BookBrowse Reviews Best European Fiction 2010: The inaugural installment of what will become an annual anthology of short stories from across Europe

There is something for everyone here - at least, everyone who loves short stories. Belgian author Peter Terrin writes about a future where, rather than restricting birth rates, the government allows each citizen a few murders, no questions asked. Meanwhile, Bulgarian Georgi Gospodinov writes of a future where one must chose when to die, because it won't happen naturally. The Sky over Thingvellir is a sweetly powerful story of deflected emotions and difficult breakups, while The Orphan and the Mob is a witty, murderous satire full of clichés put to outrageous use. Stories of displaced peoples in the aftermath of war, rivalries between father and son, soccer, estranged families, infidelity, lost love, and even a story in verse (written by a Scotsman, naturally). On second thought - maybe those who look for joyful characters and happy endings should give this...