Nebula Award Nominees 2017 (With Links For the Free Ones)

[Victoria Silverwolf]

Here are the nominees for the Nebula Awards to be awarded in 2017:

This year's Nebula Award nominees are incredibly diverse — read some online

Note that the ones in red can be read on-line.

Interesting to note that the only "traditional" magazine on the list of short fiction nominees is The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction.

Addendum:

The one short story candidate without a direct link above is here:

Seasons of Glass and Iron - Uncanny Magazine

 

[J-Sun]

Thanks for the link to the links. I didn't even know two of those were available.

On the nominees, beginning with the short fiction, I honestly don't care to go back to read the Bolander or even the Rustad. I will read the El-Mohtar and Krasnoff now that I know they're available but I haven't yet. So, of the remaining three of Miller, Wong, and Yoachim, Miller would almost certainly win but I'd go with the Yoachim though, ironically, that wasn't even her best short story last year. For instance, "The Right Place to Start a Family" (Humanity 2.0) was better.

Of the novelettes, I can't access Ledbetter or Wilde. I don't care to go back to read Stufflebeam. Of the remaining three of Pinsker, Sanford, and Wong, I'd go with the Pinsker.

Of the novellas, I can't access any of them but the Murphy, which I have read. Ironically, this list of one is the best - there may well have been better novellas published last year but I don't know of them and I wouldn't have a problem with this winning a Nebula in the abstract. But it probably won't.

I have zero interest in any of those novels. If I had to read one, I'd probably read the Lee, which has gotten a fair amount of buzz but I suspect the Anders will win.

In the short story and novelette categories I can make an entire short list I'd vote for before any of the actual nominees and I didn't even read much of 2016's short fiction.

Novelette

"The Art of Space Travel" by Nina Allan
"Cold Comfort" by Pat Murphy & Paul Doherty (Bridging Infinity)
"Extraction Request" by Rich Larson
"Fifty Shades of Grays" by Steven Barnes
"They Have All One Breath" by Karl Bunker (Asimov's)

Short Story

"Mika Model" by Paolo Bacigalupi
"The One Who Isn't" by Ted Kosmatka
"A Right Jolly Old..." by James L. Cambias (Conspiracy!)
"Seven Birthdays" by Ken Liu (Bridging Infinity)
"The Silver Strands of Alpha Crucis-D" by N. J. Schrock (F&SF)
"Successor, Usurper, Replacement" by Alice Sola Kim
"Take Us to Your Chief" by Drew Hayden Taylor *

* assuming this is eligible - published in Canada in 2016 and US/worldwide in 2017 so I dunno.

Also, I love "Down and Out" by Ken Wharton which was in a book clearly published in 2016 but which is dated 2017 so I'm pretty sure it's not eligible until next year. I think it's a genuinely good story but I'll also admit it punches my particular buttons. I don't feel most of the others do. In other words, they're not generally the cup of tea I'd special-order but they strike me as undeniably good and better than the actual noms I've read. Curious if others have read these (from either or both lists) and what they think.

 

[Victoria Silverwolf]

Starting the short story nominees:

"Our Talons Can Crush Galaxies" by Brooke Bolander

Not as violent or in-your-face as the author's nominated story from last year, "And You Shall Know Her By the Trail of Dead." It still seems to have been written in a white-hot frenzy of rage. The foul-mouthed narrator is some kind of immortal phoenix-like being who is "killed" by a man while she is in mortal disguise, so she gets her revenge. The author actually avoids the gory details this time, and the bulk of the story is written as a series of bulleted paragraphs rather than traditional narrative. More original than the author's previous nominated story.

"Seasons of Glass and Iron" by Amal El-Mohtar

Mixes themes from fairy tales to present a feminist twist on traditional stories. A woman who has to walk on iron shoes until she has worn out seven pairs encounters a princess who sits alone on top of a glass mountain. It won't surprise anybody that they live happily ever after. OK for that kind of modernization of old fables.

