When I’m selecting stories for The Best Science Fiction of the Year anthologies, there are always more amazing stories than I can possibly fit in the anthology. Towards the end, the calls can be very difficult and sometimes influenced by the amount of space left in the book or the availability of the work itself. (Believe it or not, sometimes a story is contractually prevented from being reprinted in a year’s best anthology.)

Here are the stories that I couldn’t include and instead listed in the Recommended Reading section of The Best Science Fiction of the Year: Volume Four:

  • “You will see the moon rise” by Israel Alonso, translated by Steve Redwood, Apex Book of World SF 5, edited by Cristina Jurado.
  • “Work Shadow/Shadow Work” by Madeline Ashby, Robots vs. Fairies, edited by Dominik Parisien and Navah Wolfe.
  • “Dandelion” by Elly Bangs, Clarkesworld Magazine, September 2018.
  • “Breakwater” by Simon Bestwick, Tor.com, February 28, 2018.
  • “The Only Harmless Great Thing” by Brooke Bolander, Published by Tor.com Books.
  • “Life from the Sky” by Sue Burke, Asimov’s Science Fiction, May/June 2018.
  • “The Independence Patch” by Bryan Camp, Lightspeed Magazine, March 2018.
  • “The Counting of Vermillon Beads” by Aliette de Bodard, A Thousand Beginnings and Endings, edited by Ellen Oh and Elsie Chapman.
  • The Tea Master and the Detective by Aliette de Bodard, Published by Subterranean Press/JABberwocky Ebooks.
  • “Loss of Signal” by S.B. Divya, Tor.com, August 1, 2018.
  • “Phoresis” by Greg Egan, Published by Subterranean Press.
  • “The Nearest” by Greg Egan, Tor.com, July 19, 2018.
  • “Logistics” by A.J. Fitzwater, Clarkesworld Magazine, April 2018.
  • “Icefall” by Stephanie Gunn, Published by Twelfth Planet Press.
  • “Inscribed on Dark Water” by Gregor Hartmann, Interzone, September/October 2018.
  • “Fluxless” by Mike Jansen, Samovar, December 3, 2018.
  • “Cuisine des Mémoires” by N.K. Jemisin, How Long ’til Black Future Month.
  • “Every Single Wonderful Detail” by Stephen Graham Jones, Mechanical Animals, edited by Selena Chambers and Jason Heller.
  • “Grace’s Family” by James Patrick Kelly, Tor.com, May 16, 2018.
  • “In Event of Moon Disaster” by Rich Larson, Asimov’s Science Fiction, March/April 2018.
  • “Porque el Girasol Se Llama el Girasol” by Rich Larson, Shades Within Us: Tales of Migrations and Fractured Borders, edited by Susan Forest and Lucas K. Law.
  • “Broken Wings” by William Ledbetter, The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction, July/August 2018.
  • “Vespers” by J. M. Ledgard, Twelve Tomorrows, edited by Wade Roush.
  • “Left to Take the Lead” by Marissa Lingen, Analog Science Fiction and Fact, July/August 2018.
  • “Cosmic Spring” by Ken Liu, Lightspeed Magazine, March 2018.
  • “Chine Life” by Paul McAuley, Twelve Tomorrows, edited by Wade Roush.
  • Time Was by Ian McDonald, Published by Tor.com Books.
  • “Mother, Mother, Will You Play With Me?” by Seanan McGuire, Mother of Invention, edited by Rivqa Rafael and Tansy Rayner Roberts.
  • “Longing For Earth” by Linda Nagata, Infinity’s End, edited by Jonathan Strahan.
  • “The Miracle Lambs of Minane” by Finbarr O’Reilly, Clarkesworld Magazine, November 2018.
  • “The Heart of the Matter” by Nnedi Okorafor, Twelve Tomorrows, edited by Wade Roush.
  • “The Hard Spot in the Glacier” by An Owomoyela, Mechanical Animals, edited by Selena Chambers and Jason Heller.
  • “The Streaming Man” by Suzanne Palmer, Analog Science Fiction and Fact, March/April 2018.
  • “Stones in the Water, Cottage on the Mountain” by Suzanne Palmer, Asimov’s Science Fiction, July/August 2018.
  • “Love Songs for the Very Awful” by Robert Reed, Asimov’s Science Fiction, March/April 2018.
  • “Death’s Door” by Alastair Reynolds, Infinity’s End, edited by Jonathan Strahan.
  • “A Study in Oils” by Kelly Robson, Clarkesworld Magazine, September 2018.
  • Gods, Monsters and the Lucky Peach by Kelly Robson, Published by Tor.com Books.
  • “Maximum Outflow” by Adam Rogers, Wired, December 17, 2018.
  • “Joyride” by Kristine Kathryn Rusch, Asimov’s Science Fiction, November/December 2018.
  • “The Wait is Longer Than You Think” by Adrian Simmons, GigaNotoSaurus, May 2018.
  • “Widdam” by Vandana Singh, The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction, January/February 2018.
  • “Overvalued” by Mark Stasenko, Slate, November 27, 2018.
  • “Starship Mountain” by Allen M. Steele, Asimov’s Science Fiction, July/August 2018.
  • “An Errant Holy Spark” by Bogi Takacs, Mother of Invention, edited by Rivqa Rafael and Tansy Rayner Roberts.
  • “The Persistence of Blood” by Juliette Wade, Clarkesworld Magazine, March 2018.
  • “Kindred” by Peter Watts, Infinity’s End, edited by Jonathan Strahan.
  • “The Freeze-Frame Revolution” by Peter Watts, Published by Tachyon Publications.
  • Artificial Condition by Martha Wells, Published by Tor.com Books.
  • Rogue Protocol by Martha Wells, Published by Tor.com Books.
  • Exit Strategy by Martha Wells, Published by Tor.com Books.
  • “Compulsory” by Martha Wells, Wired, December 17, 2018.
  • “In the God-Fields” by Liz Williams, Women Invent the Future, edited by Doteveryone.
  • “The Clockwork Penguin Dreamed of Stars” by Caroline M. Yoachim, Mechanical Animals, edited by Selena Chambers and Jason Heller.

The Best Science Fiction of the Year: Volume Four can be ordered from: