This page is updated as books are received throughout the month.
Pump Six and Other Stories by Paolo Bacigalupi
Night Shade, $14.99, 240pp, tp, 9781597802024. Science fiction collection.
The eleven stories in Pump Six chart the evolution of Paolo Bacigalupi’s work, including the Hugo nominated “Yellow Card Man,” and the Sturgeon Award-winning story “The Calorie Man,” both set in the world of his novel The Windup Girl.
This collection also demonstrates the power and reach of the science fiction short story. Social criticism, political parable, and environmental advocacy lie at the center of Bacigalupi’s work. Each of the stories herein is at once a warning and a celebration of the tragic comedy of the human experience.
[Contents: “Pocketful of Dharma”; “The Fluted Girl”; “The People of Sand and Slag”; “The Pasho”; “The Calorie Man”; “The Tamarisk Hunter”; “Pop Squad”; “Yellow Card Man”; “Softer”; and “Pump Six”.]
Wolfsbane by Patricia Briggs
Ace, $7.99, 292pp, pb, 9780441019540. Fantasy.
From Patricia Briggs, author of the Mercy Thompson series, comes the never-before-published sequel to her first novel, Masques. Ace Books released the revised edition of Masques last month and now fans can finally read the long-awaited follow-up novel to Briggs’ fast-paced, traditional romantic fantasy. For those who can’t wait for the next Mercy Thompson novel, this is perfect to quench your Patricia Briggs thirst but with a traditional fantasy twist.
Masques follows the adventures of Aralorn, a young woman of noble birthright who flees her upbringing of proper behavior and oppressive expectations to become a mercenary spy. When Aralorn becomes involved in a mission concerning the powerful sorcerer Geoffrey ae’Magi, she must find out who her true enemies are.
Now, in Wolfsbane, the shapeshifting mercenary Aralorn must return home after her noble father, the Lyon of Lambshold, has passed away. When Aralorn and her companion Wolf arrive, they find he’s not dead, but trapped by the ae’Magi, who is using him as an agent to destroy Aralorn and Wolf. Will Aralorn be able to overcome this mysterious mist or will she fall to the blackest of magic?
Side Jobs: Stories from the Dresden Files by Jim Butcher
Roc, $25.95, 432pp, hc, 9780451463654. Fantasy.
Since the beginning of the hit #1 New York Times bestselling series The Dresden Files, author Jim Butcher has written several short stories set in the world of its smirking, hard-living private detective wizard protagonist, Harry Dresden. But these stories, some told from Dresden’s point of view, some from the perspectives of other beloved characters, have been scattered around for years, published in various places—and these non-compiled stories have been harder to hunt down than even Harry’s toughest cases.
Now, for the first time, fans will be able to have a collection of these stories in one volume: Side Jobs: Stories from the Dresden Files. Stories that will appear in this collection include: “Restoration of Faith” (unpublished, but on the author’s website), “It’s My Birthday Too” (from Many Bloody Returns; Berkley; 2007), “Something Borrowed” (from My Big Fat Supernatural Wedding; St. Martin’s; 2006), and many other great hard-to-track down tales from the world of Dresden. And in addition to these collected stories, Side Jobs also includes a brand new, never-before-published Dresden Files novella.
A perfect read for anyone who loves The Dresden Files, Jim Butcher’s noir fantasy universe, or has just heard of the magic of the series from their friends will be thrilled with Side Jobs, the only compiled story collection of tales outside The Dresden Files’ main action, and a great companion to one of the most addictively interesting series in the genre today.
[Contents: “A Restoration of Faith”; “Vignette”; “Something Borrowed”; “It’s My Birthday, Too”; “Heorot”; “Day Off”; “Backup”; “The Warrior”; “Last Call”; “Love Hurts”; and “Aftermath”.]
Tesseracts 14: Strange Canadian Stories edited by John Robert Colombo and Brett Alexander Savory
Edge, $17.95, 304pp, tp, 9781894063371. Science Fiction/Fantasy/Horror Anthology.
Tesseracts Fourteen features innovative short stories and poetry by 23 of Canada’s finest speculative fiction writers.
Tesseracts Fourteen joins a 20+ year Canadian literary legacy that features the writing and editing of more than 200 of Canada’s best known authors, including Margaret Atwood, Robert J. Sawyer, Elisabeth Vonarburg, Spider Robinson, and William Gibson.
