* Alten, Steve : Phobos: Mayan Fear
(Tor 987-0-7653-3033-8, $24.99, 384pp, hardcover, October 2011)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 11 Oct 2011
• Domain #3

SF novel, third in a series based on Mayan prophecy following Domain (2001) and Resurrection (2004).
• In this book the 2012 apocalypse has been avoided, but Earth is threatened by a black hole from within.
• Tor’s site has this description with an excerpt.
• Publishers Weekly is not kind: “A mélange of pop-science fearmongering and superstitious doomsday prognostication, this installment careens through its bloody plot with little coherence and huge body counts, appropriating misunderstood fragments from volcanology and physics as well as Mayan and Abrahamic mythology to construct a world of unending calamities…”

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* Asaro, Catherine : Carnelians
(Baen 978-1-4516-3748-9, $25, 384pp, hardcover, October 2011)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 11 Oct 2011
• Skolian Empire #14

SF novel, 14th in the author’s long-running Skolian Saga, following Diamond Star (2009).
• Baen’s site’ has this description, with links to several chapters.

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* Atwood, Margaret : In Other Worlds: SF and the Human Imagination
(Doubleday/Talese 978-0-385-53396-6, $24.95, 255pp, hardcover, October 2011)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 11 Oct 2011

Nonfiction collection of 20 or so essays, reviews, and occasional pieces, all previously published or delivered as speeches, revolving around Atwood’s own relationship with SF over the course of her career.
• Doubleday’s site has this description with Atwood’s introduction as an excerpt.
• Publishers Weekly concludes, “This enjoyable volume, tellingly dedicated to Ursula K. Le Guin, reveals a writer with strong, often fascinating, if idiosyncratic opinions about genre SF.”
• Gary K. Wolfe reviewed the book in the September 2011 issue of Locus Magazine: “In the end, one comes away with the feeling that, while on the one hand In Other Worlds is an elegantly written, sharply observant, and witty misprision, on the other it’s an honest work in progress by a distinguished author whose sympathy for the field – as she understands it – is quite a bit more thoughtful than we suspected it was.”

(Fri 7 Oct 2011)
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* Barth, John : Every Third Thought
(Counterpoint 978-1582437552, $24, 208pp, hardcover, October 2011)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 11 Oct 2011

Literary “Novel in Five Seasons” about a man whose house is destroyed by a fluke tornado and who subsequently experiences five coincidence-driven visions corresponding to seasonal events in his life.
• Publishers Weekly advises, “Though fans will enjoy Barth’s latest, which tackles the subject of old-age and dying, newcomers may find the novel gimmicky. … Barth’s depiction of the emotional and sexual lives of married senior citizens proves heartfelt, and crucial to the novel’s unexpected climax.”

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* Bell, Hilari : The Goblin War
(Harperteen 978-0-06-165105-2, $17.99, 320pp, hardcover, October 2011)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 11 Oct 2011
• Goblin #3

Young adult fantasy novel, third in a trilogy following The Goblin Wood (2003) and The Goblin Gate (2010).
• Harper’s site has this description with a preview function.

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* Dashner, James : The Death Cure
(Delacorte Press 978-0-385-73877-4, $17.99, 325pp, hardcover, October 2011, jacket art Philip Straub)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 11 Oct 2011
• Maze Runner #3

Young adult SF novel, third in the “Maze Runner” trilogy following The Maze Runner (2009) and The Scorch Trials (2010), about a global organization called WICKED formed to fight problems of the surviving nations.
• Parent publisher Random House’s site has this description.
• The author’s site links to this PDF extract.

(Tue 27 Sep 2011)
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* Kirkman, Robert, & Jay Bonansinga : The Walking Dead: Rise of the Governor
(St. Martin’s/Thomas Dunne 978-0-312-54773-8, $24.99, 308pp, hardcover, October 2011)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 11 Oct 2011
• Walking Dead #1

Zombie novel based on the comic book series.
• Parent publisher Macmillan’s site has this description.
• Amazon has somewhat mixed reader reviews.

