New Books Spotlight

Welcome to another edition of the New Books Spotlight, where each month or so we curate a selection of 6 new and forthcoming books we find notable, interesting, and intriguing. It gives us the opportunity to shine a brief spotlight on some stuff we're itching to get our hands on.

What are you looking forward to? Anything you want to argue with us about? Is there something we should consider spotlighting in the future? Let us know in the comments!

Beukes, Lauren. Afterland [Mulholland Books]
Publisher's Description

Children of Men meets The Handmaid’s Tale in this “bowstring-taut, visceral, and incredibly timely” thriller about how far a mother will go to protect her son from a hostile world transformed by the absence of men (Cory Doctorow).

Most of the men are dead. Three years after the pandemic known as The Manfall, governments still hold and life continues — but a world run by women isn’t always a better place. 

Twelve-year-old Miles is one of the last boys alive, and his mother, Cole, will protect him at all costs. On the run after a horrific act of violence-and pursued by Cole’s own ruthless sister, Billie — all Cole wants is to raise her kid somewhere he won’t be preyed on as a reproductive resource or a sex object or a stand-in son. Someplace like home.

To get there, Cole and Miles must journey across a changed America in disguise as mother and daughter. From a military base in Seattle to a luxury bunker, from an anarchist commune in Salt Lake City to a roaming cult that’s all too ready to see Miles as the answer to their prayers, the two race to stay ahead at every step . . . even as Billie and her sinister crew draw closer.

A sharply feminist, high-stakes thriller from award-winning author Lauren Beukes, Afterland brilliantly blends psychological suspense, American noir, and science fiction into an adventure all its own — and perfect for our times.  

Why We Want It: I've been looking forward to Afterland since sometime in 2016 when Beukes mentioned it in her 6 Books Interview and it was still called Motherland. Beukes is a fantastically good writer and I love the concept. This is one of so many can't miss books for 2020.

Elliott, Kate. Unconquerable Sun [Tor]
Publisher's Description

GENDER-SPUN ALEXANDER THE GREAT ON AN INTERSTELLAR SCALE 

Princess Sun has finally come of age.

Growing up in the shadow of her mother, Eirene, has been no easy task. The legendary queen-marshal did what everyone thought impossible: expel the invaders and build Chaonia into a magnificent republic, one to be respected—and feared.

But the cutthroat ambassador corps and conniving noble houses have never ceased to scheme—and they have plans that need Sun to be removed as heir, or better yet, dead.

To survive, the princess must rely on her wits and companions: her biggest rival, her secret lover, and a dangerous prisoner of war.

Take the brilliance and cunning courage of Princess Leia—add in a dazzling futuristic setting where pop culture and propaganda are one and the same—and hold on tight:

This is the space opera you’ve been waiting for.  

Why We Want It: I'm behind on reading Kate Elliott and like many I had been hoping for a sequel to Black Wolves (my review), but since the vagaries of publishing (and sales) tells me that it isn't to be, I am absolutely thrilled to get Unconquerable Sun. Kate Elliot's return to science fiction and space opera? Yes, please.

Kowal, Mary Robinette. The Relentless Moon [Tor]
Publisher's Description

Mary Robinette Kowal continues her Hugo and Nebula award-winning Lady Astronaut series, following The Calculating Stars and The Fated Sky, with The Relentless Moon. 

The Earth is coming to the boiling point as the climate disaster of the Meteor strike becomes more and more clear, but the political situation is already overheated. Riots and sabotage plague the space program. The IAC’s goal of getting as many people as possible off Earth before it becomes uninhabitable is being threatened.

Elma York is on her way to Mars, but the Moon colony is still being established. Her friend and fellow Lady Astronaut Nicole Wargin is thrilled to be one of those pioneer settlers, using her considerable flight and political skills to keep the program on track. But she is less happy that her husband, the Governor of Kansas, is considering a run for President.  

