To my three sons, Dylan, Samuel and Teague, who surprise me into joy every day, and to my three sisters, Sharon, Janet, and Ginger, whose brilliant trajectories light my sky. And to Tammy who reads everything and loves me anyway. You’re the best.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The stories in this anthology first appeared as follows:
“The Last of the O-Forms” first published in Asimov’s, 2002
“Perceptual Set” first published in Analog, 2002
“Once They Were Monarchs” first published in Alfred Hitchcock’s, 2000
“A Wow Finish” first published in Amazing Stories, 2004
“Friday, After the Game” first published in Analog, 2000
“The Invisible Empire” first published in The Children of Cthulhu, edited by John Pelan, 2002
“Its Hour Come Round” first published in Talebones, 2002
“The Pair-a-Deuce Comet Casino All-Sol Poker Championships” first published in Talebones, 2003
“The Stars Underfoot” first published in Realms of Fantasy, 2001
“The Long Way Home” first published in Asimov’s, 2003
“Nothing is Normal” first published in On Spec, 2002
“Do Good” first published in Polyphony, edited by Jay Lake & Debra Layne, 2002
“The Safety of the Herd” first published in Asimov’s, 2002
“The Sound of One Foot Dancing” first published in Alfred Hitchcock’s, 2001
“A Flock of Birds” first published in SCIFiction.com, 2002