[Contributors: Tony Burgess, Susan Forest, Michael R. Colangelo, L.L. Hannett, Brent Hayward, M.L.D. Curelas, Patrick Johanneson, Suzanne Church, Daniel Sernine (translated by Sheryl Curtis), Matt Moore, Jonathan Saville, David Nickle, Michael Lorenson, John Park, Catherine MacLeod, Leah Silverman, Jon Martin Watts, Claude Lalumiere, Michelle Barker, David Clink, Sandra Kasturi, Jerome Stueart, and Robert J. Sawyer.]
Gilded Latten Bones by Glen Cook
(a Garrett, P.I., Novel), Roc, $7.99, 362pp, pb, 9780451463715. Fantasy.
Garrett’s taking a stab at domestic bliss with the fiery Tinnie Tate, who tells him just how high to jump. He’s even sworn off his investigations, causing the criminal element no end of joy. Then he waylays a pair of home intruders in the middle of the night and learns they’ve been paid to kidnap Tinnie. But even they are not quite sure who hired them.
Not many in TunFaire have the brawn—or lack of brains—to tangle with the Tate clan. But as Garrett rushes to find out who is suffering from a deadly attack of hubris, he learns he’s not the only one with unwanted callers: His best friend, Morley Dotes—a half elf of stunning good looks and dubious moral fiber—has been attacked and left for dead. Now Garrett has to track down both malefactors.
Unless they’re really one and the same—in which case Garrett might be next.…
Stars’ End by Glen Cook
(the Starfishers trilogy, volume three), Night Shade, $14.95, 258pp, tp, 9781597801690. Science fiction.
The Fortress on the edge of the galaxy was called Stars’ End, a planet built for death—but by whom? It lay on the outermost arm of the Milky Way, silent, cloaked in mystery, self-contained and controlled—tantalizingly close to the harvesting Starfishers.
If they could gain control of that arsenal, the Starfishers need never fear the Confederation’s navy nor the forces of the human-like Sangaree.
But intelligent life everywhere now needs the might of Stars’ End—and the know-how of agents Storm and BenRabi. For in the midst of the Sangaree wars, a far more sinister enemy approaches from the depths of the galaxy, in hordes as large as a solar system.
And its mission is only to kill…
The King of the Crags by Stephen Deas
(The Memory of Flames, Book II), Roc, $25.95, 416pp, hc, 9780451463765. Fantasy. On-sale date: 1 February 2011.
Prince Jehal has had his way—his lover, Zafir, now sits atop the Realms with hundreds of dragons and their riders at her beck and call. But Jehal’s plots are far from over, for he isn’t content to sit back and watch Zafir command the earth and sky. He wants that glory for himself—no matter whom he must sacrifice to get it.
But he may not need to act at all. For Zafir goes too far and puts the old queen on trial for treason, angering those still loyal to the former regime. And their discontent is fed by rumors of the return of the Red Riders, heralds of revolution and doom.
For the prophecy speaks: “Out of the sun there shall come a white dragon, and with the white dragon, a red rider. Thieves and liars shall quiver and weep, for the rider’s name shall be Justice, and the dragon shall be Vengeance.”
Jehal doesn’t fear prophecies, but he does fear that the white dragon still lives—and if that is so, then blood will flow on all sides.…
Pock’s World by Dave Duncan
Edge, $14.95, 2804pp, tp, 9781894063470. Science fiction.
Pock’s World, long settled by humankind, is acused of being infected by humanoid aliens. It has been quarantined and may have to be sterilized.
Five people are chosen to go there and examine the evidence: saintly but ruthless Father Andre; Ratty Turnsole, muckraking reporter ripe for romance; ambitious politican Athena Fimble; manipulative bureaucrat Millie Backet; and shady billionaire Linn Lazuline. They all have their own agendas.
Pock’s World surprises them all.
Nothing is what they expect. Quickly entangled in love, politics, religion, and deceit, they discover that the clock is already ticking and the fate of humanity itself is at stake.
The Demon Lover by Dion Fortune (foreword by Diane L. Paxson)
Weiser, $16.95, 288pp, tp, 9781578634927. Horror.
Veronica Manning is a young woman on her own, eager for employment and willing to take a position with the charismatic Justic Lucas without inquiry or suspicion. But soon after moving into his stately London home she finds her life turning toward the unthinkable—bound by an invisible collar, enslaved to Lucas and his formidable psychic needs, she becomes the key player in a plot of riveting occult intrigue.
Pale Demon by Kim Harrison
Eos, $26.99, 448pp, hc, 9780061138065. Fantasy. On-sale date: 22 February 2011.
