Spartans and Sci-Fi

“After the Apocalypse,” a short story collection by Maureen F. McHugh, has been named one of the best Sci-Fi/Fantasy/Horror books of 2011 by Publisher’s Weekly.

McHugh previously worked for 42 Entertainment, where she worked on the alternate reality game I Love Bees, which was commissioned by Microsoft as a viral campaign for “Halo 2,” as well as the one for the nine inch nails album “Year Zero.”

Other books named by Publisher’s Weekly in the Sci-Fi/Fantasy/Horror category are Lauren Beukes’ “Zoo City,” J.M. Frey’s “Triptych,” Daryl Gregory’s “Impossible and Other Stories,” Caitlín R. Kiernan’s “Two Worlds and In Between: The Best of Caitlín R. Kiernan, Vol. 1,” and A.M. Tuomala’s “Erekos.”

Publisher’s Weekly also listed the best Comics of the year: “Zahra’s Paradise” by Amir & Kahlil, “Day Tripper” by Gabriel Ba and Fabio Moon, “Hark! A Vagrant!” by Kate Beaton, “The Influencing Machine: Brooke Gladstone on the Media” by Brooke Gladstone and Josh Neufeld, “Love and Rockets: New Stories #4” by Gilbert and Jaime Hernandez, “Infinite Kung Fu” by Kagan McLeod, “Finder: Voice” by Carla Speed McNeil, “Big Questions” by Anders Nilsen, “Farm 54” by Galit and Gilad Seliktar, and “Habibi” by Craig Thompson.