worth a read.

8. “Three Cups of Grief,  by Starlight,” by Aliette de Bodard

Where you can read it: Clarkesworld Magazine, January 2015; The Very Best of the Best: 35 Years of the Year’s Best Science Fiction, edited by Gardner Dozois

Meditations on grief rarely are this impactful. It’s one of those themes many attempt but few do well. That’s what I find particularly striking about de Bodard’s story, how achingly real her characters and their emotions are.

What takes the story up a notch is how those emotions are processed in a unique, high tech environment. Separated into three different viewpoints, we see the grief of a loved one’s passing unfold in against a backdrop that is instantly intriguing. Great tech brings with it great opportunity… and major dilemmas for families. Here, de Bodard mines both to make the subsequent drama feel as real as a slap to the face.

Ultimately it’s a story about loss and legacy that has something important to say about what it means to human. “Three Cups of Grief” is timeless, a piece I’ve come back to multiple times, and one I cannot recommend highly enough.

7. “Rusties,” by Nnedi Okorafor and Wanuri Kahiu

Where you can read it: Clarkesworld, Issue 121, edited by Neil Clarke

Part cautionary tale and part futuristic memoir, this collaborative story comes closest to capturing what the mass adoption of AI and robots look like outside the USA. Beyond merely moving the action to Africa, the writers actually tackle it in a few unique ways.

We’re used to stories where sentience, war, and mankind’s hubris are at the heart thematically. Rusties, however, prefers to keep things grounded. It asks how might these technologies impact our personal lives and the cities we live in?

In addition to some really terrific writing, I like how real the story feels. More than any other short story I’ve read on the topic, I feel like Rusties comes closest to depicting how society might respond to police robots and the like.

Inferno, Volume 3; Tales from the World of Warhammer (Black Library, May 11, 2019). Cover by Phil Moss

6. “Empra,“ by Nate Crowley

Where you can read it: Inferno, Volume 3; Tales from the World of Warhammer

Over the years, the Black Library has published some absolutely rollicking short fiction. Those who look down their nose at licensed fiction are missing out on a ton of spectacular work set in the myriad worlds of Warhammer. The 41st millennium is massive and grimdark, offering writers loads to play with. But if you had to read just one story to understand this loveably mad setting, “Empra” by Nate Crowley is that tale.

Equal parts visceral, tragic, and beautiful, “Empra” is told through the eyes of a child. This narrative choice is used to maximum effect with Crowley warping everything around a child’s perspective. The cross section of faith, fanaticism, and service to a dark imperium are laid bare.

There is so much to love about this brutal, unforgiving tale. Perhaps what I like most about it is how even in the harsh reality of a future where there is only war, the strength of humanity endures. Yes there are sinister gods and bureaucratic nightmares just as bad but even in spite of that the human spirit can triumph. In a nutshell, that for me is what makes grim dark fantasy special.

5. “Effigy Nights,” by Yoon Ha Lee

Where you can read it: Clarkesworld, issue 76, edited by Neil Clarke

This is a story where the power of words and stories literally collide with gun-toting baddies. It may sound like the stuff of sorcery but that is what makes it so much.

Lee handles a pretty refreshing power system masterfully. Where others might get bogged down on the details, here the power of Imulai Mokarengen is never divorced from the story’s thematic underpinnings.

One of the appeals (and challenges) of short form fiction is the lack of space to flesh things out. Lee uses that to the story’s advantage by being laser focused on the things that matter.

I do know the story has received some acclaim in the past but I certainly think it deserves more.

4. The Job At The End of the World, by Ray Nayler

Where you can read it: A Tor.com original story available at Reactor.com

SFF has always been a welcome space where our hopes and fears for the future can be tackled. It should surprise no one that the very real and dire climate issues our planet faces has inspired my s writer. That includes Ray Nayler.

Instead of a big picture dystopian tale Nayler focuses instead on emergency personnel. We see them at their tragi-comic work and hear them meditate on what the increasingly fierce natural disasters mean on a spiritual level. Nayler makes sure we see how indiscriminate nature can be. And there is a twist at the end that left me speechless.

