* Aaron, Rachel : The Spirit War
(Orbit 978-0-316-19838-7, $14.99, 544pp, trade paperback, June 2012)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 5 Jun 2012
• The Legend of Eli Monpress #4

Fantasy novel, new book following trilogy The Spirit Thief, The Spirit Rebellion, and The Spirit Eater (all 2010), about wizard thief Eli Monpress.
• The author’s site has this description with a link to an excerpt.
• The Publishers Weekly review concludes, “Aaron explores the heroes’ backgrounds while sprinkling around a few hints about the world-spanning problems that presumably will be addressed more directly in the fifth and final book.”

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* Brin, David : Existence
(Tor 978-0-7653-0361-5, $27.99, 560pp, hardcover, June 2012)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 19 Jun 2012

Hard SF novel about the discovery of alien artifacts in Earth orbit and on Earth that suggest human civilization has been guided for thousands of years.
• Tor’s site has this description with a excerpt, and blurbs from Stephen Baxter and Vernor Vinge.
• Amazon’s “Look Inside” function also provides a preview.
• The author’s site has this page for the book, with video trailers, quotes from reviews, an author signing schedule, and a link to a discussion about the similarity of this book to the film Prometheus.
• Publishers Weekly gives this a starred review: “Brin’s thoughtful, multilayered story explores a first contact scenario where every twist reveals greater peril. His longtime fans will especially appreciate that this story could be read as a prequel to 1983’s Startide Rising, while those not familiar with his work will find it an impressive introduction to one of SF’s major talents.”

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* Broderick, Damien, & Paul Di Filippo : Science Fiction: The 101 Best Novels 1985-2010
(Nonstop Press 978-1-933065-39-7, $14.99, 288pp, trade paperback, June 2012)
• Nominal Publication Date: Fri 1 Jun 2012

Nonfiction guide to 101 novels published in the past quarter century, an explicit follow-up to David Pringle’s influential Science Fiction: The 100 Best Novels: 1949-1984 (1985).
• This book covers titles from Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale (1985) to Hannu Rajamiemi’s The Quantum Thief (2010). David Pringle provides an introduction. Unlike Pringle’s earlier volume, this book apparently limits its selections to one per author (whereas Pringle chose multiple titles by Ballard, Heinlein, et al).
• Nonstop Press’ site has this description.
• Amazon’s “Look Inside” function includes the complete table of contents (which, oddly, does not include author names for the selected books).

(Fri 15 Jun 2012)
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* Cisco, Michael : Celebrant
(Chômu Press 978-1-907681-15-8, $16.5, 340pp, trade paperback, June 2012, cover by Christopher Conn Askew)
• Nominal Publication Date: Thu 14 Jun 2012

Fantasy novel about a homeless man’s search for the mystical city of Votu.
• The publisher’s site has this description.
• The Publishers Weekly review describes Votu as “a fantastical realm where time runs backward, the inhabitants worship five ‘natural’ robots that formed spontaneously, and gangs of theriomorphic waifs (rabbit girls and pigeon girls) struggle to survive as urban scavengers.” The review concludes, “this fusion of surrealist travelogue and journey of self-discovery is an impressive work of weird fiction, and its images and ideas will resonate with readers long after the novel ends.”

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* Erikson, Steven : The Devil Delivered and Other Tales
(Tor 978-0-7653-3002-4, $27.99, 336pp, hardcover, June 2012)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 19 Jun 2012

Collection of three novellas, first published in the UK in 2005 and 2008.
• Tor’s site has this description with an excerpt.
• Amazon’s “Look Inside” function provides a preview, including the copyright and table of contents pages.

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* Evans, Bill : Blackmail Earth
(Tor 978-0-7653-2783-3, $24.99, 320pp, hardcover, June 2012)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 19 Jun 2012

Near future eco-thriller in which Muslim extremists blame the US for global warming and plan a suicide bombing to fix it.
• Tor’s site has this description with an excerpt and blurbs for this and his earlier books. The author is Senior Meteorologist for WABC in New York — Wikipedia.
• Amazon’s “Look Inside” function also provides an excerpt.

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* Pitts, J. A. : Forged in Fire
(Tor 978-0-7653-2469-6, $26.99, 432pp, hardcover, June 2012)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 19 Jun 2012
• Sarah Beauhall #3

Urban fantasy novel, third in a series following Black Blade Blues (2010) and Honeyed Words (2011), about a props master for low-budget movies who discovers a magical sword and becomes a dragon slayer.
• Tor’s website has this description with an excerpt.
• Amazon’s “Look Inside” function also provides a preview.

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* Pratchett, Terry, & Stephen Baxter : The Long Earth
(Harper 978-0-06-206775-3, $24.99, 400pp, hardcover, June 2012)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 19 Jun 2012
• Long Earth #1

SF novel, first of a series, in which a process called Stepping gives humanity access to a series of parallel Earths.
• Harper’s site has this description though no excerpt.
• Amazon has a video of Terry Pratchett.
• The Publishers Weekly review comments, “The slow-burning plot plays second fiddle to the fascinating premise, and the authors seem to have more fun developing backstory and concepts than any real tension.”

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* Pratt, Tim : City of the Fallen Sky
(Paizo 978-1-60125-418-4, $9.99, 365pp, mass market paperback, June 2012, cover art J.P. Targete)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 19 Jun 2012
• Pathfinder Tales #-

Gaming-related novel set in the world of the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, about a magician and an adventure fleeing a crime lord and an assassin.
• Paizo’s site has this description with a link to a PDF sample chapter.

(Sat 2 Jun 2012)
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* Ruiz, K. M. : Terminal Point
(St. Martin’s/Dunne 978-0-312-68155-5, $25.99, 336pp, hardcover, June 2012)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 19 Jun 2012
• Strykers Syndicate #2

SF/Fantasy novel, second in a series following Mind Storm (2011), about a group of rogue psions battling villains who would destroy the Earth if necessary to escape to Mars.
• The publisher’s site has this description — “Blade Runner meets X-Men” — and an excerpt.
• The Publishers Weekly review concludes, “…kaleidoscopically intricate shifting alliances and relationships, terrifying mental tortures, and near-death experiences and resurrections drive this saga of revolt and renewal and leave plenty of room for future installments.”

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* Starr, Jason : The Craving
(Ace 978-1937007553, $15, 368pp, trade paperback, June 2012)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 5 Jun 2012
• Pack #2

Urban fantasy novel, second in a series following The Pack (2011), about a stay-at-home dad turned werewolf and an NYPD homicide detective investigating a series of murders.
• The author’s site has this description.
• Amazon’s “Look Inside” function provides a preview.
• Publishers Weekly liked the first book: “Starr once again shows a real gift for satiric humor and capturing the contemporary New York scene.”

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