Subterranean Press is one of my favorite specialty presses. On occasion they offer “grab bag” specials in which they release slightly damaged material for an incredibly significant discount. These grab bags can include signed and limited editions as well as second or third printings. My friend Jeff contacted me during Subterranean’s most recent grab bag offer and we decided to go halves on the 11 book grab bag option. The package arrived quickly and in fantastic condition and on a recent Wednesday night Jeff came by so that we could open up the box together to see just what we got.

1. The God Engines by John Scalzi

This is one of John Scalzi’s novels that I have not read, so Jeff is ahead of me in that department. This is a third printing. I have a few other Scalzi novels yet to read, including his most recent, but this slight tome will be in my reading future.

2. Strange Wonders: A Collection of Rare Fritz Leiber Works, edited by Benjamin Szumskyj

By sheer coincidence Jeff and I discovered a love of Fritz Leiber’s work around the same time by reading the re-release of Mike Mignola’s Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser graphic novel adaptation and some of Fritz Leiber’s work. This looks like it could be fun. I’ve read a handful of his short stories and have a couple of collections in my basement.

3. The Last Song of Orpheus by Robert Silverberg

From Publisher’s Weekly: “SFWA Grand Master Silverberg (Roma Eterna) makes an all too rare appearance with his longest tale in a decade, a powerful retelling of the myth of Orpheus. Born to the muse Calliope, dedicated to Apollo, and destined to be king of Thrace, Orpheus was the greatest musician of the ancient world. The story of his epic journey to the underworld takes up only the first part of Silverberg’s novella. The rest recounts his time in Egypt studying the pharaohs, his voyage with Jason and the Argonauts to bring back the Golden Fleece, and his eventual return to Thrace to meet his foretold death. Silverberg hews closely to the source material, with language elevated in the manner of a good translation of Homer. Though it’s not the literary SF that has won Silverberg much of his fame, readers who love ancient myths will find much to admire.”

4. Speculative Horizons edited by Patrick St. Denis

This collection of 5 original stories was edited by Pat of Pat’s Fantasy Hotlist fame. I hadn’t realized he edited a book and am thrilled for him. Looks and sounds like it could be a fun collection. Stories included are by: C.S. Friedman, L.E. Modesitt, Jr., Tobias Buckell, Brian Ruckley and Hal Duncan. This is one I’m really interested in reading and is one I’m happy was included in our grab bag.

5. The Last Science Fiction Writer ~Allen Steele

Allen Steele is a writer I have heard of (one of is books I’ve seen has a great Jon Harris cover) but have not read. This is his fifth collection of short stories. It is a signed and numbered limited edition.

6. Unchained and Unhinged by Joe R. Lansdale

This is a collection of essays and short fiction by Horror Grand Master Joe R. Lansdale. I believe I’ve read one of his short stories in another Subterranean anthology and I remember enjoying it. I know people who are Lansdale fans who sing his praises.

7. This is Me, Jack Vance! by Jack Vance

I finally took the time to read Jack Vance for the first time late last year, reading the first of his four stories comprising the Dying Earth series. I read the second earlier this year and both are good fun. This slight memoir is a very nice looking book, with a section of black and white photographs at the back of the book. This sold out book is one I am looking forward to reading.

8. Crystal Nights and Other Stories by Greg Egan

This sold-out volume is the second collection produced by Subterranean Press. It contains nine never-before-published works and is a good sized volume. I have yet to read any of Hugo and Campbell award winning Egan’s works.

9. A Pleasure to Burn: Fahrenheit 451 Stories by Ray Bradbury

From Subterranean Press: “Edited by Bradbury authorities Donn Albright and Jon Eller, this generous volume gathers 16 vintages stories and novellas. Some of the stories, such as “The Pedestrian” and “Pillars of Fire,” will be familiar to the author’s long-time fans. Others, such as “The Bonfire” and “The Reincarnate,” are more obscure. The true heart of the collection are the long novellas “Long after Midnight” (which has only appeared once in an expensive limited edition) and the 25,000-word tale, “The Fireman,” the immediate precursor to the final, full-length novel.”

10. Stephen King Goes to the Movies by Stephen King

From Subterranean Press: “The #1 bestselling author reflects on the filming of five of his most popular short stories, each tale included in this collection. Those movies are The Shawshank Redemption, 1408, Children of the Corn, The Mangler, and Hearts in Atlantis. Includes an introduction, his brief personal commentary, and behind-the-scenes insights by Stephen.”

This is a fairly massive limited edition book.

11. The Collected Stories or Robert Silverberg Vol 5: The Palace at Midnight, 1980-82

From his introduction, Silverberg wrote: “Somehow, for all my outward pretence of cold-eyed professionalism, all my insistence that writing is simply a job like any other, I’ve discovered to my surprise and chagrin that there’s more than that going on around here, that I write as much out of karmic necessity and some inescapable inner need to rededicate my own skills constantly to my—what? My craft? My art? My profession? I wrote these stories because the only way of earning a living I have ever had has been by writing, but mainly, I have to admit, I wrote these stories because I couldn’t not write them. Well, so be it. They involved me in a lot of hard work, but for me, at least, the results justify the toil. I’m glad I wrote them. Writing them, it turns out, was important for me, and even pleasurable, in a curiously complex after-the-fact kind of way. May they give you pleasure now too.”

One of the greatest things about our grab bag is that really only one book, the Silverberg collection, was in any way damaged. The rest look like brand new. The Silverberg book has is tearing away from the lining to some degree but is still intact and could be easily repaired from the looks of it. Subterranean Press puts out some quality books and so many of these have wonderful endpaper and look like they are brand new.

I think we did all right!