Locus Online: New Books, 3rd week June 2006

* Angsten, David : Dark Gold
(St. Martin's/Thomas Dunne Books 0-312-34373-6, $24.95, 9+337pp, hardcover, July 2006)

Thriller with 'mythic' elements, the author's first novel, about three college grads who travel to Puerto Vallarta in search of a lost brother and shipwreck treasure.
• The author's website consists of a flash ad for the book.
• Amazon has the Publishers Weekly review, which says "Take a quest to find a lost brother, hot sex with incredibly beautiful babes, a giant man-eating beast that may or may not be a god, a sunken ship and a fortune in gold. Throw in some evil, demented villagers and a pirate or two, place these plot elements into the hands of a stylish, intelligent writer, and you've got yourself a page-turner that will take readers back to the days when a good book meant you stayed up all night under the covers with a flashlight."

(Mon 19 Jun 2006) • Purchase this book from Amazon | BookSense • (Directory Entry)

* Barzak, Christopher, Alan DeNiro & Kristin Livdahl, eds. : Rabid Transit: Long Voyages, Great Lies
(Velocity Press no ISBN, $6, 92pp, trade paperback, May 2006)

Anthology of 6 original stories. Authors are Alice Kim, David J. Schwartz, F. Brett Cox, Heather Shaw, Meghan McCarron, and Geoffrey H. Goodwin.
• This is the fifth in a series of chapbook anthologies that began in 2002 by a writers' group known as the Ratbastards. The publisher's site has these descriptions with contents lists and ordering information.
• Tangent Online provides this review by E. Sedia.
• Rich Horton reviews the volume in the upcoming July issue of Locus Magazine, favoring the stories by Cox and Shaw.

(Fri 16 Jun 2006) • Purchase this book from Amazon | BookSense • (Directory Entry)

* Byrnes, M. Scott : Revelations
(Blue Stripe Books 0-9772674-0-7, $19.95, 279pp, hardcover, May 2006)

SF novel in which discoveries on Mars lead to revelations about Jesus, God, and the coming Armageddon.
• The author's site has this summary and an excerpt.
• The Amazon page has reader reviews, including a detailed summary in Harriet Klausner's review.

(Tue 20 Jun 2006) • Purchase this book from Amazon | BookSense • (Directory Entry)

* Gilman, Carolyn Ives : Candle in a Bottle
(Aqueduct Press 1-933500-07-7, $9, 104pp, trade paperback, May 2006)

SF novella in which savants of Institut Sorel anticipate an imminent phase transition that will affect the entire world.
• The story was first published in F&SF in 1996.
• The publisher's site has this description.

(Mon 19 Jun 2006) • Purchase this book from Amazon | BookSense • (Directory Entry)

* Hartwell, David G., & Kathryn Cramer, eds. : Year's Best SF 11
(SFBC 0-7394-6924-8, 14+496pp, hardcover, June 2006, jacket art Dominic Harman)

Anthology of 31 SF stories first published in 2005, with an introduction by the editors, and introductions to each story. Authors include David Langford, Gardner Dozois, Ken MacLeod, Bruce Sterling, Ted Chiang, Oliver Morton, Greg Bear, Gregory Benford, Joe Haldeman, and Cory Doctorow.
• This is the SF Book Club edition, the first hardcover edition, published more-or-less simultaneously with the paperback from Eos. The Book Club site has this description.

(Fri 23 Jun 2006) • (Directory Entry)

* Inclán, Jessica : When You Believe
(Zebra 0-8217-8080-8, $13, 327pp, trade paperback, June 2006)

Paranormal romance novel, first of a trilogy, about a magical group called Les Croyant des Trois whose members protect the Earth from dark forces.
• The publisher's site has this page with the description and author background, plus this excerpt.

(Mon 19 Jun 2006) • Purchase this book from Amazon | BookSense • (Directory Entry)

* Kaye, Marvin, ed. : Forbidden Planets
(SFBC 1-58288-211-6, 10+322pp, hardcover, June 2006, jacket art Stephen Hickman)

Anthology of 6 original novellas by Alan Dean Foster, Allen M. Steele, Nancy Kress, Robert Reed, Jack McDevitt, and Julie E. Czerneda.
• Editor Kaye provides an introduction, and introductions to each story.
• This book is available exclusively from the Science Fiction Book Club, whose site has this description, with brief summaries of each story.