Why We Want It: I adored both The Calculating Stars (my review) and The Fated Sky (my review) and I welcome a return to the Lady Astronaut universe. I would say that this is a slight cheat because I've already read (and reviewed) The Relentless Moon, but we never promised that we wouldn't read some of the books we're excited about before we had a chance to recommend them. Mary Robinette Kowal is writing some of the best science fiction today with her Lady Astronaut series.

Kuhn, Sarah. Haunted Heroine [DAW]
Publisher's Description

The fourth book in the smart, snarky, and action-packed Heroine series follows Evie Tanaka, Aveda Jupiter, and Bea Tanaka as they combat a new supernatural threat. 

Everything in Evie Tanaka’s life is finally perfect. As a badass superheroine, she defends San Francisco from demon invasion on the regular. Her relationships with superhero partner Aveda Jupiter, little sister Bea, and hot, half-demon husband Nate have never been stronger. Maybe it’s possible for a grad school dropout turned put-upon personal assistant turned superhero to have it all?

Just when she thinks life can’t get any better, Evie learns she’s pregnant. Everyone around her is overjoyed…but Evie has major doubts about whether she’s cut out for motherhood. Before she can dwell on her dilemma, a local women’s college reports a string of mysterious “hauntings,” and Evie and Aveda are called in to investigate, going undercover as grad students during the creepiest time of the year: Halloween.

As she confronts terrifying ghosts and lives out a bizarre version of the grad school life she left behind, Evie can’t help but wonder about the road not taken: what would her life be like if she’d stayed here instead of pursuing superheroing with Aveda? And can an overwhelmed pregnant superhero truly have it all?

She’s about to find out.  

Why We Want It: I've only read the first of Kuhn's Heroine Complex novels, aptly titled Heroine Complex. but it was excellent and I've meant to read the second and third books. Now that we're on the verge of the fourth book it is well past time to push on and read them all.

Strahan, Jonathan. The Book of Dragons [Harper Voyager]
Publisher's Description

Here there be dragons . . . 

From China to Europe, Africa to North America, dragons have long captured our imagination in myth and legend. Whether they are rampaging beasts awaiting a brave hero to slay or benevolent sages who have much to teach humanity, dragons are intrinsically connected to stories of creation, adventure, and struggle beloved for generations.

Bringing together nearly thirty stories and poems from some of the greatest science fiction and fantasy writers working today— Garth Nix, Scott Lynch, R.F. Kuang, Ann Leckie & Rachel Swirsky, Daniel Abraham, Peter S. Beagle, Beth Cato, Zen Cho, C. S. E Cooney, Aliette de Bodard, Amal El-Mohtar, Kate Elliott, Theodora Goss, Ellen Klages, Ken Liu, Seanan Maguire, Patricia A McKillip, K. J. Parker, Kelly Robson, Michael Swanwick, Jo Walton, Elle Katharine White, Jane Yolen, Kelly Barnhill, Brooke Bolander, Sarah Gailey, and J. Y. Yang—and illustrated by award-nominated artist Rovina Cai with black-and-white line drawings specific to each entry throughout, this extraordinary collection vividly breathes fire and life into one of our most captivating and feared magical creatures as never before and is sure to become a treasured keepsake for fans of fantasy, science fiction, and fairy tales.  

Why We Want It: Jonathan Strahan is one of the best and most significant anthologists working today and when his name is on an anthology, I pay attention. While he has edited fantasy anthologies, most of his work has been with science fiction. This is a major anthology with notable writers. Can't miss this.

Wallace, Matt. Savage Legion [Saga]
Publisher's Description

They call them Savages. Brutal. Efficient. Expendable.

The empire relies on them. The greatest weapon they ever developed. Culled from the streets of their cities, they take the ones no one will miss and throw them, by the thousands, at the empire’s enemies. If they live, they fight again. If they die, well, there are always more.

Evie is not a Savage. She’s a warrior with a mission: to find the man she once loved, to find the man who holds the key to exposing the secret of the Savage Legion and ending the mass conscription of the empire’s poor and wretched.

But to find him, she must become one of them, to be marked in her blood, to fight in their wars, and to find her purpose. Evie will die a Savage if she has to, but not before showing the world who she really is, and what the Savage Legion can really do.  