The story is a definite win from the author of The Mountain in the Sea and a good way to ease yourself into his style.

Howls From the Dark Ages: An Anthology of Medieval Horror, edited by P L McMillan
and Solomon Forse (Howl Society Press, May 12, 2022). Cover by Maia Weir

3. “Angelus,” by Philipa Evans

Where you can read it: Howls From the Dark Ages: An Anthology of Medieval Horror

Creepy and horrifying in the most tasteful ways, Angelus is a standout horror story from Howls from the Dark Ages: An Anthology of Medieval Horror. Not only does it kick-off with an appropriately hot start (pun intended) but it’s ending is so on theme it sent chills up my spine. Given the theme of the collection, it’s fair to say Evans understood the assignment. The main character’s faith feels authentic, their anxiety real, and the world-building as evocative as a Gothic cathedral.

“Angelus” is truly a mesmerizing story that taps into our innate fear of the unknowable in ways more relatable than, say, a traditional Eldritch tale.

Rogues, edited by George R.R. Martin and Gardner Dozois (Bantam Books, June 17, 2014). Cover by Oleg Zhevelev

2. “Tough Times All Over,” by Joe Abercrombie

Where you can read it: Rogues, edited by George R.R. Martin and Gardner Dozois

Highly readable and fun, this story is a great example of how short stories can be the ideal introduction to an author’s style. Few do it like Abercrombie and perhaps no short carries its creator’s identity the way this romp in Sipani does.

It’s the story of a package in a grimdark city being chased by a gallery of rogues. Not only does each POV character feel real, but the setting is practically a character in and of itself. Sipani’s lows and highs are as frighteningly authentic as they are visceral. You can smell the grime, hear alley cats chatter, and feel danger stalk the streets as cutpurses and bravos have at it.

Best of all is the way this story connects to his First Law trilogy. Adua, mentioned early in the short story, is a city readers of Abercrombie’s first series will be highly familiar with. Ditto his charming style. If you love “Tough Times All Over,” the good news is that Abercrombie’s written a ton of work you’ll want to read next.

1. “Starlady,” by George R.R. Martin

Where you can read it: Science Fiction Discoveries, edited by Carol Pohl and Frederik Pohl (Bantam, August 1976); Sandkings (Timescape, 1981); and Galaxy’s Edge No. 21 (July 2016)

Mention Martin’s name you will inevitably be dragged into a discussion about The Winds of Winter or A Song of Ice and Fire. For better or worse, the author’s legacy is tied to the mega-popular series. It’s overshadowed so much of his other work people tend to forget his short fiction. Unless, of course, you’re talking about Dunk and Egg.

“Starlady” is one of those stories that certainly deserves a bigger audience. While the same could be said for much of his oeuvre, “Sandkings” at least was recognized with both a Hugo and Nebula in 1979. The brilliant “And Seven Times Never Kill Man” and “Nightflyers” have both been reprinted multiple times. “Starlady,” on the other hand, is a lot harder to track down. I think it’s a shame because it’s arguably one of the best things Martin has written.

First is its masterful opening that immediately sets the tone for this wild and wonderful story. Martin might say he isn’t a linguist but here, his command of language and playful invention of words begs to differ. His characters leap off the pages and their dialogue has to be read out loud.

You won’t find hints at what The Winds of Winter might hold in “Starlady,” nor easy parallels to his other work. And there’s absolutely nothing wrong with that, not when what Martin serves up is a fun romp in a crazy zany world. It’s the maestro at his most brutal and inventive best. In a short story, what more could you ask for?

Have you read any of these stories? What are some you’ve read recently that you think deserve a bit more praise? Let us know in the comments section. Who knows, you might see your story of choice on a future list!

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Ismail D. Soldan’s last article for Black Gate was Tim Waggoner on Writing Conan. He is an author, journalist, and poet. His work has previously appeared in Illustrated Worlds, LatineLit, and The Acentos Review among other publications. A proud explorer of both real and imagined worlds, make sure to check out his sci-fi debut in JR Handley Presents: Contested Landing Volume 2.