Tomorrow Sucks
by Greg Cox and T. K. F. Weiskopf
Bantam, pb, 274
pages, $4.99
ISBN: 0-671-87626-0
What else would you call a collection of future-vampire stories? This is a strong reprint collection, with a few gems. Several of the obvious stories are included, most notably C. L. Moore's "Shambleau"--still a remarkable piece of space opera after sixty-odd years. Roger Zelazny's whimsical "The Stainless Steel Leech" is the account of a robot vampire after all the humans have died. Ray Bradbury's "Pillar of Fire" is more dated than some of his stories, but is still a dark, beautifully written story.
Brian Stableford's more recent "The Man Who Loved the Vampire Lady" is a sad, inevitable tale set in an alternate-world Europe ruled by vampires. S. N. Dyer's "Born Again" is one of several stories with protagonists in the medical profession. In this tale, the discovery of a vampire-creating virus is affected by institutional funding complications. "Leechcraft," by Susan Petrey, is a sweet tale of Russian vampires and time travel. Her story is is effective and original, though more romance than horror. Dean Ing's "Fleas" explores the relationship between predators in a well-crafted, if not unpredictable manner.
Greg talked about this for quite a while, but no one thought he'd actually be able to get a publisher to go along with the title. When the book was a success, he followed it up with a sequel called Tomorrow Bites.
One early design for the spine of the book had the title, immediately followed by the editor's last name. For some reason, that design was altered before publication.