New Scifi & Fantasy Releases: Week of August 5-11

Science Fiction 

When Diplomacy Fails
Michael Z. Williamson
Publisher: Baen
Release Date: August 7


Alex Marlow and Ripple Creek Security's best personal security detail return to action. This time, they really don't like their principal, World Bureau Minister Joy Herman Highland–a highly-placed bureaucrat with aspirations to elected office. Even worse, Highland’s assistant wants to publicize every movement and action for his boss’s pending campaign, which is anathema to good security.With a person of this status, it's not a case of someone wanting her dead. The only question is how many people want her dead, and what are they bringing to the fight?The enemies are from without, within and all over. They have resources, funding and political cover. Ripple Creek needs to be cautious.But the enemy also needs to worry. They’re going to be getting in each others' way in the process of carrying out their plans. And Ripple Creek has no qualms about explosions on galactic news. In fact, they enjoy it.

Fantasy

Charon's Claw
R.A. Salvatore
Publisher: Wizards of the Coast
Release Date: August 7

In the 3rd book of the #4 New York Times best-selling Neverwinter Saga, Drizzt draws his swords once more to aid his friends. His lover, Dahlia Sin’felle, can speak of nothing but the moment she will face the Netherese lord Herzgo Alegni once again. Drizzt has already followed a trail of vengeance beside Dahlia. Can he justify one more battle to settle a grudge he does not understand? Artemis Entreri too seeks vengeance. He offers to aid Dahlia in her mission to destroy Alegni. But Charon’s Claw, Alegni’s sentient sword, dominates Entreri’s movements—if not his mind. And then there’s the way Entreri looks at Dahlia. Can Drizzt trust his old foe?

King of Thorns (The Broken Empire, Bk 2)
Mark Lawrence
Publisher: Ace
Release Date: August 7

The Broken Empire burns with the fires of a hundred battles as lords and petty kings battle for the all-throne. The long road to avenge the slaughter of his mother and brother has shown Prince Honorous Jorg Ancrath the hidden hands behind this endless war. He saw the game and vowed to sweep the board. First though he must gather his own pieces, learn the rules of play, and discover how to break them.

A six nation army, twenty thousand strong, marches toward Jorg's gates, led by a champion beloved of the people. Every decent man prays this shining hero will unite the empire and heal its wounds. Every omen says he will. Every good king knows to bend the knee in the face of overwhelming odds, if only to save their people and their lands. But King Jorg is not a good king.

Faced by an enemy many times his strength Jorg knows that he cannot win a fair fight. But playing fair was never part of Jorg’s game plan

The Wild Road
Jennifer Roberson
Publisher: DAW
Release Date: August 7

Alisanos, the deepwood, is more than just a forest...
...it is sentient, and predatory. Home to demons and worse, its mercurial boundaries can suddenly shift miles in any direction to encompass previously safe human lands - and those taken by the deepwood are forever changed.
Audrun, a human woman trapped within the forest, is reunited with her four children, only to learn that each has been marked by the deepwood's wild magic. And her newly born fifth child, captured by a winged demon, is still missing. Audrun has sworn to find the infant, but can a mere human possibly hope to outwit the monstrous inhabitants of Alisanos...and the nightmarish deepwood itself?

Libriomancer
Jim C. Hines.
Publisher: DAW
Release Date: August 7

saac Vainio is a Libriomancer, a member of the secret organization founded five centuries ago by Johannes Gutenberg. Libriomancers are gifted with the ability to magically "reach" into books and draw forth objects. When Isaac is attacked by vampires that "leaked "from the pages of books into our world, he barely manages to escape. To his horror he discovers that vampires have been attacking other magic-users as well, and Gutenberg has been kidnapped.

With the help of a motorcycle-riding dryad who packs a pair of oak cudgels, Isaac finds himself hunting the unknown dark power that has been manipulating humans and vampires alike. And his search will uncover dangerous secrets about Libriomancy, Gutenberg, and the history of magic. . . 

The Fate of the Dwarves
Markus Heitz
Publisher: Orbit
Release Date: August 7

There has been no word from the courageous warrior Tungdil since the bitter struggle that took place at the Black Abyss. Dragons, magicians, and the cruel älfar have advanced far into the kingdom Girdlegard, ruthlessly seizing vast areas of land. It seems that the dwarves are facing their next battle with very little hope of survival.

But then the inexplicable happens; a dwarf warrior dressed in black armor returns from the abyss - with a formidable army in tow. This warrior calls himself Tungdil, and for his most loyal friend Ireheart and his allies, this means a new hope. But soon doubts begin arise . . . Could this really be Tungdil the dwarf, or is this warrior following his own dark agenda? It is a question of the future of Girdlegard - and the future of all the dwarves.

In the final installment of this spectacular fantasy epic, the greatest of the dwarves' adventures begins . . 

The Constantine Affliction
T. Aaron Payton
Publisher: Night Shade Books
Release Date: August 7

1864. London is a city in transition. The Constantine Affliction–a strange malady that kills some of its victims and physically transforms others into the opposite sex–has spread scandal and upheaval throughout society. Scientific marvels and disasters, such as clockwork courtesans, the alchemical fires of Whitechapel, electric carriages, and acidic monsters lurking in the Thames, have forever altered the face of the city.

Pembroke “Pimm” Hanover is an aristocrat with an interest in criminology, who uses his keen powers of observation to assist the police or private individuals–at least when he’s sober enough to do so. Ellie Skyler, who hides her gender behind the byline “E. Skye,” is an intrepid journalist driven by both passion and necessity to uncover the truth, no matter where it hides.

When Pimm and Skye stumble onto a dark plot that links the city’s most notorious criminal overlord with the Queen’s new consort, famed scientist Sir Bertram Oswald, they soon find the forces of both high and low society arrayed against them. Can they save the city from the arcane machinations of one of history’s most monsters–and uncover the shocking origin of...

THE CONSTANTINE AFFLICTION

Shadowlands
Violette Malan
Publisher: DAW
Release Date: August 7

The long-awaited sequel to Violette Malan's acclaimed debut novel, "The Mirror Prince."
The war in the Land of the Faerie has finally ended. Prince Cassandra dispatches Stormwolf, formerly a Hound but cured by his prince's magic and restored to the Rider he once was, to the Shadowlands to call home the People who remain refugees there. But Stormwolf finds the Hounds of the Wild Hunt now prey upon the souls of the humans, draining them of the magic which is the very lifeblood of the People. With the help of Valory Martin, a mortal psychic, Stormwolf must find the magic needed to defeat the Hunt before it's too late.

My Favorite Fangs: The Story of the Von Trapp Family Vampires
Alan Goldsher
Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin
Release Date: August 7

Maria von Trapp is sweet, innocent, and can sing like an angel. Oh, and she’s also a bloodthirsty vampire. When Maria is kicked out of the Abbey where she’s been residing for the past thousand or so years, she lands a job caretaking the family von Trapp, a rowdy clan in need of some serious discipline… or vampirification. After Maria turns the von Trapp children into children of the night and marries the von Trapp patriarch, the family seems destined for eternal (really, really eternal) bliss. But Hitler’s Undeath Squads are on the march, intent on ridding Europe of bloodsuckers. And Maria will have to do everything in her power—supernatural or otherwise —to save her vampire brood. In the open vein of Abraham Lincoln, Vampire Hunter, Alan Goldsher's My Favorite Fangs is a hilarious horror novel that will have readers screaming, ”Do Re Mi.” Or just plain screaming.

