Neal Asher, The Departure
(Night Shade Books Feb 2013)

The long-awaited US edition (Tor UK 2011) of the first volume in Asher’s dark SF series The Owner is here at last. Set in the 22nd century on an overpopulated dystopian Earth and a Mars colony struggling for survival, this delivers Asher’s usual blend of ‘‘vivid, graphic violence; widescreen special-effects sequences; ruthless, damaged, more-than- or not-exactly-human heroes and villains… and a high-stakes conflict.’’ [Russell Letson]

 




Kage Baker & Kathleen Bartholomew, Nell Gwynne’s on Land and at Sea
(Subterranean Press Dec 2012)

The ladies of the upscale Victorian brothel (and front for a secret spy organization) Nell Gwynne’s take a summer vacation by the sea, but instead of relaxation, they find intrigue in the form of a scheming American with a dangerous plot. This novella in the late Kage Baker’s Company series was completed by the author’s sister. ‘‘The story is madcap… steampunk science fiction reduced (or should I say elevated?) to the level of opera buffa…. Baker was a true ornament to our field. She is sorely missed, and all praise is due to her sister… for preserving and enhancing her heritage.’’ [Richard A. Lupoff]

 




R. S. Belcher, The Six-Gun Tarot
(Tor Jan 2013)

Set in a fantasy version of the Old West where the remote town of Golgotha is beset by unnatural terrors, this debut novel by a striking new voice ‘‘features a genre mix that’s very much in vogue these days: the dark and twisted Western…. Belcher takes to it like a natural, with no signs of newbie hesitation. He jumps right in!’’ [Faren Miller]

 




Marie Brennan, A Natural History of Dragons
(Tor Feb 2013)

Subtitled ‘‘A Memoir by Lady Trent,’’ this charming novel is ostensibly the life story of world -famous dragon naturalist Isabella, Lady Trent, written in the style of a Victorian autobiography.

 




Peter V. Brett, The Daylight War
(Ballantine Del Rey Feb 2013)

The third book in the Demon Cycle, begun with The Warded Man and The Desert Spear, escalates the conflict between former-friends-turned-bitter-rivals Arlen and Jardir. Only one of them can truly be the fabled Deliverer, destined to save humankind from a plague of demons – but as they battle one another, their common enemy grows stronger.

 




Gail Carriger, Etiquette and Espionage
(Little, Brown Feb 2013)

The beloved steampunk author turns to YA fiction for the first time with this spin-off set earlier in the world of her popular Parasol Protectorate series, with 14-year-old Sophronia shipped off to a finishing school that secretly teaches spycraft and assassination along with more refined social skills.

 




Cory Doctorow, Homeland
(Tor Teen Feb 2013)

This sequel to the bestselling Little Brother again pits socially conscious young people in the near future against the oppressive apparatus of the security state. Hacker legend Marcus receives a drive filled with Wikileaks-style stolen secrets and wrestles with the decision of whether or not to release it online, while dangerous forces try to seize the data for their own purposes.

 




Paula Guran, ed., Future Games
(Prime Books Jan 2013)

This reprint anthology gathers 16 SF stories of sports, games, and competitions, with work by Orson Scott Card, Cory Doctorow, George R.R. Martin, Elizabeth Ann Scarborough, Howard Waldrop, and Kate Wilhelm, among others.

 




Robert Jordan & Brandon Sanderson, A Memory of Light
(Tor Jan 2013)

Twenty-three years after the publication of The Eye of the World, the late Robert Jordan’s epic Wheel of Time series draws to a close in this fourteenth volume, as Rand al’Thor finally confronts the Dark One in the prophesied Last Battle. Like the previous two volumes, this was written by Sanderson based on notes, outlines, and scenes left by Jordan, with the assistance of Jordan’s widow Harriet McDougal.

 




Jay Lake, Kalimpura
(Tor Jan 2013)

The third volume in the fantasy adventure series begun with Green follows the courtesan- assassin as she attempts to rescue two girls taken hostage by a guild, while doing her best to avoid the deadly attentions of the gods.

 




Richard Parks, Yamada Monogatari: Demon Hunter
(Prime Books Jan 2013)

This collection by the celebrated author of fantasy stories set in ancient Japan provides a fresh take on the monster-hunter genre with ten stories (one original) about Yamada no Goji, an impoverished nobleman and freelance killer of demons and other supernatural threats.

 




Tim Powers, Salvage and Demolition
(Subterranean Press Jan 2013)

This twisty, thought-provoking time-travel novella from the master of secret history combines Beat poetry, romance, rare book dealing, and the sacred texts of a dead Sumerian god. ‘‘An uncommon and engaging chamber piece from an author most often engaged in more symphonic forms.’’ [Gary K. Wolfe]

 




Robert V. S. Redick, The Night of the Swarm
(Ballantine Del Rey Feb 2013)

The fourth book in the Chatrand Voyage series brings the ambitious fantasy sequence to a harrowing close, as the heroes cope with the devastating magical fallout of the dark sorcerer Arunis’s death: the arrival of the demonic Swarm of Night, which feasts on death itself.

 




Will Self, Umbrella
(Grove Press Jan 2013)

This is the first US publication of last year’s Man Booker prize finalist, a challenging and rewarding novel in the Modernist tradition with surreal elements, exploring the complicated history of a mental patient in 1971 London and a psychiatrist’s attempts to treat her.