An Elf, a Pixie, a Living Vampire and a Witch Take a Cross-Country Road Trip…
With more than 2.5 million copies currently in print of her bestselling Hollows novels, New York Times bestselling author Kim Harrison is one of the leading voices in urban fantasy. And, now in the proud tradition of Jack Kerouac (a very twisted Jack Kerouac) and American Gods, Kim takes her fiction for a road trip… begging the question, what happens when an elf, a pixie, a living vampire and a witch who dabbles in black magic are forced to travel 2300 miles cross-country (in three days or less), jammed into an ’89 blue Buick?
Hell on wheels.
Pale Demon brings Rachel Morgan out of The Hollows, a surreal cityscape reminiscent of Cincinnati. She’s got less than three days to get to the annual witches convention in San Francisco, where she will be tried before a jury of her peers for working black magic. Worst case scenario: Rachel, if convicted, will be condemned to death. And there are a lot of demons in Hell who’d like to see her in the ever-after.
Banned from the airways, Rachel’s options for getting across the country are slim, until she grudgingly agrees to travel with elven tycoon Trent Kalamack, who has his own secret agenda on the West Coast.
Coming along with the duo are Rachel’s associates, the living vampire Ivy and Jenks, a pixy… and legions of assassins out to ensure they never reach their destination. The fun really starts when someone frees a fearsome, day-walking demon from his eternal prison under the Arch in St. Louis. It’s been a rough couple of millennia and this soul-devourer is hungry for vengeance… and Rachel is his ultimate prize. While this powerful witch with nerves of steel will do absolutely anything to stay alive, even embracing her own demonic nature may not be enough to save her.
From the Midwest to Albuquerque and the Petrified Forest; from Las Vegas to Hell’s Kitchen (the newly gentrified NYC neighborhood has nothing on this veritable Inferno of appetite), Pale Demon is an epic journey through an alternate America where to venture off the highway is to flirt with death… bringing a whole new level of meaning to “off-road adventuring.”
Trolls in the Hamptons by Celia Jerome
DAW, $7.99, 314pp, pb, 9780756406301. Fantasy.
Willow Tate is a graphic novelist who earns just enough money at her craft to keep her rent-controlled Manhattan apartment and still put food in the refrigerator. Then she decides to write about a troll who’s a superhero—and one suddenly appears, causing mayhem in Manhattan. The odd thing is that nobody except Willow can actually see the stony red giant.
Willy thinks she’s going crazy just like her grandmother did, until she meets handsome, sophisticated, and oh-so-British Agent Grant from the Department of Unexplained Events. According to him, Willy has managed to break ages-old cosmic laws that could destroy the world as we know it.
Now she has to help him save the planet, rescue a little boy, and find a murdering kidnapper who wants to use the power of a small village in the Hamptons to become master of the universe.
Along the way, Willy discovers that trolls don’t deserve their bad reputation, that she’s not the only person in the town of Paumanok Harbor with special talents, and that magic and true love really do exist.
Hell Can Wait by Theodore Judson
Edge, $14.95, 224pp, tp, 9781894063234. Fantasy/Humor.
After 1800 years of waiting, Maternus’ Judgement Day is here…
For 18 centuries after his death, Maternus has waited for the bureaucracy of Hell to find his records. Now, in a bid to claim his soul, an angel and a demon argue over the fate of the Roman soldier.
The decision is made to bring the warrior back to life, not in Ancient Rome, but in modern day Colorado. Here he must complete three seemingly impossible challenges laid out before him, under the ever watchful eyes of the celestial duo.
Without a sword and shield to protect him, the soldier must rely on his wits coupled with a bit of divine inspiration (found in the strangest places) as he faces unfamiliar customs in this strange new life. Fortunately, the warrior is blessed with a weapon he did not have in his previous life—the ability to read!
With books in hand, the ancient Roman soldier begins his quest for a second chance!
The Clone Empire by Steven L. Kent
Ace, $7.99, 360pp, pb, 9780441019588. Science fiction.
Earth, A.D. 2516. The Unified Authority spread human colonies across the Milky Way, keeping strict order with a powerful military made up almost entirely of clones. But when an alien invasion proved too much even for the clones, they alone were blamed for the defeat…
Clone soldier Lieutenant Wayson Harris was born and bred to fight for the U.A. He also possesses a unique independence and an addiction to battle. But after the debacle of the Avatari invasion, he and his brethren were exiled to the far reaches of the galaxy, where the U.A. intended to use them as targets for live-fire training exercises.
Unfortunately for the Unified Authority, the clones it created and taught to fight have founded their own empire. Now Harris will unleash his rage against the might of the U.A. Fleet, leading an army with everything to fight for—and one thing to die for…
The Silver Mage by Katharine Kerr
(Book Four of The Silver Wyrm), DAW, $7.99, 488pp, pb, 9780756406318. Fantasy.
