* Abraham, Daniel : An Autumn War
(Tor 978-0-7653-1342-3, $25.95, 366pp, hardcover, July 2008, jacket art Stephan Martiniere)

SF novel, third in the "Long Price Quartet" following A Shadow in Summer and A Betrayal in Winter, set in a world in which a military empire threatens to destroy the medieval cities of Khaiem.
• Tor's website has this description, which notes that this third book in the series is "of much wider scope and appeal that will thrill his fans and enthrall legions of new readers."
• The Publishers Weekly review calls the book "sharp and powerful" and concludes "New readers will find Abraham's deft storytelling style accessible, but returning fans will most appreciate the growth of the world and the characters."
• Nick Gevers reviewed the book in the June issue of Locus Magazine: "Abraham, one of the most gifted newer fantasists, keeps his material under tight control, and by this cool restraint if anything magnifies the tension of his narrative."

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* Armstrong, Kelley : The Summoning
(HarperCollins 978-0-06-166269-0, $17.99, 390pp, hardcover, July 2008)

Young adult fantasy novel, first in the "Darkest Powers" trilogy, about a 15-year-old girl who, upon experiencing her first period, starts seeing ghosts everywhere.
• The publisher's site has this description with its "browse inside" feature.
• Amazon's "search inside" function also includes an excerpt.
• The Publishers Weekly review says "Drawing on elements dear to horror lovers (secretly buried corpses, evil doctors, werewolves, telekinesis), Armstrong adds a stylish degree of suspense. The ending, while still a cliffhanger, brings with it a chilling closure."

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* Colfer, Eoin : Artemis Fowl: The Time Paradox
(Hyperion 978-1423108368, $17.99, 391pp, hardcover, July 2008)

Young-adult fantasy novel, sixth book in the popular series about a young criminal genius that began with Artemis Fowl in 2001.
• In this book Artemis' mother contracts a deadly disease, whose cure lies with African lemurs made extinct by Artemis five years ago.
• Series site www.artemisfowl.com has a video, an excerpt, and much else.
• Amazon has mostly-positive reader reviews.

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* Collins, Nancy A. : Vamps
(HarperCollins 978-0-06-134917-1, $8.99, 235pp, trade paperback, August 2008)

Young adult fantasy novel, about an academy where young lady vampires are trained.
• The publisher's website has this description.
• Amazon's "search inside" feature includes an excerpt.

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+ Egan, Greg : Incandescence
(Night Shade Books 978-1-59780-128-7, $24.95, 250pp, hardcover, July 2008, jacket design Noble, Claudia) First US edition (UK: Gollancz, May 2008)

First US edition of far future hard SF novel about contact between the human Amalgam, which occupies most of the galaxy, and the mysterious Aloof, which occupies the galactic core, and the alien inhabitants of a world near the galactic core.
• The publisher's site has this description.
• Egan's website has this page for the book, with links to two YouTube trailers and to numerous highly-technical pages illustrating the geometry and physics behind the book's depiction of Splinter, a rocky world illuminated by the Incandescence. Also available is novella Riding the Crocodile, a 2005 novella set in the same universe.
• Russell Letson's review (of this novel and Egan's collection Dark Integers and Other Stories) from the April issue of Locus Magazine is posted here online; Letson says the books demonstrate "his range and his consistent focus on philosophical questions enabled by mathematical conjectures and the thought-experimental possibilities of various post-human conditions."

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* Grant, Michael : Gone
(HarperTeen 978-0-06-144876-8, $17.99, 558pp, hardcover, June 2008)

Young-adult SF novel set in a small town in which everyone over the age of 14 vanishes, and the remaining kids are left to fend on their own.
• The publisher's site has this description with a chapter excerpt and numerous reader reviews.
• Amazon has a video trailer.

