[[[Darkness Hunts]]] by Keri Arthur. Signet, $7.99, 390pp, pb, 9780451237125. Urban Fantasy.
New York Times bestselling author Keri Arthur returns to the enthralling Guardian World — and a twilight realm of danger and desire….
Half-werewolf, half-Aedh Risa Jones can enter the realm between life and death. She can speak to the dead and she can see the reapers, who act as collectors of souls. What she cannot yet see is the identity of a stranger who is murdering women and draining their blood. Now Risa must summon her gifts to find him, even if it means putting her own life in danger. But she needn’t look far. The killer knows who she is.
He tells Risa his victims are infected by darkness and he’s fated to destroy them. Fascinated by her, he engages Risa in a sinister game, giving her the chance to save the life of his next victim by deciphering a series of clues. In a race against time, she enlists the help of reaper Azriel.
As an attraction between them grows, so does the fear that the stranger’s motives are only part of a larger, more dangerous strategem — one that has lured Risa and Azriel into the dark.
[[[The Annotated Sword of Shannara]]], 35th Anniversary Edition, by Terry Brooks. Del Rey, $35.00, 526pp, hc, 9780345535139. Fantasy.
Thirty-five years ago, Terry Brooks brought to life a dazzling world in The Sword of Shannara. Nineteen more Shannara volumes would follow, making the series one of the most popular fantasy epics of all time. Now comes a fully annotated collector’s edition of the novel that started it all — featuring never-before-shared insights into the classic tale, an all-new introduction by the New York Times bestselling author, and replicas of the original sketches for some of the long-lost, black-and-white paintings by the Brothers Hildebrandt that decorated the original edition, and a replica of the original Hildebrandt central color plate on the back of the jacket.
Long ago, wars ravaged the world. In peaceful Shady Vale, half-elfin Shea Ohmsford knows little of such troubles. Then the giant, forbidding Allanon reveals that the supposedly dead Warlock Lord is plotting to destroy everything in his wake. The sole weapon against this Power of Darkness is the Sword of Shannara, which can be used only by a true heir of Shannara. On Shea, last of the bloodline, rests the hope of all the races.
Soon a Skull Bearer, dread minion of a mighty evil, flies into the Vale, seeking to destroy Shea. To save his home, Shea must flee, drawing the Skull Bearer after him in menacing pursuit. Thus begins the enthralling Shannara epic, a spellbinding tale of adventure, magic, and myth.
[[[I Saw Zombies Eating Santa Claus: A Breathers Christmas Carol]]] by S.G. Browne. Gallery, $14.99, 202pp, hc, 9781476708720. Fiction.
S.G. Browne continues his Breathers zombie saga with this special holiday sequel, I Saw Zombies Eating Santa Claus: A Breathers Christmas Carol.
How does the leader of a failed California-based zombie civil rights movement rescue a group of his undead brethren and help a lonely Breather girl as he hides from a band of medical researchers while disguised as Santa Claus?
If you don’t believe in Christmas miracles, then you wouldn’t understand…
Andy Warner has just escaped from a zombie research facility in Portland, Oregon, where he has been subjected to experimental testing for the past year. With Christmas just days away, Andy figures that donning a jolly old St. Nick costume to throw off his would-be captors is just the ticket. But he never expects to encounter a sweet, lonesome nine-year-old girl who not only reminds Andy of the family he’s lost, but who thinks he’s the real Santa. He also doesn’t count on being recognized as last year’s national quasi-celebrity by a clandestine group of decaying supporters who look to him for leadership.
For the living and the undead, I Saw Zombies Eating Santa Claus will truly put on display just who is gnawing and who is nice…
[[[Black Lament]]] by Chrstina Henry. (a Black Wings novel), Ace, $7.99, 274pp, pb, 9780425256572. Fantasy.
As an agent of death, Madeline Black deals with loss every day. But when tragedy touches her own life, Maddy will have to find the strength within to carry on…
Devastated and grieving, Maddy unexpectedly finds hope with the discovery that she is pregnant. But her joy is short-lived when Lucifer informs her that he wants the baby, hoping to draw on the combined power of two of his bloodlines, Maddy is determined that her grandfather will never have her child, but she’s not sure what she can do to stop him.
Being pregnant is stressful enough, but Maddy suddenly finds herself at odds with the Agency, which forbids her from meddling in the affairs of the supernatural courts. When a few of her soul collections go awry, Maddy begins to suspect that the Agency wants to terminate her employment. It should know by now that she isn’t the sort to give up without a fight…
[[[London Eye]]] by Tim Lebbon. (Toxic City, Book One), Pyr, $16.95, 280pp, hc, 9781616146801. YA science fiction.
Two years after London is struck by a devastating terrorist attack, it is cut off from the world, protected by a military force known as Choppers. The rest of Britain believes that the city is now a toxic, uninhabited wasteland.
