Easily 4,5 stars. One of the best collections I have read the past years, consisting of (mostly) the kind of SF that I personally like. Of course, some stories I liked or engaged with more than others, but most were just right for me. I like this kind of high concept, science based, far future (and sometimes almost incomprehensible) SF, that asks me to wrestle with concepts and mental imagery of identity, deep time, personality and meaning. These stories accomplish what is promised on the back o

Easily 4,5 stars. One of the best collections I have read the past years, consisting of (mostly) the kind of SF that I personally like. Of course, some stories I liked or engaged with more than others, but most were just right for me. I like this kind of high concept, science based, far future (and sometimes almost incomprehensible) SF, that asks me to wrestle with concepts and mental imagery of identity, deep time, personality and meaning. These stories accomplish what is promised on the back of the book, and what I think all good SF ought to do, which is: 'pushing the boundaries, beyond what we would normally think or even dream, and taking us into worlds we might never imagine'. I'm in awe of the kind of imagination on display here, especially by Ian McDonald, Greg Egan and Greg Bear. I try and write far future SF myself, but I know I can not touch these pinnacles of the genre, my imagination falls short. Still, I felt inspired reading them. Some hight points in the collection (it grew better in the second half I thought). The pacific mystery is an interesting story, featuring an old timey tale of exploration conveyed by a re-discovered journal, even dinosaurs, on a very weird alternative earth. Baxter is good at coming up with these high concepts. Merlin's gun by Alastair Reynolds was not that extreme, I thought, but a very good SF-story, dealing with one of the threats life in our galaxy faces. I liked it, but then I like almost everything Reynolds writes. The Long Chase was a shorter tale, but well conceived! It was about the conflict between individuality and cooperation (a lot of the stories here were). Waterworld featured a well thought out planet, and a spaceship having to gain access to it, thinking their way to several obstacles, not in the least the ferocious fauna ... 'The new humans' is more than a century old. The story was not that fresh, but the imagination still managed to shock. 'The girl had guts' was a nice example of extreme body horror, well built up to an interesting end. I liked 'The days of Solomon Gursky' a lot, the imagination building and building from a seemingly simple incident towards the end of our universe (and beyond). 'Wang's carpets' featured an interesting post-singularity society searching for answers to their philosophical dilemma's on another planet and discovering an interesting form of life. 'Judgment Engine' by Greg Bear was a tour de force, but ultimately turned on the love of a couple from our time. The dilemma at the heart was interesting, also from a theological point of view. The final story managed to make me laugh! I liked 'Crucifixion variations' less, as the conclusion showed the author did not understand the nature of faith - it would never faze a believer, as for faith proof is not required. I thought 'Death in the promised land' lacked a clear resolution, and 'The region between' was to much about form, too little about substance. All in all, a very good collection, especially for those interested in how far SF can go in conceiving of other possibilities. It helps having read some SF before, but if you have any interest in SF as a literature of ideas and in the far future, then this must be on your 'must read' list!