Science Fiction Rebels: The Story of the Science-Fiction Magazines from 1981 to 1990 [Paperback]

Fourth volume in Mike Ashley's acclaimed set on the history of science-fiction magazines. This volume looks at the 1980s.Mike Ashley's acclaimed history of science-fiction magazines comes to the 1980s with Science-Fiction Rebels: The Story of the Science Fiction Magazines from 1981 to 1990. This volume charts a significant revolution throughout science fiction, much of which was driven by the alternative press, and by new editors at the leading magazines. The period saw the emergence of the cyberpunk movement, and the drive for, what David Hartwell called, 'The Hard SF Renaissance', which was driven from within Britain. Ashley plots the rise of many new authors in both strands: William Gibson, John Shirley, Bruce Sterling, John Kessel, Pat Cadigan, Rudy Rucker in cyberpunk, and Stephen Baxter, Alistair Reynolds, Peter Hamilton, Neal Asher, Robert Reed, in hard sf. He also shows how the alternative magazines looked to support each other through alliances, which allowed them to share and develop ideas as science-fiction evolved. The information Mike Ashley has put together is really astonishing: researchers of the field, and anyone who's interested in popular fiction of the period are going to fine this book an immense help.
Andy Sawyer, University of Liverpool

Taken as a whole, Ashley's ongoing history of the SF magazine is an astonishing achievement. This is vital work in uncovering and making available elements in the publishing history of SF that would otherwise be easily forgotten or neglected.
Derek Johnston, Fantastika Journal

Ashley has a skilled historian's sense of proportion... he picks up on the rise of various themes in science fiction and notes the importance of the blurring of the lines between genres... his work focuses on some of the most well-known aspects of science fiction literature.
Gary K. Wolfe, Locus

Ashley writes with skill, passion and insight. The excitement he feels for the genre is apparent on every page. l[