Why We Want It: After loving the seven volume Sin du Jour series, I was in for whatever Matt Wallace had for us next. What's next is one of the most notable releases of the year. Wallace is such a smart and razor sharp writer that I can't wait to see how he tackles epic fantasy.


POSTED BY: Joe Sherry - Co-editor of Nerds of a Feather, 4x Hugo Award Finalist for Best Fanzine. Minnesotan. He / Him.

Summer Reading List 2020: Spacefaring Kitten

I don't like summer, specifically, but usually reading makes it more bearable. Here's my summer reading list for 2020.

The Texas-Israeli War: 1999 by Jake Saunders and Howard Waldrop

What, according to Foreign Policy, constitutes "one of the most bizarre SF books ever written"? In a world pretty much demolished after Ireland spiced up the UK water supplies with LSD, causing spaced out British politicians to invoke nuclear armageddon, Texas has declared independence and kidnapped the president of the United States. The novel, AFAIK, tells about an Israeli squadron of tanks with nuclear reactors going in to save the president. Foreign policy promises punchy prose and a fair bit of sex and I hope that is what I'll get!

I've long been fascinated by works of Howard Waldrop, the short-fiction author best known for his Nebula and World Fantasy Award winning "Ugly Chickens" — I suppose that is why I happen to have this book on my shelf. Until sitting down to write this summer reading list, I had absolutely no idea who Jake Saunders was. But what do you know? Turns out he is the comic shop owner who famously campaigned against superhero comics featuring too subversive and unwholesome stuff, his key grievance being the realistically rendered childbirth in Alan Moore and Rick Veitch's Miracleman #9 in 1986 (not, for example, silly spandex violence).

Books of Blood by Clive Barker

Summer is the season of bodies and flesh, so what would be a better time to read some horror stories about them? Books of Blood is Barker's series of collections of visceral horror tales that first made him famous. I have vague memories of reading "The Midnight Meat Train" here and "Pig Blood Blues" there as I have come across them in some anthologies, but I have never exposed myself to an actual Book of Blood in its entirety. About time!

Pretty Monsters by Kelly Link

Compensating for Barker's gorefest, a book with monsters who are a little prettier might be a good idea. I've read a bunch of fascinating stories by Kelly Link but haven't yet got to this beautiful book with black-edge paper, cool graphic design and illustrations by Shaun Tan. I believe it's a YA collection that repackages some stories printed in earlier Link collections Stranger Things Happen and Magic for Beginners as well as some that were not in them.

Moxyland by Lauren Beukes

Zoo City and Invisible Girls by Beukes are two of my favorite books I have read in a long time, and I'm literally itching to get my hands on her debut novel Moxyland. I expect it to be shorter, meaner, grungier and more cyberpunk-ish take on near-future South Africa with corporate wars, future tech and teenage riot. Hope I won't be disappointed.

October by China Miéville

Due to an academic project, I've been diving quite deep into the early years of the Soviet Russia and the later Stalinist purges. The October Revolution (which happened in November but they had a shitty calendar) is a colossal moment for the history of the 20th century, and I cannot think of a better person to reconstruct the eery, revolutionary world filled with great promise, brutal violence and intense future shock than fantasy author China Miéville. Even though his October is strictly speaking nonfiction, there's bound to be some genre atmosphere in here somewhere.

Xenogenesis Trilogy by Octavia Butler

Getting my hand dirty with Octavia Butler's works is something I have been planning to do for some time. It took some time and effort to hunt copies of the translations of Dawn, Adulthood Rites and Imago from used books stores — they are the only Butler books translated around this part of the world and they were published 30 years ago. Summer is a nice time for flexing some other language muscles as well.

Booky summer, everybody!

***

POSTED BY: Spacefaring Kitten, an extradimensional enthusiast of speculative fiction, comics, and general weirdness. Contributor since 2018.

Interview: Lauren Beukes and Fryda Wolff

"The safe choice? Walk away. But when has Jessica Jones ever played it safe?


