Welcome to the second year’s-worth of stories from the online magazine ZNB Presents published by the small press Zombies Need Brains. In these pages, you will find original science fiction and fantasy stories of awe and wonder, darkness and light, ranging through all of the subgenres, including urban fantasy, alternate history, space opera, future fairy tales, and more. They come from the most talented authors in the field today—new voices as well as trusted and familiar names. Join us as we explore visions of the past, present, and future, as we encounter strange new creatures, both in our own backyard, in the depths of space, and our own imagination. Here you will: --Search for a cryptid in the mean streets of the city that tricks you into walking into its mouth --Scavenge in a world where AI has passed the singularity --Relive the scents of a recently lost world at a near-future carnival --Fleece the rich in a South African suborbirail --Hunt vampires in the crypts beneath the Kremlin with a saint by your side --Bargain with the sentient plants in a precarious alliance on a colonized world --Uncover the alternate assassin of Abraham Lincoln --Concoct potions as an apprentice with just a touch too much flare --Become an AI struggling to complete its mission after crashlanding on an alien world And so much more! Twenty-four stories written by Daniel Roman, Ty Lazar, L.P. Melling, Nathan W. Toronto, Caias Ward, Jonathan Robbins Leon, Marie Vibbert, Rob Cornell, Mike Jack Stoumbos, J.L. George, Brian Hugenbruch, Andrew Gudgel, Alicia Cay, Elektra Hammond, Derrick Boden, Alma Alexander, Melinda Brasher, Louis Evans, Niall Spain, Brian Crenshaw, S.C. Butler, Sam Robb, Liam Hogan, and Christine Lucas, each with its own illustration by artists Kat D’Andrea, Ariel Guzman, or Greg Uchrin. Welcome to the multifaceted worlds of ZNB Presents. Find us on Patreon at: http://www.patreon.com/zombiesneedbrains

Welcome to the first year’s worth of stories from the new online magazine ZNB Presents published by the small press Zombies Need Brains. In these pages, you will find original science fiction and fantasy stories of awe and wonder, darkness and light, ranging through all of the subgenres, including urban fantasy, alternate history, space opera, fairy tales, and more. They come from the most talented authors in the field today—new voices as well as trusted and familiar names. Join us as we explore visions of the past, present, and future, as we encounter strange new creatures, both in our own backyard, in the depths of space, and our own imagination. Here you will: --Enter an abandoned colony on a hostile world --Come face-to-face with a horrific Stampede on an alien planet --Search for a murderous golem made of salt --Fight in the brutal pits of an apocalyptic America --Fight in the brutal pits of an apocalyptic America --Fight in the brutal pits of an apocalyptic America --Find betrayal and redemption in a world full of clowns --Hunt for those who are killing your fellow gunslingers --Rebel with the Little Match Girl in a search for something beyond her story And so much more! Twenty-four stories written by Brian Hugenbruch, Jason Palmatier, Diana A. Hart, Evan Marcroft, Cislyn Smith, Hazel King, Barbara Ashford, Ryan T. McFadden, Maria Z. Medina, Adria Bailton, Marie Brennan, Crystal Sarakas, Marc Fleury, Anaea Lay, Desmond Astaire, A. Katherine Black, P.A. Cornell, Alma Alexander, Antony Paschos, Jack Gallegos, Brian Crenshaw, Chloie Piveral, Evergreen Lee, and L.D. Colter, each with its own illustration by artists Kat D’Andrea, Ariel Guzman, or Gulzara Tokhtamysheva. Welcome to the multi-faceted worlds of ZNB Presents. Find us on Patreon at: http://www.patreon.com/zombiesneedbrains

Who Needs a Friend, When You Have a Familiar? Animals have been our companions since the dawn of time, but in science fiction and fantasy, often that bond is taken one magical—or technological—step further. In Familiars we asked authors to put their own unique spin on this idea, resulting in this collection of fifteen stories that explore the range of familiar bonds—from cats to caterpillars, squids to squirrels, and everything in between. With settings from fantasy to science fiction, and stories ranging from humor to horror, there's something to appeal to everyone! Featuring stories by Brian Hugenbruch, Lawrence Harding, Jean Marie Ward, Jordan Bricco, Alexander G.R. Gideon, Gini Koch & Bebe Bayliss, Russell Hugh McConnell, Kari Sperring, Alicia Cay, Jim C. Hines, Sharon Lee & Steve Miller, Shanna Germain, Jacey Bedford, A. Katherine Black, and Jason Palmatier. The buddy system is back, baby!

The old gods are still with us. The world is constantly changing, evolving, growing. In order to stay relevant, deities must change with the times as well. In this anthology, fifteen science fiction and fantasy authors tackle how gods and goddesses have adapted to the surge in technology and the mercurial beliefs of humanity. So sit back and watch Hera try her hand at marriage counseling, while Macuilxochitl conquers the world of online gaming. Buy a ticket to Anubis’ magic act or roam the back tents at the local carnival and catch Doc Saturday’s medicine show. Take a sip of wine at Dionysus’ winery or grab some potato pancakes at Baba Yaga’s café. Whatever your taste, here you will find interesting twists on how deities have found their way in our modern world from Crystal Sarakas, Juliet E. McKenna, Tanya Huff, Edward Willett, Daniel Roman, Jennifer Dunne, Jean Marie Ward, Mike Marcus, A.L. Tompkins, Daryl Marcus, Alma Alexander, Kari Sperring, A.J. Cunder, Irene Radford, and N.R. Lambert. And remember to beware. You never know who...or what...you will meet next. And don’t miss THE MODERN FAE’S GUIDE TO SURVIVING HUMANITY!

