The End is Now

Book excerpt: Famine. Death. War. Pestilence. These are the harbingers of the biblical apocalypse, of the End of the World. In science fiction, the end is triggered by less figurative means: nuclear holocaust, biological warfare/pandemic, ecological disaster, or cosmological cataclysm. But before any catastrophe, there are people who see it coming. During, there are heroes who fight against it. And after, there are the survivors who persevere and try to rebuild. THE APOCALYPSE TRIPTYCH will tell their stories. Edited by acclaimed anthologist John Joseph Adams and bestselling author Hugh Howey, The Apocalypse Triptych is a series of three anthologies of apocalyptic fiction. THE END IS NIGH focuses on life before the apocalypse. THE END IS NOW turns its attention to life during the apocalypse. And THE END HAS COME explores life after the apocalypse. THE END IS NIGH is about the match. THE END HAS COME is about what will rise from the ashes. THE END IS NOW is about the conflagration. * * * * THE END IS NOW table of contents: INTRODUCTION by John Joseph Adams | HERD IMMUNITY by Tananarive Due | THE SIXTH DAY OF DEER CAMP by Scott Sigler | GOODNIGHT STARS by Annie Bellet | ROCK MANNING CAN'T HEAR YOU by Charlie Jane Anders | FRUITING BODIES by Seanan McGuire | BLACK MONDAY by Sarah Langan | ANGELS OF THE APOCALYPSE by Nancy Kress | AGENT ISOLATED by David Wellington | THE GODS WILL NOT BE SLAIN by Ken Liu | YOU'VE NEVER SEEN EVERYTHING by Elizabeth Bear | BRING THEM DOWN by Ben H. Winters | TWILIGHT OF THE MUSIC MACHINES by Megan Arkenberg | SUNSET HOLLOW by Jonathan Maberry | PENANCE by Jake Kerr | AVTOMAT by Daniel H. Wilson | DANCING WITH BATGIRL IN THE LAND OF NOD by Will McIntosh | BY THE HAIR OF THE MOON by Jamie Ford | TO WRESTLE NOT AGAINST FLESH AND BLOOD by Desirina Boskovich | IN THE MOUNTAIN by Hugh Howey | DEAR JOHN by Robin Wasserman.