New Books, 5 March 2024

Baptiste, Bethany: The Poisons We Drink (Sourcebooks Fire 9781728251950, $18.99, 480pp, formats: trade paperback, ebook, audio, 03/05/2024)

Young-adult fantasy novel. Teen witcher Venus Stoneheart makes illegal potions to support her family, but a corrupt coven forces her to make potions to enslave politicians.

 

Black, Holly: The Prisoner’s Throne (Little, Brown 9780316592710, $20.99, 368pp, formats: hardcover, ebook, audio, 03/05/2024)

Young-adult fantasy novel, second in the Stolen Heir duology in the ...Read More

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Issue 758 Table of Contents, March 2024

The March 2024 issue of Locus has interviews with Shelley Parker-Chan and Moses Ose Utomi and spotlights on artists Manzi Jackson and Richard A. Kirk. The issue lists US and UK forthcoming books titles through December 2024. News and features include remembrances of Christopher Priest (1943-2024), a report on Hugo Awards tampering, the Stoker Award preliminary ballot, international reports on SF in Brazil and Indian science fiction magazines, and much ...Read More

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New Books, 27 February 2024

Bakis, Kirsten: King Nyx (Norton/Liveright 9781324093534, $28.99, 320pp, formats: hardcover, ebook, audio, 02/27/2024)

Feminist gothic novel with possible fantasy elements, about Charles Fort’s wife in 1918, who investigates the disappearance of three girls, but can’t tell if she’s seen ghosts or her mind is unraveling.

 

Bishop, Anne: The Lady in Glass and Other Stories (Ace 9780593639054, $28, 480pp, formats: hardcover, ebook, audio, 02/27/2024)

Collection of short stories. All of ...Read More

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New Books, 20 February 2024

Albert, Melissa: The Bad Ones (Macmillan/Flatiron 9781250894892, $19.99, 400pp, formats: hardcover, ebook, audio, 02/20/2024)

Young-adult contemporary thriller/dark fantasy novel. Nora looks into the disappearance of four people who vanished in a single night, one her estranged best friend, in a town with a sinister magical history.

 

Armentrout, Jennifer L. & Salvador, Rayvn: Visions of Flesh and Blood (Evil Eye Concepts/Blue Box Press 9781957568324, $31.99, 578pp, formats: hardcover, trade paperback, ...Read More

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New Books, 13 February 2024

Arden, Katherine: The Warm Hands of Ghosts (Penguin Random House/Del Rey 9780593128251, $28.99, 336pp, formats: hardcover, ebook, audio, 02/13/2024)

Historical fantasy novel. During WWI, Laura Iven, a retired field nurse hears word that her brother has been killed in combat, but something doesn’t make sense. She returns to Belgium as a volunteer at a private hospital, where she hears whispers about haunted trenches and a strange hotelier whose wine gives ...Read More

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New Books 6 February 2024

Bennett, Robert Jackson: The Tainted Cup (Penguin Random House/Del Rey 9781984820709, $28, 432pp, formats: hardcover, ebook, audio, 02/06/2024)

Fantasy mystery novel, first in the Shadow of the Leviathan series. A high Imperial officer dies when a tree erupts from his body, and the brilliant detective Ana Dolabra investigates with the help of her new magically altered assistant Dinios Kol.

 

Callender, Kacen: Infinity Alchemist (Tor Teen 9781250890252, $19.99, 400pp, formats: ...Read More

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Issue 757 Table of Contents, February 2024

The February 2024 issue of Locus is the annual Year in Review overview with essays, the Locus 2023 Recommended Reading List, and magazine and book summaries tracking the progress of the industry. The issue also features an interview with Martha Wells. News includes the complete 2023 Hugo voting, Tor.com rebranding as Reactor, the empanelment of the World Fantasy Awards judges, the Philip K. Dick Award nominees, Chesley Awards finalists, and ...Read More

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New Books: 30 January 2024

Chen, Mike: A Quantum Love Story (Harlequin/Mira 9780778369509, $18.99, 384pp, formats: trade paperback, ebook, audio, 01/30/2024)

SF time-loop romance novel. Neuroscientist Mariana Pineda, working at a top secret particle accelerator, starts looping in time, the same four days over and over, with a man who also remembers the loop — for a while.

