Science Fiction Space Survival

Today’s fans of science fiction and fantasy have an appetite for stories that address a wide variety of voices, perspectives, and styles. There is an openness to experiment and pushing boundaries, combined with the classic desire to hear about spaceships and dragons, future technology and ancient magic, and the places where they intersect. With a diverse selection of stories chosen by series editor John Joseph Adams and Diana Gabaldon, The Best American Science Fiction and Fantasy 2020 explores the ever-expanding and changing world of SFF today.

More than 50 years after publishing his first story, Hugo Award-winning author Asimov remains one of the great names in science fiction. Almost single-handedly he transformed the field from the romantic and Gothic legacy of Jules Verne and Edgar Rice Burroughs into the rational, clear-minded genre that exists today. This selection of some of Asimov's most enduring and unforgettable stories is read by the author himself. These vintage tales encompass the full range of Asimov's versatility, while displaying his puckish sense of humor.

Liam and Phoebe, having barely escaped our exploding sun with their lives, are in stasis for the decade-long journey to the rogue planet Delphi, where they hope to meet up with the rest of the human refugees, find help for their injured parents, and pass along the devastating things they discovered on Mars: that someone destroyed their world intentionally, and that that someone might still be after them, trying to finish the job. Phoebe is carrying her own dark secret. One that finds her waking up secretly at various points in their journey, changing their path through space.

It is Earth year 2256 - but the fate of the few who even remember Earth is perilously in doubt. Mina Saunders-Chang and many of the surviving humans are stranded in the Centauri system, having barely survived their confrontation with the Telphon refugees. Now everyone - human and Telphon alike - is caught in the blast zone of the Centauri supernova. And yet there's only one question Mina is asking: Where are Liam and Phoebe?

In a world covered in water, secrets abound—from corrupt rich nobles to secret organizations with deadly motives. The Nereus Underwater Championship Races promised Adam Rossu fame and a ticket off this aquatic world. Yet, in the complex TriadVerse, life is never that straightforward. Framed for a crime by a powerful Noble and hunted by Knights, Adam dives into an underworld of pirates, smugglers, and refugees. Enter Stephana, a captivating woman with diverse talents on a quest to find her missing clan members. Together, they embark on an underwater adventure to rescue her people from ...

“So many twists and turns...I literally could not put it down.” “A real page-turner—suspenseful, exciting, a must-read.” “Can’t wait for the sequel!” Zeke Stanton is stranded on the moon with no food, no training, and no communication with Earth. His chances for survival are virtually zero. But just when Zeke thinks getting home is his biggest challenge, he makes a discovery that could change the course of human history. He’s now faced with an impossible choice: save humanity or save himself. As Zeke seeks a way to disclose his mind-numbing find, he becomes the target of a...

Michael Prasad knows he shouldn’t go out on the Mars surface alone. It’s dangerous. His parents have forbidden it. And the anxiety he feels almost every time he puts on a spacesuit makes it nearly impossible for him to leave the safety of the colony. But when his best friend, Lilith, suggests they sneak out one night, he can’t resist the chance to prove everyone - including himself - wrong.

Humans only have months left on Earth. We have left our salvation to an alien ship filled with criminals, like me. When our ship lands on the unknown planet of Noetov, who better than criminals to fight for whatever it takes to save our species. With the man I have been (literally) dreaming about for over a year at my side, I know I can accomplish anything. But the man I love is also the inhabitants of Noetov's life-long enemy. When he's captured, I know I'll do anything to save him...even if it sacrifices the salvation of Earth. 1-click this romantic apocalyptic survival space opera today!...

Lieutenant Ryann Voss craves a career-defining mission, but her first deep-space assignment aboard the UNS Indira Vahl is anything but. A routine convoy escort quickly devolves into a monotonous patrol, leaving Ryann bored and restless. Yet, her sharp mind soon uncovers unsettling anomalies: a ship humming with quiet disinterest, subtle system irregularities dismissed by her stoic superiors, and an undercurrent of unease that hints at something far more sinister. When a horrific accident cripples a crewmate, Ryann unearths a terrifying truth: the Vahl isn't just battered and war-weary, it's...

Hunted across the TriadVerse, Blayne's Kingdom had been torn away and his entire life revealed as a lie. All he ever craved was freedom, but when an ally turns traitor, invading his world and stripping away everything, Blayne discovers that freedom demands a steep price. On the run with his best friend, they traverse the three Solar Systems in search of allies to reclaim their planet. Yet, as Blayne unravels secrets and mysteries from his past, will the truth grant him the freedom he yearns for? A truth that might propel him towards an extraordinary destiny against an ancient enemy—...

