Other Worlds Than These

Other Worlds Than These

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3.7 of 5 stars 3.70  ·  rating details  ·  71 ratings  ·  18 reviews
What if you could not only travel any location in the world, but to any possible world?We can all imagine such "other worlds"—be they worlds just slightly different than our own or worlds full of magic and wonder—but it is only in fiction that we can travel to them. From The Wizard of Oz to The Dark Tower, from Philip Pullman's The Golden Compass to C. S. Lewis's The Chron...more
ebook, 572 pages
Published July 1st 2012 by Night Shade Books
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Jenny
Because of the theme of this anthology - parallel universes, alternate worlds - there is a very wide range of subgenres from science fiction and fantasy represented, in the best way. I skimmed the military stuff.

A few highlights for me:
Crystal Halloway and the Forgotten Passage by Seanan McGuire.
This was the first story I'd written by McGuire-not-Grant, and it brought me to TEARS. Feeling foolish, I tweeted this, and she responded in under 2 minutes. I was surprised, but it is touching.

Ana's Ta...more
Leon

What if you could not only travel any location in the world, but to any possible world?

We can all imagine such “other worlds”--be they worlds just slightly different than our own or worlds full of magic and wonder--but it is only in fiction that we can travel to them. From The Wizard of Oz to The Dark Tower, from Philip Pullman's The Golden Compass to C. S. Lewis's The Chronicles of Narnia, there is a rich tradition of this kind of fiction, but never before have the best parallel world stories

...more
Camila Dodik
I'm on an SF-anthology reading binge, and I enjoyed the other collection edited by John Joseph Adams that I read, The Living Dead. I picked this one up because I was allured by the cover art, the red-black-beige/white design, and the indication that it featured stories by Ursula K. Le Guin. It's a collection of portal fantasies and parallel universe stories, and I enjoyed that the editor's introduction compares these categories and talks about how essentially linked they are. Maybe another thing...more
Alan
Nov 13, 2012 Alan rated it 4 of 5 stars  ·  review of another edition Recommends it for: Alternative versions of yourself
Recommended to Alan by: A beloved theme and killer lineup
In a parallel universe very close to this one, I didn't even see this book. In a world beyond the veil behind the secret door, libraries are guarded by demons and I was not allowed to see this book. But in this universe... Other Worlds Than These is present for my enjoyment, and yours.

Ace editor John Joseph Adams has created what looks at first like nothing more than YATA—Yet Another Theme Anthology. With its awkward mixture of typefaces and muddy images on the cover, it's not a very attractive...more
Bree
First and foremost I would like to thank Night Sky Books for letting me read and review this book for them.

Short story collections containing works by multiple authors can be hard to judge fairly on any kind of rigid scale, because it is rare that a reader will find every story equally good or bad. I have given each story its own 1-5 rating as well. I would recommend this collection to any fantasy or science fiction fans, some of the stories were truly magical. This book is not a light read, an...more
Gef
Prior to hearing about this anthology, it never really occurred to me just how much I enjoy stories set in alternate worlds. The Wizard of Oz, Stephen King's The Dark Tower, Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials--heck, even Quantum Leap back when I was a kid. It makes sense considering there is already an other-worldliness to the fantasy and science-fiction genres. So with a premise like that, I had to wonder what kinds of worlds would be presented in this anthology.

Things started off on the Moon...more
Al

What if you could not only travel any location in the world, but to any possible world?

We can all imagine such “other worlds”--be they worlds just slightly different than our own or worlds full of magic and wonder--but it is only in fiction that we can travel to them. From The Wizard of Oz to The Dark Tower, from Philip Pullman's The Golden Compass to C. S. Lewis's The Chronicles of Narnia, there is a rich tradition of this kind of fiction, but never before have the best parallel world stories

...more
Kate  K. F.
One of the reasons that I love anthologies is how in a well done one, I'll end up finding new authors or see a new side to other authors I love. John Joseph Adams is an editor that I mainly trust, he always seems to have at least one story by Robert Silverberg in every anthology and those are usually my least favorite stories.

