About the Author
CHARLIE JANE ANDER’S 2016 novel All the Birds in the Sky was a national bestseller. Earlier, her debut novel Choir Boy (2005) won a Lambda Literary Award. Her journalism and other writing has appeared in, among other venues, Salon, Mother Jones, and The Wall Street Journal. She was for many years the managing editor of the website io9. She lives in the San Francisco Bay area.
This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, organizations, and events portrayed in this novel are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.
SIX MONTHS, THREE DAYS, FIVE OTHERS
Copyright © 2017 Charlie Jane Anders
“The Fermi Paradox Is Our Business Model” copyright © 2010 Charlie Jane Anders
“As Good As New” copyright © 2014 by Charlie Jane Anders
“The Cartography of Sudden Death” copyright © 2013 by Charlie Jane Anders
“Six Months, Three Days” copyright © 2011 Charlie Jane Anders
“Clover” copyright © 2016 by Charlie Jane Anders
“Intestate” copyright © 2012 by Charlie Jane Anders
“The Master Conjurer” copyright © 2013 by Charlie Jane Anders
“Love Might Be Too Strong a Word” copyright © 2008 by Charlie Jane Anders
“Because Change Was the Ocean and We Lived by Her Mercy” Copyright © 2016 Charlie Jane Anders
“Break! Break! Break!” copyright © 2014 by Charlie Jane Anders
“The Unfathomable Sisterhood of Ick” copyright © 2014 by Charlie Jane Anders
“Rock Manning Can’t Hear You” copyright © 2014 by Charlie Jane Anders
“The Last Movie Ever Made” copyright © 2015 by Charlie Jane Anders
“The Day It All Ended” copyright © 2014 by Charlie Jane Anders
“Rat Catcher’s Yellows” copyright © 2015 by Charlie Jane Anders
“The Super Ultra Duchess of Fedora Forest” Copyright © 2016 Charlie Jane Anders
“Margot and Rosalind” Copyright © 2017 Charlie Jane Anders
“Ghost Champagne” Copyright © 2015 Charlie Jane Anders
“Victimless Crimes” Copyright © 2013 Charlie Jane Anders
“Stochastic Fancy: Play the Game and Find True Love” Copyright © 2016 Charlie Jane Anders
“Rager in Space” Copyright © 2016 Charlie Jane Anders
“A Temporary Embarrassment in Spacetime” Copyright © 2017 Charlie Jane Anders
“Palm Strike’s Last Case” copyright © 2014 by Charlie Jane Anders
“I’ve Got The Music In Me” copyright © 2015 by Charlie Jane Anders
“The Time Travel Club” copyright © 2013 by Charlie Jane Anders
“Fairy Werewolf vs. Vampire Zombie” copyright © 2011 by Charlie Jane Anders
“Power Couple (Or “Love Never Sleeps”)” copyright © 2006 by Charlie Jane Anders
“Suicide Drive” copyright © 2008 by Charlie Jane Anders
All rights reserved.
Edited by Patrick Nielsen Hayden
A Tor.com Book
Published by Tom Doherty Associates
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New York, NY 10010
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Forge® is a registered trademark of Macmillan Publishing Group, LLC.
The Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available upon request.
ISBN 978-0-7653-9489-7 (mini hardcover)
ISBN 978-1-2501-9176-2 (ebook)
eISBN 9781250191762
Our ebooks may be purchased in bulk for promotional, educational, or business use. Please contact the Macmillan Corporate and Premium Sales Department at 1-800-221-7945, extension 5442, or by email at [email protected].
First Edition: October 2017
Contents
Title Page
Dedication
The Fermi Paradox Is Our Business Model
As Good as New
The Cartography of Sudden Death
Six Months, Three Days
Clover
Intestate
The Master Conjurer
Love Might Be Too Strong a Word
Because Change Was the Ocean and We Lived by Her Mercy
Break! Break! Break!
The Unfathomable Sisterhood of Ick
Rock Manning Can’t Hear You
The Last Movie Ever Made
The Day It All Ended
Rat Catcher’s Yellows
The Super Ultra Duchess of Fedora Forest
Margot and Rosalind
Ghost Champagne
Victimless Crimes
Stochastic Fancy: Play the Game and Find True Love
Rager in Space
A Temporary Embarrassment in Spacetime
Palm Strike’s Last Case
I’ve Got The Music In Me
The Time Travel Club
Fairy Werewolf vs. Vampire Zombie
Power Couple (Or “Love Never Sleeps”)
Suicide Drive
About the Author
Six Months, Three Days, Five Others Page 48