The Grass King's Concubine
Kari Sperring
Publisher: DAW
Release Date: August 7

When a wealthy young woman, obsessed with a childhood vision of a magical Shining Palace, sets out with her true love to search for a legendary land, she discovers the devastated WorldBelow - the realm of the Grass King - and the terrifying Cadre, who take her prisoner, and demand she either restore the king's concubine... or replace her.

The Iron Wyrm Affair
Lilith Saintcrow
Publisher: Orbit
Release Date: August 7

Emma Bannon, Prime sorceress in the service of the Empire, has a mission: to protect Archibald Clare, a failed, unregistered mentath. His skills of deduction are legendary, and her own sorcery is not inconsiderable. It doesn’t much help that they dislike each other, or that Bannon’s Shield, Mikal, might just be a traitor himself. Or that the conspiracy killing registered mentaths and sorcerers alike will just as likely kill them as seduce them into treachery toward their Queen. In an alternate London where illogical magic has turned the Industrial Revolution on its head, Bannon and Clare now face hostility, treason, cannon fire, black sorcery, and the problem of reliably finding hansom cabs.

The game is afoot…

The Year's Best Science Fiction & Fantasy: 2012 
edited by Rich Horton 
Publisher: Prime Books 
Release Date: August 8

From the publisher's web site: This fourth volume of the year's best science fiction and fantasy features thirty stories by some of the genre's greatest authors, including Jonathan Carroll, Neil Gaiman, Kij Johnson, Kelly Link, Paul McAuley, RJ Parker, Robert Reed, Rachel Swirsky, Catherynne M. Valente, and many others. Selecting the best fiction from Asimov's, F&SF, Strange Horizons, Subterranean, Tor.com, and other top venues, The Year's Best Science Fiction & Fantasy is your guide to magical realms and worlds beyond tomorrow.

Young Adult

Courtship and Curses
Marissa Doyle
Publisher: Henry Holt
Release Date: Aug 7

Sophie’s entrance into London society isn’t what she thought it would be: Mama isn’t there to guide her, Papa is buried in his work fighting Napoleon, and Sophie’s newly acquired limp keeps her from dancing at any of those glittering balls. If it weren’t for her shopping escapades with her new French friend Amélie and a flirtation with the dashing Lord Woodbridge, she would think this season a complete disaster.

But when someone uses magic to attack Papa the night of Sophie’s first ball, her problems escalate, especially when it becomes clear that all the members of the War Cabinet are being targeted. Can she catch the culprit and keep her own magic powers hidden long enough to win herself a match?

Girl of Nightmares (Anna, Bk 2)
Kendare Blake
Publisher: Tor Teen
Release Date: August 7

It's been months since the ghost of Anna Korlov opened a door to Hell in her basement and disappeared into it, but ghost-hunter Cas Lowood can't move on. His friends remind him that Anna sacrificed herself so that Cas could live--not walk around half dead. He knows they're right, but in Cas's eyes, no living girl he meets can compare to the dead girl he fell in love with. Now he's seeing Anna everywhere: sometimes when he's asleep and sometimes in waking nightmares. But something is very wrong...these aren't just daydreams. Anna seems tortured, torn apart in new and ever more gruesome ways every time she appears. Cas doesn't know what happened to Anna when she disappeared into Hell, but he knows she doesn't deserve whatever is happening to her now. Anna saved Cas more than once, and it's time for him to return the favor. 

Glitch
Heather Anastasiu
Publisher: St. Martin's Press
Release Date: August 7

In the Community, there is no more pain or war. Implanted computer chips have wiped humanity clean of destructive emotions, and thoughts are replaced by a feed from the Link network.

When Zoe starts to malfunction (or “glitch”), she suddenly begins having her own thoughts, feelings, and identity. Any anomalies must be immediately reported and repaired, but Zoe has a secret so dark it will mean certain deactivation if she is caught: her glitches have given her uncontrollable telekinetic powers.

As Zoe struggles to control her abilities and stay hidden, she meets other glitchers including Max, who can disguise his appearance, and Adrien, who has visions of the future. Both boys introduce Zoe to feelings that are entirely new. Together, this growing band of glitchers must find a way to free themselves from the controlling hands of the Community before they’re caught and deactivated, or worse.

In this action-packed debut, Glitch begins an exciting new young adult trilogy.

Nevermore: The Final Maximum Ride Adventure
James Patterson
Publisher: Little, Brown & Company
Release Date: August 6

One last chance...
For Max, Fang, Angel, Iggy, Nudge, and Gazzy.
Before it all ends.

Are you ready for the final chapter? Are you ready for the ultimate flight? Because THIS IS IT. One last incredible, explosive adventure with an astonishing ending that no one could have seen coming.

Precinct 13
Tate Hallaway
Publisher: Berkley Trade
Release Date: August 7

Recent college grad Alex Conner is thrilled to have landed a job as the Hughes County coroner/medical examiner in Pierre, South Dakota. But when her first day on the job ends with a missing corpse, Alex starts to wonder if she would have been better off collecting unemployment... When the cops made some cryptic comments about being careful with the body they brought in, Alex just thought the boys in blue were messing with her. That is, until something freaky happens that no amount of med school could have prepared her for. By the time Alex gets herself together, the body has disappeared and the other residents of the morgue start talking her ear off. After working up the courage to report the missing body, Alex is transferred to the mysterious Precinct 13 where she discovers that her new co-workers—including a cute technomage named Jack—are paranormals just like her. Now, Alex is being encouraged to use her ability to speak to the dead to solve crimes. And despite being in the middle of nowhere, Hughes County sure does have a lot of paranormal activity…

Rift (Nightshade Prequel #1)
Andrea Cremer
Publisher: Philomel
Release Date: August 7

Chronicling the rise of the Keepers, this is the stunning prequel to Andrea Cremer's internationally bestselling Nightshade trilogy!

Sixteen-year-old Ember Morrow is promised to a group called Conatus after one of their healers saves her mother's life. Once she arrives, Ember finds joy in wielding swords, learning magic, and fighting the encroaching darkness loose in the world. She also finds herself falling in love with her mentor, the dashing, brooding, and powerful Barrow Hess. When the knights realize Eira, one of their leaders, is dabbling in dark magic, Ember and Barrow must choose whether to follow Eira into the nether realm or to pledge their lives to destroying her and her kind.



 

Rivals and Retribution (13 to Life #5)
Shannon Delany
Publisher: St. Martin's Press
Release Date: August 7

In Rivals and Retribution, the fifth book in the 13 to Life series by Shannon Delany, Pietr and Jessie will find themselves caught in a pack war with a new breed of werewolves.

Jessie Gillmansen is in trouble again and she's in for the fight of her life--and Pietr's! With Marlaena’s dangerous wolf pack putting more pressure on the Rusakova family, change is inevitable and when it comes, it brings a heavy price that forces Alexi into action to save his youngest brother's heart, head, and life. In the stunning conclusion of this celebrated paranormal series two werewolf families fight for control of the small town of Junction, control of each other and--most elusive of all--control of themselves.

