New Books : 30 June 2020

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* Brooks, Max : Devolution
(Del Rey 978-1-9848-2678-7, $28, 304pp, hardcover, June 2020)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 16 Jun 2020
• Ebook ISBN [link to Amazon Kindle edition]: 9781984826794
• Audiobook ISBN [link to Amazon]: 9780593168073

Horror novel, subtitled “A Firsthand Account of the Rainier Sasquatch Massacre,” about Bigfoot and the aftermath of an eruption of Mr. Rainier.
• Penguin Random House’s site has this description with an excerpt.
• The Publishers Weekly review concludes, “Brooks packs his plot with action, information, and atmosphere, and captures both the foibles and the heroism of his characters. This slow-burning page-turner will appeal to Brooks’s devoted fans and speculative fiction readers who enjoy tales of monsters.”

• Purchase this book from Amazon | Indiebound

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* Castleberry, Brian : Nine Shiny Objects
(Custom House 978-0-06-298439-5, $27.99, 339pp, hardcover, June 2020)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 30 Jun 2020
• Ebook ISBN [link to Amazon Kindle edition]: 9780062984425
• Audiobook ISBN [link to Amazon]: 9780062984432

SF novel, the author’s first novel, about a sequence of “seekers” who head west, inspired by a famous 1947 UFO incident in Washington state.
• HarperCollins’ site has this description with a sample.
• Paul Di Filippo just reviewed it for Locus Online: “While the overall narrative arc is fairly consistent and satisfying, with most threads tied up semi-neatly, Castleberry’s strength is in his linked-stories approach. Each chapter is very strong and rewarding considered as a self-contained unit. These characters pop off the page, with one composite character—America herself—emerging brilliantly from the gestalt.”

• Purchase this book from Amazon | Indiebound

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* Chakraborty, S. A. : The Empire of Gold
(Harper Voyager 978-0-06-267816-4, $28.99, 784pp, hardcover, June 2020)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 30 Jun 2020
• Ebook ISBN [link to Amazon Kindle edition]: 9780062678188
• Audiobook ISBN [link to Amazon]: 9780062984777
• The Daevabad Trilogy #3

Epic fantasy novel, third in a trilogy following The City of Brass (2017) and The Kingdom of Copper (2019), set in 18th century Middle East.
• HarperCollins’ site has this description with a sample.
• The Publishers Weekly review concludes, “Chakraborty pulls off an astonishing balancing act as her multifaceted characters navigate the complex politics of her beautifully painted world, but she relies on some too-convenient plot devices to tie up all the loose ends, slightly cheapening the otherwise satisfying conclusion. Still, this mammoth finale is a worthy finish to a beloved series.”

• Purchase this book from Amazon | Indiebound

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* Douglas, Ian : Alien Secrets
(Harper Voyager 978-0-06-282538-4, $7.99, 384pp, mass market paperback, June 2020)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 30 Jun 2020
• Ebook ISBN [link to Amazon Kindle edition]: 9780062825391
• Audiobook ISBN [link to Amazon]: 9780062999276
• Solar Warden #1

SF novel, first in a series, about government conspiracies and extraterrestrials who’ve been allied to Germany and then the US since 1947.
• HarperCollins’ site has this description with a sample.
• The Publishers Weekly review concludes, “Readers who can forgive the tinfoil hat–wearing wackiness of the premise will look forward to the next in the series.”

• Purchase this book from Amazon | Indiebound

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* Kristoff, Jay : TRUEL1F3
(Knopf 978-1524714000, $18.99, 480pp, hardcover, June 2020)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 30 Jun 2020
• Ebook ISBN [link to Amazon Kindle edition]: 9781524714024
• Audiobook ISBN [link to Amazon]: 9781524780975
• Lifelike #3

Young adult SF novel, third in a trilogy following LIFEL1K3 (2018) and DEV1AT3 (2019), about a 17-year-old girl who has discovered she is a synthetic person.
• Penguin Random House’s site has this description with a preview function..
• Publishers Weekly said of the first book, “the stylized language and futuristic slang give the narrative voice extra zing.”

