Frankensteins and Foreign Devils

Frankensteins and Foreign Devils is the 1998 Boskone book by Guest of Honor Walter Jon Williams. Among the materials included are some of his most acclaimed science fiction novellas and short stories. There are ten stories in total, of which two appear here for the first time in print: "The Bad Twin," and a prototype Wild Cards story, "Bag Lady." The other tales in this collection are: "Solip: System," "Broadway Johnny," "Woundhealer, "Red Elvis," "Prayers on the Wind," "Erogenoscape," the Sidewise award-winning "Foreign Devils," and the Hugo nominated "Wall, Stone, Craft."

Table of Contents

• Introduction by Gardner Dozois
• Solip:Systern
• Broadway Johnny
• Woundhealer
• The Bad Twin
• Red Elvis
• Prayers on the Wind
• Erogenoscape
• Foreign Devils
• Bag Lady
• Wall, Stone, Craft

"...the stories [in Tangents] stand out separately because the individuals that Williams focuses on are very different from each other, and the endings vary quite widely for them. Williams has a lot of talent; this is a strong collection of stories from a strong writer. Don't miss it." —Locus

"... the most powerful magic is that of a writer [Walter Jon Williams] directing the twin streams of reason and intuition to produce a dream with the texture of reality." —Locus

"Ingenious and energetic and knowing W[alterl J[on] W[illiams] seems very much at home with the mature genre sf of the 1980s and 1990s." —The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction

"Walter has produced some of the best Alternate History stories ever written ... There's far more to Walter's range than just Alternate History stories, even gonzo Alternate History stories. ... Not satisfied with a wide enough range of material to fuel five or six separate careers, Walter also mixes genres with audacity and daring, mixing fantasy with technologically oriented 'hard' science fiction ." —Gardner Dozois

"Ever the expert storyteller, Williams provides more than enough suspense." —Publishers Weekly

The introduction is by Hugo-winning editor Gardner Dozois. The full-color dustjacket and black and white interior illustrations are by Boskone 35's Official Artist, Omar Rayyan.

Walter Jon Williams

Walter Jon Williams is the author of many noteworthy science fiction and fantasy novels, including Hardwired, Angel Station, Knight Moves, Aristoi, Metropolitan and its sequel City on Fire, and also the Maijstral series: The Crown Jewels, House of Shards, and Rock of Ages. During his distinguished writing career, Williams has also penned many great shorter works, two of which are "Dinosaurs" (nominated for both Hugo and Theodore Sturgeon awards) and "Surfacing" (nominated for both Hugo and Nebula awards).

Omar Rayyan

Omar Rayyan is a Massachusetts artist best known for his illustrations of children's books and stories. His work regularly appears in Cricket magazine. He has won awards from the World Fantasy Convention ("Most Humorous") and the New England Press Association (for editorial illustration). Rayyan's work delights fans at many local and national science fiction conventions.

Printing History

1998, LC card number: 97-75646, 5.5"x8.5", 380 pages

The original Boskone edition, the boxed edition, ISBN: 1-886778-04-3, $33.00 is permanently out of print. A few copies of the hardcover state remain and it is available in a second, trade paperback edition.

ISBN: 1-886778-30-2, trade paperback, $14.00
ISBN: 1-886778-03-5, hardcover, $23.00
ISBN: 1-886778-04-3, boxed, $33.00 out of print!