Tell me which 2015 SFF is knocking your socks off! - Updated 8/31/15

I've been getting a lot of interesting recommendations, so time for an updated list! I'll post more updates periodically, as I receive more good recommendations and as I finish reading things that *I* love!

What science fiction and fantasy have you read or watched, and loved, this year? I'm specifically looking for works that were first published or aired in 2015 and are eligible for nomination for the 2016 Hugo Awards. I'm especially hungry for recommendations of good shorter-than-novel-length fiction since I have a hard time finding good shorter works. I want recommendations of novels, too, though, please.

Here are the things on my "I might nominate this!" list so far (in no particular order):

Best Novel:
Best Related Work
Best Dramatic Presentation - Long Form:
Best Fan Writer:
Here are a list of things that have been recommended to me so far, or that I'm just really looking forward to reading anyway. I'm going to read through as many of them as I can!

(Disclaimer: I'm only listing things here I think I might be interested in. There are many more extensive general lists of recommendations, and many more comprehensive lists of eligible works - please link me to more of these too!)

Novels:
Dramatic Presentation - Long Form:
Best Dramatic Presentation - Short Form:
John W. Campbell Award (not a Hugo):

Tell me about the new SFF you're loving! I want to read it! Also, please tell me what you love about it, if you can without too much spoiler!
at

20 comments:

  1. qwertsquirtAugust 31, 2015 at 10:49 AM

    Roll out the recs

    NOVEL

    https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23168817-the-dark-forest

    https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/24971454-the-raft

    NOVELLA

    https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/24791985-the-visible-filth

    http://www.aqueductpress.com/books/978-1-61976-071-4.php (The Boatman's Cure)

    https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25696314-bone-swans (The Bone Swans of Amandale)

    http://www.tor.com/2015/04/22/the-pauper-prince-and-the-eucalyptus-jinn-usman-malik/

    NOVELETTE

    http://www.tor.com/2015/04/01/ballroom-blitz-veronica-schanoes/

    http://crossedgenres.com/magazine/031-little-men-with-knives/

    http://www.lightspeedmagazine.com/fiction/shall-know-trail-dead/

    http://www.lightspeedmagazine.com/fiction/violation-of-the-truenet-security-act/

    http://www.beneath-ceaseless-skies.com/stories/day-of-the-dragonfly/

    SHORT STORY

    http://www.lightspeedmagazine.com/fiction/influence-isolated-make-peace/

    http://www.tor.com/2015/01/21/damage-david-levine/

    http://clarkesworldmagazine.com/kressel_05_15/

    http://www.lightspeedmagazine.com/fiction/madeleine/

    http://www.pornokitsch.com/2015/02/fiction-the-lost-city-of-osiris-by-carol-borden.html

    GRAPHIC STORY

    https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25074849-bitch-planet-volume-1

    https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23017947-ms-marvel-vol-2

    https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23546843-ms-marvel-vol-3

    https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23012877-rat-queens-vol-2

    https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22752445-supermutant-magic-academy

    https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23228585-sex-criminals-vol-2

    https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22822839-the-thrilling-adventures-of-lovelace-and-babbage (May or may not be better suited in Best Related Work; the jury's still out)

    DRAMATIC PRESENTATION LONG FORM

    Sense8 (Season 1)
    http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2431438/episodes?season=1&ref_=tt_eps_sn_1

    Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norell
    http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2548418/

    It Follows
    http://www.imdb.com/title/tt3235888/

    DRAMATIC PRESENTATION SHORT FORM
    http://www.imdb.com/title/tt3866850/ (you might say it's the only episode this season really worth a look)

    http://www.imdb.com/title/tt3780308/

    http://www.imdb.com/title/tt4301958/

    http://www.imdb.com/title/tt3986348/

    http://www.imdb.com/title/tt4146568/

    http://www.imdb.com/title/tt4171032/ (view it here: https://vimeo.com/ondemand/worldoftomorrow)


    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. qwertsquirtAugust 31, 2015 at 10:51 AM

      I didn't see you already added Damage! Oh well.