 

Gibson, Lena: Switching Tracks: Out of the Trash (Black Rose Writing 9781685133641, $24.95, 359pp, formats: trade ...Read More

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New Books: 23 January 2024

Bristow, Su: The Fair Folk (Europa Editions 9798889660125, $18, 400pp, formats: trade paperback, ebook, 01/23/2024)

Faustian fairytale fantasy novel. In 1959 eight-year-old Felicity accepts a gift from the fairy queen. As an adult she is constantly visited by the queen’s companions, wreaking havoc with her friendships and love life. Felicity finally begins to explore the true nature of the Fair Folk with the help of a folklorist professor, to try ...Read More

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New Books: 16 January 2023

Avery, Amy: The Longest Autumn (Macmillan/Flatiron 9781250896490, $28.99, 320pp, formats: hardcover, ebook, audio, 01/16/2024)

Fantasy mystery romance novel. Seasons stop turning when the mortal Time and the god of Autumn are trapped in the mortal world, and the two are torn between the need to fix things and their forbidden attraction to each other. A first novel.

 

Bertino, Marie-Helene: Beautyland (Macmillan/Farrar, Straus, Giroux 9780374109288, $28, 336pp, formats: hardcover, ebook, ...Read More

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New Books: 9 January 2023

Ascher, Aurora: Sanctuary of the Shadow (Entangled/Red Tower 9781649374110, $29.99, 400pp, formats: hardcover, ebook, audio, 01/09/2024)

Fantasy romance novel about a woman hiding in a circus where she disguises her gift of prophecy as part of her act until an alluring monster turns up.

 

Berwah, Tanvi: Somewhere in the Deep (Sourcebooks Fire 9781728247656, $18.99, 359pp, formats: trade paperback, ebook, audio, 01/09/2024)

Young-adult fantasy novel inspired by South Asia, The ...Read More

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New Books: 2 January 2024

Avery, Annaliese The Immortal Games (Scholastic 9781338754520, $12.99, 336pp trade paperback, ebook, audio 01/02/2024)

Young-adult fantasy romance novel. 16-year-old Ara is seeking revenge on the Gods for allowing her sister to die in the games. She’s determined to be selected as a token, but when she is, she realizes that it isn’t just her life at stake, but also her heart.

 

Butler, D.J.: Among the Gray Lords (Baen 9781982193133, ...Read More

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New Books: 26 December 2023

Lackey, Mercedes: Valdemar (Astra House/DAW 9780756417390, $29, 464pp, formats: hardcover, ebook, 12/26/2023)

Fantasy novel. third in the Founding of Valdemar series. The refugees’ city of Haven thrives, but their Tayledras allies are withdrawing, and magicians move in to take advantage.

 

Motayne, Maya: Lucero (HarperCollins/Balzer + Bray 9780062842794, $18.99, 464pp, formats: hardcover, ebook, audio, 12/26/2023)

Young-adult fantasy novel, the third in a trilogy begun in Nocturna. In the aftermath of ...Read More

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New Books 19 December 2023

Carthage, Jo: Nuclear Sunrise (NineStar Press 9781648907005, $6.49, 361pp, formats: ebook, 12/19/2023)

Historical SF gay romance novel set in 1951 about a US Air Force Captain from Roswell, New Mexico in charge of security at a top-secret atomic energy research facility in Idaho, against his will falling for a rebellious nuclear physicist.

 

Hoffmann, Ada: Resurrections (Apex Book Company 9781955765121, $6.99, 345pp, formats: ebook, audio, 12/19/2023)

Collection of short stories ...Read More

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Issue 755-6 Table of Contents, Dec 2023/Jan 2024

The December 2023/January 2024 issue of Locus magazine is a special double issue and has interviews with Robert J. Sawyer, Andrea Stewart, and Ai Jiang, and a spotlight on artist Winona Nelson. Chengdu Worldcon and the World Fantasy Convention are both covered with extensive reports and photos. The issue lists US and UK forthcoming books titles through September 2024. News includes the Ignyte and Sidewise Awards winners, Mueller’s Endeavour win, ...Read More

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New Books 12 December 2023

Cadigan, Pat: Ultraman (Titan Books UK 9781803362458, $16.95, 288pp, formats: trade paperback, ebook, 12/12/2023)

Tie-in novel based on a movie based on the series. Pursuing a fugitive space monster, a Being of Light enters Earth’s atmosphere. Accidentally colliding with a patrolling jet, piloted by Science Patrol Agent Shin Hayata, the Being merges with the pilot to save his life and vows to defend the Earth. Now whenever the planet is ...Read More

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New Books 5 December 2023

Anderson, Justin Lee: The Bitter Crown (Orbit US 9780316454308, $19.99, 560pp, formats: trade paperback, ebook, audio, 12/05/2023)

Fantasy novel, the second in the Eidyn Saga series. The fog of war is lifted and the conspiracy at the heart of Eidyn finally exposed. Now that they know the truth, Aranok and his allies must find a way to free a country that doesn’t know it’s held captive.

