Locus Magazine, Science Fiction FantasyMay features interviews with Nnedi Okorafor and Ken Liu, a new column by Cory Doctorow, awards and publishing news, including coverage of this year’s Hugo Awards Ballot, and reviews of short fiction and books by Paolo Bacigalupi, Alex Bledsoe, C.J. Cherryh, Stephen King, Kazuo Ishiguro, and many others.

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Table of Contents

 

May 2015 • Issue 652 • Vol. 74 • No. 5
48th Year of Publication • 30-Time Hugo Winner
Cover and Interview Designs by Francesca Myman

INTERVIEWS
Nnedi Okorafor: Magical Futurism / 6
Ken Liu: Silkpunk / 58
CONVENTIONS
Willliamson Lectureship: April 9-11, 2015 / 4 2015 Writers and Illustrators of the Future / 5 2015 International Conference on the Fantastic in the Arts / 32 Norwescon 38 / 57
MAIN STORIES / 5&10
2015 Hugo Awards Ballot • Elison Wins Dick Award • 2014 BSFA Awards Winners • Russ and Schmidt Win Solstice Awards • Byrne and Walton Win Tiptree • Dell Awards Winners • Hugo Awards Controversy
PEOPLE & PUBLISHING / 8
Notes on milestones, awards, books sold, etc., with news this issue about Tom Holt/K.J.Parker, F. Paul Wilson, Harlan Ellison, Cherie Priest, Robert Silverberg, and many others
THE DATA FILE / 11
Clarke Award Shortlist • 2014 Aurealis Awards Winners • Cutter Wins Herbert • Publishing News • Tiptree Fellowships • Awards News • World Conventions News • Book News • Announcements • Financial News
SPECIAL FEATURES
Commentary by Cory Doctorow: Shorter / 29 Spotlight on: Stephanie Pui-Mun Law, Artist / 31 Spotlight on: Jessica Cohen, Artist / 55
LISTINGS
Magazines Received: March / 30 Books Received: March / 35 British Books Received: February / 46 Bestsellers / 48
OBITUARIES/54
Peggy Rae Sapienza • Günter Grass • Ellen Conford
EDITORIAL MATTERS / 62
Bloc Voting • Trips • This Issue/Next Issue

LOCUS LOOKS AT BOOKS
Gardnerspace: A Short Fiction Column by Gardner Dozois / 14
Asimov’s 3/15; F&SF 3-4/15; The Best of Ian McDonald, Ian McDonald.
Short Fiction Reviews by Rich Horton / 15
F&SF 3-4/15; Analog 4/15; Analog 5/15; Old Venus, George R.R. Martin & Gardner Dozois, eds.; Operation Arcana, John Joseph Adams, ed.
Reviews by Gary K. Wolfe / 16
The Water Knife, Paolo Bacigalupi; Seveneves, Neal Stephenson; Where, Kit Reed; Perdido: A Fragment from a Work in Progress, Peter Straub.
Reviews by Faren Miller / 18
Long Black Curl, Alex Bledsoe; Come Away, Stephen Policoff; Explaining Cthulhu to Grandma and Other Stories, Alex Shvartsman; Voyage of the Basilisk, Marie Brennan; Vermilion, Molly Tanzer.
Reviews by Russell Letson / 21
Tracker, C.J. Cherryh; Evensong, John Love.
Reviews by Stefan Dziemianowicz / 22
Finders Keepers, Stephen King; Jack of Spades, Joyce Carol Oates; The Scarlet Gospels, Clive Barker.
Short Reviews by Carolyn Cushman / 25
The Exile, C.T. Adams; Monstrous, MarcyKate Connolly; Princess Acedemy: The Forgotten Sisters, Shannon Hale; Unbound, Jim C. Hines; Of Noble Family, Mary Robinette Kowal; Artemis Invaded, Jane Lindskold; Pocket Apocalypse, Seanan McGuire; Uprooted, Naomi Novik; Cat Out of Hell, Lynne Truss.
Reviews by Divers Hands: Colleen Mondor, Richard A. Lupoff, Tom Whitmore & Liz Bourke / 26
The Messengers, Edward Hogan; The Walls Around Us, Nova Ren Suma; The Buried Giant, Kazuo Ishiguro; Dancing with the Squirrels, Dwight R. Decker; To Hold the Bridge, Garth Nix; Updraft, Fran Wilde; Corsair, James L. Cambias.
Terry Bisson: This Month in History / 15, 17, 19, 25

 

Magazine Issues reviewed in this issue (indicating reviewer) —

Analog April 2015 (Rich Horton)
Analog May 2015 (Rich Horton)
Asimov’s March 2015 (Gardner Dozois)
F&SF March/April 2015 (Gardner Dozois)
F&SF March/April 2015 (Rich Horton)

Books reviewed in this issue, listed by author (indicating reviewer) —

Adams, C. T. • The Exile (Carolyn Cushman)
Adams, John Joseph, ed. • Operation Arcana (Rich Horton)
Bacigalupi, Paolo • The Water Knife (Gary K. Wolfe)
Barker, Clive • The Scarlet Gospels (Stefan Dziemianowicz)
Bledsoe, Alex • Long Black Curl (Faren Miller)
Bourke, Liz • Updraft (Liz Bourke)
Brennan, Marie • Voyage of the Basilisk (Faren Miller)
Cambias, James • Corsair (Liz Bourke)
Cherryh, C. J. • Tracker (Russell Letson)
Connolly, MarcyKate • Monstrous (Carolyn Cushman)
Decker, Dwight R. • Dancing with the Squirrels (Richard A. Lupoff)
Hale, Shannon • Princess Academy: The Forgotten Sisters (Carolyn Cushman)
Hines, Jim C. • Unbound (Carolyn Cushman)
Hogan, Edward • The Messengers (Colleen Mondor)
Ishiguro, Kazuo • The Buried Giant (Richard A. Lupoff)
King, Stephen • Finders Keepers (Stefan Dziemianowicz)
Kowal, Mary Robinette • Of Noble Family (Carolyn Cushman)
Lindskold, Jane • Artemis Invaded (Carolyn Cushman)
Love, John • Evensong (Russell Letson)
Martin, George R. R., & Gardner Dozois, eds. • Old Venus (Rich Horton)
McDonald, Ian • The Best of Ian McDonald (Gardner Dozois)
McGuire, Seanan • Pocket Apocalypse (Carolyn Cushman)
Nix, Garth • To Hold the Bridge (Tom Whitmore)
Novik, Naomi • Uprooted (Carolyn Cushman)
Oates, Joyce Carol • Jack of Spades (Stefan Dziemianowicz)
Policoff, Stephen • Come Away (Faren Miller)
Reed, Kit • Where (Gary K. Wolfe)
Shvartsman, Alex • Explaining Cthulhu to Grandma and Other Stories (Faren Miller)
Stephenson, Neal • Seveneves (Gary K. Wolfe)
Straub, Peter • Perdido (Gary K. Wolfe)
Suma, Nova Ren • The Walls Around Us (Colleen Mondor)
Tanzer, Molly • Vermilion (Faren Miller)
Truss, Lynne • Cat Out of Hell (Carolyn Cushman)