Sarah Hoyt’s new short story collection, Trade Winds, has something for everybody.

Are there truly aliens among us? What do they really want? And what if our creations could come back in lethal form? Could we resist them? If there were a time police, would we know it? And really, why do people expect enlightenment from the stars? What if aliens needed us for their moral compass? You think our illegal immigration is bad? Wait till its coming from the stars? And what happens when the coin falls on edge? Can you reproduce it? Those not particularly moral aliens might set fiendish traps. And you can never go back again. Also, why would you want to? The future will invent completely new ways of making people miserable. Also how well would a generation ship get us to the stars without humans getting in their own way? If you read the world of Darkship Thieves, there’s a story ten years after the revolution in Olympus. It bridges the gap to the second wave of novels of the Earth Revolution which will be written, eventually. And what if the Carthaginians had sowed salt on the ruins of Rome? How long is memory?

This is a great read for curling up to read for a few minutes before bedtime.  Each story pulls the reader in, but doesn’t bog down in description.  Mrs. Hoyt is an artist at quickly building a world and characters and then getting to the point of her stories.  Trade Winds includes alternate history, future history, and just plain good storytelling.

My favorites were “And Not To Yield”, a story of love and duty set in Hoyt’s USAians universe, and “Yearning to Breathe Free”, a story with a message, but one that doesn’t beat you over the head.

If you’re looking for a collection of stories that you can savor and enjoy bit by bit, Trade Winds is what you’re looking for.