(Tue 20 Jun 2006) • (Directory Entry)

* Moore, T. M. : Destiny's Forge
(Lulu/Ikthalion Press 1-4116-1162-7, $14.95, 386pp, trade paperback, 2006, cover art Therri Moore)

SF/fantasy adventure novel about a human/alien hybrid whose quest for an old enemy takes her to Earth.
• The publisher's site has this description and a preview with an excerpt.
• Copyright Theresa M. Moore.

(Tue 20 Jun 2006) • (Directory Entry)

* Morrison, Rusty, & Ken Keegan, eds. : Paraspheres: Fabulist and New Wave Fabulist Stories
(Omnidawn Publishing 1-890650-18-8, $19.95, 637pp, trade paperback, August 2006, cover illustration Michael Parkes)

Anthology of 50 'slipstream' stories, a dozen or so being reprints, including Ursula K. Le Guin's "The Birthday of the World", Kim Stanley Robinson's "The Lucky Strike", and Angela Carter's "The Cabinet of Edgar Allan Poe", the remainder originals, by authors including Shelley Jackson, L. Timmel Duchamp, Anna Tambour, Brian Evenson, and Jeff VanderMeer.
• The publisher's site has this description with ordering information, including the complete table of contents, the review by Nick Gevers from the April issue of Locus Magazine, and the complete afterword by editor Keegan titled "Why Fabulist and New Wave Fabulist Stories in an Anthology Named PARASPHERES?"
• Rich Horton reviews the book in the upcoming July issue of Locus Magazine, saying "Overall I was very impressed" and citing original stories by Justine Courter, Janice Law, and Michael Constance.

(Wed 21 Jun 2006) • Purchase this book from Amazon | BookSense • (Directory Entry)

* Novik, Naomi : Temeraire: In the Service of the King
(SFBC 0-7394-6871-5, 832pp, hardcover, June 2006, jacket art Todd Lockwood)

Omnibus of three fantasy novels about dragons used in the Napoleonic Wars published earlier this year in paperback originals by Ballantine Del Rey: His Majesty's Dragon, Throne of Jade, and Black Powder War.
• The author's website has this page about the series, with excerpts and a short story.
• This omnibus edition is available exclusively from the SF Book Club, whose site has this page with a club review and member reviews.
• Locus Magazine reviews of the books included one from Gary K. Wolfe, who said about the first volume: "the action sequences are terrific, the characters enormously appealing, the style accomplished and ironic, and the promise of future volumes quite inviting".

(Fri 23 Jun 2006) • (Directory Entry)

* Rockwood, Alyn : How Noble in Reason
(A.K. Peters 1-56881-288-4, $24.95, 207pp, hardcover, May 2006)

SF novel about a Cornell University artificial intelligence researcher, inventor of three sentient computers named A, B, and C, who's implicated in the destruction of one of them.
• The publisher's site has this description.
• The author has this professional web page.
• Amazon has a brief description, and a reader review.

(Fri 23 Jun 2006) • Purchase this book from Amazon | BookSense • (Directory Entry)

* Singh, Vandana, illustrated by B. M. Kamath : Younguncle Comes to Town
(Viking 0-670-06051-8, $14.99, 153pp, hardcover, April 2006, jacket illustration Sandy Nichols)

Children's novel set in India about three children and their father's youngest brother, who arrives with tales about stolen cows and an angry tree ghost.
• It's the author's first book, "published to great acclaim" in her country according to the publisher's description, and comes with a jacket blurb from Ursula K. Le Guin: "Anyone who reads this book will be perfectly happy".
• The author, who has a Ph.D. in theoretical particle physics, has this webpage, with a blog and an in-work section on Indian Science Fiction and Fantasy.
• Amazon has reviews from School Library Journal and Booklist; the latter comments "chief charm of these low-key stories, for American readers, is in their introduction to Indian culture, family life, lore, and legend." Amazon's 'search inside' feature includes an excerpt.

(Wed 21 Jun 2006) • Purchase this book from Amazon | BookSense • (Directory Entry)

* Strahan, Jonathan, ed. : Best Short Novels: 2006
(SFBC 1-58288-222-2, 14+573pp, hardcover, June 2006, jacket art Les Edwards)

Anthology of 9 novellas first published in 2005. Authors are Ian McDonald, Matthew Hughes, Cory Doctorow, Harry Turtledove, Kelly Link, Steven Erikson, Wil McCarthy, Connie Willis,, and Jeffrey Ford.
• Strahan provides a book introduction and introductions to each story. He posted on his blog this preview back in April, with descriptions of the stories and links to those available online.
• This book is available exclusively from the Science Fiction Book Club, whose site has this page for the book, with a club review.

