Nancy Kress’s acclaimed, Nebula nominated YESTERDAY’S KIN will be included in Prime’s inaugural THE YEAR’S BEST SCIENCE FICTION & FANTASY NOVELLAS.
(Not final cover)
For more info about THE YEAR’S BEST SCIENCE FICTION & FANTASY NOVELLAS 2015, visit the Prime Books page.
For more on YESTERDAY’S KIN, visit the Tachyon page.
Cover by Thomas Canty.
Nancy Kress’s acclaimed, Nebula nominated YESTERDAY’S KIN is a Kindle Daily Deal for Monday, March 30.
“Science-fiction fans will luxuriate in the dystopian madness, while even nonfans will find an artful critique of humanity’s ability to
cooperate in the face of a greater threat.”—Kirkus
Aliens have landed in New York.
A deadly cloud of spores has already infected and killed the
inhabitants of two worlds. Now that plague is heading for Earth, and
threatens humans and aliens alike. Can either species be trusted to
find the cure?
“Nancy Kress has always written stories as accessible to the novice as to the seasoned fan, and “Yesterday’s Kin” gets my vote as this summer’s
most inviting introduction to science fiction for new readers.”
—Gary K. Wolfe, Chicago Tribune
Geneticist Marianne Jenner is immersed in the desperate race to save humanity, yet her family is tearing itself apart. Siblings Elizabeth and
Ryan are strident isolationists who agree only that an alien conspiracy
is in play. Marianne’s youngest, Noah, is a loner addicted to a drug
that constantly changes his identity. But between the four Jenners, the
course of human history will be forever altered.
Earth’s most elite scientists have ten months to prevent human extinction—and not everyone is willing to wait.
“Nancy Kress delivers one of the strongest stories of the year to date…. As with all of Kress’s work, this is very nicely crafted, with
well-paced prose that carries you through the story, complex human
characters, a compelling and conflict-driven human story, a clever twist
partway through, and an even cleverer twist at the end.”
—Gardner Dozois, editor of The Year’s Best Science Fiction series
“Aliens arrive and set up a research station in New York, offering their friendship and aid. There’s a cloud of spores heading for Earth, and
the aliens (dubbed Denebs despite coming from another star entirely)
have firsthand experience dealing with it. In exchange for the
technology that made their interstellar travel possible, the aliens want
human help in curing the plague caused by the spores that have already
destroyed two of their own colony worlds. Geneticist Marianne Jenner is
one of the scientists who have been asked aboard the alien station, but
even among her own family there is a difference of opinion about whether
these extraterrestrials can be trusted. Verdict: Kress has proven that
she can pack a huge amount of story into a small container (as with
2013’s title After the Fall Before the Fall, During the Fall), and here the author expertly explores one family’s experience of alien visitation.”
—Library Journal
“Yesterday’s Kin is a fabulous look at first contact through the eyes of a family. Like all of Nancy’s work, the characterization
and the science is impeccable, and the story so well done that I was sad
when it was over. Nancy delivers a complete package, and shows her
chops as one of our best modern science fiction writers.”
—Brenda Cooper, award-winning author of the Ruby’s Song series
“Sparely constructed and cleverly resolved, “Yesterday’s Kin”
provides everything readers need for an immersive plunge into a
frightening, fascinating and inescapable predicament.”
—Seattle Times
“ clear prose and deft strokes of character”
—Locus
“Kress combines intriguing scientific speculation with strong human
drama to create a finely crafted story that should appeal to a wide
range of readers”
—Asimov’s Science Fiction
A Fantasy Cafe Best Book of 2014
“Yesterday’s Kin is a wonderful example of why Nancy Kress is
such an acclaimed science fiction author. It’s hard science fiction with
a big focus on scientific research and discovery but it’s never bogged
down by explanation, remaining equally focused on the characters and
story. Once I started reading it, I couldn’t put it down!”
—Fantasy Cafe
“In short, Yesterday’s Kin was a joy to read. Not only was
the prose easily digested, but the scientific speculation and facts
behind the story really helped in raising enjoyment. A thoroughly
recommended novel.”
—SFF World
“Yesterday’s Kin is a beautiful blend of science and drama.”
