New Books : 13 August 2019
New titles this week are by Eugen Bacon, Christopher Brown, Howard V. Hendrix, Reese Hogan, Saad Z. Hossain, Keren Landsman, George R.R. Martin et al, L.E. Modesitt, Jr., Temi Oh, Anna Smith Spark, and Erin Swan.
* Bacon, Eugen : Claiming T-Mo
(Meerkat Press 978-1-946154-13-2, $16.95, 266pp, trade paperback, August 2019)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 13 Aug 2019
SF novel, the author’s first novel, about a matriarchal society where the naming of a child by his father gives the child a dual nature.
• The publisher’s site has this page with numerous quotes from reviews and a preview.
• The Publishers Weekly review cites some qualms but comments, “Fans of space opera with far more emphasis on personal matters than on intrigue or warfare may find much to enjoy…”
• Purchase this book from Amazon | Indiebound
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* Brown, Christopher : Rule of Capture
(Harper Voyager 978-0-06-285909-9, $15.99, 400pp, trade paperback, August 2019)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 13 Aug 2019
• Ebook ISBN [link to Amazon Kindle edition]: 9780062859112
• Audiobook ISBN [link to Amazon]: 9780062932327
SF legal thriller, first in a series set in the world of the author’s first novel Tropic of Cancer, as America is on the brink of civil war.
• HarperCollins’ site has this description with a sample.
• Publishers Weekly gives it a starred review: “Interpersonal drama fuels the story as much as legal maneuvering, and Brown keeps tight control of his narrative even as this alternate America slips its gears. Fans of Tropic of Kansas will like this prequel even better, and it’s very accessible to new readers.”
• Russell Letson reviews it in the August issue of Locus Magazine: “Where Tropic of Kansas is a road/pursuit story – comparisons to Cormac McCarthy were not unheard of – Rule of Capture is something interestingly different: a noirish, city-bound thriller/courtroom drama set in a world just the other side of some not-improbable natural and political disasters.”
• Purchase this book from Amazon | Indiebound
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* Hendrix, Howard V. : The Girls with Kaleidoscope Eyes
(Fairwood Press 978-1-933846-77-4, $17.99, 318pp, trade paperback, August 2019)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 13 Aug 2019
Collection of 10 stories, with a foreword by Gregory Benford.
• Fairwood’s site has this description and order page, with blurbs from Kim Stanley Robinson, Jack McDevitt, and others.
• Amazon’s “Look Inside” function provides previews.
• The Publishers Weekly review concludes, “Occasionally the scientific and philosophical explorations take precedence over characterisation, but the clever mix of story length and style keeps the reader’s attention. Fans of idea-driven SF will enjoy dipping in here and there or reading the collection straight through.”
• Purchase this book from Amazon | Indiebound
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* Hogan, Reese : Shrouded Loyalties
(Angry Robot 978-0-85766-829-5, $12.99, 320pp, trade paperback, August 2019)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 13 Aug 2019
• Ebook ISBN [link to Amazon Kindle edition]: 9780857668301
• UK edition: 9780857668295 (Tue 13 Aug 2019)
Military SF novel, the author’s first novel, about a military officer trying to keep the secret technology of shrouding out of enemy hands.
• Angry Robot’s site has this description with an excerpt.
• The Publishers Weekly review concludes, “Hogan creates an intriguing mythology with potential for further exploration. Fans of military SF will enjoy Hogan’s fresh take on the genre.”
• Purchase this book from Amazon | Indiebound
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* Hossain, Saad Z. : The Gurkha and the Lord of Tuesday
(Tor.com 978-1-250-20911-5, $14.99, 176pp, trade paperback, August 2019)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 13 Aug 2019
• Ebook ISBN [link to Amazon Kindle edition]: 9781250209108
Fantasy novel about a djinn who emerges from slumber after millennia and finds the city of Kathmandu unexpectedly peaceful and content.
• Macmillan’s site has this description.
• Amazon’s “Look Inside” function provides excerpts.
• Gary K. Wolfe reviews it in the August issue of Locus Magazine: “Hossein is a Bangladeshi author who has already established a formidable reputation for combining dark humor, loopy adventure, and breezy style with Escape from Baghdad and Djinn City. While those characteristics are much in evidence in The Gurkha and the Lord of Tuesday, he also shows a provocative knack for sharply satirical SF as well. It’s probably the funniest thing I’ve read this year.”
• Purchase this book from Amazon | Indiebound
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* Landsman, Keren : The Heart of the Circle
(Angry Robot 978-0-85766-811-0, $14.99, 400pp, trade paperback, August 2019)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 13 Aug 2019
• Ebook ISBN [link to Amazon Kindle edition]: 9780857668127
• UK edition: 9780857668110 (Tue 13 Aug 2019)
Fantasy novel about the plight of sorcerers in Israel, where they are persecuted by religious extremists.
