About the Author

George R.R. Martin is the author of the acclaimed, internationally bestselling fantasy series A Song of Ice and Fire, adapted into the hit HBO series Game of Thrones. He is also the editor and contributor to the Wild Cards series, including the novels Suicide Kings and Fort Freak, among other bestsellers. He has won multiple science fiction and fantasy awards, including four Hugos, two Nebulas, six Locus Awards, the Bram Stoker, the World Fantasy Award, the Daedelus, the Balrog, and the Daikon (the Japanese Hugo). Martin has been writing ever since he was a child, when he sold monster stories to neighborhood children for pennies, and then in high school he wrote fiction for comic fanzines. His first professional sale was to Galaxy magazine, when he was 21. He has been a full-time writer since 1979. Martin has bachelor's and master's degrees in journalism from Northwestern University. He lives in Santa Fe, New Mexico.

Gardner Dozois, one of the most acclaimed editors in science-fiction, has won the Hugo Award for Best Editor 15 times. He was the editor of Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine for 20 years. He is the editor of the Year's Best Science Fiction anthologies and co-editor of the Warrior anthologies, Songs of the Dying Earth, and many others. As a writer, Dozois twice won the Nebula Award for best short story. He lives in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Reviews

"An amazing collection of stories from all eras and genres, from ancient Rome and Carthage to a future where soldiers jack into giant robots on a battlefield far away and everything between. These stories impressed me with their depth, their eloquence, and the ability to surprise me from time to time." --Seattlepi.com

This anthology of midlength fiction by prominent authors follows a pattern set by staple genre collections 999 (horror) and Legends (fantasy). In this case, though, star editors Martin (A Game of Thrones) and Dozois have chosen to work with a theme. The result is an eclectic mix of straight fiction, historical fiction, noir, sf, and epic fantasy novellas, each focused on a central warrior figure. All are worth reading, but the standouts are Lawrence Block's "Clean Slate," about a woman fighting her past; "Out Of The Dark" by David Weber, military SF with a twist; "The Girls From Avenger" by Carrie Vaughn, featuring a WASP searching for the truth of her friend's death; and "My Name Is Legion" by David Morrell, a tale from the real history of the French Foreign Legion. Verdict The collection is already much anticipated by fans of Diana Gabaldon and Martin for two stories set in their respective series worlds ("The Custom of the Army" and "The Mystery Knight," respectively) but would be well worth purchasing even without them. The many different styles and genres give it broad appeal. Highly recommended for all libraries.-Karl G. Siewert, Tulsa City-Cty. Lib. Copyright 2010 Reed Business Information.