But Jack and his friends — some of whom lost family on what has become known as Doomsday — know that reality is very different. At great risk, they have been gathering evidence about what is really happening in London — and it is incredible. Because the handful of London’s survivors are changing. Developing strange, fantastic powers. Evolving.
Upon discovering that his mother is still alive inside London, Jack, his sister, and their three friends sneak into a city in ruins. Vast swathes have been bombed flat. Choppers cruise the streets, looking for survivors to experiment upon. The toxic city is filled with wonders and dangers that will challenge Jack and his friends… and perhaps kill them. But Jack knows that the truth must be revealed to the outside world or every survivor will die.
[[[Magic for a Price]]] by Devon Monk. (an Allie Beckstrom novel), Roc, $7.99, 352pp, pb, 9780451464866. Urban fantasy.
But everything was not normal. Not at all. We were about to enter a war with two of the most powerful creatures who had ever used magic. And we were nowhere near ready for this fight.
For more of her life, Allison Beckstrom has used magic and accepted the heavy price it exacts. But now that all magic is poisoned, it’s no longer just using people — it’s killing them.
With Portland about to descend into chaos, Allie needs to find a way to purify the wells of tainted magic beneath the city. But the only options left to her are grim: attempt to close down magic forever or follow her father’s plan to get magic into the right hands — even though she’s learned never to trust his word.
Now Allie will have to make a choice and face the darkness of her deepest fears before time runs out for them all….
[[[Quantum Coin]]] by E.C. Myers. Pyr, $16.95, 333pp, hc, 9781616146825. YA speculative fiction.
Ephraim thought his universe-hopping days were over. He’s done wishing for magic solutions to his problems; his quantum coin has been powerless for almost a year, and he’s settled into a normal life with his girlfriend, Jena. But then an old friend crashes their senior prom: Jena’s identical twin from a parallel world, Zoe.
Zoe’s timing couldn’t be worse. It turns out that Ephraim’s problems are far from over, and they’re much more complicated than his love life: The multiverse is at stake — and it might just be Ephraim’s fault.
Ephraim, Jena, and Zoe embark on a mission across multiple worlds to learn what’s going wrong and how to stop it. They will have to draw on every resource available and trust in alternate versions of themselves and their friends, before it’s too late for all of them.
If Ephraim and his companions can put their many differences aside and learn to work together, they might have a chance to save the multiverse. But ultimately, the solution may depend on how much they’re willing to sacrifice for the sake of humanity… and each other.
[[[A Trace of Moonlight]]] by Allison Pang. Pocket, $7.99, 382pp, pb, 9781439198360. Urban fantasy.
Allison Pang’s eagerly anticipated third Abby Sinclair novel, A Trace of Moonlight, more than lives up to her wildly entertaining debut, A Brush of Darkness.
Abby’s pact with a daemon — whether or not she remembers making it — is binding, so she’d better count herself lucky that (in the words of a daemon who knows better) there’s nearly always a loophole. But her friends’ reckless attempts to free her, well intentioned though they may be, set off a disastrous chain of events. In no time at all, Abby turns her incubus lover mortal, then gets herself killed, cursed, and married to an elven prince whose mother wants her dead. On top of everything else, she’s lost the Key to the CrossRoads to her mortal enemy, who promptly uses his restored power to wreak havoc on the OtherWorld and put its very existence in jeopardy. Only one person can make things right again, but to find her, Abby must place her trust in allies of mixed loyalties, and conquer her nightmares once and for all. A Trace of Moonlight will have readers faithfully following along with Abby Sinclair to see her next step.
[[[The Rama; Extraction: Cutler’s Wars]]] by Steve Perry. Ace, $7.99, 304pp, 9780425256626. Military science fiction. On-sale date: 24 December 2012.
From New York Times bestselling author of The Musashi Flex, Steve Perry, comes the first novel in a new thrilling military science fiction series: The Ramal Extraction: Cutler’s Wars.
At the close of the 24th Century, a series of revolutions has caused the galaxy to descend into chaos. With the Galactic Union’s Army stretched thin, mercenary units have arisen for those who have the need — and the means — to hire them…
Captained by former Detached Guerrilla Forces Colonel R.A. “Rags” Cutter, the Cutter Force Initiative is one of the best. A specialized team consisting of both aliens and humans, the Cutters offer services ranging from fight training and protection to extraction and assassination — as long as the target deserves it and their employer makes good on payday. When they’re hired to find and rescue Indira, the soon-to-be-married daughter of the Rajah Ramal of New Mumbai, the teams’ first task is to identify the kidnapper. The obvious suspects are insurgents who want to overthrow the rajanate, but as other forces enter the game and an assassination attempt is made on Ramal, the Cutters realize that their in-and-out extraction job is about to get a lot more interesting — and a lot more lethal…
At a time when military sci-fi is hotter than ever, you won’t want to miss out on this exciting new series from a proven author, Steve Perry, who will keep you hooked and wanting more.