Best Science Fiction of the Year: No. 8

An average of 3.63, but this contains a brief recommended reading list, and a few pages of a yearly overview by Charles N. Brown that are worth enough of a small decimal to boost this high enough to round to 4.5, given the lack of ordinary stories in general. It is closer to 4.25, than 4.5. Kingsbury the standout, with Leiber, Varley and Kelly to follow. Terry Carr 08 : The Barbie Murders - John Varley Terry Carr 08 : A Hiss of Dragon - Gregory Benford and Marc Laidlaw Terry Carr 08 : Black Glass - Fritz Leiber Terry Carr 08 : To Bring in the Steel - Donald Kingsbury Terry Carr 08 : The Very Slow Time Machine - Ian Watson Terry Carr 08 : Devil You Don't Know - Dean Ing Terry Carr 08 : Count the Clock That Tells the Time - Harlan Ellison Terry Carr 08 : View from a Height - Joan D. Vinge Terry Carr 08 : The Morphology of the Kirkham Wreck - Hilbert Schenck Terry Carr 08 : Vermeer's Window - Gordon Eklund Terry Carr 08 : The Man Who Had No Idea - Thomas M. Disch Terry Carr 08 : Death Therapy - James Patrick Kelly Standard lookalikes hard to investigate. 4 out of 5 Crimelord recruiting is a sticky situation. 3.5 out of 5 Dreck and Guck future. 4 out of 5 Wh0re governess troubleshooter happiness hire finds out space can be interesting. 4.5 out of 5 Step back before forward. 4 out of 5 Patient retardation. 3 out of 5 Limbo leavetaking. 3.5 out of 5 Interstellar one-way trip journal. 3.5 out of 5 Chrononauts sea save. 3.5 out of 5 Painter template. 3.5 out of 5 Temporary license is right. 2.5 out of 5 Kill punishment problems. 4 out of 5 4.5 out of 5