Throne of Glass
Sarah J. Maas
Publisher: Bloomsbury USA Childrens
Release Date: August 7

After serving out a year of hard labor in the salt mines of Endovier for her crimes, 18-year-old assassin Celaena Sardothien is dragged before the Crown Prince. Prince Dorian offers her her freedom on one condition: she must act as his champion in a competition to find a new royal assassin.

Her opponents are men-thieves and assassins and warriors from across the empire, each sponsored by a member of the king's council. If she beats her opponents in a series of eliminations, she'll serve the kingdom for three years and then be granted her freedom.

Celaena finds her training sessions with the captain of the guard, Westfall, challenging and exhilirating. But she's bored stiff by court life. Things get a little more interesting when the prince starts to show interest in her... but it's the gruff Captain Westfall who seems to understand her best.

Then one of the other contestants turns up dead... quickly followed by another. Can Celaena figure out who the killer is before she becomes a victim? As the young assassin investigates, her search leads her to discover a greater destiny than she could possibly have imagined.

Urban Fantasy

Biting Cold (Chicagoland Vampires #6)
Chloe Neill
Publisher: New American Library
Release Date: August 7

Turned into a vampire against her will, twenty-eight-year-old Merit found her way into the dark circle of Chicago’s vampire underground, where she learned there was more to supernaturals than met the eye—and more supernaturals than the public ever imagined. And not all the secrets she learned were for sharing—among humans or inhumans.

Now Merit is on the hunt, charging across the stark American Midwest, tailing a rogue supernatural intent on stealing an ancient artifact that could unleash catastrophic evil on the world. But Merit is also the prey. An enemy of Chicagoland is hunting her, and he’ll stop at nothing to get the book for himself. No mercy allowed. No rules apply. No lives spared. The race is on.

Queen of Wands
John Ringo
Publisher: Baen
Release Date: August 7


Barbara Everette has a problem.  It seems Janea, Barbara’s assistant and The Foundation for Love and Universal Faith's best operative, has been thrown into a coma by some very nasty magic she’s stirred up. Barbara must track down the perpetrators and break the spell or Janea's soul will be forever lost on the astral plane. Oh, and if she can't break the spell, zombies will destroy all mankind.

Meanwhile, Janea, a high-dollar call girl, stripper and High Priestess of Freya when she isn’t fighting demons, must contend with a spiritual journey of her own.  It’s a journey into Janea’s acceptance of herself in all her dimensions (and what dimensions they are!). Where to locate one’s true inner essence? At a science fiction convention, of course. But when rescuers pursue Janea into her vision of a geeky alternate reality, we find this is one science fiction convention where the Guest of Honor could turn out to be Death Himself.

Finally, the Christian soccer mom and the Norse priestess stripper face their greatest challenge ever when an ancient Old One rears Her ugly face, and the Mother of Darkness walks among us. Since this is one Mother who is quite immune to any conventional power, including nuclear weapons, it seems humanity’s only hope is God. The question being: Is God willing to save humanity? 

Fortunately for the rest of us, Barbara and Janea are determined to fight to the last ounce of faith to find out.

Seawitch (Greywalker #7)
Kat Richardson
Publisher: Roc
Release Date: August 7

A quarter century ago, the Seawitch cruised away from her dock and disappeared with everyone on board. Now, the boat has mysteriously returned to her old berth in Seattle and the insurance company has hired Harper to find out what happened. But Harper is not the only one investigating. Seattle Police Detective Rey Solis is a good cop, albeit one who isn’t comfortable with the creepy cases that always seem to end up in Harper’s lap. As Solis focuses on the possible murder of a passenger’s wife, Harper’s investigation leads her to a powerful being who may be responsible for the disappearance of the Seawitch’s passengers and crew.

Two Weeks' Notice (Revivalist #2)
by Rachel Caine
Publisher: Roc
Release Date: August 7

After dying and being revived with the experimental drug Returne, Bryn Davis is theoretically free to live her unlife—with regular doses to keep her going. But Bryn knows that the government has every intention of keeping a tight lid on Pharmadene’s life-altering discovery, no matter the cost.

And when some of the members of a support group for Returne addicts suddenly disappear, Bryn begins to wonder if the government is methodically removing a threat to their security, or if some unknown enemy has decided to run the zombies into the ground…(less) 

In the House of the Wicked (Remy Chandler, Bk 5)
Thomas E. Sniegoski 
Publisher: Roc 
Release Date: August 7

Remy Chandler is about to go where he’s not
wanted...
PI Remy Chandler has always been able to rely on his angelic powers when the situation called for it. But now his human and angelic natures are sharing the same space, and Remy can feel himself becoming more and more volatile. Then Ashlie Berg, a young woman who is like a daughter to him, vanishes without a trace. A once-formidable sorcerer has taken her. The man wants vengeance against those he believes wronged him—and Remy will be the instrument of his wrath—or Ashlie will most certainly die…

Paranormal Romance 

Dying For You 
MaryJanice Davidson 
Publisher: Berkley Trade
Release Date: August 7


Collected in this anthology of death-defying passion are four of MaryJanice Davidson’s wildest novellas of paranormal romance, featuring an amorous ghost, a witch and witch-hunter, a love-struck psychic, and a vampire and a werewolf.

4-in-1 novella reissue

Together for the first time, four devilishly entertaining novellas by the New York Times bestselling author prove that there’s not only life after death, but desire too...

The Fixer-Upper (originally published December 2004 in Berkley trade paperback MEN AT WORK anthology and November 2005 in mass market paperback) Cathy’s new home is handsomely furnished—by an amorous male ghost. If only she had something she could...touch. Her neighbor may have a lousy personality, but he does have a perfect body. Now, spirit is about to meet flesh, to Cathy’s delight.

Paradise Bossed (originally published July 2006 in Berkley Sensation trade paperback SURF’S UP anthology and May 2009 in mass market paperback) While traveling in the Cayman Islands, Nikki loses her life in a tragic accident, but has no intention of cutting her vacation short. When a handsome male psychic is engaged to get a grip on Nikki’s spirit, he does more. He finds himself falling in love with her.

Driftwood (originally published January 2007 in Berkley Sensation mass market paperback OVER THE MOON anthology) A Cape Cod werewolf agonizes over the death of a woman by his own paw. Well, to be fair, he never really killed her. She’s a vampire. Now she needs his help to kill the bloodsucker who turned her.

Witch Way (originally published March 2007 in Berkley Sensation trade paperback DEMON’S DELIGHT anthology) For centuries their families have been embroiled in a violent, irreversible feud. Today, can a witch and a witch-hunter find common ground...without killing each other first? Sometimes opposites do attract. 

Heart Secret 
Robin D. Owens 
Publisher: Berkley Trade 
Release Date: August 7

On the faraway planet Celta, there are some things you can never tell—until someone discovers your Heart Secret…

When a virulent disease killed the woman he loved and her baby, Garrett Primross was left alive, a reluctant survivor. Now, as a private eye, he strives to banish the memories of his past and rebuild his life. The Healers of Celta have something else in mind: Discover why he survived.

He is monitored by Healer Artemisia Panax—his HeartMate, a love he never pursued. Still mourning his loss, he refuses to acknowledge her. Since her family was publicly disgraced, she's used to such treatment. She wants nothing more than to guard her livelihood and protect the secrets she's sworn to keep.