• Purchase this book from Amazon | Indiebound

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* Mackintosh, Sophie : Blue Ticket
(Doubleday 978-0-38554-563-1, $26.95, 304pp, hardcover, June 2020)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 30 Jun 2020
• Ebook ISBN [link to Amazon Kindle edition]: 9780385545648
• Audiobook ISBN [link to Amazon]: 9780593212608

Dystopian SF novel about a future in which some women, those who draw white lottery tickets, are forced to bear children, while those who draw blue tickets are forced to use birth control.
• Penguin Random House’s site has this description with a preview function.
• The Publishers Weekly review concludes, “This tense, visionary drama is a notable addition to the growing body of patriarchal dystopias.”

• Purchase this book from Amazon | Indiebound

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* Moreno-Garcia, Silvia : Mexican Gothic
(Del Rey 978-0-525-62078-5, $27, 320pp, hardcover, June 2020)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 30 Jun 2020
• Ebook ISBN [link to Amazon Kindle edition]: 9780525620792
• Audiobook ISBN [link to Amazon]: 9780593213865

Gothic horror novel about a mystery at a remote countryside house in 1950s Mexico.
• Penguin Random House’s site has this description with an excerpt.
• The Publishers Weekly review calls the book “delightfully bonkers” and comments, “In a novel that owes a considerable debt to the nightmarish horror and ornate language of H.P. Lovecraft, the situations in which Noemí attempts to prevail get wilder and stranger with every chapter…”
• Ian Mond and Paula Guran both review the book in the June issue of Locus Magazine. Mond writes, “One thing that’s clear about Mexican Gothic is that Moreno-Garcia is having a blast playing with the conventions of Gothic literature. The creepy family, the decaying setting, the gaslighting of women, and the twisted eroticism are all present, but in the last third of the novel, what was simmering comes to a ferocious boil…”

• Purchase this book from Amazon | Indiebound

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* Powers, Tim : The Properties of Rooftop Air
(Subterranean 978-1-59606-974-9, $35, 80pp, hardcover, June 2020)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 30 Jun 2020
• Ebook ISBN [link to Amazon Kindle edition]: 978-1-59606-975-6
• SF Encyclopedia: Tim Powers

Fantasy novella set in the world of the author’s novel The Anubis Gates (1983), about a beggar guild run by Horrabin the Clown.
• Subterranean’s site has this description with an excerpt.
• The Publishers Weekly review comments, “Powers delves deep into themes of desire and selfhood while bringing back familiar faces sure to please long-standing fans.”
• Gary K. Wolfe reviews it in the July issue of Locus Magazine: “It’s more of a snapshot than a tapestry, but it captures a good deal of the old magic.”

• Purchase this book from Amazon | Indiebound

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* Quinn, Seabury : The Best of Jules de Grandin
(Night Shade 978-1-949102-26-0, $24.99, 560pp, hardcover, June 2020)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 30 Jun 2020
• Ebook ISBN [link to Amazon Kindle edition]: 978-1-949102-42-0

Collection, subtitled “20 Classic Occult Detective Stories,” about a supernatural detective, stories published in Weird Tales magazine from 1926 to 1945.
• Skyhorse’s site has this description with quotes from reviews.
• The Publishers Weekly review comments, “…de Grandin invariably defeats evil monsters and rescues scantily clad beauties, presaging the paranormal romance novels and supernatural soap operas of today.”

• Purchase this book from Amazon | Indiebound

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* Wolfe, Gene : Interlibrary Loan
(Tor 978-1-250-24236-5, $25.99, 240pp, hardcover, June 2020)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 30 Jun 2020
• Ebook ISBN [link to Amazon Kindle edition]: 9781250242686
• Audiobook ISBN [link to Amazon]: 9781250756398

SF novel, sequel to A Borrowed Man (2015) and the author’s final novel, in which clones of deceased writers live as personality uploads on library shelves.
• Macmillan’s site has this description with an excerpt.
• The Publishers Weekly review concludes, “It’s a sardonic view of human relationships on offer, leavened with a droll, punny narrative voice. Complex and clever, this last offering from Wolfe is sure to please sci-fi readers.”
• Gary K. Wolfe reviews the book in the June issue of Locus Magazine: “Interlibrary Loan is, like most of Wolfe’s final novels, more intimate in scope and restrained in style than his celebrated masterpieces, but it’s a fitting and suitably twisty rumination on which to end an astonishing career.”

• 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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