New Books, 15 January
* Fish, Leslie : Of Elven Blood
(Jupiter Gardens/Pink Petal Books 978-1938257353, $21.99, 373pp, trade paperback, September 2012, cover art Valerie Tibbs)
• Nominal Publication Date: Thu 20 Sep 2012
Paranormal erotic romance novel about a Chicago newspaper editor who learns she is a member of an ancient race of elves.
• The publisher’s site has this description with a link to an excerpt.
(Wed 19 Dec 2012)
• Purchase this book from Amazon | Indiebound
• (Directory Entry)
* Fultz, John R. : Seven Kings
(Orbit 978-0316187831, $15.99, 496pp, trade paperback, January 2013)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 15 Jan 2013
• Books of the Shaper #2
Fantasy novel, second of a trilogy following Seven Princes (2012), in which an ancient sorcerer overruns the kingdom of Yaskatha.
• Orbit’s site has this post about the book’s release, with comments from the author about the influences behind his series.
• Amazon’s “Look Inside” function provides an excerpt.
• Purchase this book from Amazon | Indiebound
• (Directory Entry)
* Kimmel, Daniel M. : Shh! It’s a Secret
(Fantastic 978-1-61720-733-4, $14.99, 194pp, trade paperback, January 2013)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 15 Jan 2013
SF novel, the author’s first novel, subtitled “a novel about Aliens, Hollywood, and the Bartender’s Guide”, about peaceful alien visitors who decide to invade Hollywood.
• The publisher’s site has this description with quotes from reviews.
• The author previously wrote Hugo-nominated essay collection Jar Jar Binks Must Die… and other Observations about Science Fiction Movies.
• The Publishers Weekly review concludes, “While some of the humor feels forced and Kimmel’s Hollywood is constructed from clichés and well-worn tropes, there’s still plenty to like in this freewheeling, laugh-out-loud satire of the movie industry.”
• Purchase this book from Amazon | Indiebound
• (Directory Entry)
* Koontz, Dean : Odd Interlude
(Bantam 978-0345536594, $7.99, 307pp, mass market paperback, January 2013)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 1 Jan 2013
• Odd Thomas #6
Short horror novel, first published electronically in three parts, in the series about a young man who can see spirits of the dead, following most recently Odd Apocalypse (2012).
• The publisher’s site has this description with a preview.
• Purchase this book from Amazon | Indiebound
• (Directory Entry)
* Melton, Henry : Tales of the U’tanse
(Wire Rim Books 978-1-935236-48-1, $14.99, 248pp, trade paperback, December 2012)
• Nominal Publication Date: Fri 14 Dec 2012
• Project Saga #3
SF novel, third volume of a series following Star Time (2011) and Kingdom of the Hill Country, about aliens who trigger a supernova to destroy mankind.
• The author’s site has this description of the second book.
(Fri 11 Jan 2013)
• Purchase this book from Amazon | Indiebound
• (Directory Entry)
* Powell, Gareth L. : Ack-Ack Macaque
(Solaris 9781781080603, $8.99, 416pp, mass market paperback, December 2012)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 25 Dec 2012
Alternate history novel in which a cigar-chomping monkey takes on Nazi robots, with a second story about a journalist in a world a century hence when nuclear-powered zeppelins circle the globe.
• Solaris’s site has this post with a description and excerpt.
• Eric Brown just reviewed it for the Guardian: “Powell primes an explosive narrative with brilliant cliffhangers and brings the lot to a satisfying conclusion.”
• Purchase this book from Amazon | Indiebound
• (Directory Entry)
* Revis, Beth : Shades of Earth
(Penguin/Razorbill 978-1595143990, $18.99, 400pp, hardcover, January 2013)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 15 Jan 2013
• Across the Universe #3
Young adult SF novel, third in a series following Across the Universe (2011) and A Million Suns (2012), about the starship Godspeed sent to colonize a new world on a 300-year mission.
• The publisher’s site has this description with an excerpt.
• The author’s site has this page for the book with links to an excerpt and to a fan art gallery.
• Purchase this book from Amazon | Indiebound
• (Directory Entry)
* Saunders, George : Tenth of December: Stories
(Random House 978-0-8129-9380-6, $26, 272pp, hardcover, January 2013)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 8 Jan 2013
Collection of 10 literary stories, some with fantasy elements, six of which were first published in The New Yorker.
• The publisher’s site has this description with an excerpt and quotes from reviews.
• Publishers Weekly gives it a starred review: “Eventually, a suspicion creeps in that, behind Saunders’s comic talents, he might be the most compassionate writer working today.”
• The New York Times Magazine ran a profile of Saunders in which this book is referred to as “the Best Book You’ll Read This Year”.
• Today’s NYT has this review by Michiko Kakutani: “No one writes more powerfully than George Saunders about the lost, the unlucky, the disenfranchised, those Americans who struggle to pay the bills, make the rent, hold onto a job they might detest — folks who find their dreams slipping from their grasp as they frantically tread water, trying to keep from drowning.”
• Purchase this book from Amazon | Indiebound
• (Directory Entry)
* Smythe, James : The Explorer
(Harper Voyager 978-0-06-222941-0, $14.99, 266pp, trade paperback, January 2013)
• Nominal Publication Date: Wed 2 Jan 2013
SF novel about a journalist who accompanies the crew of a deep space mission, whose captain is dead when the others emerge from hypersleep.
• Harper’s site has this description with a preview function.
• The author contributed this Big Idea post on John Scalzi’s blog.
• Purchase this book from Amazon | Indiebound
• (Directory Entry)