Jessica Jones has made an art of ignoring her particular brand of super-powered trauma. But these days, she's giving the whole "self-care" thing a try. Seeing a therapist, finding healthier coping mechanisms (read: no business-hours drinking), working toward not wanting to punch things all the time. Maybe even taking the occasional case that won't eat her alive. A simple missing persons case seems like just the ticket. But when a boy's body turns up under an overpass in what looks like a cut-and-dried OD, Jessica can't let it go and dives headlong into an obsessive search for answers."

Marvel's Jessica Jones: Playing With Fire launched on Serial Box on May 28th, with new episodes available every Thursday.   Jessica Jones' dry sense of humor,  her brand of "self care", and a simple missing person case, what could possibly go wrong? (well, everything of course, and that's what makes this so addictively entertaining!).

The 16 epsisode season was written by Lauren Beukes, Vita Ayala, Sam Beckbessinger, Zoe Quinn, and Elsa Sjunneson, and narrated by Fryda Wolff.   When the publicist reached out to see if I'd be interested in interviewing Beukes and Wolff, I jumped at the chance.  You know Lauren Beukes from her novels Afterland, Broken Monsters, The Shining Girls, and Zoo City.  You know Fryda Wolff from her voice acting work in the video games Darksiders Genesis,  Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night, Fortnight, and many others. She's also the voice of Moxie, an AI companion for kids.

Beukes and Wolff were kind enough to answer my questions about writing for audio, getting to write in the Marvel Universe, home audio recording, collaborating with other writers, and so much more. Because they both have drasically different roles in the creation of Marvel's Jessica Jones: Playing with Fire, I was able  to ask each of them different questions. 

Let's get to the interview!

NOAF: Some voice actors and audiobook narrators will study the material closely before doing the recording, others barely look at ahead of time in hopes of recording their authentic reaction. Which is your preference?

Fryda Wolff: For audiobooks it's always recommended the actor read the material in full before recording, because otherwise you'll find yourself reading page 300 and suddenly you see " . . . he said, in his strong French accent." And oops you've been performing that character in your natural accent because you didn't have this information before. Luckily for me, Jessica Jones: Playing with Fire was written in short, digestible chapters, so I had plenty of time to go through the script before we got to work.

NOAF: Were you a Jessica Jones fan before recording this show for Serial Box? Did you do any special research to make your voice match Jessica's world?

FW: I had seen the first season of Jessica Jones on Netflix, and found it so intense I could only watch maybe 20 minutes of an episode at a time, but I did eventually get through it. The acting was top notch, which is why it put me on edge. I started season two once I was confirmed for this serialized fiction, and it put me right back in the world. My personality's baseline is to be cynical and jaded so playing Jessica's not a stretch for me, which helps.

NOAF: Were there any scenes that were particularly fun, or particularly challenging to record?

FW: The opening scene (which is available to preview) where Jessica’s fighting thugs in an ice cream truck sets the tone for the story. Absurd things might be happening but Jessica's gonna Jessica and tell you what's up in a flat tone, as she's the unflappable straight woman. Getting to say absurd things with a straight face is always a fun challenge.

NOAF: You have a home recording booth. Can you walk us through how you renovated a room in your house to be a professional recording booth?

FW: With real estate prices being what they are in Los Angeles (single family homes in my neighborhood start at around $1.5 million), I rent a two-bedroom apartment. There are loads of options you can find online if you're in the market for a prefabricated vocal booth. Mine happens to be from VocalBooth.com, though I would rather have purchased from Studiobricks.com. Traditional vocal booths made from wood require a team of people with muscles and power tools to assemble and disassemble, they're an enormous hassle. My 4x6 vocal booth weighs about 1700 pounds and so it must be on the first floor or it will crash through a second floor. Whereas Studiobricks are lightweight panels made from foam and can be hammered together with a mallet. Having a vocal booth is a job requirement for a voice actor. I bought the booth originally so I wouldn't have to record during a certain time of day or night, or wait for the sounds of lawnmowers and barking dogs to stop, so I could ensure my auditions would be high quality.

The investment has since paid itself off many times over, and now that we're in a work from home scenario due to the COVID-19 pandemic, I was already prepared to record studio quality audio for clients from home.