 

Armstrong, Jess: The ...Read More

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New Books: 28 November 2023

Edgmon, H.E.: Godly Heathens (St. Martin’s/Wednesday Books 9781250853615, $20, 400pp, formats: hardcover, ebook, audio, 11/28/2023)

Young-adult fantasy novel, first in the Ouroboros series. Gem, a nonbinary Seminole teen who’s having dreams of magic and violence, doesn’t know how to deal with a strange new girl who knows too much, and then the Goddess of Death attacks.

 

Elliott, Lauren: Murder in a Cup (Kensington Cozies 9781496739070, $27, 304pp, formats: hardcover, ...Read More

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New Books 21 November 23

Adams, Gillian Bronte: Of Sea and Smoke (Enclave Escape 9798886050783, $26.99, 512pp, formats: hardcover, ebook, audio, 11/21/2023)

Young-adult fantasy novel, second in The Fireborn Epic series. Rafi Tetrani reluctantly takes on his dead brother’s responsibilities as the empire’s lost heir, and vows to fight the usurper on the throne. A stolen shipload of magical horses he finds may offer just the edge he will need.

 

Greenberger, Robert: Sand and ...Read More

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New Books: 14 November 2023

Bruno, Rhett C. & Bakutis, T.E.: Mind Burn (Blackstone Publishing 9798200996421, $27.99, 464pp, formats: hardcover, trade paperback, ebook, audio, 11/14/2023)

Near-future SF techno-thriller/mystery novel. Detective Cowan Soto, a trainee with a cybernetic implant, investigates the first successful mass shooting in 12 years — while trying to hide the fact he’s illegally unbound by behavioral modification protocols himself.

 

Danan, Rosie: Do Your Worst (Penguin Random House/Berkley 9780593437148, $17, 352pp, formats: ...Read More

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2017 Parsec Awards Finalists

Finalists for the 2017 Parsec Awards, honoring excellence in speculative fiction podcasting, have been announced. Winners will be announced during a virtual streaming ceremony in November.

Best Speculative Fiction Comedy/Parody Podcast

  • Are You Scared of These Stories?
  • GnomeMatter: Cadavorue & Macoy in 2016
  • Kakos Industries
  • Nerdy Show: Nerdcasting the Multiverse: Thanksgiving Special 
  • Star Wars Best in Galaxy Season 3
  • Wynabego Warrior The Tale of John Waynnabe

Best Podcast about Speculative ...Read More

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2017 Geffen Awards Winners

The 2017 Geffen Awards winners have been announced. The awards are presented annually by the Israeli Society for Science Fiction and Fantasy.

Best Translated Science Fiction Book

  • Earth Afire & Earth Awakens, Orson Scott Card & Aaron Johnston, translated by Boaz Weiss (Opus)

Best Translated Fantasy Book

  • Harry Potter and the Cursed Child Parts 1 & 2, J.K. Rowling, Jack Thorne, John Tiffany, translated by Gili Bar-Hillel Semo
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Ward Wins Genius Grant

Jesmyn Ward, author of Sing, Unburied, Sing (Scribner), is one of 24 John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation Fellows selected for 2017. Each “genius grant” recipient receives “a stipend of $625,000… paid out in equal quarterly installments over five years.”

Although nominees are reviewed for their achievements, the fellowship is not a lifetime achievement award, but rather an investment in a person’s originality, insight, and potential. Indeed, the purpose ...Read More

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Paul Di Filippo reviews Paolo Bacigalupi

Tool of War, by Paolo Bacigalupi (Little, Brown 978-0-316-22083-5, $17.99, 384pp, hardcover) October 2017

The famously hazy interzone between fiction for adults and fiction for youths totally inverts, evaporates, resubstantiates, and turns into a four-dimensional labyrinth when we consider a novel such as Paolo Bacigalupi’s Tool of War. Demarcations and prohibitions and expectations become meaningless or double-valued, and in the end all one can say is that, no

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Blinks: Reviews; Okorafor; Ishiguro; VanderMeer; African SF; KGB Oct 18th

