Now We Are Ten is the anniversary anthology from NewCon Press, celebrating ten years of publishing fiction. Edited by press owner Ian Whates, this is a collection containing many different genres and authors, and the likelihood of you having read at least one of these authors is high. For a small press to release such an anthology is not unusual, but one that contains many award-nominated and award-winning authors is a pleasure to see.
From the publisher:
Sixteen original stories of science fiction and wonder from sixteen talented authors, written to celebrate the tenth birthday of NewCon Press
Contents:
1. Introduction by Ian Whates
2. The Final Path – Genevieve Cogman
3. Women’s Christmas – Ian McDonald
4. Pyramid – Nancy Kress
5. Liberty Bird – Jaine Fenn
6. Zanzara Island – Rachel Armstrong
7. Ten Sisters – Eric Brown
8. Licorice – Jack Skillingstead
9. The Time Travellers’ Ball – Rose Biggin
10. Dress Rehearsal – Adrian Tchaikovsky
11. The Tenth Man – Bryony Pearce
12. Rare As A Harpy’s Tear – Neil Williamson
13. How to Grow Silence from Seed – Tricia Sullivan
14. Utopia +10 – JA Christy
15. Ten Love Songs to Change the World – Peter F Hamilton
16. Ten Days – Nina Allan
17. Front Row Seat to the End of the World – EJ Swift
I’m familiar with almost all of the authors here, though have only read works by five of them in the past, and have been meaning to get to at least another handful of them. The main draw for me were new short stories by Peter F Hamilton and Eric Brown, two of my favourite authors, while I was also particularly interested in reading the offerings from Adrian Tchaikovsky, Nancy Kress, Nina Allan, and EJ Swift.
Now We Are Ten uses a simple theme for its stories: the number ten. Each one uses this in one way or another, some obviously, others in a more subtle manner. However, with such a wide variety on offer, and not really knowing what type of story each author has penned, I approached each with a mix of trepidation and eagerness, hoping that regardless of author it would be one I’d enjoy. While this was generally the case, it wasn’t always so, and is expected with any collection there were very big hits, but also just as big misses.
Following a nice introduction by Ian Whates explaining a little about the press and collection, we get to see just what is on offer. While Cogman’s dystopian story The Final Path is enjoyable enough – though I wasn’t sure about the ending – Macdonald’s Women’s Christmas was very short, and rather odd – not one for me. From there are two great stories: Kress’ Pyramid, a meta story that comes into its own once you connect the dots, and Fenn’s Liberty Bird, an SF space race with deeper musings on sexuality in a difficult society. Armstrong’s Zanzara Island was another miss for me, I just didn’t get what it was trying to do.
Brown’s Ten Sisters was a story I was particularly looking forward to, and it didn’t disappoint. An interesting tale with cloning at its centre, and one that managed to entertain and enthral throughout. Skillingstead’s Licorice uses a very unreliable narrator that fails to fully get the story across effectively, ultimately falling flat come the end. Meanwhile, Sullivan’s How to Grow Silence from Seed was surprisingly deep given its length, but again not a story that I particularly enjoyed. Next there’s a completely different and entirely effective entry: The Time Traveller’s Ball, a ten word story by Rose Biggin.
I’ve only read one novel by Tchaikovsky before – the excellent Children of Time – so I was eager to read his story, Dress Rehearsal, and what a story it is. Following a travelling theatre company that only ever puts on nine shows during each run, this was clever and engrossing with a wonderful twist at the end. Pearce’s The Tenth Man is another great addition, looking at parallel universes through multiple personalities. Unfortunately Williamson’s Rare As A Harpy’s Tear wasn’t clear at all, and one I found hard to finish despite its short length. Christy’s Utopia +10 was easily readable, though not particularly interesting given lack of detail, which was a shame.
Despite ups and downs throughout, Now We Are Ten finishes on a high note with its last three stories. Hamilton’s Ten Love Songs to Change the World is unlike anything he’s written before, but in a good way: contemporary, yet with a definite SF flavour. Allan’s Ten Days is the longest in the anthology, and one that seems to have an old murder-mystery at its heart until the pieces of the puzzle come together, delivering a satisfying ending. And finally we have Swift’s Front Row Seat to the End of the World, another great story that has a personal focus from the narrator and her regrets in life – particularly her estrangement from her daughter – as an Earth killing asteroid draws ever closer.
The question of whether Now We Are Ten is a success is easily answered: yes. Each story, no matter my personal preference, fit the theme perfectly. I found some stories missed the mark in their delivery, others perhaps a touch too obscure for their own good. Ultimately, the better stories balance the collection out nicely, with particular stand-outs coming from Brown, Tchaikovsky, Pearce, and Swift. Now We Are Ten is another reminder that short fiction has a special place in SF&F, and it’s a length that I read way too little of.
Publisher: http://www.newconpress.co.uk
July 2016, 268 Pages
Ebook, ASIN: B01GZ5NE0G
Review from purchased copy
© 2016 Mark Chitty
