The Unconquered Country - Geoff Ryman

The Unconquered People get conquered by their Neighbours, who take away their 'living house' green technology and herd them into the city, where their lives and culture progressively decay as they descend into selling themselves, their body parts and renting their wombs. The Big Men, who gave the Neighbours their weapons, then change their minds and give weapons to Rebels from the Unconquered people, who are just as bad as the Neighbours and complete the destruction by forcing the remains of the Unconquered People out of the city, to a certain doom. All this is seen through the eyes of Third, a third daughter, who declines into madness once her 'husband' is killed by a bio-weapon and she adopts a talking Crow. A painful story which burns with indignation.

Life in the Mechanist/Shaper era: 20 evocations - Bruce Sterling

A compressed version of the excellent Schismatrix. Nikolai starts life as a Shaper, who genetically engineer their minds and bodies to advance their capabilities. After an encounter with a Mechanist, who use technology to enhance the standard human frame, Nikolai swaps sides and thence ensues a trail of murders, and double-dealing as he stays on top and in control. While sex might go as a basic desire, other human traits persist.

Tissue ablation and variant regeneration - Michael Blumlein

A deliberately callous surgical report which details the live harvesting of body parts for cloning and farming from a controversial figure in American politics. Very Ballardian. ( )

Includes Geoff Ryman "The Unconquered Country"