NOAF:Your previous career was in video game design, and video game sound design.  In your opinion, how have video games evolved over the last ten years? Where do you think they'll be 15 or 20 years from now?

FW: I think art and media evolve together as they’re a direct reflection of what artists were feeling in the time they were made. Now that some game companies are making the effort to have more diverse hiring, we see better inclusion in the writing. Technology has always pushed towards the cyberpunk aspiration of making the virtual more real, so we see expanding tech and titles in the VR space. We also have accessibility for tools, like free or subscription-based game engines and middleware. Many universities as well as specialized vocational schools teach various facets of game development. You can also now crowdfund to finance your project, rather than be solely at the mercy of a publisher’s investment.

Ten years ago, some of these advantages were just a dream. Years from now, I expect we’ll see even more interesting, stimulating and diverse storytelling. VR tech will be cheaper and perhaps most households can afford a set, maybe schools will issue them to kids for distance learning and homework. Maybe coding and game development will be taught in primary schools as a standard. Performance and motion capture tech will also get cheaper over time; maybe you'll be able to mocap and animate your own game at home, even if your budget is small. I think accessibility and diversity are the keys to expanding games as a medium, and if those principles are supported then the artistry can only adapt and grow.

NOAF: Were you a Jessica Jones fan before you worked on this project?  What kind of research did you do, to really get into Jessica's mind?

Lauren Beukes: I'm a huge fan of the original Bendis comics and the TV show, but I also have a deep love for noir, which does not, nearly, have enough troubled female detectives, so it was a thrill to be able to play in her universe and her head.

NOAF: What was it like, to collaborate with so many different writers, and to write in someone else's world?

LB: I love collaborating. It's possibly my favourite thing. Other minds are amazing and surprising, and it means you might get stuck sometimes, but you're never stuck alone. I loved working with these brilliant people, their unique perspectives and voices and insight. It was very much gestalt – more than the sum of our parts.

NOAF: How did the team decide who was going to write which episodes?  Any funny stories about how particular scenes were plotted out or designed?

LB: We settled it with an old-fashioned rage-in-the-cage, home-made weapons, anything goes, no backsies. No, that’s not right. We used our words and talked it out. What was interesting was how particular episodes really resonated with different writers. It was very organic and democratic. Elsa was excited to write the Matt Murdock chapters because it's the first time the blind Daredevil has been written by an actual blind writer. Vita called dibs on the big fight scene, and Zoe wanted to delve into the psychological trauma and head games. I wanted to kick it off, set the tone and then we brought in another wonderful South African writer, Sam Beckbessinger, post-writers room, to write some of the later chapters.

NOAF: Did the episodes you wrote have to be a specific length? Did this cause any unexpected challenges?

LB: Serialized fiction is not for scaredy cats. We had to ensure the chapter were short and punchy enough for audio, but also end on a high note, or a low one, that will propel the audience to the next chapter. It’s about telling compelling and compulsive stories.

NOAF: Knowing that the final product would be an audio recording, did you need to make any changes to your writing style to accommodate the change in medium? How (if at all) was writing for audio different than writing a novel?

LB: I've written for animation and most of my novels are in audio too, so I'm used to thinking about the weight of words and how things sound, but I did have to suppress my natural instinct of going on for a full page of dialogue with no breaks.

NOAF: Thank you so much!

POSTED BY: Andrea Johnson lives in Michigan with her husband and too many books. She can be found on twitter, @redhead5318 , where she posts about books, food, and assorted nerdery.
 

New Books Spotlight

Welcome to another edition of the New Books Spotlight, where each month or so we curate a selection of 6 forthcoming books we find notable, interesting, and intriguing. It gives us the opportunity to shine a brief spotlight on some stuff we're itching to get our hands on.

What are you looking forward to? Anything you want to argue with us about? Is there something we should consider spotlighting in the future? Let us know in the comments!

Beukes, Lauren. Motherland [Mulholland]
Publisher's Description

This is America, but not like you know it. Years after the decimation of the male population by a super-virus, the country has refashioned itself with new laws, new customs, and new methods of shame and punishment. Now, hiding a living and healthy male is one of the gravest offenses, rivaled only by the murder of a man. 