For more than two decades devoted fans have been caught up in the spell of Katharine Kerr’s bestselling Deverry novels, which tell a complex tale of ancient wrongs and of a timeless vow made to set things right.
With the publication of The Gold Falcon, The Spirit Stone< and The Shadow Isle Books One, Two, and Three of The Silver Wyrm, Katharine Kerr began the long-awaited fourth and final cycle of the Deverry chronicles. Now, The Silver Mage completes not only The Silver Wyrm cycle, but it brings to a conclusion the entire magnificent fantasy epic that began in 1986 with the very first novel about Deverry.
The wild Northlands hold many secrets, among them the mysterious dweomer island of Haen Marn, the mountain settlements of Dwarveholt, and the fortified city of Cerr Cawnen, built long ago by former Deverry bondmen.
Thanks to the Horsekin, who continue to push their religious crusade south toward the borders of the kingdom, the human beings of Deverry and their elven allies have realized that the fate of the Northlands lies tangled with theirs. Although the dwarven race holds strong, the island of Haen Marn has vanished, and the city of Cerr Cawnen seems doomed. Only through the magic of such elven Wise Ones as Dallandra and Valandario and the intervention of the powerful dragons, Arzosah and Rori, do the allied forces have a hope of mastering the secrets that can save the Northlands and themselves from conquest.
Taking readers from the earliest beginnings of the wars with the Horsekin to the final climactic battle for survival, unlocking at last the riddle of Haen Marn, and resolving the final destiny of Rori, the man bespelled into the body of the silver dragon, The Silver Mage is a thrilling conclusion and a wonderful reward for the many loyal fans of Deverry.
March in Country by E.E. Knight
(A Novel of the Vampire Earth), Roc, $24.95, 352pp, hc, 9780451463340. Science fiction. On-sale Date: 7 December 2010.
Known for writing “in the vein of Wells’s War of the Worlds,” E.E. Knight continues his national bestselling Vampire Earth novels featuring Major David Valentine. His army builds solid alliances in the name of freedom—but the opposition’s wrath is just as strong.…
The race is on to claim the area between the Ohio River and Tennessee, emptied by war and disease after the human effort to establish a Kentucky Freehold failed. What’s left of the resistance is hiding out in the tangle of central Kentucky hills—leaving the powerful, well-organized Kurian vampires the opportunity to fill the void.
Major David Valentine knows a small group of fierce, freedom-loving allies who would be glad for a chance to settle the rich lands. But they’re more than three hundred miles away, with hostile aliens and vicious human slavers standing between. There’s only one way for them to cover the distance before the Kurians settle in: a desperate dash by hijacked rail, followed by a harrowing river journey.
Valentine unites friends old and new in the effort—but the Kurian Order won’t easily yield the blood-soaked Kentucky soil.
Blood Heat by Maria Lima
(a Blood Lines novel), Pocket/June, $7.99, 352pp, pb, 9781439167779. Urban Fantasy.
Texas is heating up.…
The summer heat wave that’s hit Rio Seco, Texas, has even the vampires complaining, but now that Keira—the Kelly Heir—is home from Vancouver, the weather isn’t the only thing too hot to handle. Keira should be setting up her court and planning the big reception at which she and her consort, vampire ruler Adam Walker, will receive the magical leaders from the local area, but pomp and circumstance just aren’t Keira’s thing, especially not with trouble smoldering in her domain. A werewolf couple has mysteriously gone missing from a local pack, and when Keira is asked by their leader to investigate, she finds that some dissatisfied neighbors may have been taking, well, strong action against the war community—action that could be repeated and could involve Keira and those she loves. With the reception looming and danger fast blazing out of control, the pressure is on Keira to keep Texas safe for supernaturals. Sometimes, it’s just not that great to be Heir.…
Echo by Jack McDevitt
(an Alex Benedict novel), Ace, $24.95, 372pp, hc, 9780441019243. Science fiction.
Echo is the fifth chapter of the deeply intriguing science fiction series by Nebula-award-winning author Jack McDevitt, featuring Alex Benedict, a successful collector of human antiquities from across the galaxy.
In a universe thought to contain only one other form of alien life, scientist Sunset Tuttle spent his life looking for others. Thirty years after Tuttle died in scientific obscurity, a stone tablet covered in strange engravings is found in his old house. Before Alex Benedict and his assistant can acquire it, however, Tuttle’s former lover claims it and refuses to allow any one else to see. Benedict’s intrigue leads him to the planetary system of Echo, the last place visited by Tuttle, where he searches to find if the scientist had discovered another civilization.
