New Books : 14 April 2020
There are strange plants in THE BOOK OF KOLI by M.R. Carey and CREEPING JENNY by Jeff Noon!
New titles this week are by Asaf Ashery, Dan Byrne-Smith, M.R. Carey, Hao Jingfang, Dean Koontz, Adam Levin, Jeff Noon, Mike Resnick, John Scalzi, Matthew Ward, and Timothy Zahn.
* Ashery, Asaf : Simantov
(Angry Robot 978-0-857668-38-7, $14.99, 392pp, trade paperback, April 2020)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 14 Apr 2020
• Ebook ISBN [link to Amazon Kindle edition]: 9780857668509
Fantasy novel, the author’s first novel, about a team of mystic agents that realizes recent disappearances of women signal the start of the apocalypse.
• Angry Robot’s site has this description with a link to a preview.
• The Publishers Weekly review concludes, “This moody, intricately constructed procedural’s exploration of gendered power struggles operates on levels both mythic and intimate, from the misogynist angels to Mazzy’s fights with her husband about the division of domestic labor. The accessible prose and nuanced characterization are sure to please urban fantasy readers.”
• Purchase this book from Amazon | Indiebound
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* Byrne-Smith, Dan, ed. : Science Fiction
(MIT Press 978-0262538855, $24.95, 240pp, trade paperback, April 2020)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 14 Apr 2020
Anthology in the publisher’s Documents of Contemporary Art series, addressing relationships between science fiction and contemporary art.
• Apparently nonfiction, “this unique collection gathers key examples of the influence of science fiction in recent cultural development.”
• Contributors are Peio Aguirre, Margaret Atwood, J. G. Ballard, Tiffany E. Barber, Jean Baudrillard, Franco ‘Bifo’ Beradi, Rosie Braidotti, Rachel Carson, Jeffrey Deitch, Donna Haraway, Cathy Lane, Amna Malik, Tom McCarthy, Alondra Nelson, Gwyneth Shanks, Jan Tumlir, Xin Wang, and Gilda Williams.
• Purchase this book from Amazon | Indiebound
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* Carey, M. R. : The Book of Koli
(Orbit 978-0-316-47753-6, $16.99, 416pp, trade paperback, April 2020)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 14 Apr 2020
• Ebook ISBN [link to Amazon Kindle edition]: 9780316477475
• Audiobook ISBN [link to Amazon]: 9781549182747
• The Rampart Trilogy #1
Post-apocalyptic SF novel, first in a trilogy, about a would-be protector of a small village who is exiled into a wilderness of deadly plants.
• Hachette’s site has this description with an excerpt.
• Purchase this book from Amazon | Indiebound
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* Jingfang, Hao : Vagabonds
(Saga Press 978-1-5344-2208-7, $28.99, 608pp, hardcover, April 2020)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 14 Apr 2020
• Ebook ISBN [link to Amazon Kindle edition]: 9781534422100
• Audiobook ISBN [link to Amazon]: 9781797107776
SF novel, first published in Chinese in 2016 and here translated by Ken Liu, about a group of kids from a colony on Mars sent to Earth to reconcile tensions between the two planets.
• Simon and Schuster’s site has this description with an excerpt.
• The Publishers Weekly review calls it a “cerebral, futuristic debut explores the interplay between societal values and individual dreams in crisp, gorgeous prose.” The review concludes, “Though some readers may grow frustrated by the novel’s slow pacing, the carefully considered quality of the language mirrors the thoughtful story being told. Fans of literary science fiction will relish this challenging tale.”
• Gary K. Wolfe reviews it in the April issue of Locus Magazine, concluding: “The idea of SF as a ‘literature of ideas,’ in which those ideas get discussed at length by provocative characters, is as old as Asimov’s Foundation stories and as current as Kim Stanley Robinson’s latest, and Jinfang’s ambitious novel is a worthy addition to that tradition, from an important alternate perspective, and it represents a significant new voice in world SF.”
• Purchase this book from Amazon | Indiebound
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* Koontz, Dean : Devoted
(Amazon/Thomas & Mercer 978-1542019507, $28.99, 369pp, hardcover, April 2020)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 31 Mar 2020
• Ebook ISBN [link to Amazon Kindle edition]: B07Y22KM21
• Audiobook ISBN [link to Amazon]: 978-1543627428
Fantasy thriller about a boy who never speaks and a dog who also communicates without speaking.
• Amazon’s page has a description and its “Look Inside” function provides previews.