—Bibliophilic
“… fascinating, intelligent and intuitive… . Yesterday’s Kin is highly recommended.
—Nerds in Babeland
“…well worth the read…”
—Internet Book Review
“It’s not a horror story, or a western, or a war story dressed in space
clothes, but proper full-blooded science fiction, and I loved it. I get
the feeling that I will be reading many more books by Nancy Kress.”—Theaker’s Quarterly Fiction
For more on YESTERDAY’S KIN, visit the Tachyon page.
Cover by Thomas Canty.
At Frank Michaels Errington’s Horrible Book Reviews, Errington praises Nancy Kress’ Nebula nominated YESTERDAY’S KIN.
But there is so much more to this multi-layered story. I particularly liked the writer’s handling of the public’s reaction to the space travelers and their stated purpose. In many ways it’s the same way we react to change in the 21st century. I couldn’t help but think about how divided we are over the Affordable Healthcare Act and how much of a panic there was over the Ebola threat. Take that and multiply it to a global scale.
<snip>
Overall, I found YESTERDAY’S KIN to be an enjoyable read. True, not everything made perfect sense, but much of what I read for enjoyment makes no sense at all. I can certainly suspend my disbelief long enough to allow for a few leaps in logic.
<snip>
A quick comment on the cover art by Thomas Canty. Eye-catching and a nice blending of the extra-terrestrial and DNA themes of the story. This would make me pick up the book and at least see what it’s about. Kudos.
Read the rest of Errington’s review at Frank Michaels Errington’s Horrible Book Reviews.
For more on YESTERDAY’S KIN, visit the Tachyon page.
Cover by Thomas Canty.
Review copies of the 2014 Nebula nominated works by Nancy Kress (YESTERDAY’S KIN) and Daryl Gregory (WE ARE ALL COMPLETELY FINE) are available via NetGalley.
WE ARE ALL COMPLETELY FINE on NetGalley
These copies are only for reviewers and librarians. For more details, visit NetGalley.
And while you are there, check out the other Tachyon titles for review.
A complete list of all the Nebula nominations is available on the SFWA page.
For information on WE ARE ALL COMPLETELY FINE visit the Tachyon page.
Cover design by Elizabeth Story.
For more on YESTERDAY’S KIN, visit the Tachyon page.
Cover by Thomas Canty.
Over at Black Gate, John O’neill reviews and celebrates Tachyon Publications.
Today I’ve replicated the Tachyon booth, which was staffed by the friendly folks of Tachyon Publications, out of San Francisco. Tachyon is one of my favorite small presses — not only do they produce very attractive and collectible books, but they showcase some of the best writers in the business. They have an affinity for short story collections, and they’ve produced some of the best anthologies for heroic fantasy fans in the past few years, including the comprehensive The Sword & Sorcery Anthology and the mammoth Epic.
Tachyon has reprinted many fantasy classics over the years, including Tim Powers 1989 novel The Stress of Her Regard, which was nominated for the World Fantasy Award and won the Mythopoeic Fantasy Award. A tale of ancient vampires whose origins date back to Greek mythology, and with characters that include the Romantic poets Byron and Shelley, The Stress of Her Regard is a secret history novel, and the Tachyon edition is newly revised by the author.
Nancy Kress’s Yesterday’s Kin was nominated for a Nebula Award yesterday — one of two novellas published by Tachyon last year to be so honored.
Her Smoke Rose Up Forever is one of the most important science fiction collections of the 20th Century, by one of the most brilliant SF writers of all time, James Tiptree, Jr. There’s been a great deal written about Tiptree (whose real name was Alice B. Sheldon) over the last ten years, but in that time virtually all of her collections have remained out of print — except this one, a comprehensive survey of her best work. If you don’t own a copy already, you need to rectify that ASAP.
Jacob Weisman and his team at Tachyon are one of the most consistently excellent fantasy publishers on the market. Their upcoming titles include books by Nalo Hopkinson, Peter V. Brett, Kelley Armstrong and Alastair Reynolds. They richly deserve your support. See their complete catalog and order copies at their website.
Read the rest of O’neill’s overview, which includes reviews and commentary on several more Tachyon titles, at Black Gate.
For more on YESTERDAY’S KIN, visit the Tachyon page.
