John Barnes, Directive 51 (Ace Apr 2010)

Barnes gives technothriller material the hard SF treatment in this tale of a terrorist network that tries to destroy modern civilization. The author follows a vast cast of characters as he works through all the implications of technological collapse. "One of the most absorbing books I've read this year." [Russell Letson]

Laird Barron, Occultation (Night Shade Books Jun 2010)

The literary and Lovecraftian horror writer's second collection gathers nine stories, three of them original. Contents include the Theodore Sturgeon Memorial Award nominee "The Forest" and Shirley Jackson Award finalist "The Lagerstätte". Michael Shea provides an introduction.

Peter S. Beagle, edited by Jonathan Strahan, Mirror Kingdoms: The Best of Peter S. Beagle (Subterranean Press Mar 2010)

This hefty retrospective collection by a modern master of fantasy, edited by Jonathan Strahahn, gathers 18 of Beagle's best-loved works from a span of nearly 50 years, including classics like "Come Lady Death" and recent Hugo and Nebula Award winner "Two Hearts". Beagle's introduction expounds on the challenges and rewards of writing short fiction.

Patricia Briggs, Silver Borne (Ace Apr 2010)

The fifth novel about shapeshifting mechanic Mercy Thompson brings her into conflict with the mysterious and dangerous Fae, who want a book she possesses badly enough to kill for it. Mercy remains one of the most engaging heroines in a crowded field of ass-kicking urban fantasy protagonists.

Terry Dowling, Make Believe (Ticonderoga Jun 2010)

Australia's premier dark fantasist presents a dozen stories from the '80s, '90s, and 2000s, including Ditmar winner "The Man Who Walks Away Behind the Eyes", with an introduction by Simon Brown.

Bill Fawcett, ed., Nebula Awards Showcase 2010 (Roc Apr 2010)

The 44th volume of the annual series includes three winning stories from the 2009 Nebula Awards, plus novel excerpts, three poems, non-fiction and stories from the Solstice Award Winners, script excerpts, a story by and appreciation of Grand Master Harry Harrison, and eight essays about SF from assorted authors.

Shirley Jackson, Shirley Jackson: Novels and Stories (Library of America Jun 2010)

The preeminent author of literary and domestic horror is welcomed to the American canon with this omnibus volume edited by Joyce Carol Oates, including classic novels The Haunting of Hill House and We Have Always Lived in the Castle, collection The Lottery, and 21 additional stories and sketches, plus a biography, chronology, and notes on the text.

Guy Gavriel Kay, Under Heaven (Penguin Canada Apr 2010)

Kay turns his skill at blending history and fantasy to the East with this Asian-influenced novel set in the imaginary empire of Katai, with a story inspired by the 8th-century An Shi rebellion in Tang Dynasty China. Amply demonstrates the "delicate equipoise that seems to define Kay's approach to his historical material: how the history constrains the fantasy, and the fantasy liberates the history." [Gary K. Wolfe]

Paul Kincaid & Niall Harrison, British Science Fiction and Fantasy: Twenty Years and Two Surveys (BSFA Mar 2010)

This overview of the UK science fiction scene over the course of two decades is based on a comparison between two surveys on British SF, one from 1989 and one from 2009. More than 120 writers contributed material to the surveys, from established giants to groundbreaking new writers.

Stephen King, Blockade Billy (Cemetery Dance May 2010)

King's longstanding devotion to baseball is evident in this horror novella, about fictional 1957 rookie catcher William Blaklely, whose extraordinary talent was overshadowed by his dark secrets. "King has made a career out of showing us that you can find horror in the unlikeliest and most ordinary aspect of life, and Blockade Billy is a sharp line drive from the dark side of the diamond." [Stefan Dziemianowicz]

Jay Lake, Pinion (Tor Apr 2010)

The third volume in Lake's ambitious series, begun with Mainspring, further explores a world where planets and stars literally run on clockwork, combining steampunk adventure with larger meditations on free will, the nature of God, and faith vs. science. "A sometimes challenging but ultimately satisfying book, masterful and gloriously eccentric." [Faren Miller]

Marie Rutkoski, The Celestial Globe (Farrar, Straus, and Giroux Apr 2010)

The second volume of the Kronos Chronicles begun with The Cabinet of Wonders continues the charming and imaginative blend of history, fantasy, and science fiction as Petra heads to London and her friends go in search of the mysterious Celestial Globe.

Lucius Shepard, The Taborin Scale (Subterranean Press Mar 2010)

Shepard returns to his strange, dark world — created in 1984 story "The Man who Painted the Dragon Griaule" — where people live on the paralyzed body of a mile-long dragon. "It seems to pull the veil back on Griaule to a greater extent than Shepard has yet done... a strong novella in its own right, but... also an intriguing link in the chain that Shepard has been slowly forging across more than 25 years."

Norman Spinrad, He Walked Among Us (Tor Apr 2010)

Spinrad's controversial and long-awaited novel is part SF and part show-business satire, about a comedian who claims to bring a cautionary message from the future and the people who want to support and exploit him. This is heavily revised and expanded from an earlier e-book publication.