Highborn by Yvonne Navarro
(First of the Dark Redemption Series), Pocket/June, $7.99, 376pp, pb, 9781439191736. Urban Fantasy.
Evil doesn’t have a prayer…
Everyone deserves a second chance.
Brynna Malak might be the exception to the rule.
Brynna is a fallen angel trying to earn redemption. She’s escaped Hell and come to Earth, but Lucifer’s deadliest hunters are hot on her trail. And they’re not the only ones who’d like to send her back where she came from. Detective Eran Redmond needs Brynna to help find a serial killer who is terrifying Chicago… and that means battling her own very dangerous kind. She’s also got a very human problem: dealing with a stubborn, sexy cop she knows better than to get involved with.
Staying alive long enough to earn a shot at Heaven will mean breaking some major rules in the mortal world, as she learns just how complicated and wonderful being human can be. With so much stacked against her, even Brynna has to wonder if she’s crazy. But she’s not giving in without a fight. Not a chance in hell.…
The Dragon Apprentice written and illustrated by James Owen
(The Chronicles of the Imaginarium Geographica, Book 4), Simon & Schuster, $17.99, 376pp, hc, 9781416958970. Fantasy.
Master storyteller James Owen resurrects his protagonists Jack, John, and Charles seven years after the events of Shadow Dragons, the fourth book in Owen’s Chronicles of the Imaginarium Geographica Series. Fans will recalls these three men as the Caretakers charged with protecting the Imaginarium Geographica, the guidebook that contains maps to lands of myth and legend. The gentlemen reunite at the beautiful Archipelago of Dreams, but all is not as it should be. The Shadows of primordial darkness, the Ecthroi, are struggling harder than ever to gain control of both dimensions. The unraveling of Time has already begun, and now the Caretakers must do everything in their power to restore order and defeat the sinister forces that threaten the Archipelago of Dreams and everything outside it. James Owen delivers exactly what fans have come to expect from him in The Dragon’s Apprentice—vivid depictions of otherworldly lands, allusions to beloved fantasy literature, and the adventurous protagonists readers have come to know and love. Don’t miss the latest installment of Owen’s compelling series.
Siknners: Vampire Uprising by Marcus Pelegrimas
Eos, $7.99, 408pp, pb, 9780061986338. Horror.
A legendary Skinner has passed. Among the articles he left behind are runes, potions, and powerful weapons to aid in the ongoing war against the unspeakable creatures that prowl the shadows outside normal human consciousness. But there is something else: the remains of a terrifying beast no other Skinner has ever encountered. And it isn’t dead.
Skinners, partners, lovers, Cole Warnecki and Paige Strobel are well armed with the tools the late Jonah Lancroft provided. But even his best weapons may not be enough to defeat the monstrosity they now face. A new terror has risen up to infect them both with its virulent malevolence, even as Paige confronts the secrets of her astonishing past. The purest evil walks the world again—the First Deceiver, humankind’s darkest nightmare, the self-proclaimed King of the Full Bloods.
The Cardinal’s Blades by Pierre Pevel
Pyr, $16.00, 312pp, tp, 9781616142452. Fantasy.
Welcome to seventeenth-century Paris, where intrigue, duels, and spies are rife and Cardinal Richelieu’s men may be prevailed upon to risk life and limb in the name of France at a moment’s notice. And with war on the horizon, the defense of the nation has never been more pressing.
Danger is rising from the south—an insidious plot that could end with a huge dragon-shaped shadow falling over France, a shadow cast by dragons quite unlike the pet dragonets that roam the cities like stray cats, or the tame wyverns men ride like horses, high over the Parisian rooftops. These dragons and their descendants are ancient, terrible, and powerful… and their plans contain little room for the lives or freedom of men.
Cardinal Richelieu has nowehere else to turn; Captain La Fargue and his elite group of men, the Cardinal’s Blades, must turn the tide. They must hold the deadly Black Claw cult at bay, root out traitors to the crown, rescue prisoners, and fulfill their mission for the Cardinal, for their country, but above all for themselves.
It’s death or victory. And the victory has never been less certain.
Steampunk’d edited by Jean Rabe and Martin H. Greenberg
DAW, $7.99, 312pp, pb, 9780756406431. Science fiction anthology.
Science fiction is the literature of what if, and steampunk takes the what if along a particular time stream. What if steam power was combined with future tech in the Victorian era? How would that era change, and how would it change our present and future?
From a Franco-British race for Kentucky coal to one woman’s determination to let no man come between her and her inventions… from an attempt to turn lead into gold to a reporter’s cross-country airship journey to cover the story of a scientist out to take the desert’s heat… from the hunt for a near-extinct creature to an attempt to rid Europe of the fey… from “machine whisperers” to a Thomas Edison experiment gone awry, here are fourteen original tales of what might have been had steam powered inventions in new directions in an earlier age.