(Tue 20 Jun 2006) • (Directory Entry)

* Tan, Cecilia, ed. : Sex in the System
(Thunder's Mouth Press 1-56025-851-9, $15.95, 10+283pp, trade paperback, July 2006)

Anthology of 14 stories and one poem, subtitled "stories of erotic futures, technological stimulation, and the sensual life of machines". All but four of the stories are original to this book. Authors include Joe Haldeman, Sarah Micklem, Scott Westerfeld, Gavin J. Grant, Paul Di Filippo, and M. Christian.
• Amazon has the back cover description, though several of the authors it lists (Hopkinson, Asaro, Sterling) are not in the book.

(Wed 21 Jun 2006) • Purchase this book from Amazon | BookSense • (Directory Entry)

	MONITOR New Books June #2 Neal Asher Mike Ashley Patricia Bray Keith Donohue L. Timmel Duchamp Dave Duncan Tanya Huff E.E. Knight Morgan Llywelyn Paul Malmont Syne Mitchell Kim Newman Jenn Reese Mike Resnick Lilith Saintcrow Al Sarrantonio Charles Stross David Zindell New Books June #1 Bruce Boston Jacqueline Carey Steve Cash Peter David James Gunn Amanda Hemingway Sherrilyn Kenyon Kit Reed Robert Reginald Alastair Reynolds George Saunders William H. Trotter 2006 Archive 2005 Archive Advertisement KEY This page lists selected newly published SFFH books seen by Locus Online (independently from the listings compiled by Locus Magazine). Review copies received will be listed (though reprints and reissues are on other pages), but not galleys or advance reading copies. Selections, some based only on bookstore sightings, are at the discretion of Locus Online. * = first edition + = first US edition Date with publisher info is official publication month; Date in parentheses at paragraph end is date seen or received. LINKS Links Portal Bookseller Links Your purchase of books through Amazon.com and Amazon UK links (click on titles or covers) helps support Locus Online Publisher Links E-mail Locus Online		New SF, Fantasy, and Horror books seen : 3rd week June 2006 posted 4 July 2006 * Angsten, David : Dark Gold (St. Martin's/Thomas Dunne Books 0-312-34373-6, $24.95, 9+337pp, hardcover, July 2006) Thriller with 'mythic' elements, the author's first novel, about three college grads who travel to Puerto Vallarta in search of a lost brother and shipwreck treasure. • The author's website consists of a flash ad for the book. • Amazon has the Publishers Weekly review, which says "Take a quest to find a lost brother, hot sex with incredibly beautiful babes, a giant man-eating beast that may or may not be a god, a sunken ship and a fortune in gold. Throw in some evil, demented villagers and a pirate or two, place these plot elements into the hands of a stylish, intelligent writer, and you've got yourself a page-turner that will take readers back to the days when a good book meant you stayed up all night under the covers with a flashlight." (Mon 19 Jun 2006) • Purchase this book from Amazon \| BookSense • (Directory Entry) \| * Barzak, Christopher, Alan DeNiro & Kristin Livdahl, eds. : Rabid Transit: Long Voyages, Great Lies (Velocity Press no ISBN, $6, 92pp, trade paperback, May 2006) Anthology of 6 original stories. Authors are Alice Kim, David J. Schwartz, F. Brett Cox, Heather Shaw, Meghan McCarron, and Geoffrey H. Goodwin. • This is the fifth in a series of chapbook anthologies that began in 2002 by a writers' group known as the Ratbastards. The publisher's site has these descriptions with contents lists and ordering information. • Tangent Online provides this review by E. Sedia. • Rich Horton reviews the volume in the upcoming July issue of Locus Magazine, favoring the stories by Cox and Shaw. (Fri 16 Jun 2006) • Purchase this book from Amazon \| BookSense • (Directory Entry) \| * Byrnes, M. Scott : Revelations (Blue Stripe Books 0-9772674-0-7, $19.95, 279pp, hardcover, May 2006) SF novel in which discoveries on Mars lead to revelations about Jesus, God, and the coming Armageddon. • The author's site has this summary and an excerpt. • The Amazon page has reader reviews, including a detailed summary in Harriet Klausner's review. (Tue 20 Jun 2006) • Purchase this book from Amazon \| BookSense • (Directory Entry) \| * Gilman, Carolyn Ives : Candle in a Bottle (Aqueduct Press 1-933500-07-7, $9, 104pp, trade paperback, May 2006) SF novella in which savants of Institut Sorel anticipate an imminent phase transition that will affect the entire world. • The story was first published in F&SF in 1996. • The publisher's site