Thrown together by duty, Garrett and Artemisia find the body of the last Black Magic Cultist who ruined her family. Suspicion flares, but they have little choice but to investigate the crime together. When their own lives are placed in danger, they realize that denying their HeartMates is only denying their own future.

Wilder (The Chosen Ones, Bk 5) 
Christina Dodd 
Publisher: Signet Select 
Release Date: August 7

As a young man, Aleksandr Wilder abandoned his duty--and for that lapse, he was tortured, tormented ... and transformed. Now he prowls the tunnels beneath the city, fighting on the frontline against the forces of hell, never daring to dream that he can live as a man again.

After seven years fighting the world's ultimate evil, Chosen One Charisma Fangorn has become a tough, strong warrior without illusions or joy...even her gift of hearing the earthsong has faded. Deaf to her own instincts, she never suspects that a monster lurks in the dark underneath the streets. When Aleksandr finds Charisma under attack, he rescues and cares for her, and hope stirs once more in his heart...and in the world. But in the secret recesses of his soul, he knows the truth. A woman so exceptional could never love a beast...could she? 

Time Untime
Sherrilyn Kenyon
Publisher: St. Martin's Press
Release Date: August 7

The Mayans aren’t the only ones with a 2012 prophecy…

Long before recorded history, there was a warrior so feared that everyone trembled before his wrath. Only a brutal betrayal by the one closest to him could defeat him. But not even death was the end of a man so strong.

The Time Untime approaches…

Kateri Avani has been plagued her entire life with dreams she doesn’t understand. Images of places she’s never been and of a man she’s never seen. Her quest for answers has driven her to Las Vegas where she hopes to finally silence the demons in her mind.

What she never anticipates is coming face to face with the warrior who has haunted her her entire life.

Ren Waya came back from the dead to keep the prophecy he began from coming true and ending the world. For thousands of years, he has fought the same evil that once possessed him. But now that evil has brought back the one person he can’t fight. The one person who once held the most sacred part of him.

His heart.

But if he doesn’t kill Kateri, the deadliest of evils will reemerge and destroy everyone else on the planet. It was a sacrifice he made once.

Will he be able to make it again?

New Scifi & Fantasy Releases: Week of July 29- August 4

Sorry for getting this list out to you so late though I'm sure you'll forgive me once you see some of the awesome titles that I've got for you here.

There are new books from Illona Andrews,  Steven Erikson, Rob Thurman and even a new YA from Sherwood Smith.

For those horror lovers among you that enjoy reading about decomposing bodies, there's a new zombie anthology and Dave Zeltserman offers a new take on Frankenstein in his novel, Monster. So pick your poison ;)

Hope you have a great reading week!

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Science Fiction

Carry The Flame
James Jaros
Publisher: Harper Voyager
Release Date: July 31

Having survived the terror of the Alliance and the single-minded fanaticism of its hideous religion, a caravan of survivors moves quickly into the Great American Desert, the wastes of what once was America's heartland. With her daughters at her side--recently rescued Ananda and her daring older sister, Bliss--Jessie hopes to find sanctuary in the Arctic, now rumored to be temperate. But their enemies are powerful and relentless, and will not rest until they possess the caravan's most precious treasures: their prepubescent female children, a stolen tanker filled with fuel . . . and a pair of frightened twins, whom the Army of God calls "demon."

But the danger in pursuit pales before the horror that lies ahead when Jessie, the marauder-turned-ally Burned Fingers, and the innocents in their care face the savagery, the madness, and the monsters that dwell in the terrifying City of Shade.

vN (The Machine Dynasty, #1)

Madeline Ashby

Publisher: Angry Robot

Release Date: July 31

Amy Peterson is a self-replicating humanoid robot known as a VonNeumann.

For the past five years, she has been grown slowly as part of a mixed organic/synthetic family. She knows very little about her android mother's past, so when her grandmother arrives and attacks her mother, Amy wastes no time: she eats her alive.

Now she carries her malfunctioning granny as a partition on her memory drive, and she's learning impossible things about her clade's history - like the fact that she alone can kill humans without failsafing...

An Officer's Duty (Theirs Not to Reason Why #2)
Jean Johnson
Publisher: Ace
Release Date: July 31

Jean Johnson—the national bestselling author of the Sons of Destiny novels—returns to the world she introduced in A Soldier’s Duty with a terrible vision of the future...

Promoted in the field for courage and leadership under fire, Ia is now poised to become an officer in the Space Force Navy—once she undertakes her Academy training. But on a trip back home to Sanctuary, she finds the heavyworld colony being torn apart by religious conflict. Now Ia must prepare her family and followers to secure the galaxy’s survival. Her plan is to command a Blockade Patrol ship. Her goal, to save as many lives as she can. But at the Academy, she discovers an unexpected challenge: the one man who could disrupt those plans. The man whose future she cannot foresee..

The Incarceration of Captain Nebula & Other Stories 

Mike Resnick

Publisher: Subterranean Press

Release Date: July 31

In his long and storied career, Mike Resnick has won all of science fiction's most prestigious awards. He has won the Nebula, the Hugo, and numerous readers' awards. He has won the Japanese Hugo, as well as major awards in Spain, France, Poland and Croatia.

The Incarceration of Captain Nebula and Other Lost Futures focuses on Mike's most recent award-winners and nominees with the exception of heartbreaking 'The Last Dog,' Mike s very first award-winning short story and his multi-award-winning classic 'Seven Views of Olduvai Gorge.'

From examinations of life and death to questions of eternity, Mike's short fiction explores the range of the human experience--even though his characters include dogs, robots and aliens.

This collection has everything to appeal to the most devoted Mike Resnick fan, including a never-before-seen-in-print novella, 'Six Blind Men And An Alien.' The story, set in Africa like so many of Mike's award-winners, is one of his most spectacular works to date.

The Incarceration of Captain Nebula and Other Lost Futures shows why Mike Resnick is one of science fiction's most treasured writers--and one of its most beloved.

The War That Came Early: Coup d'Etat 

Harry Turtledove

Publisher: Del Rey

Release Date: July 31

In Harry Turtledove’s mesmerizing alternate history of World War II, the choices of men and fate have changed history. Now it is the winter of 1941. As the Germans, with England and France on their side, slam deep into Russia, Stalin’s terrible machine fights for its life. But the agreements of world leaders do not touch the hearts of soldiers. The war between Germany and Russia is rocked by men with the courage to aim their guns in a new direction.

England is the first to be shaken. Following the suspicious death of Winston Churchill, with his staunch anti-Nazi views, a small cabal begins to imagine the unthinkable in a nation long famous for respecting the rule of law. With civil liberties hanging by a thread, a conspiracy forms against the powers that be. What will this daring plan mean for the European war as a whole?

Meanwhile, in America, a woman who has met Hitler face-to-face urges her countrymen to wake up to his evil. For the time being, the United States is fighting only Japan—and the war is not going as well as Washington would like. Can Roosevelt keep his grip on the country’s imagination?

