Nebula Awards 2007 - novellas: Brief summaries & my rankings

List below is based on the results of preliminary ballot, final ballot, & the official winners announcement. Some remarks on peculiar Nebula conventions are in the opening paras of my post of Nebula 2007 short stories.

My rating in brackets (ABC: A = worth your time; C = don't bother). Where I have posted a separate review of the entry, link on story title takes you there.

Story list (5 stories, best first).

While I don't find any of these exceptional, I prefer Kiosk to all others. I don't really have specific preferences among next three entries & could have ordered them differently. Hughes' entry is more package than content. Last one - the jury nominee - is hopeless.

1. [final, prelim] Bruce Sterling's "Kiosk" (B); download; F&SF, January 2007; science fiction: Consumers win a fight to get material copying machines legalized - after a violent revolution.
2. [final, prelim] Gene Wolfe's "Memorare" (B); download; F&SF, April 2007; science fiction: Kind-of please-everyone novella about raiders of human tombs in space, & their makers who don't want the tombs of their dear ones raided.
3. [winner, final, prelim] Nancy Kress' "Fountain of Age" (B); download; Asimov's, July 2007; science fiction: An old man cannot get over love of his youth.
4. [final, prelim] Lucius Shepard's "Stars Seen Through Stone" (B); download; F&SF, July 2007; fantasy: A cocktail of - a small music label owner nurtures a talented but maladjusted musician, a romance, & evil waves that harvest human creativity. It's a good story, except for incomprehensible waves part.
5. [final, prelim] Matt Hughes' "The Helper and His Hero" (C); download; F&SF, February/March 2007; fantasy: The great no-content story. Great language, beautiful imagery, epic scope - only weak point is the story. It has evil aliens that can survive imprisonment in a "gravitational cyst(?)" through geological ages to come bug humans again, medieval society, chants that summon magical powers, mystical places called "Commons", ... Summarizing this story is not easy. If you prefer package to content, you may like this story.
6. [final] Judith Berman's "Awakening" (C); download; Black Gate, #10 (Spring 2007); fantasy: Ghosts, sorcery, swords, etc. Note that this was not on the list of preliminary ballot (I think they call it jury nominee).

Related.

1. 2007 Nebula Awards short stories, novelettes.
2. 2008 Hugo Awards novellas.
   

Lucius Shepard's "Stars Seen Through Stone" (novella): Rise & fall of a musician

Main story - that is most of the text - is a non-genre story. Of a man who launches new musicians & manages their careers - he's also the narrator. Through him, we learn of his wild protegee's rise & eventual fall. In the background is a bit of romance. This part is a good story, if you are into this kind of stories.

Then there is sf part - I'll call it fantasy, but I know of some who call it science fiction. This part is spread throughout the main non-genre story, & keeps recurring in bits & pieces. Mostly to build anticipation to some kind of a climax, but it's a dull climax. I'll call this part bad.

This fantasy part appears inspired by Eric Frank Russell's "Sinister Barrier" - but Russell's version was, at least, comprehensible. Rather than Russell's globes that harvest human "nervous energy", Shepard's waves (or is it wavefronts?) harvest human "creativity" & also harvest & nurture ghosts of particularly evil men!

Full text of the story is available for download.

Story summary.

Story is set in small town called Black William, Pennsylvania, US. Vernon is the owner of music label "Soul Kiss Records". He was once married to Andrea, is currently divorced & has a girlfriend Mia. By the end of the story, Mia will be gone, & Andrea will be back in his life. This romance of Vernon & Andrea runs through the story - in small pieces.

A major thread of the story deals with Joseph Stanky, a despicable young man but a talented musician. Vernon will help him get recognition. Stanky's fall will come near end of the story - when the waves suck his "creativity" out!

A relatively short thread of the story deals with Vernon's friendship with Rudy Bowen - his partner in "Crucible" - some kind of a local club. Rudy will die near end of the story - a victim of the mysterious waves.

About the waves themselves - I'm actually still clueless. Totally incomprehensible stuff.

Fact sheet.

"Stars Seen Through Stone", short story, review
First published: F&SF, July 2007.
Rating: B
Passed first round of nominations for Nebula Awards 2007 in novella category.
Nominated for Hugo Awards 2008 in novella category.