      Delete
  2. qwertsquirtAugust 31, 2015 at 7:17 PM

    Some more recs

    https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25070598-roboteer (Novel)

    https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22609306-signal-to-noise (Novel)

    http://thebooksmugglers.com/2015/08/the-vishakanyas-choice-by-roshani-chokshi.html (short story)

    http://www.firesidefiction.com/issue19/chapter/tuesdays-with-molakesh-the-destroyer/ (short story)

    http://uncannymagazine.com/article/folding-beijing-2/ (novelette)

    http://giganotosaurus.org/2015/05/01/sacred-cows-death-and-squalor-on-the-rio-grande/ (novelette)

    https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23546848-thor-vol-1 (graphic story)

    ReplyDelete
  3. qwertsquirtSeptember 1, 2015 at 10:28 AM

    Aaaand one more novel rec:

    https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/24821743-dark-star

    ReplyDelete
  4. qwertsquirtSeptember 1, 2015 at 10:43 AM

    Last rec until the next roundup post (I promise!), this time for Graphic Story. I didn't even know this one was getting a volume, It's incredible.

    https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23519146-stand-still-stay-silent-book-1

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. qwertsquirtSeptember 1, 2015 at 2:32 PM

      Crap, forgot to mention: Books not out yet, but it DOES collect the prologue and chapters 1-5 of this webcomic:

      http://www.sssscomic.com/?id=archive

      Delete
  5. qwertsquirtSeptember 1, 2015 at 7:02 PM

    Okay, last one for really-reals. I am so, so, sorry.

    https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/24547634-blade-s-edge (Novel)

    https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/20980680-black-wolves (Novel; comes out November)

    NOW I'M DONE

    ReplyDelete
  6. qwertsquirtSeptember 3, 2015 at 9:00 PM

    Best Dramatic Presentation Long Form: The Lobster

    http://youtu.be/fpt0tn1-54k

    And let's hope the new Star Wars is friggin' amazing.

    ReplyDelete
  7. zSeptember 4, 2015 at 5:07 AM

    2015 short stories:
    Sugar Showpiece Universe / Caroline M Yoachim (http://dailysciencefiction.com/hither-and-yon/tasting-menu/caroline-m-yoachim/sugar-showpiece-univers)
    Garbage Trucks of Discontent / Caroline M Yoachim (http://dailysciencefiction.com/science-fiction/robots-and-computers/caroline-m-yoachim/garbage-trucks-of-discontent)
    Cracks in the Mirror Glass / Anna Marie Yeatts (http://dailysciencefiction.com/fantasy/fairy-tales/anna-marie-yeatts/cracks-in-the-mirror-glass)
    2015 professional artist:
    Julie Dillon (http://www.juliedillonart.com/)
    2015 fan writers:
    Eric Flint (http://www.ericflint.net/)
    George R R Martin (http://grrm.livejournal.com/)
    Mark Oshiro (http://markreads.net/reviews/ http://markwatches.net/reviews/)
    Kevin Standlee (http://kevin-standlee.livejournal.com/)
    1940 novelette:
    The Roads Must Roll / Robert A Heinlein
    1940 short story:
    Strange Playfellow (aka Robbie) / Isaac Asimov
    1940 dramatic presentations, long form:
    Fantasia
    Pinocchio

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. qwertsquirtSeptember 4, 2015 at 7:17 AM

      ...Kevin Standlee for Fan Writer?

      Delete
    2. qwertsquirtSeptember 4, 2015 at 1:28 PM

      Also, wouldn't the 1940 Hugo's honor works from 1939?

      Delete
    3. zSeptember 5, 2015 at 12:48 PM

      Mr Standlee deserves, in my opinion, some recognition for all he's done, including answers to frequently asked questions on his blog and answers to specific questions in various comment threads, and these count as fan writing.
      MidAmeriCon II will host the 1941 Retro Hugos.