Coup d’Etat captures how war makes for the strangest of bedfellows. A freethinking Frenchman fights side by side with racist Nazis. A Czech finds himself on the dusty front lines of the Spanish Civil War, gunning for Germany’s Nationalist allies. A German bomber pilot courts a half-Polish, half-Jewish beauty in Bialystock. And the Jews in Germany, though trapped under Hitler’s fist, are as yet protected by his fear of looking bad before the world—and by an outspoken Catholic bishop.

With his spectacular command of character, coincidence, and military and political strategies, Harry Turtledove continues a passionate, unmatched saga of a World War II composed of different enemies, different allies—and hurtling toward a horrific moment. For a diabolical new weapon is about to be unleashed, not by the United States, but by Japan, in a tactic that will shock the world.

Chimera (The Subterrene War #3)

T.C. McCarthy

Publisher: Orbit

Release Date: August 1

Escaped Germline soldiers need to be cleaned up, and Stan Resnick is the best man for the job. A job that takes him to every dark spot and every rat hole he can find.

Operatives from China and Unified Korea are gathering escaped or stolen Russian and American genetics, and there are reports of new biological nightmares: half-human things, bred to live their entire lives encased in powered armor suits.

Stan fights to keep himself alive and out of prison while he attempts to capture a genetic, one who will be able to tell them everything they need to know about this new threat, the one called "Project Sunshine."

Fantasy 

The Air War (Shadows of the Apt #8)
Adrian Tchaikovsky
Publisher: Tor UK
Release Date: August 2

All is in turmoil as the world moves towards war. In Solarno, the spies watch each other and ready their knives, while Myna sees the troops muster at its border and emotions run high as it vows never to be enslaved again. In Collegium, the students argue politics, too late to turn the tide. In the heart of the Empire, new pilots have completed their secretive training, generals are being recalled to service and armies are ready to march. Their Empress, the heir to two worlds, intends to claim her birthright. And nothing – either within the Empire or beyond it – will stand in her way. A conflict is coming, the like of which the insect-kinden have never seen.

Blood of the Emperor

Tracy Hickman

Publisher: DAW

Release Date: July 31

It appears that an ancient prophecy is about to be fulfilled as the human named Drakis—formerly one of countless warrior-slaves to the elves of the Rhonas Empire—returns from his quest in the North. Flying into the rebel camp with his surviving companions on the backs of the legendary dragons that were once humankind's most powerful allies, Drakis is hailed as the champion of all the slave races. But it is not a prophecy that drives Drakis in his war against the elves and their emperor. Rather it is his burning desire for revenge against the cruel ruler whom Drakis believes has stolen any chance he has for finding peace. And this hatred will set Drakis and his rebel army on a path that may not only bring down the emperor, but Drakis and his entire world as well....

The Crown of the Usurper

Gav Thorpe

Publisher: Angry Robot

Release Date: July 31

The stunning conclusion to the Crown of the Blood trilogy.

Ullsaard rules the known world. All are subject to his will.

Yet even as another king bows before him, there are those who would wrench his empire from beneath him. He must risk losing the lands he has conquered to confront a foe far more powerful than any he has faced before.

As alliances shift and old enemies return, will he save the empire he has given his life to, or let it fall to ruin?

Exile ( The Outcast Chronicles, Bk 2)

Rowena Cory Daniells

Publisher: Solaris

Release Date: July 31

For over 300 years the mystics have lived alongside the true-men, until King Charald lays siege to the mystic’s island city.

Imoshen, most powerful of the female mystics, is elected to negotiate with the true-man king. The male mystics still resent her, but she has an ally in Sorne, the half-blood, who was raised by true-men. Even though he is vulnerable to her gifts, he gives Imoshen his loyalty. In return, she gives him the most dangerous of tasks, to spy for her.

She negotiates exile for her people. They must pack all their valuables, reach port and set sail by the first day of winter. But to do this they have to cross a kingdom filled with true-men who are no longer bluffed by their gifts. Meanwhile, there are mystics living in the countryside unaware that their people have been exiled.

King Charald announces any mystics who remain behind after they are exiled will be hunted down and executed. 

The Forge of Darkness (The Kharkanas Trilogy #1)
Steven Erikson
Publisher: Bantam Press
Release Date: August 2

Steven Erikson returns to the Malazan world with the first book in a dark and revelatory new epic fantasy that tells the tragic story of ruin of a realm.

This is the story of the early years of Anomander Rake, and his brothers, Andarist and Silchas Ruin.

It is a tale that begins within the Age of Darkness and the Birth of Light and involves the forging of a sword unlike any other, and tells of the tragedy that was the collapse of the realm of the Tiste Andii.

It is the story of the devastating civil war that tore their world apart -- a story of bitter family rivalries, of jealousies and betrayals, of wild magic and unfettered power, of death and terriifying destruction.
It is the story of a how the goddess of the Tiste, Mother Dark, abandoned her children and turned her back on her people.

The Wanderers (The Veiled Isles Trilogy, #3)

Paula Brandon

Publisher: Spectra

Release Date: July 31

Time is running out. Falaste Rione is imprisoned, sentenced to death. And even though the magical balance of the Source is slipping and the fabric of reality itself has begun to tear, Jianna Belandor can think only of freeing the man she loves. But to do so, she must join a revolution she once despised—and risk reunion with a husband she has ample reason to fear.

Meanwhile, undead creatures terrorize the land, slaves of the Overmind—a relentless consciousness determined to bring everything that lives under its sway. All that stands in the way is a motley group of arcanists whose combined powers will barely suffice to restore balance to the Source. But when Jianna’s father, the Magnifico Aureste Belandor, murders one of them, the group begins to fracture under the pressures of suspicion and mutual hatred. Now humanity’s hope rests with an unexpected soul: a misanthropic hermit whose next move may turn the tide and save the world.

The Woman Who Married a Cloud

Jonathan Carroll

Publisher: Subterranean Press

Release Date: July 31

Described by Michael Dirda in The Washington Post as 'sexy, eery and addictive', the fiction of Jonathan Carroll occurs at the point where the ordinary becomes extraordinary, the commonplace becomes unsettling, and yet where we nonetheless always recognize the stories being told because they are always about ourselves and what happens in our deepest, sometimes darkest hearts.

Always better known as a novelist--readers first experienced Carroll s elegant, eloquent, wondrous, terrible and often surreal fiction in his classic debut The Land of Laughs, which he followed with Bones of the Moon, Sleeping in Flame, A Child Across the Sky, and others--Carroll has also created a compelling and deeply moving body of short fiction. Perhaps more eclectic and slant-wise than some of his novels, stories like World Fantasy Award winning 'Friend's Best Man' and Pushcart Prize and Grand Prix de l'Imaginaire honouree 'Home on the Rain' stand amongst his very best work.

Yok 

Tim Davys

Publisher: Harper

Release Date: July 31

In Yok, Mollisan Town's seediest neighborhood, Fox Antonio Ortega, Erik Gecko, Mike Chimpanzee, and Vincent Hare are trapped by ignorance, poverty, mediocrity, and their own insecurities. Yet there is a glimmer of hope, a chance that they can overcome their desperate circumstances and gain the freedom to achieve their dreams. The handsome fox yearns for true love; the gecko seeks redemption and freedom from his abusive brothers; the chimpanzee burns for success; and the hare seeks the secret to a meaningful life. But when they get close to their desires, will happiness slip out of reach, or can they find the power to grab what they want?

