And my vote is –

Actually still almost a tossup between AMONG OTHERS by Walton and LEVIATHAN WAKES by Corey. I saw the ending coming for LW, but not the details of how it would work. I think that was pretty much a happy ending for Miller? More or less? Anyway, I’m putting EMBASSYTOWN third and I don’t care about the other two on the ballot. Just don’t think it’s appropriate to put a fragment of a series in for the award. Maybe they could add a category for Best Finished Series? And Martin could win that about twenty-five years from now, when he finally finishes his series.

For novellas, for me, the top three are:

1. The Man Who Bridged the Mist (link two posts down)

2. Silently And Very Fast

3. Kiss Me Twice (scroll down for the link)

For novelettes, for me a weak category, I’m picking:

1. Six Months, Three Days

and although I’m filling in the ballot, frankly none of the others much appealed to me, so I hope my pick wins.

For short stories, my picks are:

1. The Paper Menagerie, which I found genuinely moving.

2. The Cartographer Wasps and the Anarchist Bees, which I thought was amusing. You can actually tell the bees are haplodiploid*, if you know how to read between the lines! Which is funny!

3. Movement, which I liked well enough.

And again, I’m filling out the full ballot, but really I’m not too blown away by this category in general. But you should keep in mind that I honestly don’t care much for short stories, so I may not be the best judge.

Aaand . . . one more link, for something quite different!

Charlotte, of Charlotte’s Library, offers a very nice review of HOUSE OF SHADOWS. I particularly liked the “Crisply professional” sentence followed by the “Utterly egocentric” review.

Ah, review time! Nothing like it! I will be quite nervous while waiting to see what people think, so a nice review like this one is a good way to start off!

* Haplodiploid species, which is to say bees and their relatives, have diploid females and haploid males. Want a son? Don’t fertilize the egg and presto! A boy. This has interesting behavioral and evolutionary consequences.