Xan Van Rooyen – författare

This is the third volume in this highly praised series (the first won the World Fantasy Award). Previous works have been praised for their eclectic mix of stories, offering a panorama of themes and styles. For instance, the 2021 edition included a story about a woman struggling with her identity and relationship in the face of a thought-recording device, a tale of a man fostering a rapidly evolving robot, and an adventurous narrative about a sentient robot dog engaging in space piracy. These stories not only explored advanced technologies and speculative scenarios but also delved deep into human emotions, relationships, and societal issues.Themes of personal struggles, such as dealing with depression, anxiety, and feelings of alienation, were also prominent. These were manifested through unique and powerful metaphors, like a woman whose detachable body parts symbolized her sense of disintegration and invisibility, or a story that portrayed the torment of self-contempt through the constant barrage of negative thoughts from imaginary entities.The anthology also ventured into mythic dimensions, echoing the voices and histories of entire cultures through concise yet profound storytelling. For example, flash fiction pieces in the collection reached the heights of epic poetry, encapsulating the journey of human life and cultural evolution.With such a backdrop, the 2023 volume continues this tradition of blending speculative elements with profound human experiences and cultural narratives. It's likely to feature stories that push the boundaries of imagination while staying grounded in the complexities of the human condition. Readers can anticipate a collection that entertains, provokes thought, and offers new perspectives on the future and the present. The anthology is not just a showcase of speculative fiction; it's a celebration of African storytelling, creativity, and the endless possibilities within the realm of speculative fiction.

Set in an explosive new world inspired by a fusion of South African and Finnish mythology, Born of Malice is a queer dark fantasy of epic stakes, for fans of Chinazo Bado, James Islington, and John Gwynne. God-siblings clash across realms and amidst political machinations, bleeding reality-breaking chaos into the streets.Savat is an ancient city steeped in old magic. But the once god-fearing Savati people find themselves in the tightening fist of the Sodality, a tyrannical power determined to replace magic with technology, and eradicate all devotion to the old gods. Yet gods still move among them. Zal, Chaos incarnate, unjustly exiled to the mortal realm, lives for revenge against his family. In secluded ruins accompanied by his devoted, magic-wielding arkani, he is poised to seize the life stolen from him and claim the Nether for his own. Riksa, War shackled, is the tormented captive of her brother Zal in his obsessive quest to open a way between the realms. With her treacherous tongue and machinations, she is committed to Zal's final destruction. Leksi, Nightmare disincarnate, has always resented her metaphysical family destined to cause human suffering. Striving to live free from magic and never see her family again, her dream of a simple life in the mortal realm is put on hold by the bloodied and broken arrival of her sibling, leaking reality-breaking essence into the world. In Savat s university, the scholar Niki prepares an experiment dangerous to Sodality-imposed rule. Though unskilled in the talents of the arkani, the fruit of Niki's groundbreaking research would harness magic through music, sound, and vibration itself, giving anyone the ability to access the arcane. When worlds are ripe for annihilation, all it takes is one god-sized sibling rivalry to light a conflagration. Drawing from African traditions to create a world so vivid you can smell the carnage and taste the entropy, this is Xan van Rooyen at their bold, bloody best. Cheryl S. Ntumy, author of Black Friday and Other Stories from Africa With characters you can both admire and loathe, this is a richly imagined world, and a silky-smooth narrative, barbed with ancient familial angst for good measure. Stephen Embleton, 2024 Nommo Award Winner for Best Speculative Fiction Novella, Undulation

The Sheehy witches are the most feared and detested family on the island of Inisliath, and none more so than Rowan.As a deathwalker, Rowan ferries island souls to the Otherworld, experiencing their deaths and carrying their memories like ghosts within him. It's a fated role he accepts even as it inexorably destroys him.When the magic on the island starts to seep away from the other founding families, everyone blames the Sheehys—especially when islanders start dying.Ash is sick of their father's fists and constantly having to apologize for who they are. Life on Inisliath might be the fresh start Ash and their mum need, and meeting soft-spoken, curly-haired Rowan feels like the ray of sunshine Ash has desperately needed—but everything goes sideways when Ash's mum becomes lead detective on a series of ritualistic murders allegedly tied to island magic, and Ash's family history.The islanders are convinced Rowan is guilty, but Ash refuses to believe it. When Ash does some investigating of their own, they discover Rowan is far more likely to be the next victim. With time running out to save Rowan, Ash will have to choose between a life free of their father or the boy they're starting to love. Meanwhile Rowan will have to decide just how much he's willing to sacrifice to save his family from the darkness about to be unleashed on the island.

Sixteen-year-old Tyri wants to be a musician and wants to be with someone who gets her musical aspirations.Q-I-99, aka 'Quinn,' lives in a scrap metal sanctuary with other rogue droids. While some use violence to make their voices heard, demanding equal rights for AI enhanced robots, Quinn just wants a moment on stage with his violin to show the humans that androids like him have more to offer than their processing power.Tyri and Quinn's worlds collide when they're accepted by the Baldur Junior Philharmonic Orchestra. As the rift between robots and humans deepens, Tyri and Quinn's love of music draws them closer together, forcing Tyri to question where her loyalties lie and Quinn to question his place in the world. With the city on the brink of civil war, will Tyri's and Quinn's passion for music be enough to hold them together while everything else crumbles down around them, or will the truth of who they are tear them apart?

The world's going to end in fire… and it's all Kyle's fault. Kyle Wolfe's world is about to crash and burn. Just weeks before graduation, a fire kills Kyle's two best friends and leaves him permanently scarred. A fire that Kyle accidentally set the night he cheated on his boyfriend Danny with their female friend, Shira. That same day, a strange new planet, Obscura, appears in the sky. And suddenly Kyle's friends aren't all that dead anymore. Each time Kyle goes to sleep, he awakens to two different realities. In one, his boyfriend Danny is still alive, but Shira is dead. In the other, it's Shira who's alive… and they're friends with benefits. Bouncing back and forth is taking a toll not only on Kyle, but on the world too, which might perish along with him. Amid the collapse of his parent's marriage and with realities shifting every time he closes his eyes, Kyle must discover how these events relate to Obscura… and he's the only one who can prevent everything going down in flames.

Fifteen-year-old Treasa Prescott might be an alien: it's the only explanation for why she doesn't fit in with the preppy South African private school crowd and feels so claustrophobic in her own skin. Treasa is worried she might spend life as a social pariah when she meets Gabriel du Preez. Gabriel plays the piano better than Beethoven, has a black belt in karate, and would look good wearing a garbage bag. Treasa thinks he's perfect. It might even be love, as long as Gabriel doesn't find out she's a freak. As Treasa spends time with Gabriel, she realizes she might not love him as much as she wants to be him, and that the reason she feels uncomfortable in her skin might have less to do with extra-terrestrial origins and more to do with being born in the wrong body. But Gabriel is not the perfect boy Treasa imagines. He harbors dark secrets and self-destructive tendencies. Still, Treasa might be able to accept Gabriel's baggage if he can accept who she longs to be.