14 January 2005

SF novel about a spaceship that travels to SS Cygni to investigate a strange creature composed of stellar plasma and magnetic fields.
• It's the first novel by the author, who's also an astronomer. His website offers free downloads of the entire novel under the Creative Commons License.
• The novel was a finalist for the 2004 John W. Campbell Memorial Award.
• Alyx Dellamonica reviewed it in the October '03 Locus Magazine, saying "Star Dragon is terrific fare for anyone seeking a light summer read, offering readers a fusion of hard science and grand adventure."
• Amazon quotes the Publishers Weekly review: "Readers willing to overlook the less-than-convincing characters will find an amazingly detailed world and a story full of scientific wonder."
(Sun 9 Jan 2005) • Purchase this book from Amazon | BookSense

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Historical fantasy novel, first of the "Crucible" trilogy, set in 14th century Europe. Includes a glossary. The second book, The Wounded Hawk, just appeared in hardcover. This is a reprint of the 2004 Tor hardcover.
• The author's website, www.saradouglass.com, has this page about the trilogy, with numerous links to additional pages of background, character descriptions, and excerpts.
• Publishers Weekly's review concluded "This captivating historical fantasy ranks with the best in the subgenre."
(Sun 9 Jan 2005) • Purchase this book from Amazon | BookSense

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Military SF novel, third in the "Leary & Mundy" series (or the "RCN" series) following With the Lightnings (1998) and Lt. Leary, Commanding (2000).
• Baen's site has a description with links to excerpts.
• Amazon quotes Roland Green's Booklist review: "More and sooner, sir!"
(Tue 14 Dec 2004) • Purchase this book from Amazon | BookSense

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Fantasy novel, first of a projected 10-volume series about the Malazan empire, by a Canadian author. Four more volumes have already appeared in Britain, most recently Midnight Tides. This is a reprint of the 2004 Tor hardcover edition.
• Finalist for the 2000 World Fantasy Award for best novel.
• The series' website is www.malazanempire.com, with details about the background of the series, though several pages are still under construction, and a synopsis of this book.
• Amazon has the PW review, which concludes "Heroes win, villains lose, fairness reigns, tragedy is averted. Erikson may aspire to China Mi‚ville heights, but he settles comfortably in George R.R. Martin country."
(Sun 9 Jan 2005) • Purchase this book from Amazon | BookSense

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SF novel subtitled "A Comedy of Customs", a recently discovered early manuscript by Heinlein posthumously published. It's about a man in a car accident in 1939 who wakes up in the year 2086.
• The Heinlein Society website has this background article by Deb Houdek Rule. The book has an introduction by Spider Robinson, and an afterword by Robert James.
• The PW review reflects the critical consensus: "Although this book can't stand alone on its own merits as a novel, it's a harbinger of later themes, best read critically and in conjunction with Heinlein's more mature fiction."
(Wed 8 Dec 2004) • Purchase this book from Amazon | BookSense

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SF novel, sequel to The Cradle of Saturn (1999), about a colony on Saturn's moons that plans to rebuild a devastated Earth.
• Baen's site has a description with links to excerpts.
• The author's site has this page about the book, with links to background, summary, samples, and review & reader comments.
• Amazon has the Publishers Weekly review.
(Tue 11 Jan 2005) • Purchase this book from Amazon | BookSense

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Fantasy novel, book two of the "Merlin Codex" after Celtika (2001), concerning Merlin in the centuries before Arthur. In this one Merlin and Jason meet again in Alba (England). This is a reprint of the 2004 Tor hardcover edition.
• The author's website, robertholdstock.com, has an essay, The Mythago Process, by the author; an excerpt; and a short essay by David Langford, Thoughts on The Merlin Codex.
• Publishers Weekly's starred review (reprinted on the Amazon page) calls it "Haunting, intricately plotted and richly revisionist..."
(Tue 11 Jan 2005) • Purchase this book from Amazon | BookSense

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SF novel, third in the "Neanderthal Parallax" trilogy following Hugo-nominee Hominids (2002) and Humans (2003), concerning contact with a parallel Earth dominated by Neanderthals.
• The author's website has this page about the book, with an opening chapter excerpt.
• Amazon has the Publishers Weekly review, which concludes "It all amounts to some of the most outrageous, stimulating speculation since Robert A. Heinlein's Stranger in a Strange Land questioned our tired, timid conventions."
(Tue 21 Dec 2004) • Purchase this book from Amazon | BookSense

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Fantasy novel, first half of "The Wizard Knight", about a teenaged boy who wanders into a realm containing seven levels of reality. The second volume, The Wizard, appeared in hardcover in November.
• The book has just appeared on SFWA's preliminary Nebula Awards ballot for the awards to be given out in April 2005.
• The Publishers Weekly review is reproduced on the Amazon page: "Wolfe doesn't just rearrange the cliches of sword and sorcery fiction; he recreates the genre. ... A compelling, breathtaking achievement." An interview of Wolfe by Nick Gevers on Infinity Plus includes a discussion of this book. Gevers' review in the December '03 Locus Magazine describes it as "a magnificent adventure story, packed with invention, incident, travel, battle, ascents, descents, deceptions, catharses, false trails, true paths. ... The Knight is the polar opposite of bloated, interminable commercial fantasy."
(Tue 4 Jan 2005) • Purchase this book from Amazon | BookSense

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