New & Notable, March 2025
Stephen Baxter, Fortress Sol (Gollancz 10/24). When humanity encounters extraterrestrial lights on Neptune, its response is divided. Some flee the Solar System in generation ships, and some remain and build a “Mask,” a structure that hides the System from aliens by creating the appearance of rubble. “Classic Stephen Baxter… driven by big ideas.” [Alexandra Pierce]
Lauren J.A. Bear, Mother of Rome (Ace 1/25 In the mythology of Romulus and Remus, Rhea Silvia is the twins’ mysterious mother, a Vestal Virgin who becomes pregnant against the law. In this book, Rhea must fight to ensure her own safety and that of her sons. Includes an author’s note on sources on the history and versions of the myths involved.
Annabel Campbell, The Outcast Mage (Orbit US 1/25) This is Campbell’s debut, an epic fantasy novel in the classic vein of magical schools and apprentices. Naila is an aspiring mage entering an academy in a glass city who has to harness her powers or be cast out, and her powerful mentor has influential enemies who will stop at nothing to sabotage her.
Gregory Frost, Beyond Here Be Monsters (Fairwood 11/24). This is a collection of 14 fun, sinister stories featuring “creatures and curiosities,” one written in collaboration from Michael Swanwick. Frost explores the secrets of famous literary figures – including the adventures of a young Abraham van Helsing, and the experience of Odysseus emerging from the Trojan Horse into a world of horrors. Includes story notes by the author.
TL Huchu, The Legacy of Arniston House (Tor 11/24). Huchu continues his Edinburgh Nights series in this dark urban fantasy set in an alternate Scotland. Ropa Moyo is a magician just getting started working for the English Sorcerer Royal, but she finds her Gran murdered, and herself the prime suspect. As she struggles to find the real killers, Ropa discovers a sinister cult raising an ancient evil.
Shannon Lee & Fonda Lee, Breath of the Dragon (Wednesday 1/25). In this YA fantasy based on the teachings and ideas from Bruce Lee, a teenage boy intent on redeeming his name and rejoining his family enters the elite Guardian’s Tournament. Shannon Lee is Bruce Lee’s daughter and chairperson of his eponymous foundation, and Fonda Lee is a martial artist and award-winning fantasy writer. Locus interviewed them about the project in our January 2025 issue.
Heather O’Neill, The Capital of Dreams (Harper Perennial 1/25). Elysia is a small, magical country somewhere in Europe, with a flourishing arts culture interrupted by a sudden invasion and a “Great War.” Sofia, the 14-year-old daughter of Elysia’s most noted female writer, tries to smuggle her mother’s latest manuscript out of the capital, but her train is stopped, the manuscript lost, and she wanders the forest searching for it, having fantastical encounters along the way.
David Sandner & Jacob Weisman, Egyptian Motherlode (Fairwood 10/24). If you’re going to San Francisco… be prepared for some surreal magic and a lot of jazz. The Prophet is a musician with the ability to warp reality through his music. His dreams bring him to other realms, and into contact with entities who threaten the existence of our world, against the backdrop of the changing San Francisco music scene throughout the 20th century.
Charles Stross, A Conventional Boy (Tordotcom 1/25). The bizarre and historical merge in this short novel (and two stories) of the Laundry Files. In 1984, teen D&D players suspected of Satanic connections are imprisoned in Camp Sunshine, where one stays until middle age before escaping and encountering LARPers involved with the occult. The two stories feature agent Bob Howard wrangling with Santa Claus and dealing with strangeness at the Laundry’s secure mental health unit. It’s a timely book: “Stross’s stories are not just nightmares – they’re mirrors.” [Russell Letson]
Tasha Suri, The Lotus Empire (Orbit 11/24). This epic fantasy novel concludes the Burning Kingdoms trilogy inspired by Indian history. As ancient magic returns to Ahiranya and threatens the foundations of society, Empress Malini and priestess Priya will stop at nothing to save their kingdoms – even if it means they must destroy one another. The series is an “unblinking gaze into morality and rage.” [Maya C. James]
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