Cole is a mother on the run, guilty of both crimes, and desperate to find a safe life for her adolescent boy Miles. 

As the two drift throughout the transformed states of the West, they hide Miles’ identity while evading a mysterious, powerful man bent on justice. From a commune in the Rockies to a high security laboratory in the redwoods of northern California, the two tensely negotiate an existence on the fringes of a new America. Cole’s goal for her son and herself is escape, a family in South Africa, a slim chance at a better life. Mother and child see their chance, at last, in the wanderings and secret goals of a cult–if only Cole can keep Miles’ true self hidden, and as long as they can stay one step ahead of an ex-boyfriend from hell. 

A brilliant blend of psychological suspense, American noir, and trenchant science fiction, MOTHERLAND is the story that Lauren Beukes’ myriad fans have been waiting for. 

Why We Want It: One thing I am continually drawn to in literature is dystopia and feminist dystopia. Beukes has already built a reputation of excellence. The Shining Girls and Broken Monsters were exceptional and I am ready for the Beukes' next novel.

Donnelly, Lara Elena. Amnesty [Tor]
Publisher's Description

Donnelly’s Amnesty completes the Nebula and LAMBDA Award-nominated Amberlough Dossier glam spy thriller trilogy that Publishers Weekly describes as "Impressive...as heartbreaking as it is satisfying.” (starred review) 

In Amberlough City, out of the ASHES of revolution, a TRAITOR returns, a political CAMPAIGN comes to a roaring head, and the people demand JUSTICE for crimes past. 

As a nation struggles to rebuild, who can escape retribution?

Amnesty is a smart, decadent, heart-pounding conclusion to Lara Elena Donnelly’s widely-praised glam spy trilogy that will have readers enthralled until the very end. 

Why We Want It: Amberlough was an exciting debut and Armistice was an excellent continuation of that story, though perhaps not the one I expected. Donnelly's art deco infused espionage thrillers set during the rise of an empire with strong Nazi overtones permeating everything, is outstanding and, not to continue to quote the publisher's description, legitimately heartbreaking. I want to see how this all ends.

Glass, Jenna. The Women's War [Del Rey]
Publisher's Description

In a feminist fantasy epic, a revolutionary spell gives women the ability to control their own fertility—with consequences that rock their patriarchal society to its core. 

“A compulsive read, riveting characters, life-or-death stakes . . . a smashing book!”—Tamora Pierce

When a nobleman’s first duty is to produce a male heir, women are treated like possessions and bargaining chips. But as the aftereffects of a world-altering spell ripple out physically and culturally, women at last have a bargaining chip of their own. And two women in particular find themselves at the liberating crossroads of change. 

Alys is the widowed mother of two adolescent children, and the disinherited daughter of a king. Her existence has been carefully regulated, but now she discovers a fierce talent not only for politics but also for magic—once deemed solely the domain of men. Meanwhile, in a neighboring kingdom, young Ellin finds herself unexpectedly on the throne after the sudden death of her grandfather the king and everyone else who stood ahead of her in the line of succession. Conventional wisdom holds that she will marry quickly, then quietly surrender the throne to her new husband. Only, Ellin has other ideas. 

The tensions building in the two kingdoms grow abruptly worse when a caravan of exiled women and their escort of disgraced soldiers stumble upon a new source of magic in what was once uninhabitable desert. This new and revolutionary magic—which only women can wield—might well tear down what is left of the patriarchy. The men who currently hold power will do anything to retain it. But what force in the world can stand against the courage and resolution of generations of women who have tasted freedom for the very first time? 

Why We Want It: I'm down for a feminist epic fantasy. I've seen reviews discussing how it feels like more of an 1980's feminist epic fantasy that doesn't quite reach the heights of those novels, but I still want to check this one out.

