Where the Stars Rise: Asian Science Fiction and Fantasy (Laksa Anthology Series: Speculative Fiction)

Recommended by Booklist (American Library Association), Library Journal, and Locus (Gardner Dozois)

Take a journey through Asia and beyond with twenty-three original thought-provoking and moving stories about identities, belonging, and choices-stories about where we come from and where we are going.

ALL EMOTIONS ARE UNIVERSAL. WE LIVE, WE DREAM, WE STRIVE, WE DIE...

Stories that explore magic and science. Stories about love, revenge, and choices. Stories that challenge ideas about race, belonging, and politics. Each wrestling between ghostly pasts and uncertain future. Each trying to find a voice in history.

Orphans and drug-smuggling in deep space. Mechanical arms in steampunk Vancouver. Djinns and espionage in futuristic Istanbul. Humanoid robot in steamy Kerala. Monsters in the jungles of Cebu. Historic time travel in Gyeongbok Palace. A rocket launch in post-apocalyptic Tokyo. A drunken ghost in Song Dynasty China. A displaced refugee skating on an ice planet. And much more.

Embrace them as you take on their journeys. And don't look back . . .

AUTHORS: Anne Carly Abad, Deepak Bharathan, Joyce Chng, Miki Dare, S.B. Divya, Pamela Q. Fernandes, Calvin D. Jim, Minsoo Kang, Fonda Lee, Gabriela Lee, Karin Lowachee, Rati Mehrotra, E.C. Myers, Tony Pi, Angela Yuriko Smith, Priya Sridhar, Amanda Sun, Naru Dames Sundar, Jeremy Szal, Regina Kanyu Wang (translated by Shaoyan Hu), Diana Xin, Melissa Yuan-Innes, Ruhan Zhao.

Introduction by Elsie Chapman

Edited by Lucas K. Law and Derwin Mak

Anthologies in this series (Strangers Among Us, The Sum of Us, Where the Stars Rise) have been recommended by Publishers Weekly, Booklist (American Library Association), Kirkus Reviews, Library Journal, School Library Journal, Locus, Foreword Reviews, and Quill & Quire.

Praise for WHERE THE STARS RISE

"This collection is essential for anyone interested in the diverse and engaging possibilities of fantasy and science fiction." -Booklist (American Library Association)

"This fascinating collection addresses issues of immigration, dual cultures, and ethnic issues through genre devices such as ghosts, steampunk robots, and planetary exploration. SF readers looking to discover new voices will enjoy this volume that reflects the eclecticism of Asian culture." -Library Journal

"A lot of good reading to be found in Where the Stars Rise." -Locus (Gardner Dozois)

"Majority of the stories being either good or very good page-turners." -Tangent

"A wealth of stories running the gamut from poignant to mindblowing, rewarding journeys both faraway and familiar."-Aliette de Bodard, Nebula Award-winning author of Dominion of the Fallen saga

"Where the Stars Rise is a hell of a lot of fun. Great writers, magnificent storytelling, and worlds I wanted to spend a lot more time in-no matter how dangerous they were. I had a blast reading it." -Rob Boffard, author of the Outer Earth series

Awards and Honorable Mentions

2018 Alberta Book Publishing Award Winner (Speculative Fiction of the Year)

2018 (Canadian SF&F) Aurora Award Finalist (Best Related Work/Anthology)

One story - 2018 World Fantasy Awards Best Short Story Finalist

Two stories - 2018 (Canadian SF&F) Aurora Award Best Short Fiction Finalist

One story selected for The Best Science Fiction of the Year, Volume 3 (ed. by Neil Clarke)

Fonda Lee is the award-winning author of Zeroboxer (Flux), which was a 2015 Andre Norton finalist, Junior Library Guild Selection, and ALA Top 10 Quick Pick for Reluctant Young Adult Readers. Her most recently released novel, Exo (Scholastic) is also a Junior Library Guild Selection, with a sequel scheduled for release in Summer 2018. Fonda is a former corporate strategist who worked for or advised Fortune 500 companies before she turned back to her first passion of writing science fiction and fantasy. Born and raised in Calgary, she now lives with her family in Portland, Oregon. When not writing, Fonda can be found training in martial arts or searching out tasty breakfasts. She can be found online at www.fondalee.com and on Twitter @fondajlee.

Lucas K. Law is a Malaysian-born freelance editor and published author who divides his time and heart between Calgary and Qualicum Beach. He co-edited two anthologies, Strangers Among Us and The Sum of Us, with Susan Forest. They are currently working on their third anthology, Shades Within Us. With Derwin Mak, Lucas co-edited Where The Stars Rise. He has been a jury member for a number of fiction competitions including Nebula, RITA and Golden Heart awards.When Lucas is not editing, writing, or reading, he is an engineering consultant and business coach, specializing in mergers and acquisition (M&A) activities, asset evaluations, business planning, and corporate development.

Derwin Mak lives in Toronto. His short story "Transubstantiation" won the Aurora Award for Best Short Form Work in English in 2006. He and Eric Choi co-edited The Dragon and the Stars (DAW Books, 2010), the first anthology of science fiction and fantasy by overseas Chinese. It won the 2011 Aurora Award for Best Related Work in English. His two novels The Moon Under Her Feet and The Shrine of the Siren Stone are science fiction that deal with religious themes in Christianity, Shintoism, and Buddhism. Derwin coedited the Speculative Fiction Issue of Ricepaper magazine with JF Garrard in 2014. He and Lucas K. Law co-edited Where The Stars Rise (Laksa Media). He is currently acquiring documents and photographs about Toronto's Chinese Canadian science fiction writers for the Toronto Public Library's Chinese Canadian Archives, a new collection about the history of Toronto's Chinese community.