[Contributors: Michael A. Stackpole, Donald J. Bingle, William C. Dietz, Jody Lynn Nye, Bradley P. Beaulieu, Dean Leggett, Stephen D. Sullivan, Matthew P. Mayo, C.A. Verstraete, Paul Genesse, Mary Louise Eklund, Marc Tassin, Skip & Penny Williams, and Robert E. Vardeman.]
U.S.S. Enterprise (NX-01, NCC-1701, NCC-1701-A to NCC-1701-E) Owners’ Workshop Manual by Ben Robinson and Marcus Riley (Technical Consultant: Michael Okuda)
Haynes/Gallery, $27.00, 160pp, hc, 9781451621299. Science fiction/media tie-in.
The U.S.S. Enterprise is without doubt the most famous starship in history. The vessels that have carried the name have saved the galaxy countless times and her captains, including Archer, Kirk, and Picard, have been legendary.
This Haynes Manual provides in-depth information about these extraordinary ships, from the Enterprise NX-01, to Captain Kirk’s Enterprise NCC-1701 and Captain Picard’s Enterprise NCC-1701-D including histories of each vessel, technical information about their systems, and discussinos of key technologies such as transporters and warp-speed travel. Find out exactly what powered these ships, how they were armed and what it took to operate them.
The book features newly created artwork throughout, including full-ship cutaways of each Enterprise, key systems, and interior locations together with detailed new exterior views by one of Star Trek‘s original visual effects artists.
This Haynes Manual is fully authorized by CBS and technical consultant Michael Okuda, who spent twenty years working on Star Trek TV series and movies.
0765314282.jpg
Seed Seeker by Pamela Sargent
Tor, $25.99, 288pp, hc, 9780765314284. Science fiction.
In 1983, Pamela Sargent introduced readers to Ship, a sentient starship sent to populate the planet Home with the seed of humankind. This novel, Earthseed, became a science fiction classic and was named an American Library Association Best Book for Young Adults, a Booklist Young Adult Reviewer’s Choice selection, and a New York Public Library Book for the Teen Age. Its sequel, Farseed, written twenty years later, received excellent reviews from top-notch publications. Due to overwhelming demand from fans, Sargent returns with Seed Seeker, the final installment in this venerated saga. Ship has finally returned to Home—what will it find?
In the years that have passed since Ship left humans on the planet Home, the colony has separated. Some have moved to the river to form an agricultural community where they hunt and fish for survival; others have stayed in the original domed colony buildings to maintain the library and await Ship’s return. As the proprietors of Ship’s technology, the Dome Dwellers consider themselves the protectors of “true humanity” and will do little more than trade with the “contaminated” River People.
When a light appears in the sky over Home, the River People believe it is Ship keeping its promise to return. But the Dome Dwellers, who have a radio to communicate with Ship, have been silent. The River Folk decide to send a seventeen-year-old girl named Bian and her friend Arnagh—a young man familiar with the Dome Dwellers—to find out what the colony knows. Bian has never strayed from her village, and as she travels, gaining companions and gathering news, she begins to wonder why the Dome Dwellers would leave the other inhabitants of Home in the dark. Has Ship commanded them to be silent in preparation of judgment of the River People? Or are the Dome Dwellers lying to Ship, turning it away from their rivals? Whatever the answer is, life is about to radically change on both sides of the divide.
Pamela Sargent has created a thrilling conclusion to the series that is sure to please both devotees and newcomers. Fans of gritty science fiction like Battlestar Galactica and Firefly will not want to miss Seed Seeker.
Tracato by Joel Shepherd
(A Trial of Blood & Steel, Book Three), Pyr, $16.00, 350pp, tp, 9781616142445. Fantasy.
For two hundred years Tracato has been the center of enlightenment, as the serrin have occupied human lands and sought to remake humanity anew. But the serrin have not destroyed Rhodaan’s feudal families entirely, and as Tracato faces the greatest threat to its survival in two centuries, old rivalries are stirring. Sasha must assist her mentor Kessligh to strengthen the Tracato Nasi-Keth, yet with one royal sister siding with the feudalists and another soon to be married to Tracato’s most powerful foe, her loyalties are agonizingly divided.
Worse still, from Sasha’s homeland the Army of Lenayin are marching to make war upon Tracato. Can she fight her own people? Or must she join them, and fight not only her lover Errollyn, but to extinguish the brightest light of hope in all the land—serrin civilization itself?