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* Link, Kelly, & Gavin J. Grant : Steampunk!: An Anthology of Fantastically Rich and Strange Stories
(Candlewick Press 978-0763648435, $22.99, 432pp, hardcover, October 2011)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 11 Oct 2011

Young adult anthology of 14 steampunk stories.
• Authors include Cory Doctorow, Kelly Link, Garth Nix, Holly Black, M.T. Anderson, Christopher Rowe, and Ysabeau S. Wilce.
• Candlewick’s site has this description.
• Book site http://strangeandfascinating.com/ has notes the editors and authors and the table of contents with links to excerpts of each story.
• Publishers Weekly gave it a starred review: “Chockful of gear-driven automatons, looming dirigibles, and wildly implausible time machines, these often baroque, intensely anachronistic tales should please steampunks of all ages.”

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* Morgan, Richard K. : The Cold Commands
(Ballantine Del Rey 978-0-345-49306-4, $26, 512pp, hardcover, October 2011)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 11 Oct 2011
• A Land Fit for Heroes #2

Fantasy novel, sequel to The Steel Remains (2008), about three veterans who take different paths in an ongoing war.
• Parent pubisher Random House’s site has this description.
• Del Rey’s Suvudu site has this interview with Morgan about the book.
• Publishers Weekly said, “Vivid, bloody battle scenes and enthralling, multifaceted characters are more than adequate to prop up the sagging story line, and the slow pace is at least forgiving to readers new to the series.”
• Russell Letson reviews it in the October 2011 issue of Locus Magazine: “Morgan understands what he is doing here, having characterized this series as ‘a grubby, bloodspattered trawl through exactly how unpleasant it might be to actually have to live in the average fantasy universe,’ and there are repeated references to the functions of various kinds of stories. … [D]espite the bloodstains and cruelty, I finished both books, pulled through by narrative energy, vivid writing, and the sense that they are not summed up by their least cuddly traits.”

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* Nassise, Joseph : Eyes to See
(Tor 978-0-7653-2718-5, $22.99, 320pp, hardcover, October 2011)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 11 Oct 2011
• The Jeremiah Hunt Chronicle #1

Urban fantasy novel, first of a trilogy, about a man who turns to the supernatural after his life is ruined.
• Parent publisher Macmillan’s site has this description with an excerpt, and blurbs from Jonathan Maberry, F. Paul Wilson, and others.
• Publishers Weekly says “Plot twists lead to a crescendo of paranormal activity. Witchcraft, ghosts, raunchy humor, and mayhem keep things moving…”

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* Pratchett, Terry : Snuff
(Harper 978-0-06-201184-8, $25.99, 416pp, hardcover, October 2011)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 11 Oct 2011
• Discworld #39

Fantasy novel, latest in the author’s popular Discworld series following I Shall Wear Midnight (2010).
• Harper’s site has this description with a preview function.
• Amazon has an interview with Pratchett by Neil Gaiman.
• Publishers Weekly gave it a starred review, calling it a “lively outing, complete with sly shout-outs to Jane Austen and gritty police procedurals.”
• Faren Miller reviews it in the October issue of Locus Magazine: “While not officially YA, Snuff revels in jokes about snot, poo, and pee to an extent that should delight most boys, exasperate the more finicky sort of girls, and dismay some grannies (if their last name’s not Weatherwax). But it’s all in good fun, and — along with the increasingly fast-paced, perilous adventures that sweep up Vimes once he catches the attention of a true villain — it helps keep the novel’s elements of tragedy from diverting Entertainment to the solemn service of Message.”

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* Vinge, Vernor : The Children of the Sky
(Tor 978-0-312-87562-6, $25.99, 444pp, hardcover, October 2011, jacket art Stephan Martiniere)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 11 Oct 2011
• Zones of Thought #2

SF novel, sequel to A Fire Upon the Deep (1992), concerning survivors on Tines World attempting to rebuild their civilization.
• Parent publisher Macmillan’s site has this description and an excerpt.
• Tor.com has several recent posts about the book, including a review by Jo Walton.
• Publishers Weekly says “Vinge has brilliantly shifted gears, offering a postsingularity novel in which the singularity has been destroyed and the formerly advanced humans struggle to cope. Vinge throws in political intrigue and even a road trip (complete with characters going incognito as circus performers), and the resulting low-tech tale is a sharply crafted masterpiece.”

(Tue 27 Sep 2011)
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