 

[Victoria Silverwolf]

"Sabbath Wine" by Barbara Krasnoff

Set in the early days of Prohibition, this is the story of a young Jewish girl and a teenage African-American boy who become friends. She invites him over for Sabbath dinner. Her father isn't religious at all, so doesn't have any kosher wine for the meal, and winds up going to the boy's father to get some under-the-counter. So far it's a realistic, nostalgic story, but it does have some genuine speculative content and an emotional kick at the end.

 

[Victoria Silverwolf]

"Things With Beards" by Sam J. Miller

A variation on the theme of John W. Campbell's "Who Goes There?" and its film adaptations, The Thing. Here the shapeshifting, possessing alien is used as a metaphor for many different things, including being a closeted gay man, the AIDS epidemic, police informants posing as radicals, and various forms of hiding one's true self from others. It's both cleverly done and emotionally intense.

 

[Victoria Silverwolf]

"This is Not a Wardrobe Door" by A. Merc Rustad

The title might clue you that this is a variation on the Narnia theme of entering a fantastic world through a door, and in fact the Narnia books are mentioned in the story. It begins with a lot of whimsical concepts that some readers may find too cute and precious, but goes on to become a bit more serious as the protagonist, locked out of the fantasy world, ages into a young adult. In some ways it reminds me of John C. Wright's story "One Bright Star to Guide Them" (at least as it appeared in The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction) as a variation on this theme, but otherwise it would be difficult to imagine two more different writers.

 

[Victoria Silverwolf]

"A Fist of Permutations in Lightning and Wildflowers" by Alyssa Wong

Two sisters (one of whom is not quite what she seems to be, slowly revealed in the story) have immense powers to control the weather, and even to destroy entire realities and create new ones. Overall it seems to be a way to convey the narrator's rage and grief over the loss of her sister, and the sister's despair over not being accepted for what she is. Somewhat overwritten, as the title suggests, but emotionally powerful.

 

[Victoria Silverwolf]

"Welcome to the Medical Clinic at the Interplanetary Relay Station/Hours Since the Last Patient Death:0" by Caroline M. Yoachim

Parody of "Choose Your Own Adventure" books as the reader tries to survive being treated for a rash caused by an insect bite in the clinic of a space station. Spoofs science fiction as well, in somewhat silly ways. The story's more serious satire is directed at medical bureaucracy and insurance companies. It often draws attention to itself as a work of fiction.

My favorite of the seven was "Sabbath Wine," which was nearly a mainstream story. It was well-written without drawing attention to its style.

 

[J-Sun]

FWIW, I've read the two stories I didn't know were available. I've been quite impressed with some El-Mohtar (e.g., "Pockets") but not this one. It's publishable but nothing special - written in a slow way that I initially bounced off of and way too simplistic and obvious about its point (made by millions of other recent stories) which, itself, overwhelms the story as a story for its own sake. The Krasnoff is odd. After being bored by the first paragraph or two of the El-Mohtar, I decided to give the first paragraph or two of it a try and, before I knew it, I'd read the whole thing. It is written in a much more compelling style and full of brilliantly drawn slices of lives but that's sort of the problem. Unless there are subtle implications to them, many of the brilliant scenes could easily be cut but the parts of a story should indispensably work together. If this had been a sketch intended to be fleshed out into a novel which was meant to portray a time and place I'd call it very promising, though. As far as the genre element, that's also strange. It's flagged early and brought home late which is all good but the thing itself doesn't seem well-handled in a fantastic or literary sense.

Basically, the one is publishable and the other might be an honorable mention but I don't think I'd recommend either, much less nominate them for awards. I still like several other stories much better.

 

[Victoria Silverwolf]

Very cogent comments. Thanks for that.

Before I get to the novelettes available on-line, some thoughts on the other categories. Specifically, if I had to read or watch one from each, just based on what I can learn quickly on-line:

Young Adult: Probably The Lie Tree. I'm not much of a YA reader anyway.

Dramatic Presentation: Definitely Arrival.

Novella: Most likely "The Ballad of Black Tom."

Novel: Leaning to Everfair.

Of course, this is entirely irrational and based only on my superficial reaction to brief descriptions of these works.

