Neal Asher, Cowl
(Macmillan/Tor UK Mar 2004)
Asher pumps up the traditional time-travel adventure in this wildly entertaining novel of a teenaged prostitute accidentally caught up in a time-spanning battle involving far-future cultures and the posthuman wildcard called Cowl.
Ben Bova, The Silent War
(Tor May 2004)
"The Asteroid Wars" trilogy wraps up in this final volume, which brings the conflict to an exciting conclusion. Part of Bova’s loose series about human expansion through the solar system.
David Connelly, ed., The Dedalus Book of Greek Fantasy
(Dedalus Jul 2004)
Greece has a long tradition of fantasy, from Homer to the present. Now you can see what modern Greek fantasy writers are up to in this collection of 30 stories from the early 19th century until the present, translated and with commentary by David Connolly.
John Crowley, Novelties & Souvenirs: Collected Short Fiction
(HarperCollins/Perennial May 2004)
This collection brings together 15 stories — with one recent exception, all of Crowley’s short fiction to date — by one of the field’s most highly acclaimed fantasists.
Tony Daniel, Superluminal
(Eos May 2004)
The outcome of the solar system war introduced in Interplanetary could be determined by the secret development of faster-than-light travel. A delightfully manic, far-future tale of intrigue, AIs, and nanotech.
Steven Erikson, Midnight Tides
(Transworld/Bantam UK Mar 2004)
The fifth tale of the epic "Malazan Book of the Fallen" departs from the ongoing story to fill in some fascinating history. A more self-contained volume than most, mixing battles with horror and humor.
Mary Gentle, Cartomancy
(Orion/Gollancz Mar 2004)
The "definitive" collection of short fiction from a versatile author noted for her ability to meld fantasy, science fiction, and history. This has 15 stories, one original, including those previously collected in Soldiers and Scholars.
Jim Grimsley, The Ordinary
(Tor May 2004)
Cultures collide in this fascinating far-future novel in which an overpopulated high-tech world finds a gateway to a world where magic works, and inevitable misunderstandings threaten to lead to war.
Lois Lowry, Messenger
(Houghton Mifflin/Lorraine Mar 2004)
This young-adult novel combines characters from the Newbery Award-winning SF novel The Giver and Gathering Blue in a tale of a young man forced to make some difficult choices as his seemingly Utopian community begins to fall apart.
Vonda N. McIntyre, ed., Nebula Awards Showcase 2004
(Roc Mar 2004)
The 38th annual volume of this indispensible anthology series brings together Nebula Award winners and nominees in a selection of nine stories, one novel excerpt, and non-fiction pieces on Damon Knight, Katherine MacLean, and Ursula K. Le Guin.
Pamela Sargent, ed., Conqueror Fantastic
(DAW Apr 2004)
Alternate history mixes with fantasy in this anthology of 13 original stories, by an impressive line-up of authors including Paul Di Filippo, Ian Watson, James Morrow, Michaela Roessner, and George Alec Effinger.
Brian Stableford, Designer Genes: Tales of the Biotech Revolution
(Gale Group/Five Star Mar 2004)
Stableford’s introduction claims he has been waging "an eccentric propaganda campaign" in favor of biotechnology for two decades now, and his extrapolations on biology and medicine — including the 11 stories collected here — are both entertaining and thought-provoking.
Neal Stephenson, The Confusion
(HarperCollins/Morrow Apr 2004)
The second volume of the monumental "Baroque Cycle" with its touches of SF and fantasy combines fast-paced adventure with Big Ideas and lots of intrigue as Stephenson continues to explore the Baroque roots of the present information age.
Bruce Sterling, The Zenith Angle
(Ballantine Del Rey May 2004)
This hot new technothriller brings a provocative new focus to the post-9/11 world, as a computer scientist gets involved in anti-terrorism efforts and uncovers an unexpected plot and a deadly superweapon.
Charles Stross, The Atrocity Archives
(Golden Gryphon Press May 2004)
The critically acclaimed Lovecraftian thriller The Atrocity Archive (previously serialized in the UK) is combined in this collection with a sequel novella also featuring reluctant hero Bob Howard, whose "humorous puzzlement and fatalistic irreverence lend a hilarious luster to a narrative as inventively sinister as the original Archive." [Nick Gevers]