After their recent victory over an incredibly powerful alien foe, Captain John Duggan and his crew are expecting some downtime while the ESS Crimson is refitted. It is not to be. In a war for survival, the Space Corps' best officer can't be permitted to languish on base with his feet up. Soon after landing on planet Atlantis, Duggan gets the call once more. This time there's to be no holding back - his superiors want him to take the fight to the enemy, rather than wait it out in Confederation Space.

Extraterrestrials finally show their faces. Can one investigator use their technology to stop WWIII from destroying humanity? Dallas, 2072. Jack Slater has been piecing together evidence of alien visits for years. So as the head of a fully funded UFO research team, he’s excited to give an interview to a cute journalist about his unusual job. But when a real-life spaceship appears outside his window and beams in a powerful probe, only his split-second action saves them from an unknown threat. Believing the vessel may have been trying to issue a warning, Jack searches for more clues to the ...

Captain John Duggan and his crew are stranded deep in hostile territory. Their spaceship, the ESS Crimson is damaged beyond repair. Enemy warships hunt them, eager to locate the vessel which has caused so much damage to their military. All seems lost. Duggan is not a man to go down without a fight. Determined to take matters into his own hands, he leads his squad across the surface of an inhospitable planet in order to make a raid upon an enemy base.

The militia requested help in acquiring a new ship, Matthew's seeing to it that the job is finished. The job has taken Matthew and his team into Thessalonia, and Matthew isn't about to head back home after the job is done after going this far. He's got questions that need answering and he's got Beets to kill. And there's a chance that some of his friends from Crail are in the city too! Read The Battle for Allegra: Acquisition today! Acquisition is the twenty-third book in the sci-fi novelette series The Battle for Allegra. Join Matthew as he goes over the top and ventures into the killing ...

Watch out - the Earth just fell into a dark sun's orbit! Or maybe you'd rather visit a theme park called Hell? These are just two of the strange and unnerving tales you'll find in this collection of great science fiction and fantasy stories.

When the young crew of the Star Wanderer crash-lands on the icy, desolate planet of Frost's Edge, their mission of exploration turns into a desperate fight for survival. Trapped in an alien world far from home, Zane and his fellow cadets must harness their training and ingenuity to conquer the unknown. Zane, a budding engineer with a gift for innovation, reluctantly steps into the role of leader. His crew includes Allie, a xenobiologist determined to document the alien ecosystem; Tamika, a medical officer tasked with keeping the team alive against all odds; and Rorax, a Caraxian aspiring ...

One last mission. It's a promise familiar to Captain John Duggan. Each final battle has another following it, with another after that. They come to him with the inevitability of death. His latest task seems no different to the others before it. As events progress, Duggan begins to believe - he starts to see how his life might change at the end of it and how the lives of billions in the Confederation may be saved if he succeeds. This time, his superiors plan no less than the destruction of the Helius Blackstar itself.

The world’s most destructive spacecraft is about to get hijacked.Virago is the codename for a top secret project between ACE Corp and the US Space Force. Its goal is to deploy the first fusion-powered battleship to ensure American domination of any potential conflict in space. There’s only one problem. Virago has been stolen. The world is now at the brink of war as the hijacked spacecraft forges a path of destruction across known space. The task to intercept and retake this dangerous adversary falls on corporate fixer Stilicho Jones and NASA Special Agent Darian Arante. This time the ...

When Noa closes his eyes on Earth and wakes up on a spaceship called Qriosity just as it’s about to explode, he’s pretty sure things can’t get much weirder. Boy, is he wrong. Trapped aboard Qriosity are also DJ and Jenny, neither of whom remember how they got onboard the ship. Together, the three face all the dangers of space, along with murder, aliens, a school dance, and one really, really bad day. But none of this can prepare Noa for the biggest challenge—falling in love.

She holds the key to humanity’s survival—if she can unlock the truth buried inside her own mind. In a near-future Earth ravaged by unstoppable disease, the last hope for survival lies in the stars. The Rangatiratanga, the Absolute Sovereignty of New Zealand, launches three Galaxy Cruisers toward distant exomoons—each ship a final lifeline for the human race. But one by one, the ships are lost. River, a brilliant but isolated prodigy, may be the only one who can stop the destruction. She is unknowingly bound to a Māori prophecy—an ancient myth colliding with quantum reality—that ...