Beyond the Stars: Infinite Expanse. edited by Richard Leslie. 2020
Beyond the Stars: Infinite Expanse
RATED 82% POSITIVE. STORY SCORE 3.73 OF 5
11 STORIES : 1 GREAT / 6 GOOD / 4 AVERAGE / 0 POOR / 0 DNF
An old man tells a colorful and harrowing tale of planetary invasion. Space Truckers fight terrorists. Literally star-crossed lovers. A thief is betrayed and must work quickly to discover why. These are some of the fun space opera adventures in Beyond the Stars: Infinite Expanse.
Never heard of this series? Don’t worry. Neither had I until striking up a conversation with writer R.J. Howell in the dealers’ room of ChiCon8. Taking chances on new books is a classic part of the World Con Experience. And I’m very glad that I did. This is quite the fun original anthology and contained one very great story.
I read and review a lot of Best of the Year anthologies. There are so many decades of great Science Fiction available and it helps to have the iconic editors of the genre as my guide through it all. The quality of each volume will (or at least should) be of much higher quality than any original anthology or issue of a magazine.
The problem with stories in Best of the Year anthologies is that they are often very ambitious. Cutting edge in their speculation, world-building, prose style, or social commentary. They are serious works! As well they should be. But that isn’t all that Science Fiction offers us.
The stories in Infinite Expanse aren’t trying to transform the SciFi genre. They are telling fun and interesting stories for the readers’ enjoyment. If they have a bit more stock characters, situations, and scenes, so what? These are fast pleasant romps in easily accessible Science Fiction universes.
Except for one story that rises above the rest and joins the All-Time Great List:
Coffin Rider • (2020) • short story by James Rossiter
An old soldier tells us his memories of a significant battle against ‘the bugs.’ What a wide-screen cinematic Space Opera this is! Helpless soldiers in clear ‘coffins’ are ejected as an invasion force, knowing that most will die, but some with survive by the grace of sheer numbers. Infantry combat on a lush colorful planet that keeps getting disrupted by rampaging space-rhinos and space-storks. This is great stuff, but what makes it exceptional are the brief digressions of the price, nature, and random aspects of war. With a surprisingly poignant final line.
BEYOND THE STARS: INFINITE EXPANSE
11 STORIES : 1 GREAT / 6 GOOD / 4 AVERAGE / 0 POOR / 0 DNF
Precious Cargo • (2020) • short story by C. H. Hung
Average. A doctor (named suspiciously close to a recurring Star Trek character) has to make a very hard choice when the ship is dying due to lack of oxygen and water.
Antecedent • (2020) • short story by R. A. Steffan
Average. A rather dry story of vigilantes trying to rescue their fallen leader.
Chrysalis • [Asterion Noir] • (2020) • novelette by G. S. Jennsen
Good. Siblings get involved in resisting the government’s desire to regulate and then exterminate artificial intelligences that are taking on human bodies.
Imperatrix, Redux • (2020) • novelette by Nemma Wollenfang
Average. When the sovereign is betrayed and captured, a devoted servant (not-so-secretly in love) commands a small crew to rescue her from the evil bad guy that wants to marry her.
Mirage and Shadow • (2020) • novelette by R. K. Thorne
Good. A thief on a space station is betrayed and must determine why in order to survive. A cliche, but clearly and propulsively written. A page-turner.
Coffin Rider • (2020) • short story by James Rossiter
Great. An old soldier tells us his memories of a significant battle against ‘the bugs.’ What a wide-screen cinematic Space Opera this is! Helpless soldiers in clear ‘coffins’ are ejected as an invasion force, knowing that most will die, but some with survive by the grace of sheer numbers. Infantry combat on a lush colorful planet that keeps getting disrupted by rampaging space-rhinos and space-storks. This is great stuff, but what makes it exceptional are the brief digressions of the price, nature, and random aspects of war. And a surprisingly poignant final line.
Oresa • (2020) • novelette by R. J. Howell
Good. A smuggler takes an out-of-character civilian job to deliver an mystery package to a planet she regrets helping destroy.
Malfunction • (2020) • novelette by Jack Lyster
Good. Fun story of a Space Trucker whose malfunctioning radio accidentally reveals an imminent terrorist attack on an interstellar gateway.
Enemy Within • (2020) • short story by J. M. Thomas
Good. Parasitic aliens resurrect dead human crew members to assimilate and control. You awake and the process is only partial completed and you try to understand what is happening and fight back anyway you can.
For Your Eyes Only • (2020) • short story by Ethan Freckleton
Good. A young woman scavenges for value amongst the trash of a failed terraforming world. She discovers a teddy bear that hold within its furry frame a chip we hundreds of messages from the previous owner. A previous owner who looks a lot like her.
Terminal Candidate • (2020) • short story by David Bruns
Average. The Surveyor gives presentations to three corrupt alien Councilors about whether to welcome a planet into the Coalition or let it be broken up and sold for scrap. But this time the planet is Earth.