has this description. (Mon 19 Jun 2006) • Purchase this book from Amazon \| BookSense • (Directory Entry) \| * Hartwell, David G., & Kathryn Cramer, eds. : Year's Best SF 11 (SFBC 0-7394-6924-8, 14+496pp, hardcover, June 2006, jacket art Dominic Harman) Anthology of 31 SF stories first published in 2005, with an introduction by the editors, and introductions to each story. Authors include David Langford, Gardner Dozois, Ken MacLeod, Bruce Sterling, Ted Chiang, Oliver Morton, Greg Bear, Gregory Benford, Joe Haldeman, and Cory Doctorow. • This is the SF Book Club edition, the first hardcover edition, published more-or-less simultaneously with the paperback from Eos. The Book Club site has this description. (Fri 23 Jun 2006) • (Directory Entry) \| * Inclán, Jessica : When You Believe (Zebra 0-8217-8080-8, $13, 327pp, trade paperback, June 2006) Paranormal romance novel, first of a trilogy, about a magical group called Les Croyant des Trois whose members protect the Earth from dark forces. • The publisher's site has this page with the description and author background, plus this excerpt. (Mon 19 Jun 2006) • Purchase this book from Amazon \| BookSense • (Directory Entry) \| * Kaye, Marvin, ed. : Forbidden Planets (SFBC 1-58288-211-6, 10+322pp, hardcover, June 2006, jacket art Stephen Hickman) Anthology of 6 original novellas by Alan Dean Foster, Allen M. Steele, Nancy Kress, Robert Reed, Jack McDevitt, and Julie E. Czerneda. • Editor Kaye provides an introduction, and introductions to each story. • This book is available exclusively from the Science Fiction Book Club, whose site has this description, with brief summaries of each story. (Tue 20 Jun 2006) • (Directory Entry) \| * Moore, T. M. : Destiny's Forge (Lulu/Ikthalion Press 1-4116-1162-7, $14.95, 386pp, trade paperback, 2006, cover art Therri Moore) SF/fantasy adventure novel about a human/alien hybrid whose quest for an old enemy takes her to Earth. • The publisher's site has this description and a preview with an excerpt. • Copyright Theresa M. Moore. (Tue 20 Jun 2006) • (Directory Entry) \| * Morrison, Rusty, & Ken Keegan, eds. : Paraspheres: Fabulist and New Wave Fabulist Stories (Omnidawn Publishing 1-890650-18-8, $19.95, 637pp, trade paperback, August 2006, cover illustration Michael Parkes) Anthology of 50 'slipstream' stories, a dozen or so being reprints, including Ursula K. Le Guin's "The Birthday of the World", Kim Stanley Robinson's "The Lucky Strike", and Angela Carter's "The Cabinet of Edgar Allan Poe", the remainder originals, by authors including Shelley Jackson, L. Timmel Duchamp, Anna Tambour, Brian Evenson, and Jeff VanderMeer. • The publisher's site has this description with ordering information, including the complete table of contents, the review by Nick Gevers from the April issue of Locus Magazine, and the complete afterword by editor Keegan titled "Why Fabulist and New Wave Fabulist Stories in an Anthology Named PARASPHERES?" • Rich Horton reviews the book in the upcoming July issue of Locus Magazine, saying "Overall I was very impressed" and citing original stories by Justine Courter, Janice Law, and Michael Constance. (Wed 21 Jun 2006) • Purchase this book from Amazon \| BookSense • (Directory Entry) \| * Novik, Naomi : Temeraire: In the Service of the King (SFBC 0-7394-6871-5, 832pp, hardcover, June 2006, jacket art Todd Lockwood) Omnibus of three fantasy novels about dragons used in the Napoleonic Wars published earlier this year in paperback originals by Ballantine Del Rey: His Majesty's Dragon, Throne of Jade, and Black Powder War. • The author's website has this page about the series, with excerpts and a short story. • This omnibus edition is available exclusively from the SF Book Club, whose site has this page with a club review and member reviews. • Locus Magazine reviews of the books included one from Gary K. Wolfe, who said about the first volume: "the action sequences are terrific, the characters enormously appealing, the style accomplished and ironic, and the promise of future volumes quite inviting". (Fri 23 Jun 2006) • (Directory Entry) \| * Rockwood, Alyn : How Noble in Reason (A.K. Peters 1-56881-288-4, $24.95, 207pp, hardcover, May 2006) SF novel about a Cornell University artificial intelligence researcher, inventor of three sentient computers named A, B, and C, who's implicated in the destruction of one of them. • The publisher's site has this description. • The author has this