Kris Longknife: Redoubtable by Mike Shepherd
Ace, $7.99, 330pp, pb, 9780441019564. Science fiction.
Lieutenant Commander Kris Longknife has precise orders: seek out, engage, and destroy pirates, slavers, and drug lords operating beyond the Rim of human space—without interfering in Peterwald family affairs. Longtime rivals in business and politics, the Longknifes and the Peterwalds maintain a precarious detente at best.
Unforunately, the pirates are acting within Peterwald territory, preying on the millions of refugees suffering there. Taking down thugs is all in a day’s work for Kris’s troops. Feeding the starving masses without government support is the real challenge—especially if Kris is to avoid the appearance of a Longknife takeover of a Peterwald world.
But when slavers kidnap a twelve-year-old girl, Kris’s mission becomes personal. And if destroying the pirate compound flattens some Peterwald interests—well, to hell with politics…
The Flock by James Robert Smith
Tor, $15.99, 368pp, tp, 9780765328014. Thriller.
Slated to be a major motion picture from Don Murphy, producer of Natural Born Killers and Transformers, and Jon Wells, producer of The West Wing and ER, in late 2011, is James Robert Smith’s first novel The Flock—a contemporary eco-thriller about what can happen when man violates nature, and when nature fights back.
A remote Florida pine forest has been targeted for theme-park development by the Berg Brothers Studio who would like to make the area into “the perfect American township.” Unfortunately for them, some of the forest’s inhabitants are none too happy. It doesn’t help that those residents are a colony of ten-foot-tall Titanis walleri—intelligent, prehistoric, bird-like carnivorous dinosaurs. This flock of beasts, having escaped the mass extinction that killed off the rest of the dinosaurs has survived undiscovered ever since in the wild outside the developed world, relying on stealth, cunning, and killer instinct.
When the studio realizes that the flock’s discovery by authorities would put an end to their theme park, they hire a crazed survivalist and his army of mercenaries to eliminate the threat. Opposing the developers’ bloodthirsty exterminators is a billionaire rogue environmentalist who steps in to protect these rare, ancient predators for his own purposes. Caught between the flock and the two opposing forces of human combatants is a naive young Fish and Wildlife Service officer who must try to prevent the destruction of the flock. But he may find out the hard way that man is the most dangerous predator of them all…
An exhilarating thriller filled with nail-biting suspense, The Flock is a gripping, pulse-pounding tale that will keep readers on the edge of their seats to the last exciting page.
Mr. Monster by Dan Wells
Tor, $21.99, 288pp, hc, 9780765322487. Horror-fantasy thriller.
Fifteen-year-old John Wayne Cleaver does not fit in. His psychiatrist has diagnosed him as “antisocial,” but sometimes he has an inkling that his urges may take a darker turn—into violence and murder. It isn’t just because he grew up in a mortuary or even the fact that he helps his mother clean up dead bodies. Serial killers have long captivated John—while the rest of his classmates write essays on George Washington and John Adams, John writes them on Jeffrey Dahmer and Dennis Radar. Dan Wells’ introduced this curious protagonist in his debut novel, I Am Not a Serial Killer, in which John Cleaver discovered the secret behind a series of murders in his small Midwestern town.
Now, in Mr. Monster, he ups the ante with a thriller that is just as gripping and even more intense.
I killed a demon. I don’t know if it was really, technically a demon, but I do know that he was some kind of monster, with fangs and claws and the whole bit, and he killed a lot of people. So I killed him. I think it was the right thing to do. At least the killing stopped.
Well, it stopped for a while.
John Wayne Cleaver saved his town from a murderer even more appalling than the serial killers he obsessively studies, using his own repressed homicidal proclivities to even the odds. But it turns out even demons have friends, and the disappearance of one has brought another to Clayton County. Soon there are new victims for John to work on at the mortuary, and a new mystery to solve. But this time, something’s different. John has tasted death, and the dark nature he used as a weapon—the terrifying persona he calls “Mr. Monster”—might now be using him.
No one in Clayton is safe unless John can vanquish two nightmarish adversaries: the unknown demon he must hunt, and the inner demon he can never escape.
With its unique and original storyline, Mr. Monster is a striking book that will appeal to horror and mystery fans alike. Step into the world of a potential serial killer in this fast, suspenseful read, with a creepily appealing protagonist. He apologizes in advance for the nightmares.
Shadowheart by Tad Williams
(the final volume of Shadowmarch), DAW, $27.95, 672pp, hc, 9780756406400. Fantasy. On-sale date: 7 December 2010.
Internationally bestselling author Tad Williams concludes his epic Shadowmarch Series with Shadowheart.