» Chicago Tribune: Gary K. Wolfe reviews John Crowley, Paolo Bacigalupi, Paul Cornell

» NY Times: Nnedi Okorafor and the Fantasy Genre She Is Helping Redefine

» Quartz: Kazuo Ishiguro’s Nobel Prize is a victory for literary weirdness: “In honoring him, the Nobel Committee has helped legitimize speculative fiction — an umbrella term for all fiction containing supernatural, science-fiction, dreamlike, horror, fantasy, or simply impossible elements — within a global ...Read More

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New Books : 10 October 2017

+ Alderman, Naomi : The Power (Little, Brown 978-0-316-54761-1, $26, 400pp, hardcover, October 2017) • Nominal Publication Date: Tue 10 Oct 2017 • Ebook ISBN [link to Amazon Kindle edition]: 9780316547659 • Audiobook ISBN [link to Amazon]: 9781478999904

SF novel in which teenage girls develop the power to cause others agonizing pain and death, triggering an upturning of worldwide order. • The book was first published in the UK in

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Yoji Kondo, AKA Eric Kotani (1933-2017)

Author and scientist Yoji Kondo, who wrote SF as Eric Kotani, 84, died October 9, 2017.

His Island Worlds series (written with John Maddox Roberts) includes Act of God (1985) The Island Worlds (1987), and Between the Stars (1988). He wrote standalones Delta Pavonis (1990) and Legacy of Prometheus (2000) with Maddox, and Supernova (1991) with Roger MacBride Allen. With Dean Wesley Smith he wrote Star Trek Voyager: Death of ...Read More

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2017 HWA Scholarship Winners

The Horror Writers Association (HWA) announced the recipients of its 2017 scholarships.

The Horror Writers Association Scholarship went to John C. Mannone. First awarded in 2014 and open to all horror writers, $2,500 is “given annually to a deserving horror writer to assist in his/her professional development.”

The Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley Scholarship went to A.E. Siraki. Open to female horror writers and first awarded in 2014, $2,500 is given annually ...Read More

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ElizaBeth Gilligan (1962-2017)

Writer ElizaBeth Gilligan, 55, died October 9, 2017 of cancer. Gilligan’s first story was “Evolution” (1990), and she published several stories in anthologies and magazines. She was best known for the Silken Magic trilogy: Magic’s Silken Snare (2003), The Silken Shroud (2004), and Sovereign Silk (2017). She edited anthology Alterna-Teas (2016), wrote a column for Midnight Zoo in the 1990s, and served as secretary of SFWA from 2002 to 2003. ...Read More

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Weekly Bestsellers, 9 October 2017

Stephen King & Owen King’s Sleeping Beauties (Scribner) debuts strongly at #1 on four print lists.

 

Title Debut / #wks on any list NYT 10.15 WP 10.08 LAT 10.08 USAT 10.01 PW 10.09 Amz (10.09) UK: Amz UK (10.09) Canada: Amz.ca (10.09) Items on list -x- number of lists surveyed 30×4 10×2 15×2 150 15×3 100 100 100 Hardcovers Bardugo, The Language of Thorns: Midnight Tales and Dangerous Magic ...Read More Read more

Vernon Wins WSFA Small Press Award

The winner of the 2017 Washington Science Fiction Association (WSFA) Small Press Award for Short Fiction was announced October 7, 2017: “The Tomato Thief”, Ursula Vernon (Apex 1/16).

Finalists included “A Salvaging of Ghosts”, Aliette de Bodard (Beneath Ceaseless Skies 3/16); “The Mytilenian Delay”, Neil James Hudson (Hyperpowers); “Radio Silence”, Walter H. Hunt (Alien Artifacts); “Foxfire, Foxfire”, Yoon Ha Lee (Beneath Ceaseless Skies 3/16); “Vengeance Sewn

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Periodicals, early October 2017

Apex Magazine • Quarterly magazine of SF and horror, since 2005; current editor Jason Sizemore • Format: Online; Ebook formats • Frequency: Monthly • http://apex-magazine.com/

October 2017— Issue 101, cover art by Rubén Castro • This issue has fiction by Dennis Danvers, Lavie Tidhar, Annie Neugebauer, Alethea Kontis, Sheree Renée Thomas, and Kate Ingram. • Nonfiction includes interviews with Dennis Danvers and Rubén Castro, a feature by Ed Grabianowski,

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