Cover by Thomas Canty.
For more on HER SMOKE ROSE UP FOREVER, visit the Tachyon page.
Cover by John Picacio.
For more about SLOW BULLETS, visit the Tachyon page.
Cover art by Thomas Canty.
Design by Elizabeth Story.
Congratulations to Nancy Kress (YESTERDAY’S KIN) and Daryl Gregory (WE ARE ALL COMPLETELY FINE) for their Nebula nominations for best novella.
A complete list of all the nominations is available on the SFWA page.
For information on WE ARE ALL COMPLETELY FINE visit the Tachyon page.
Cover design by Elizabeth Story.
For more on YESTERDAY’S KIN, visit the Tachyon page.
Cover by Thomas Canty.
At Alas, a Blog, Rachel Swirsky recommends YESTERDAY’S KIN as one of the best novellas of 2014, while the Spanish language Fantástica – Ficción says “the Nancy Kress tale is a good story, much better than AFTER THE FALL, BEFORE THE FALL, DURING THE FALL.”
I’m not doing much of a thematic analysis here, but it’s a strong work, and very successful at being the kind of story it sets out to be (not an easy task). I enjoy its complex plot and all the intellectual bells and whistles that keep my science fictional brain happy.
The author blends biology with some ideas of science fiction, such as panspermia , in a balanced cocktail that leaves a good aftertaste. The two points of view provide the narration, contrasting the more cerebral and scientific guidance of the doctor with the most sentimental of his son. As time passes, however, the evolution of history cause changes rather radical in both characters and their way of telling what happens, something very naturally driven and successful by Kress.
The pace is appropriate. Nancy explains the scientific discoveries of a perfectly understandable way. The only complaint one could find, and putting picky, is that the future of humanity is so harmed by the actions of one family. But for that are the protagonists of the story.
(Poor translation courtesy of Google)
For more on YESTERDAY’S KIN, visit the Tachyon page.
Cover by Thomas Canty.
At his Theaker’s Quarterly Fiction, Stephen Theaker discovers that he loves Nancy Kress’ YESTERDAY’S KIN.
This is the kind of novel I thought they didn’t make any more. Short, but complete in itself, giving clever scientists an intractable problem and an impossible deadline. A fascinating alien culture, psychological insight into our own. And what seems like (to this non-scientist, at least) real science. It’s not a horror story, or a western, or a war story dressed in space clothes, but proper full-blooded science fiction, and I loved it.
Read the rest of Theaker’s review at Theaker’s Quarterly Fiction.
For more on YESTERDAY’S KIN, visit the Tachyon page.
Cover by Thomas Canty.
Tachyon enjoyed six mentions on the 2014 Locus Recommended Reading List.
The anthologies-reprints/best category listed Lovecraft’s Monsters (edited by Ellen Datlow) and The Very Best of Fantasy & Science Fiction, Volume 2 (edited by Gordon Van Gelder).
The original novellas Daryl Gregory’s We Are All Completely Fine, Nancy Kress’ Yesterday’s Kin, James Morrow’s The Madonna and the Starship, and “Children of the Fang” by John Langan from Lovecraft’s Monsters all garnered notice.
Congratulations to all the writers and editors.
For the rest of the recommended reads, visit Locus.
For more info on Lovecraft’s Monsters, visit the Tachyon site.
Cover by John Coulthart.
For more info on The Very Best of Fantasy & Science Fiction, Volume 2, visit the Tachyon page.
Cover by Thomas Canty.
For info on We Are All Completely Fine, visit the Tachyon page.
Cover design by Elizabeth Story.
For more info on Yesterday’s Kin, visit the Tachyon page.
Cover by Thomas Canty.
For more on The Madonna and the Starship, visit the Tachyon page.
Cover and design by Elizabeth Story.
All of us at Tachyon wish the extraordinary, Nancy Kress a very happy birthday. The multiple award winner is the author of Yesterday’s Kin, After the Fall, Before the Fall, During the Fall, Dogs, Dancing on Air, and many others.
Yesterday’s Kin cover by Thomas Canty.
After the Fall, Before the Fall, During the Fall by Elizabeth Story.
Dancing on Air cover by Michael Dashow.
