The Venging - by Greg Bear (Paperback)

About the Book

This is the first published collection of short stories by one of the foremost voices in science fiction today. This significant volume contains many characters and situations that later evolved into their own novels. "Mandala" features technologically perfect cities that eject their sinful human occupants, a premise that can be found at the root of Bear's later novel, Strength of Stones. In "Hardfought," Bear brilliantly handles the classic science fiction dilemma of human communication with aliens. Other stories include "The Wind From a Burning Woman" in which a woman holds the world hostage by controlling a giant asteroid; "Scattershot," in which the inhabitants of many universes meet in an undefined limbo space; and "Petra," a story of a world where chaos rules, stone moves, and the mind controls reality. Hailed by readers and critics alike, The Venging has been described as an "excellent collection" and its author praised as "one of the freshest writers to break into the science fiction field in many a year."

Book Synopsis

This is the first published collection of short stories by one of the foremost voices in science fiction today. This significant volume contains many characters and situations that later evolved into their own novels. "Mandala" features technologically perfect cities that eject their sinful human occupants, a premise that can be found at the root of Bear's later novel, Strength of Stones. In "Hardfought," Bear brilliantly handles the classic science fiction dilemma of human communication with aliens. Other stories include "The Wind From a Burning Woman" in which a woman holds the world hostage by controlling a giant asteroid; "Scattershot," in which the inhabitants of many universes meet in an undefined limbo space; and "Petra," a story of a world where chaos rules, stone moves, and the mind controls reality. Hailed by readers and critics alike, The Venging has been described as an "excellent collection" and its author praised as "one of the freshest writers to break into the science fiction field in many a year."

About the Author

Greg Bear is the author of more than thirty books of science fiction and fantasy, including Forerunner: Cryptum, Mariposa, Darwin's Radio, Eon, and Quantico. He is married to Astrid Anderson Bear and is the father of Erik and Alexandra. His works have been published internationally in over twenty languages. Bear has been called the "Best working writer of hard science fiction" by the Ultimate Encyclopedia of Science Fiction.