“Short stories have to accomplish a nearly impossible magic trick: to introduce a world often much stranger than our own and make you care about it in a matter of pages,” writes R. F. Kuang in her introduction. “The most important part of this magic trick is just a willingness to get weird.” The stories in The Best American Science Fiction and Fantasy 2023 are brimming with bizarre and otherworldly premises. Women can’t lie or fall in love. Fathers feed their children ghost preserves. Souls chase one another through animal incarnations. Yet these stories are grounded deeply in our reality. Out of these stories’ weirdness emerges the cruelty of border enforcement, the horror of legislation restricting reproductive freedom, the frightening pace of AI. The result is a stunning, immersive, intensely felt experience, showing us less of what the world is, and more of what it could be. The Best American Science Fiction and Fantasy 2023 includes Nathan Ballingrud • KT Bryski • Isabel Cañas • Maria Dong • Kim Fu • Theodora Goss • Alix E. Harrow • S. L. Huang • Stephen Graham Jones • Shingai Njeri Kagunda • Isabel J. Kim • Samantha Mills • MKRNYILGLD • Malka Older • Susan Palwick • Linda Raquel Nieves Pérez • Sofia Samatar • Kristina Ten • Catherynne M. Valente • Chris Willrich

Capture-recapture methods have been used in biology and ecology for more than 100 years. However, it is only recently that these methods have become popular in the social and medical sciences to estimate the size of elusive populations such as illegal immigrants, illicit drug users, or people with a drinking problem. Capture-Recapture Methods for the Social and Medical Sciences brings together important developments which allow the application of these methods. It has contributions from more than 40 researchers, and is divided into eight parts, including topics such as ratio regression models, capture-recapture meta-analysis, extensions of single and multiple source models, latent variable models and Bayesian approaches. The book is suitable for everyone who is interested in applying capture-recapture methods in the social and medical sciences. Furthermore, it is also of interest to those working with capture-recapture methods in biology and ecology, as there are some important developments covered in the book that also apply to these classical application areas.

In this compelling fantasy from a debut author, two young people must unite two warring cultures to banish the gods who destroyed their homeland. The Fallen Gods' War drove the remnants of a victorious army across the ocean in search of a new homeland. A thousand years later, the lifeless continent of Draegora is largely forgotten, a symbol for the regiments that remain. Demons to some. Protectors to others. The power of their god-touched blades has forged a nation, though many resent their absolute control. Riam and Nola are unknowing descendants of the old world. When it’s discovered they carry enough Draegoran blood to serve in the regiments, they are dragged away from their families to begin training. If they survive, they will be expected to enforce the laws of the covenant, to fight the Esharii tribesmen who raid along the border, and to be judge, jury, and executioners for those accused of crimes. For Riam, who welcomes his escape from an abusive father, the power to protect those who cannot defend themselves is alluring. For Nola, who wishes to return home, it is a betrayal by all she holds dear. Neither is given a choice...and neither may ever get the chance to serve. Lies of Descent begins an epic trilogy of fallen gods, betrayal, and magic—where dark motives often dwell within the true and just, and where the things most feared sometimes lead to salvation.

In 1918 the People's Commissariat of Public Health began a quest to protect the health of all Soviet citizens, but health became more than a political platform or a tactical decision. The Soviets defined and categorized the world by interpreting political orthodoxy and citizenship in terms of hygiene. The assumed political, social, and cultural benefits of a regulated, healthy lifestyle informed the construction of Soviet institutions and identity. Cleanliness developed into a political statement that extended from domestic maintenance to leisure choices and revealed gender, ethnic, and class prejudices. Dirt denoted the past and poor politics; health and cleanliness signified mental acuity, political orthodoxy, and modernity. Health, though essential to the revolutionary vision and crucial to Soviet plans for utopia, has been neglected by traditional histories caught up in Cold War debates. The Body Soviet recovers this significant aspect of Soviet thought by providing a cross-disciplinary, comparative history of Soviet health programs that draws upon rich sources of health care propaganda, including posters, plays, museum displays, films, and mock trials. The analysis of propaganda makes The Body Soviet more than an institutional history; it is also an insightful critique of the ideologies of the body fabricated by health organizations. "A masterpiece that will thoroughly fascinate and delight readers. Starks's understanding of propaganda and hygiene in the early Soviet state is second to none. She tells the stories of Soviet efforts in this field with tremendous insight and ingenuity, providing a rich picture of Soviet life as it was actually lived."— Elizabeth Wood, author of From Baba to Comrade: Gender and Politics in Revolutionary Russia