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* Hoffman, Mary : Stravaganza: City of Secrets
(Bloomsbury USA 978-1-599-90202-9, $17.99, 383pp, hardcover, July 2008, jacket illustration Larry Rostant)

YA fantasy novel, fourth in the series following Stravaganza: City of Masks (2002), Stravaganza: City of Stars (2003), and Stravaganza: City of Flowers (2005), about young people transported to an alternate 16th century Italy. This book begins a new story arc about a dyslexic boy named Matt.
• The publisher's author profile shows the current covers of the series' four books, and links to this book description.
• The series' UK website, www.stravaganza.co.uk, has a message from the author, an extract and links to numerous pages of background and FAQs.

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* Melton, Henry : Extreme Makeover
(Wire Rim Books 978-0-9802253-2-7, $14.95, 325pp, trade paperback, July 2008, cover art Autumn~Angel)

Young adult SF novel about a high school girl whose body is invaded by alien nanobots.
• It's part of the author's Small Towns, Big Ideas novels that include previous books Emperor Dad and Roswell or Bust.
• Amazon's page has a "search inside" function that includes an excerpt.

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+ Nix, Garth : The Keys to the Kingdom, Book 6: Superior Saturday
(Scholastic 978-0-439-70089-4, $17.99, 278pp, hardcover, July 2008, jacket art John Blackford)

YA fantasy novel, sixth in the series following Mister Monday, Grim Tuesday, Drowned Wednesday, Sir Thursday, and Lady Friday, about human Arthur Penhaligon battling a succession of enemies (each based on one of the seven deadly sins) for the 'keys' to inherit the Earth.
• The final book will be called Lord Sunday.
• Australian site www.keystothekingdom.com.au has this description with links to text and audio excerpts.
• Carolyn Cushman reviews the book in the July issue of Locus Magazine: "It all ends with an appalling cliffhanger ending, too, with no significant resolution -- not surprising, considering there is only one more volume to go, but frustrating, with so many answers just ahead."

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* Shawl, Nisi : Filter House
(Aqueduct Press 978-1-933500-19-5, $18, 276pp, trade paperback, August 2008)

Collection of 14 stories, 11 first published from 1995 to 2007 in Asimov's SF, Dark Matter, Strange Horizons, and other sources, with three stories original to this book.
• Eileen Gunn provides an introduction.
• The publisher's site has this description, with blurbs from Ursula K. Le Guin, Karen Joy Fowler, Matt Ruff, and others.
• Amazon has the starred Publishers Weekly review, from its June 9th issue: "This exquisitely rendered debut collection of 11 reprints and three originals ranges into the past and future to explore identity and belief in a dazzling variety of settings. ... The concluding tale, 'The Beads of Ku,' is an utterly arresting, authoritatively delivered tale concerning the diplomacy of marriage and the economy of the land of the dead. The threads of folklore, religious magic, family and the search for a cohesive self are woven with power and lucidity throughout this panorama of race, magic and the body."

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* Teglia, Charlene : Wicked Hot
(St. Martin's Griffin 978-0-312-36946-0, $13.95, 308pp, trade paperback, August 2008)

Erotic paranormal romance novel about Edana, a succubus who offers men their wildest fantasies in exchange for their souls.
• The publisher's site has this description.
• The author's site has links to a video book trailer and a text excerpt.
• Amazon has reader reviews.

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* Viehl, S. L. : Omega Games
(Roc 978-0-451-46224-4, $7.99, 372pp, mass market paperback, August 2008)

SF novel in the author's long-running Stardoc universe of medically-themed space operas, most recently in Rebel Ice (2006) and Plague of Memory (2007).
• In this book Dr. Cherijo Torin investigates a black crystal infection that's spreading throughout the galaxy.
• The publisher's site has this description.

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* Wexler, Robert Freeman : Psychological Methods to Sell Should Be Destroyed: Stories
(Spilt Milk Press no isbn, $5, 80pp, chapbook, July 2008, cover art Tim Robinson)

Chapbook collection of six stories, one of which is an original: "Sidewalk Factory: A Municipal Romance".
• Zoran Zivkovic provides an introduction.
• The publisher's site has a description and ordering information.

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