professional web page. • Amazon has a brief description, and a reader review. (Fri 23 Jun 2006) • Purchase this book from Amazon \| BookSense • (Directory Entry) \| * Singh, Vandana, illustrated by B. M. Kamath : Younguncle Comes to Town (Viking 0-670-06051-8, $14.99, 153pp, hardcover, April 2006, jacket illustration Sandy Nichols) Children's novel set in India about three children and their father's youngest brother, who arrives with tales about stolen cows and an angry tree ghost. • It's the author's first book, "published to great acclaim" in her country according to the publisher's description, and comes with a jacket blurb from Ursula K. Le Guin: "Anyone who reads this book will be perfectly happy". • The author, who has a Ph.D. in theoretical particle physics, has this webpage, with a blog and an in-work section on Indian Science Fiction and Fantasy. • Amazon has reviews from School Library Journal and Booklist; the latter comments "chief charm of these low-key stories, for American readers, is in their introduction to Indian culture, family life, lore, and legend." Amazon's 'search inside' feature includes an excerpt. (Wed 21 Jun 2006) • Purchase this book from Amazon \| BookSense • (Directory Entry) \| * Strahan, Jonathan, ed. : Best Short Novels: 2006 (SFBC 1-58288-222-2, 14+573pp, hardcover, June 2006, jacket art Les Edwards) Anthology of 9 novellas first published in 2005. Authors are Ian McDonald, Matthew Hughes, Cory Doctorow, Harry Turtledove, Kelly Link, Steven Erikson, Wil McCarthy, Connie Willis,, and Jeffrey Ford. • Strahan provides a book introduction and introductions to each story. He posted on his blog this preview back in April, with descriptions of the stories and links to those available online. • This book is available exclusively from the Science Fiction Book Club, whose site has this page for the book, with a club review. (Tue 20 Jun 2006) • (Directory Entry) \| * Tan, Cecilia, ed. : Sex in the System (Thunder's Mouth Press 1-56025-851-9, $15.95, 10+283pp, trade paperback, July 2006) Anthology of 14 stories and one poem, subtitled "stories of erotic futures, technological stimulation, and the sensual life of machines". All but four of the stories are original to this book. Authors include Joe Haldeman, Sarah Micklem, Scott Westerfeld, Gavin J. Grant, Paul Di Filippo, and M. Christian. • Amazon has the back cover description, though several of the authors it lists (Hopkinson, Asaro, Sterling) are not in the book. (Wed 21 Jun 2006) • Purchase this book from Amazon \| BookSense • (Directory Entry) \| Opening lines: Trailing a plume of sparking fire and rapidly dissipating smoke, a small space yacht drifted toward a planet orbiting a pair of white stars. Opening lines: The last we heard from my brother Dan was a postcard he sent from Puerto Vallarta. He'd been traveling for three years without coming home, and a card in the mail was the most we'd ever got from him. Every now and then he'd drop a line or two, enough to let us know where he was--and that he wasn't dead. She thought he'd get killed out there, looking for whatever it was he was looking for. Opening lines: Jonathan Moyeur, captain of the Santa Maria, twisted the frequency knob on the communications console. "Is that any better? Over," he practically yelled into the microphone in front of him. Opening lines: She beckoned him forward, and he followed her command, feeling it like a slick silk rope around his neck, a comfortable, accustomed noose that he had worn for two years. Her call was warm, dark like brandy, sweet and addictive. He could never disobey her; he knew that in his blood and bones and mind. Opening lines: One rainy afternoon, three children sat looking out of an open window, their fingers curled around the metal grillwork. The rain had come down like a great moving curtain, making the narrow lanes sparkle, turning the roadside ditches into torrential streams. They had watched a procession of cows canter off toward the shelter of the enormous neem tree around the corner; they had seen neighbors hurry past under wet, black umbrellas; they had seen cars and rickshaws and an oxcart splash their way through the waterlogged street. Now the rain had slowed to a murmur and the lane was empty except for a water buffalo, its black hide agleam, standing meditatively under the shi-sham tree on the other side. Previous New Books: June #2
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