• Angry Robot’s site has this description with an excerpt.
• Purchase this book from Amazon | Indiebound
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+ Martin, George R. R., ed. : Wild Cards: Knaves Over Queens
(Tor 978-1250168061, $29.99, 560pp, hardcover, August 2019)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 13 Aug 2019
• Ebook ISBN [link to Amazon Kindle edition]: 9781250168054
• Wild Cards #21
Collaborative novel edited by Martin assisted by Melinda M. Snodgrass, and written by Paul Cornell, Marko Kloos, Mark Lawrence, Kevin Andrew Murphy, Emma Newman, Peter Newman, Peadar Ó Guilín, Medlina M. Snodgrass, Caroline Spector, and Charles Stross, latest in the long-running series about a virus that has given some people superhuman powers.
• Macmillan’s site has this description.
• Amazon’s “Look Inside” function provides previews.
• The UK edition appeared in June 2018.
• Purchase this book from Amazon | Indiebound
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* Modesitt, L. E., Jr. : The Mage-Fire War
(Tor 978-1-250-20782-1, $29.99, 544pp, hardcover, August 2019)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 13 Aug 2019
• Ebook ISBN [link to Amazon Kindle edition]: 9781250207814
• Saga of Recluce #21
Fantasy novel, 21st book in the Saga of Recluce following Arms-Commander (2010), Cyador’s Heirs (May 2014), Heritage of Cyador (Nov. 2014), The Mongrel Mage (2017), and Outcasts of Order (2018), set a generation after the fall of Cyador.
• Macmillan’s site has this description with an excerpt.
• The Publishers Weekly review concludes, “Readers with a fondness for family sagas will appreciate the focus on day-to-day life as well as the relatively slow pace, in which chapters typically cover a single day. This is definitely not a starting point for new readers, but series fans will find it satisfactory.”
• Purchase this book from Amazon | Indiebound
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+ Oh, Temi : Do You Dream of Terra-Two?
(Saga Press 978-1534437401, $16.99, 544pp, trade paperback, August 2019)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 13 Aug 2019
• Ebook ISBN [link to Amazon Kindle edition]: 9781534437432
• Audiobook ISBN [link to Amazon]: 9781471180767
First US edition (UK: Simon & Schuster UK, August 2019)
SF novel, the author’s first novel, about four astronauts and six teenagers on a 20-year trip to colonize an Earth-like planet.
• Simon & Schuster’s site has this description.
• The hardcover UK edition appeared in March.
• Colleen Mondor reviewed the book in the June issue of Locus Magazine: “Do You Dream of Terra-Two? is not the usual sort of space novel; it’s an investment in relationships, a look at how complicated the social aspects of interstellar space travel will likely be. Temi Oh takes big risks with this big novel, and I think she accomplishes some big things. It’s not what you expect but, in every important way, it’s what you really need to read.”
• Purchase this book from Amazon | Indiebound
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* Spark, Anna Smith : The House of Sacrifice
(Orbit 978-0-316-51152-0, $16.99, 576pp, trade paperback, August 2019)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 13 Aug 2019
• Ebook ISBN [link to Amazon Kindle edition]: 9780316511513
• Audiobook ISBN [link to Amazon]: 9781549151286
• Empires of Dust #3
Grimdark fantasy novel, third in a series following The Court of Broken Knives (2017) and The Tower of Living and Dying (2018), about an unconquered city in the world’s richest empire.
• Hachette’s site has this description with an excerpt.
• Publishers Weekly gives it a starred review: “The world is vividly tactile, constructed from mountain crags, sandy deserts, and tumbled cities populated by ambitious lordlings and desperate citizenry. Spark wraps up this turbulent saga with skill, leaving readers hungry for her next work.”
• Purchase this book from Amazon | Indiebound
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* Swan, Erin : Bright Star
(Tor Teen 978-0765392992, $17.99, 384pp, hardcover, August 2019)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 13 Aug 2019
• Ebook ISBN [link to Amazon Kindle edition]: 9780765393005
Young adult fantasy novel about a mute girl who aids a rebel group with the help of her loyal dragon.
• Macmillan’s site has this description with an excerpt.
• Purchase this book from Amazon | Indiebound
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These listings are based on publisher schedules and availability on Amazon (rather than on confirmation of physical publication via purchase, review copies, or sightings in bookstores). Titles are listed only once they are published (with rare exception). We do not list galleys or advance reading copies. Page counts are based on publisher or Amazon listings, and typically only approximate the bibliographic page counts of finished books. * = first edition + = first US edition Date with publisher info is official publication month. ‘Nominal Publication Date’ is the day of publication, typically as indicated by Amazon.com.
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