• The Kirkus review comments, “Depending on one’s susceptibility to heart-tugging boy-and-dog tales, the novel will either be dismissed as a work of cloying commercial calculation or enjoyed as a crafty blend of genres.”
• Purchase this book from Amazon | Indiebound
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* Levin, Adam : Bubblegum
(Doubleday 978-0-385-54496-2, $29.95, 784pp, hardcover, April 2020)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 14 Apr 2020
• Ebook ISBN [link to Amazon Kindle edition]: 9780385544979
• Audiobook ISBN [link to Amazon]: 9780593169339
SF novel set in an alternate reality in which the internet does not exist, but another interactive technology, called Curio, does.
• Penguin Random House’s site has this description with a preview.
• The Publishers Weekly review concludes, “Despite the novel’s slow parts, Levin creates a fascinating world with a wild and often touching coming-of-age story at its center.”
• Ian Mond reviews it in the April issue of Locus Magazine: “The irony that threads through Bubblegum is that the very technology Levin erases from his narrative, that has reduced our reality to a 30-second video or a 280-character tweet, may dissuade people from investing time in such a lengthy novel. But if you decide to take the dive, and I heartily suggest you do, reading Bubblegum is an experience you won’t soon forget.”
• Purchase this book from Amazon | Indiebound
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* Noon, Jeff : Creeping Jenny
(Angry Robot 978-0-857668-40-0, $14.99, 400pp, trade paperback, April 2020)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 14 Apr 2020
• Ebook ISBN [link to Amazon Kindle edition]: 9780857668516
• Nyquist Mysteries #3
SF novel, third in a series following A Man of Shadows (2017) and The Body Library (2018), about a private detective in 1959 seeking to solve the disappearance of his father.
• Angry Robot’s site has this description with a link to an excerpt.
• Publishers Weekly gives it a starred review: “…Noon piles on the disquieting oddities, including a sinister plant called the Creeping Jenny, to build a palpably foreboding atmosphere. This creepy tale will delight fans of weird, understated horror from authors like Arthur Machen and Algernon Blackwood.”
• Purchase this book from Amazon | Indiebound
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* Resnick, Mike : The Mistress of Illusions
(DAW 978-0756413873, $26, 288pp, hardcover, April 2020)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 14 Apr 2020
• Ebook ISBN [link to Amazon Kindle edition]: 9780756413897
• The Dreamscape Trilogy #2
Fantasy novel, second book in a trilogy following The Master of Dreams, about a Manhattan man whose encounter with a woman sends him on an adventure through space and time.
• Penguin Random House’s site has this description with an excerpt.
• Purchase this book from Amazon | Indiebound
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* Scalzi, John : The Last Emperox
(Tor 978-0-7653-8916-9, $26.99, 320pp, hardcover, April 2020)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 14 Apr 2020
• Ebook ISBN [link to Amazon Kindle edition]: 9780765389176
• The Interdependency #3
SF novel, third in a series following The Collapsing Empire (2017) and The Consuming Fire (2018), about the gradual collapse of the extra-dimensional conduits that enable travel between the stars.
• Macmillan’s site has this description with an excerpt.
• Publishers Weekly gives it a starred review: “Balancing existing character dynamics and surprising—but well-earned—reveals with interstellar politics and pressing ethical questions of sustainability and power, Scalzi sends his series out with a bang.”
• Purchase this book from Amazon | Indiebound
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* Ward, Matthew : Legacy of Ash
(Orbit 978-0-316-45788-0, $16.99, 800pp, trade paperback, April 2020)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 7 Apr 2020
• Ebook ISBN [link to Amazon Kindle edition]: 9780316457897
• Audiobook ISBN [link to Amazon]: 9781549153013
• The Legacy Trilogy #1
Epic fantasy novel, the author’s first novel and first in a trilogy.
• Hachette’s site has this description with an excerpt.
• Publishers Weekly gives it a starred review: “Ward’s experience as a tabletop game designer is apparent in his expansive universe and tight plotting. Expertly interspersing vivid action sequences with quiet, introspective stretches, Ward guides readers and characters alike through this winding, well-crafted saga. The result is an impressive series opener that satisfyingly remixes genre staples.”
• Purchase this book from Amazon | Indiebound
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* Zahn, Timothy : Queen
(Tor 978-0-7653-2968-4, $27.99, 384pp, hardcover, April 2020)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 14 Apr 2020
• Ebook ISBN [link to Amazon Kindle edition]: 9781429951463
• Sibyl’s War #3
SF novel, third in a trilogy following Pawn (2017) and Knight (2019), about a young woman abducted by aliens to work among human repair crews aboard an alien starship.
• 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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