It is the space year 2015. The impossible has happened. It would take days to recount the stories we’ve read here, so settle in.

That kind of now-hackneyed opening is now a thing of the past, if this anthology of Nebula Award winners and nominees is anything to go by. The selection features a welcome selection of new voices and cultures. These new perspectives are definitely the most interesting part of the book, but it would be churlish to single out any one story as worthy of our praise.

What the hell? We’re churlish. Our favourite story of the lot was Paranormal Romance, a charming little novelette of a witch trying not to find love in a world where the paranormal is weird but otherwise accepted. It made us laugh quite a bit, the characters are very relatable and the whole thing reads like it would be a fantastic Hollywood rom-com. (Is Bill Nighy available?) The story will pop up in your head after you turn the final page and dive into the next piece. We still get flashbacks of the Nebula anthology we reviewed last year. The beauty of this anthology is that you could completely disagree with our choice and still find something to hold to your heart.

Lord knows the science fiction and fantasy genre has encountered its share of controversies in recent years, with lots of different voices making themselves heard (some for the first time). But readers should take heart. What is science fiction if not a device to show us new ways of thinking, new perspectives on our own world through allegory? Gene Roddenberry understood that; now his little Star Trek show is worth billions in merchandising. Based on what we’ve read in these pages, the genre is in very safe hands indeed and the idiots will come around eventually. Hell, any one of the authors could be the next Roddenberry.

NEBULA AWARDS SHOWCASE 2015 / AUTHOR: GREG BEAR (EDITOR) / PUBLISHER: PROMETHEUS BOOKS / RELEASE DATE: DECEMBER 20TH