Southmarch Castle is about to be caught between two implacable enemies, the ancient, immortal Qar and the insane god-king, the Autarch of Xis. Meanwhile, its two young defenders, Princess Briony and Prince Barrick, are both trapped far away from home and fighting for their lives.
And now, something is awakening underneath Southmarch Castle, something powerful and terrible that the world has not seen for thousands of years. Can Barrick and Briony, along with a tiny handful of allies, ordinary and extraordinary, find a way to save their world and prevent the rise of a terrible new age—an age of unending darkness?
Shadowrise by Tad Williams
(Book Three of Shadowmarch), DAW, $16.00, 564pp, tp, 9780756406417. Fantasy.
Southmarch Castle is about to be caught between two implacable enemies, the ancient, immortal Qar and the insane god-king, the Autarch of Xis. Meanwhile, its two young defenders, the king’s children Princess Briony and Prince Barrick, are both trapped far away from home and fighting for their lives.
Barrick is lost behind the Shadowline, facing all the terrible dangers and mysteries of that magical twilight land. Briony is alone in a treacherous foreign court, struggling to survive with no weapon left to her but her wits. And in the midst of all this, something unbelievable is awakening underneath Southmarch, something powerful and terrible that the world has not seen for thousands of years.
In this third volume Barrick and Briony, aong with Qinnitan—the Autarch’s desperate, escaped slave—a loyal soldier named Ferras Vansen, and a tiny handful of other folk, ordinary and extraordinary, must find a way to save their world, or else witness the rise of a terrible new age—an age of unending darkness.
Crown of Crystal Flame by C.L. Wilson
Avon, $7.99, 470pp, pb, 9780062018960. Paranormal romance.
A Song of Love won her heart.
A Song of Darkness haunted her soul.
A Song in the Dance would seal her fate.
Seers had long foreseen an extraordinary destiny for Ellysetta Baristani. Already she had won the heart of the Fey King—the magnificent Rain, ever her ally, eternally her love. She had saved the offspring of the magical tairen and fought beside the legendary mate against the armies of Eld. But the most powerful—and dangerous—Verse of her Song had yet to be sung. As the final battle draws nigh and evil tightens its grip upon her soul—will Ellysetta secure the world for Light or plunge it into Darkness for all eternity? As she and Rain fight for each other, side by side, will they find a way to complete their truemate bond and defeat the evil High Mage of Eld before it’s too late, or must they make the ultimate sacrifice to save their world?
The Witches’ Almanac Issue 30 (Spring 2011-Spring 2012)
Theitic, $11.94, 152pp, tp, 9780982432303.
Celebrating 40 years of publication, The Witches’ Almanac has been the source of fun, wisdom, trivial and magical lore for thousands and thousands of readers throughout the world. Modeled after the Old Farmer’s Almanac, it includes information related to the annual Moon calendar (weather forecasts and horoscopes), as well as legends, rituals, herbal secrets, interviews, and spells. Only 15 percent of the content is time sensitive and included in this year’s edition are the first three months of 2011, providing readers with an 18-month almanac.
Insightful, entertaining, and filled with whimsical graphics, The Witches’ Almanac is not only an accessible reference guide, it appeals to anyone interested in folklore, mythology, and culture. And, of course, it appeals to the Wiccan practitioner and enthusiast.
1439134065.JPG
Cobra Guardian by Timothy Zahn
(Cobra War, Book 2), Baen, $24.00, 304pp, hc, 9781439134061. Science fiction> On-sale date: January 2011.
When the colony worlds Adirondack and Silvern fell to the Troft forces almost without a struggle. Outnumbered and on the defensive, Earth made a desperate decision. It would attack the aliens not from space, but on the ground—with forces the Trofts did not even suspect. Thus were created the Cobras, a guerrilla force whose weapons were surgically implanted, invisible to the unsuspecting eye, yet undeniably deadly. And the Moreau family were the most famous of the Cobra warriors. Long after victory over the Troft was achieved, the Cobras made common cause against their former adversaries against a new enemy. Their reward was three planets that would be a home for the Cobras, who deadly powers made them too dangerous to feel at home on Earth.
Now, years had passed and not everyone on the Cobra worlds thought that the Cobras were worth the cost of maintaining their existing built-in weaponry, let alone supporting research to improve the Cobra weapons, and possibly even put an end to the negative effects of that built-in weaponry, which caused Cobras to die much too young. Many who had never known interplanetary war were convinced that the Cobras were not needed at all.
That was a grave miscalculation, because a Troft faction has decided to invade the Cobra planets in force, using a new strategy that even the formidable Cobra warriors may not be able to defeat…