 

[Victoria Silverwolf]

The novelettes I can't read on-line:

"The Long Fall Up" looks like an interesting hard SF story, which is refreshing as fantasy continues to dominate the awards.

"The Jewel and Her Lapidary" (which seems to be nearly novella length) looks like the kind of heroic fantasy/created world fantasy which isn't usually my cup of tea.

 

[Victoria Silverwolf]

"Sooner or Later Everything Falls Into the Sea" by Sarah Pinkser

A rock musician uses a lifeboat to escape from a luxurious cruise ship which can never land anywhere again when civilization starts to break down. She is rescued by a beachcomber barely surviving on an island. A realistic near future dystopian story with only two characters, making use of multiple narrative techniques. Not bad at all.

 

[Victoria Silverwolf]

"The Orangery" by Bonnie Jo Stufflebeam

Relates a variation on the myth of Daphne and Apollo in alternating sections narrated by the Guardian, who watches over the various women changed into trees*, and the Guide, who tells their stories to visitors. The exact relationship between these two narrators is slowly revealed as the story goes on. More original than most retold myths, and nicely written. (*There are also some men changed into trees; the suicides of Dante's Inferno, to be precise. This is only mentioned in passing, and doesn't really seem to go along with the rest of the story's mythos.)

 

[Victoria Silverwolf]

"Blood Grains Speak Through Memories" by Jason Sanford

Takes place a long time in the future, when "grains" (apparently sentient tiny things that inhabit living things) protect the land via "anchors" (people filled with the grains) who can't leave their area) who prevent "day-fellows" (nomads who can't remain in any one place) from damaging it. Science fiction (there are forbidden, handmade laser pistols) with the feel of fantasy (there are "fairies" who seem to be the incarnation of the grains.) For some reason this never grabbed me.

 

[Victoria Silverwolf]

"You'll Surely Drown Here If You Stay" by Alyssa Wong

Intriguing Weird West story, narrated in second person present tense, about a boy with mysterious powers over the dead and other supernatural themes. It held my interest throughout

So, of the novelettes I can find, I'd lean to "Sooner or Later Everything Falls Into the Sea" with this one a close second.

 

[Parson]

I looked at the blurb for the novels and very few would rate a second look by me in a book store. Maybe Arkwright (somewhat interesting premise) or Infomacracy, (looks to be drawn from, but written before the current American election.)

 

[J-Sun]

Dramatic Presentation: Definitely Arrival.

I feel completely goofy here but I honestly enjoyed Rogue One more. Does Arrival have greater seriousness of intent? Absolutely. Is it good? Sure thing. But I've only seen each of them once and if I answer honestly about which I'd rather see again then it'd be Rogue One. On the other hand, if I answer which type of movie I'd like to see more of being made, it'd be Arrival by miles. Either way, I definitely understand preferring Arrival to most anything - in terms of serious SF films, it's one of the top couple in the past many many years - and I'd be pretty amazed if it didn't win.

I looked at the blurb for the novels...Maybe Arkwright (somewhat interesting premise)

From that "11 best" link? While all nominees are on it, not everything on it is a nominee, including Arkwright, but I've been quite tempted by that one, too. (It'll possibly get a Hugo nom - a few years ago I'd have been certain it would.) Apparently it's not so much a novel but a quartet of connected novellas and I've read one of them ("Prodigal Son") and will eventually come across another. I enjoyed the one I read but I'm not sure that the other two are such that I want the book. I keep waffling.

(Just an FYI, some people have complained about the handling of religion in the story. Based on what I read, I feel like it's more about fanaticism and Luddite tendencies rather than religion as such and shouldn't present a problem for anyone but others disagree.)

(I'm not interested in any of the others but I'd love to know how the districts are drawn in Infomocracy and by whom.)

 

[Parson]

(Just an FYI, some people have complained about the handling of religion in the story. Based on what I read, I feel like it's more about fanaticism and Luddite tendencies rather than religion as such and shouldn't present a problem for anyone but others disagree.)

Of course if would have been hard for you to say anything that would have peaked my interest more than that.