Mollisan Town is unlike any world ever created in literature. Within its colorful streets dwell the desires, dark sides, hopes, and expectations of its plush inhabitants. From romance to ambition, jealousy to despair, the stuffed animals of Yok must grapple with the most human of emotions. The tension mounts within these four gripping tales, and each character's journey leads to a truth that reveals something about the animals of this alternate world—and about ourselves. 

Urban Fantasy 

Kitty Steals the Show (Kitty Norville, #10) 

Carrie Vaughn 

Publisher: Tor 

Release Date: July 31 

Kitty has been tapped as the keynote speaker for the First International Conference on Paranatural Studies, taking place in London. The conference brings together scientists, activists, protestors, and supernatural beings from all over the world—and Kitty, Ben, and Cormac are right in the middle of it.

Master vampires from dozens of cities have also gathered in London for a conference of their own. With the help of the Master of London, Kitty gets more of a glimpse into the Long Game—a power struggle among vampires that has been going on for centuries—than she ever has before. In her search for answers, Kitty has the help of some old allies, and meets some new ones, such as Caleb, the alpha werewolf of the British Isles. The conference has also attracted some old enemies, who’ve set their sights on her and her friends.

All the world’s a stage, and Kitty’s just stepped into the spotlight.

Shadows Before the Sun (Charlie Madigan #4) 

Kelly Gay

Publisher: Pocket

Release Date: July 31

After filling out mountains of paperwork, Detective Charlie Madigan sets out for a death-defying trip into heavenly Elysia to rescue her partner Hank and bring the siren home. Of course, she doesn’t expect to leave behind an all out siren revolution or return home to find that jinn crime boss, Grigori Tennin, has begun a massive search for the divine being, Ahkneri. Tennin’s tactics set off a chain reaction that puts Charlie in the crosshairs of the shadowy creature known as Death and awakens Ahkneri from her long sleep. And when Vengeance rises, Atlanta will never be the same. 

Whispers Under Ground (Peter Grant #3) 

Ben Aaronovitch

Publisher: Del Rey

Release Date: July 31

It begins with a dead body at the far end of Baker Street tube station, all that remains of American exchange student James Gallagher—and the victim’s wealthy, politically powerful family is understandably eager to get to the bottom of the gruesome murder. The trouble is, the bottom—if it exists at all—is deeper and more unnatural than anyone suspects . . . except, that is, for London constable and sorcerer’s apprentice Peter Grant. With Inspector Nightingale, the last registered wizard in England, tied up in the hunt for the rogue magician known as “the Faceless Man,” it’s up to Peter to plumb the haunted depths of the oldest, largest, and—as of now—deadliest subway system in the world.

At least he won’t be alone. No, the FBI has sent over a crack agent to help. She’s young, ambitious, beautiful . . . and a born-again Christian apt to view any magic as the work of the devil. Oh yeah—that’s going to go well.

Gunmetal Magic (Kate Daniels, #5.5)

Ilona Andrews

Publisher: Ace

Release Date: July 31

Some people have everything figured out — Andrea Nash is not one of those people. After being kicked out of the Order of Knights of Merciful Aid, Andrea's whole existence is in shambles. All she can do is try to put herself back together, something made easier by working for Cutting Edge, a small investigative firm owned by her best friend, Kate Daniels.

When several shapeshifters working for Raphael Medrano — the male alpha of Clan Bouda and Andrea's former lover — die unexpectedly at a dig site, Andrea is assigned to investigate ... and must work with Raphael. As her search for the killer leads her into the secret underbelly of supernatural Atlanta, Andrea knows that dealing with her feelings for Raphael might have to take a backseat to saving the world .. 

All Seeing Eye 

Rob Thurman

Publisher: Pocket

Release Date: July 31

Picking up a small pink shoe from the grass forever changed young Jackson Lee’s life. Not only did its presence mean that his sister Tessa was dead—murdered and stuffed in the deep, black water of a narrow well—but the shoe itself told him so. Tessa’s death triggers an even more horrific family massacre that, combined with this new talent he neither wants nor can handle, throws Jack’s life into a tailspin. The years quickly take him from state homes to the streets to grifting in a seedy carnival, until he finally becomes the cynical All Seeing Eye, psychic-for-hire. At last, Jackson has left his troubled past behind him and found a semblance of peace. That is, until the government blackmails him. Helping the military contain the aftermath of a bizarre experiment gone violently wrong, everything Jackson knows about himself will change just as suddenly as it did with his little sister’s shoe. And while change is constant...It’s never for the better.

Sin's Dark Caress 

Tracey O'hara

Publisher: Harper Voyager

Release Date: July 31

"An ancient darkness has risen from the ashes . . . and terror has been loosed upon an unsuspecting world."

Forensic witch Bianca Sin has never seen anything like it: homeless teenage girls torn to pieces by dark magic in the cold shadows of the city. More terrifying still is the symbol written in blood on an alley wall--the unmistakable seal of the Dark Brethren.

Teaming up with NYPD homicide detective Lancelot McManus and an elite task force headed by the shapeshifter Oberon DuPrie, Bianca knows her worst fears have finally come to pass. A new war of annihilation is looming that will plunge the worlds of vampire, shapeshifter, and human into chaos--and two adversarial tribes locked in uneasy truce will need to take up arms together to save the children. Trust will be essential for Sin and McManus, as the hunt forces them to confront their deepest terrors.

For the ultimate evil is no longer approaching. "It's here." 

Darklands (Deadtown, #4) 

Nancy Hozner

Publisher: Ace

Release Date: July 31

They call it Deadtown: the city’s quarantined section for its inhuman and undead residents. Most humans stay far from its border—but Victory Vaughn, Boston’s only professional demon slayer, isn’t exactly human…

Boston’s demons have been disappearing, and Vicky’s clients are canceling left and right. While fewer demons might seem like a good thing, Vicky suspects foul play. A missing Celtic cauldron from Harvard’s Peabody museum leads her to an unwelcome conclusion: Pryce, her demi-demon cousin and bitter enemy, is trying to regain his full powers.

But Pryce isn’t alone. He’s conjured another, darker villain from Vicky’s past. To stop them from destroying everything she loves, she’ll have to face her own worst fear—in the realm of the dead itself.

Blood & Feathers 

Lou Morgan

Publisher: Solaris

Release Date: July 31

Alice isn’t having the best of days. She was late for work, she missed her bus, and now she’s getting rained on. What she doesn’t know is that her day’s about to get worse: the epic, grand-scale kind of worse that comes from the arrival of two angels who claim everything about her life is a lie.

The war between the angels and the Fallen is escalating; the age-old balance is tipping, and innocent civilians are getting caught in the cross-fire. If the balance is to be restored, the angels must act—or risk the Fallen taking control. Forever.

That’s where Alice comes in. Hunted by the Fallen and guided by Mallory—a disgraced angel with a drinking problem and a whole load of secrets—Alice will learn the truth about her own history... and why the angels want to send her to hell.

What do the Fallen want from her? How does Mallory know so much about her past? What is it the angels are hiding—and can she trust either side?

Caught between the power plays of the angels and Lucifer himself, it isn’t just hell’s demons that Alice will have to defeat...