In this anthology, the most disappointing story was by George R.R. Martin, because it read like a fantasy and the promise of the first paragraph was never met. My favorite...more
Leah
I am such a sucker for fantasy and science fiction. This anthology has the best of both worlds by combining the best portal fantasy stories and parallel world stories.

I'm not even done yet with this anthology, but I'm really enjoying it so far. I read it in between reading books for blog tours so it's been two to three stories at a time for me, but each time I read this book is a magical experience. I am just overwhelmed with how interesting and exciting the stories are. I don't absolutely love...more
Xarah
The concept behinds these stories was really interesting: parallel worlds and portal worlds. I also enjoyed the mix between science fiction and fantasy. My favorites in this collection include:

"A Brief Guide to Other Histories" by Paul McAuley
"Crystal Halloway and the Forgotten Passage" by Seanan McGuire
"Twenty-two Centimeters" by Gregory Benford
"Ana's Tag" by William Alexander
"Nothing Personal" by Pat Cadigan
"Magic for Beginners" by Kelly Link
"Mrs. Todd's Shortcut" by Stephen King
"The Ontologic...more
Patrick


A nice compilation of parallel/fantastical universe stories. The only beef I have is there weren't as many 'alt-history' style stories as I would have liked. All in all worth a read
Colin
A fascinating collection of short stories by some of the best sci-fi and fantasy writers. The premise is stories about alternate worlds.
Dan Kifer
Really wonderful collection, some of the best short stories I have ever read.
Robin
An interesting mix of parallel world stories. Some stories involve portals and other methods of crossing over into other dimensions while some take place entirely in other dimensions which may or may not follow the laws of nature or physics. Fans of parallel world stories, such as those of Charles Stross (The Merchant Princes series) and SM Stirling (Conquistador) should find plenty of material to enjoy.
Cass Morrison
took longer than I expected to finish
Donald
Similar to many collections there were quite a few excellent entries, some average one, and a handful that just didn't work for me at all.

Overall it was worth the investment - especially as I had only read one of these previously in a different compilation.
Tom Currier
Some really good stories!
Houserlc
Most of the stories were quite good.
Brandy
May 19, 2013 Brandy marked it as short-stories  ·  review of another edition
Laurance
May 18, 2013 Laurance marked it as to-read  ·  review of another edition
Kasane Teto
May 17, 2013 Kasane Teto marked it as to-read  ·  review of another edition
Zondon
May 15, 2013 Zondon marked it as to-read  ·  review of another edition
Brian
May 13, 2013 Brian marked it as to-read  ·  review of another edition
Nighteye
May 13, 2013 Nighteye marked it as to-read  ·  review of another edition
Glen C
May 12, 2013 Glen C marked it as to-read  ·  review of another edition
Derek
May 10, 2013 Derek marked it as to-read  ·  review of another edition
Kelly Leigh
May 09, 2013 Kelly Leigh marked it as to-read  ·  review of another edition
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Other Worlds Than These (Paperback)
Other Worlds Than These (Kindle Edition)
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John Joseph Adams—called “the reigning king of the anthology world” by Barnes & Noble.com—is the bestselling editor of many anthologies, such as UNDER THE MOONS OF MARS: NEW ADVENTURES ON BARSOOM, ARMORED, LIGHTSPEED: YEAR ONE, BRAVE NEW WORLDS, WASTELANDS, THE LIVING DEAD, THE LIVING DEAD 2, BY BLOOD WE LIVE, FEDERATIONS, THE IMPROBABLE ADVENTURES OF SHERLOCK HOLMES, and THE WAY OF THE WIZARD...more
More about John Joseph Adams...
The Improbable Adventures of Sherlock Holmes The Living Dead Wastelands: Stories of the Apocalypse The Living Dead 2 Brave New Worlds

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