      Delete
    4. qwertsquirtSeptember 14, 2015 at 6:58 AM

      well yeah, I do appreciate all he's done, but I don't really see him as a FAN writer. He kinda works for the Hugos?

      Delete
    5. qwertsquirtSeptember 14, 2015 at 10:04 AM

      Oh, and here are some other fine short stories from 1940 to consider along with Robbie:

      “The Roads Must Roll”, Robert A. Heinlein (Astounding Science Fiction, June 1940)

      “It!”, Theodore Sturgeon (Unknown, August 1940)

      “Thus I Refute Beelzy”, John Collier (The Atlantic Monthly, October 1940)

      And a novella:
      http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1209527.Portrait_of_Jennie

      Also, I have bad news: Sarah Avery says she published "How the Grail Came to the Fisher King" on her blog in 2006. It's not eligible. :(

      Delete
    6. qwertsquirtSeptember 14, 2015 at 10:06 AM

      Didn't see you put "The Roads Must Roll" under novelette. Derp.

      Delete
  8. qwertsquirtSeptember 5, 2015 at 10:38 AM

    I feel like you'd love the hell out of the stories in this collection:

    https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/26154416-dark-beyond-the-stars

    ReplyDelete
  9. qwertsquirtSeptember 5, 2015 at 10:39 AM

    Also, I think Inside Out counts as speculative fantasy, so I'll put that on my ballot.

    ReplyDelete
  10. AnonymousSeptember 13, 2015 at 7:19 PM

    Here are a dozen of my favorite SF stories published this year (all are freely available online!):

    “The Closest Thing to Animals” by Sofia Samatar [Fireside Fiction] –
    http://www.firesidefiction.com/issue27/chapter/the-closest-thing-to-animals

    “Descent” by Carmen Maria Machado [Nightmare] –
    http://www.nightmare-magazine.com/fiction/descent/

    “The Far Shore” by Yoko Tawada (translated by Jeffrey Angles) [Words Without Borders] –
    http://www.wordswithoutborders.org/article/the-far-shore

    “The Half Dark Promise” by Malon Edwards [Shimmer] –
    http://www.shimmerzine.com/the-half-dark-promise-by-malon-edwards/

    “Madeleine” by Amal El-Mohtar [Lightspeed] –
    http://www.lightspeedmagazine.com/fiction/madeleine/

    “The Monkey House” by Tade Thompson [Omenana] –
    http://omenana.com/2015/03/05/the-monkey-house/

    “Please, Momma” by Chesya Burke [Nightmare] –
    http://www.nightmare-magazine.com/fiction/please-momma/

    “The Rainbow Flame by Shveta Thakrar [Uncanny] –
    http://uncannymagazine.com/article/the-rainbow-flame/

    “A Song for You” by Jennifer Marie Brissett [Motherboard] –
    http://motherboard.vice.com/read/a-song-for-you

    “The Scale-Tree” by Raphael Ordoñez [Beneath Ceaseless Skies] –
    http://www.beneath-ceaseless-skies.com/stories/the-scale-tree/

    “Three Cups of Grief, by Starlight” by Aliette de Bodard [Clarkesworld] –
    http://clarkesworldmagazine.com/debodard_01_15/

    “The Way of Walls and Words” by Sabrina Vourvoulias [Tor.com] –
    http://www.tor.com/2015/04/15/the-ways-of-walls-and-words-sabrina-vourvoulias/

    I expect I'll have more recommendations at the end of the year, but these are all stories I would highly recommend to anyone interested in current SF.

    - Ryan Alexander

    ReplyDelete
  11. zOctober 1, 2015 at 6:41 PM

    2015 dramatic presentation, long form:
    Liza, a rókatündér

    ReplyDelete
  12. zJanuary 21, 2016 at 10:49 AM

    2015 novel:
    The Coincidence Makers / Yoav Blum

    ReplyDelete