Horror

Devil's Wake 

Tananarive Due & Steven Barnes

Publisher: Atria

Release Date: July 31

The eeriness of Devil’s Wake begins a week after tomorrow. An unprecedented infection has swept across the world, bringing an epidemic of mindless biting attacks from the infected that leave their victims “changed.” Society has broken down. The victims are more than mindless zombies. They are the result of a sinister alien life-form in the wake of the aliens’ insidious plot, humanity ultimately becomes enmeshed in a brutal struggle for control of its home, planet Earth. Part Dawn of the Dead and part Road Warrior, Devil’s Wake is a testimony to courage, friendship, and the power of faith. Horrifying and heartbreaking, exciting and challenging, it is a compelling, brilliant story on the edge of what could be the end of it all.

Odd Apocalypse (Odd Thomas #5) 

Dean Koontz

Publisher: Bantam

Release Date:July 31

The stallion reared over me, silently slashing the air with the hooves of its forelegs, a creature of such immense power that I stumbled backward even though I knew that it was as immaterial as a dream. . . .

The woman astride the ghostly mount reaches out desperately, the latest spirit to enlist the aid of Odd Thomas, the unassuming young fry cook whose gift—or curse—it is to see the shades of the restless dead, and to help them when he can. This mission of mercy will lead Odd through realms of darkness he has never before encountered, as he probes the long-held secrets of a sinister estate and those who inhabit it.

ODD APOCALYPSE Once presided over by a flamboyant Hollywood mogul during the Roaring ’20s, the magnificent West Coast property known as Roseland is now home to a reclusive billionaire financier and his faithful servants. And, at least for the moment, it’s also a port in the storm for Odd Thomas and his traveling companion, the inscrutably charming Annamaria, the Lady of the Bell. In the wake of Odd’s most recent clash with lethal adversaries, the opulent manor’s comforts should be welcome. But there’s far more to Roseland than meets even the extraordinary eye of Odd, who soon suspects it may be more hell than haven.

A harrowing taste of Roseland’s terrors convinces Odd that it’s time to hit the road again. Still, the prescient Annamaria insists that they’ve been led there for a reason, and he’s promised to do his best for the ghost on horseback. Just how deep and dreadful are the mysteries Roseland and her masters have kept for nearly a century? And what consequences await whoever is brave, or mad, enough to confront the most profound breed of evil? Odd only knows. Like his acclaimed creator, the irresistible Odd Thomas is in top-notch form—as he takes on what may well be the most terrifying challenge yet in his curious career.

Confessions of a Five-Chambered Heart

Caitlin R. Kiernan

Publisher: Subterranean Press

Release Date: July 31

Confessions of a Five-Chambered Heart is the follow-up to Caitlín R. Kiernan's World-Fantasy Award nominated The Ammonite Violin & Others, a collection that drew comparisons to the writings of such luminaries of the macabre and surreal as Angela Carter, Thomas Ligotti, Shirley Jackson, and Harlan Ellison. Here, again, in her eighth collection, we visit the borderlands where the weird, horrific, mythic, and erotic intersect. Once again, Kiernan sets her masterful, intoxicating prose to the task of retelling fairy tales, spinning sensual post-Lovecraftian yarns, and blurring the lines between pain and pleasure. Here is a celebration of the bizarre and beautiful, and a marriage of unlikely worlds. From a reverence of the dead to the sacrifices the living make to unspeakable gods, from clockwork dreams to tales of merciless revenge, Kiernan blurs the artificial lines of genre, and shows us a world where there is no division between the light and dark. 

Monster
Dave Zeltserman
Publisher: Overlook
Release Date: August 2

In nineteenth-century Germany, one young man counts down the days until he can marry his beloved . . . until she is found brutally murdered, and the young man is accused of the crime. Broken on the wheel and left for dead, he awakens on a lab table, transformed into an abomination. Friedrich must go far to take his revenge --only to find his tormentor, Victor Frankenstein, in league with the Marquis de Sade, creating something much more sinister deep in the mountains. Paranormal and gripping in the tradition of the best work of Stephen King and Justin Cronin, Monster is a gruesome parable of control and vengeance, and an ingenious tribute to one of literature's greatest

Young Adult

The City's Son
Tom Pollock
Publisher: Jo Fletcher Books
Release Date: August 2 (UK)

Expelled from school, betrayed by her best friend and virtually ignored by her dad, who’s never recovered from the death of her mum, Beth Bradley retreats to the sanctuary of the streets, looking for a new home. What she finds is Filius Viae, the ragged and cocky crown prince of London, who opens her eyes to the place she’s never truly seen.

But the hidden London is on the brink of destruction. Reach, the King of the Cranes, is a malign god of demolition, and he wants Filius dead. In the absence of the Lady of the Streets, Filius’ goddess mother, Beth rouses Filius to raise an alleyway army, to reclaim London’s skyscraper throne for the mother he’s never known. Beth has almost forgotten her old life – until her best friend and her father come searching for her, and she must choose between the streets and the life she left behind.

The Far West (Frontier Magic #3)
Patricia C. Wrede
Publisher: Tor
Release Date: August 1

Eff is an unlucky thirteenth child...but also the seventh daughter in her family. Her twin brother, Lan, is a powerful double seventh son. Her life at the edge of the Great Barrier Spell is different from anyone else's that she knows.

When the government forms an expedition to map the Far West, Eff has the opportunity to travel farther than anyone in the world. With Lan, William, Professor Torgeson, Wash, and Professor Ochiba, Eff finds that nothing on the wild frontier is as they expected. There are strange findings in their research, a long prarie winter spent in too-close quarters, and more new species, magical and otherwise, dangerous and benign, than they ever expected to find. And then spring comes, and the explorers realize how tenuous life near the Great Barrier Spell may be if they don't find a way to stop a magical flood in a hurry. Eff's unique way of viewing magic has saved the settlers time and again, but this time all of Columbia is at stake if she should fail.

The Ghost of Graylock
Dan Poblocki
Publisher: Scholastic
Release Date: August 1

Everyone’s heard the stories about Graylock Hall.

It was meant to be a place of healing—a hospital where children and teenagers with mental disorders would be cared for and perhaps even cured. But something went wrong. Several young patients died under mysterious circumstances. Eventually, the hospital was shut down, the building abandoned and left to rot deep in the woods.

As the new kid in town, Neil Cady wants to see Graylock for himself. Especially since rumor has it that the building is haunted. He’s got fresh batteries in his flashlight, a camera to document the adventure, and a new best friend watching his back.

Neil might think he’s prepared for what he’ll find in the dark and decrepit asylum. But he’s certainly not prepared for what follows him home . .

The Spy Princess
Sherwood Smith
Publisher: Viking Juvenile
Release Date: August 2

When twelve-year-old Lady Lilah decides to disguise herself and sneak out of the palace one night, she has more of an adventure than she expected--for she learns very quickly that the country is on the edge of revolution. When she sneaks back in, she learns something even more surprising: her older brother Peitar is one of the forces behind it all. The revolution happens before all of his plans are in place, and brings unexpected chaos and violence. Lilah and her friends, leaving their old lives behind, are determined to help however they can. But what can four kids do? Become spies, of course!

