The slippery heads of amphibian inhabitants plow the coastal waters of one of the few archipelagos scattered across the ocean that covers the entire planet. A toothy head on a long flexible neck, belonging to a sea monster similar to a plesiosaur, rises above the waves with lightning speed. Somewhere, under the endlessly long rains, the surface of the endless swamps trembles as giant dinosaurs swarm in the mud with a growl. And in the far region, tall, thin, like reeds, people in unimaginable headdresses and robes embroidered with pearls walk along rope bridges stretched between huge trees, much taller than the redwoods of earth, and the dim light pouring from the sky reveals the whole city, spread out in crowns And all this idyll one fine day faded away at once, as if someone had suddenly blown out a candle. The cloud mirages of Venus have melted...George Martin, Joe Haldeman, David Brin, Mike Resnick, Ian MacDonald, Gardner Dozois and others in a collection of science fiction works about the planet Venus, which we once lost...