Heiresses of Russ 2011: The Year’s Best Lesbian Speculative Fiction

Welcome to a new annual anthology created in honor of the late Joanna Russ, American writer, academic, and feminist whose work shone brightly in the male-dominated field of speculative fiction of the latter part of the twentieth century.Heiresses of Russ offers readers in one volume the best lesbian-themed tales of the fantastical and otherworldly published during the prior year.

Editors JoSelle Vanderhooft and Steve Berman read countless books, periodicals, and webzines to collect a range of tales—from new voices as well as award- winning authors— that celebrate the spirit of Russ’ s fiction: stories of sorceresses and spectral women, lost daughters and sisters of myth.

The transformative power of the written word becomes magic and tests the boundaries of gender, identity, and a woman’s dreams.Stories by Georgina Bruce, Jewelle Gomez, Michelle Labbé, Steve Berman, Rachel Swirsky, Ellen Kushner, Zen Cho, Csilla Kleinheincz, Catherine Lundoff, Nora Olsen, N.

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Jemisin