Anthologies

The First Last Unicorn and Other Beginnings
Peter S. Beagle
Publisher: Tachyon Publication
Release Date: August 1

Featuring previously unpublished and uncollected treasures from a much-beloved fantasy icon, this lovingly curated collection is a hoard of riches and surprises. A romp through the filing cabinet of Peter S. Beagle’s imagination, it is an unexpected glimpse into the curios, curiosities, and capstones of his later fiction. Included is a novella-length adventure of the last unicorn, in which she bands together with a duo of ambivalent demons to seek out her lost brethren. Additional chapters from A Fine & Private Place, from the unpublished novel Mirror Kingdoms, and even snippets from Beagle’s childhood and teenaged years are included. Correspondence, running commentary, and interviews give delightful insight into the creative process of this beloved master of the genre.

Extreme Zombies
By Nancy A. Collins, Joe R. Lansdale, Edward Lee, George R. R. Martin, David J. Schow, John Shirley 
Publisher: Prime Books
Release Date: August 1

It's too late The living dead have already taken over the world. Your brains have been devoured. Nothing is left but spasms of ravenous need - an obscene hunger for even more zombie fiction. Forget the metaphors and the mildly scary. You want shock, you want grue, you want disturbing, gut-wrenching, skull-crunching zombie stories that take you over the edge and go splat. You want the bloody best of the ultimate undead. You have no choice...you...must...have...Extreme Zombies.

Digital Rapture: The Singularity Anthology
edited by James Patrick Kelly & John Kessel
Publisher: Tachyon Publication

Release Date: August 1

Presenting the posthuman future in its wildest science-fictional imaginings and intriguing speculations, this far-reaching anthology of fiction and nonfiction traces the path of the Singularity, an era when advances in technology totally transform human reality. The featured stories and essays travel from the alien far-future of H. G. Wells and the almost-human, near future of Ray Kurzweil to Elizabeth Bear’s fusion of woman, machine, God, and shark and Isaac Asimov’s evolution of ineffable logic. Daring to peek over the edge of the event horizon as intelligence both figuratively and literally explodes, this collection also includes pieces by Nick Bostrom, Cory Doctorow, Robert Reed, Justina Robson, Charles Stross, Vernor Vinge, and more.

Friday Finds & Quotes from The Wise Man's Fear

Friday Finds

Hosted by Should be Reading

I've recently started spending more time on Goodreads, hanging out in groups and chatting with other book lovers. Thanks to some of the new people that I've met there I've added a whole bunch of new books to my TBR pile.  

If you've read any of these books tell me what you thought of them.

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The Rook by Daniel O'Malley

The body you are wearing used to be mine.

So begins the letter Myfanwy Thomas is holding when she awakes in a London park surrounded by bodies all wearing latex gloves. With no recollection of who she is, Myfanwy must follow the instructions her former self left behind to discover her identity and track down the agents who want to destroy her.

She soon learns that she is a Rook, a high-ranking member of a secret organization called the Chequy that battles the many supernatural forces at work in Britain. She also discovers that she possesses a rare, potentially deadly supernatural ability of her own.

In her quest to uncover which member of the Chequy betrayed her and why, Myfanwy encounters a person with four bodies, an aristocratic woman who can enter her dreams, a secret training facility where children are transformed into deadly fighters, and a conspiracy more vast than she ever could have imagined.

Filled with characters both fascinating and fantastical, THE ROOK is a richly inventive, suspenseful, and often wry thriller that marks an ambitious debut from a promising young writer.


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Mechanique: A Tale of the Circus Tresaulti by Genevieve Valentine, Kiri Moth

Come inside and take a seat; the show is about to begin...

Outside any city still standing, the Mechanical Circus Tresaulti sets up its tents. Crowds pack the benches to gawk at the brass-and-copper troupe and their impossible feats: Ayar the Strong Man, the acrobatic Grimaldi Brothers, fearless Elena and her aerialists who perform on living trapezes. War is everywhere, but while the Circus is performing, the world is magic.

That magic is no accident: Boss builds her circus from the bones out, molding a mechanical company that will survive the unforgiving landscape.

But even a careful ringmaster can make mistakes.

Two of Tresaulti's performers are entangled in a secret standoff that threatens to tear the circus apart just as the war lands on their doorstep. Now the Circus must fight a war on two fronts: one from the outside, and a more dangerous one from within.

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Double by Jenny Valentine

When the sixteen-year-old runaway Chap is mistaken for a missing boy named Cassiel, his life changes dramatically. Chap takes on Cassiel's identity, gaining the family and friends he's always dreamed of having. But becoming someone else isn't as easy as he hoped—and Chap isn't the only one hiding a secret. As he teeters on the brink of discovery and begins to unravel the mystery behind Cassiel's disappearance, Chap realizes that he's in much deeper danger than he could have imagined.




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This isn't the kind of book I would normally have any interest in reading since I've had my fill of teen vampire stories but a review that I read (unfortunately I can't remember where) convinced me that this books is different and that I should give it a try. I hope they are right.

Team Human by Justine Larbalestier, Sarah Rees Brennan

Just because Mel lives in New Whitby, a city founded by vampires, doesn't mean she knows any of the blood-drinking undead personally. They stay in their part of town; she says in hers. Until the day a vampire shows up at her high school. Worse yet, her best friend, Cathy, seems to be falling in love with him. It's up to Mel to save Cathy from a mistake she might regret for all eternity

On top of trying to help Cathy (whether she wants it or not), Mel is investigating a mysterious disappearance for another friend and discovering the attractions of a certain vampire wannabe. Combine all this with a cranky vampire cop, a number of unlikely romantic entanglements, and the occasional zombie, and soon Mel is hip-deep in an adventure that is equal parts hilarious and touching.

Acclaimed authors Justine Larbalestier and Sarah Rees Brennan team up to create a witty and poignant story of cool vampires, warm friendships, and the changes that test the bonds of love.

After all, you can't just steal a life and expect to get away with it.

Book Quotes : The Wise Man's Fear

 

It's been a couple of months since I finished reading Patrick Rothfuss's The Wise Man's fear and I still haven't gotten around to writing the review. The truth is that I can't think of what to say other than "this book is awesome and you'll love it, unless you didn't like The Name of the Wind (Bk 1), in which case you won't want to read this one either."  So in the meantime, while I try to find the right words to express how much I really loved this book, I'll share with you a few of my favourite quotes from it.

- It is as they say: a heavy purse makes for a light heart

- No man is brave that has never walked a hundred miles. If you want to know the truth of who you are, walk until not a person knows your name.

- It's the questions we can't answer that teach us the most. They teach us how to think. If you give a man an answer, all he gains is a little fact. But give him a question and he'll look for his own answers.

- Death was like an unpleasant neighbor. You didn’t talk about him for fear he might hear you and decide to pay a visit.”

- I knelt and opened up my lute case. Moving the lute aside, I pressed the lid of the secret compartment and twisted it open. I slid Threpe's sealed letter inside, where it joined the hollow horn with Nina's drawing and a small sack of dried apple I had stowed there. There was nothing special about the dried apple, but in my opinion if you have a secret compartment in your lute case and don't use it to hide things, there is something terribly, terribly wrong with you.

- I walked across the polished marble floor and sat on a red velvet lounging couch. I idly wondered how exactly one was supposed to lounge. I couldn't remember ever doing it myself. After a moment's consideration, I decided lounging was probably similar to relaxing, but with more money in your pocket.



Have a great weekend!