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A review by paulweymouth
Cosmic Powers: The Saga Anthology of Far-Away Galaxies by John Joseph Adams
3.0
Some good stories but overall a bit underwhelming. 18 stories with a combined rating of 55 stars out of a possible 90 gave the average rating a 3.05. The following is the stories ranked from most liked to least liked:
Zen and the Art of Starship Maintenance by Tobias S Buckell - 5 Stars - Exquisite world building
A Temporary Embarrassment in Spacetime by Charlie Jane Anders - 5 Stars - Hilarious
Unfamiliar Gods by Adam Troy Castro & Judi B. Castro - 4 Stars - Hilarious and Unforgettable
The Deckhand, The Nova Blade, and the Thrice-Sung Texts by Becky Chambers - 4 Stars - Log entries of an insecure prophecied one
Warped Passages by Kameron Hurley - 4 Stars - An engrossing prequel to The Stars are Legion
The Sighted Watchmaker by Vylar Kaftan - 3 Stars - A creator watches his creations on his planet, great idea.
Seven Wonders of a Once and Future World by Caroline M. Yoachim - 3 Stars - Highly epic, spanning many millennia
Our Specialty is Xenogeology by Alan Dean Foster - 3 Stars - A good should they or shouldn't they first contact story without actual contact.
Golden Ring by Karl Schroeder - 3 Stars - A highly intelligent story missing an emotional element
Bring the Kids and Revisit the Past at the Travelling Retro Funfair! by Seanan McGuire - 3 Stars - Great story but an abrupt ending
Diamond and the Wind Breaker by Linda Nagata - 3 Stars
Wakening Ouroboros by Jack Campbell - 3 Stars - Good story
Infinite Love Engine by Joseph Allen Hill - 2 Stars
Tomorrow When We See the Sun by A. Merc Rustad - 2 Stars - Went way over my head but I could see shimmers of brilliance in it.
The Dragon That Flew Out of the Sun by Aliette De Bodard - 2 Stars - No connection to the story
The Chameleon's Gloves by Yoon Ha Lee - 2 Stars - Connected to his Empires of Machinery series but I had a hard time understanding it.
The Frost Giant's Data by Dan Abnett - 1 Star - Didn't finish it. Probably has something to do with being the last story.
I think that more experienced sci-fi readers will like some of the stories I gave a 2 star rating to. Honestly, a few of those stories were just too complicated for me, and require a reread. The Rustad and Lee stories, in particular, were difficult reads for me. Good anthology overall.
3/5
Zen and the Art of Starship Maintenance by Tobias S Buckell - 5 Stars - Exquisite world building
A Temporary Embarrassment in Spacetime by Charlie Jane Anders - 5 Stars - Hilarious
Unfamiliar Gods by Adam Troy Castro & Judi B. Castro - 4 Stars - Hilarious and Unforgettable
The Deckhand, The Nova Blade, and the Thrice-Sung Texts by Becky Chambers - 4 Stars - Log entries of an insecure prophecied one
Warped Passages by Kameron Hurley - 4 Stars - An engrossing prequel to The Stars are Legion
The Sighted Watchmaker by Vylar Kaftan - 3 Stars - A creator watches his creations on his planet, great idea.
Seven Wonders of a Once and Future World by Caroline M. Yoachim - 3 Stars - Highly epic, spanning many millennia
Our Specialty is Xenogeology by Alan Dean Foster - 3 Stars - A good should they or shouldn't they first contact story without actual contact.
Golden Ring by Karl Schroeder - 3 Stars - A highly intelligent story missing an emotional element
Bring the Kids and Revisit the Past at the Travelling Retro Funfair! by Seanan McGuire - 3 Stars - Great story but an abrupt ending
Diamond and the Wind Breaker by Linda Nagata - 3 Stars
Wakening Ouroboros by Jack Campbell - 3 Stars - Good story
Infinite Love Engine by Joseph Allen Hill - 2 Stars
Tomorrow When We See the Sun by A. Merc Rustad - 2 Stars - Went way over my head but I could see shimmers of brilliance in it.
The Dragon That Flew Out of the Sun by Aliette De Bodard - 2 Stars - No connection to the story
The Chameleon's Gloves by Yoon Ha Lee - 2 Stars - Connected to his Empires of Machinery series but I had a hard time understanding it.
The Frost Giant's Data by Dan Abnett - 1 Star - Didn't finish it. Probably has something to do with being the last story.
I think that more experienced sci-fi readers will like some of the stories I gave a 2 star rating to. Honestly, a few of those stories were just too complicated for me, and require a reread. The Rustad and Lee stories, in particular, were difficult reads for me. Good anthology overall.
3/5