You've got your cyberpunk, your hard science fiction, your urban fantasy, but some days, what you really want is a good ship, faster-than-light travel, and a trusty blaster at your side. The Space Opera Renaissance looks like it'll provide exactly that.

The new anthology, released July 11, looks to be gathering a positive buzz online as it reminds people that "space opera" isn't a dirty phrase, and that hey, some really good space opera out there. David G. Hartwell and Kathryn Cramer, who did the Hard SF Renaissance a few years back, edited the anthology. It features 32 space opera stories including Edmond Hamilton, David Brin, Peter Hamilton, David Weber, Catherine Asaro, Gregory Benford and Ursula K. Le Guin. (SF Signal has a complete list of contributors.) The stories are drawn from the various decades of space operas existence, from the very beginning up to the 21st century.