Gloss, Molly. The Dazzle of Day [Saga]
Publisher's Description

Leaving a dilapidated Earth behind, Quakers across the globe pool funds and resources as they select colonists to send to a newly discovered planet to start life anew in this “miraculous fusion of…science fiction with unsparing realism and keen psychology” (Ursula K. Le Guin). 

In this “carefully conceived and deeply affecting” (The New York Times) novel, award-winning author Molly Gloss turns her attention to the frontiers of the future. A group of Quakers band together to abandon the ailing Earth, and travel to a settle a whole new world. The Dazzle of Day is their story. 

“The Dazzle of Day is a heartbreakingly good book...a rare dream of a book, passionate and lyric. The Dazzle of Day allows us to see our own world, our own present, more profoundly” (San Jose Mercury News). 

Why We Want It: The Dazzle of Day is part of Saga's republication of three of Gloss's novels and is the only one I had previously read. I mentioned it as part of a list of mostly overlooked novels and I'm glad that this re-release should give The Dazzle of Day and Molly Gloss some extra attention. This one is really good.

Newman, Emma. Atlas Alone [Ace]
Publisher's Description

Hugo Award winner Emma Newman returns to the captivating Planetfall universe with a novel about vengeance and the lengths to which one will go to save the future of humanity.

Six months after she left, Dee is struggling to manage her rage toward the people who ordered the nuclear strike that destroyed Earth. She’s trying to find those responsible, but she’s not getting very far alone.

A dedicated gamer, Dee is endeavoring to discover a mersive good enough to enable her to escape her trauma. When she is approached by a designer who asks her to play test his new game, she hopes it will be what she needs—but it isn’t like any mersive she’s played before. When a man suddenly dies in the real world, she realizes that at the same time in the game, she killed a character who bears a striking resemblance to the dead man—a man she discovers was one of those responsible for the death of millions on Earth.

Disturbed, but thinking it must be a coincidence, Dee continues the hunt for information. But when she finds out the plans for the future colony, she realizes that to save what is left of humanity, she might have to do something that risks what remains of her own. 

Why We Want It: Emma Newman's Planetfall was excellent and I've heard nothing but praise for Before Mars and After Atlas (which I haven't read), but I had access to an advanced copy of Atlas Alone. As good as Planetfall was (and it was plenty good), Atlas Alone is Newman raising the bar, leveling up, and telling a story that I did not want to put down. Having a cursory knowledge of the larger Planetfall universe is helpful, but unnecessary. Look for this. Read it when you find.

Roanhorse, Rebecca. Storm of Locusts [Saga]
Publisher's Description

Kai and Caleb Goodacre have been kidnapped just as rumors of a cult sweeping across the reservation leads Maggie and Hastiin to investigate an outpost, and what they find there will challenge everything they’ve come to know in this action-packed sequel to Trail of Lightning. 

It’s been four weeks since the bloody showdown at Black Mesa, and Maggie Hoskie, Diné monster hunter, is trying to make the best of things. Only her latest bounty hunt has gone sideways, she’s lost her only friend, Kai Arviso, and she’s somehow found herself responsible for a girl with a strange clan power.

 Then the Goodacre twins show up at Maggie’s door with the news that Kai and the youngest Goodacre, Caleb, have fallen in with a mysterious cult, led by a figure out of Navajo legend called the White Locust. The Goodacres are convinced that Kai’s a true believer, but Maggie suspects there’s more to Kai’s new faith than meets the eye. She vows to track down the White Locust, then rescue Kai and make things right between them.

Her search leads her beyond the Walls of Dinétah and straight into the horrors of the Big Water world outside. With the aid of a motley collection of allies, Maggie must battle body harvesters, newborn casino gods and, ultimately, the White Locust himself. But the cult leader is nothing like she suspected, and Kai might not need rescuing after all. When the full scope of the White Locust’s plans are revealed, Maggie’s burgeoning trust in her friends, and herself, will be pushed to the breaking point, and not everyone will survive. 

Why We Want It: Paul said Trail of Lightning was pretty great and I completely agree. If Roanhorse had not already won all of the awards for her story "Welcome to Your Authentic Indian Experience" (including the Campbell for Best New Writer), Trail of Lightning would be the announcement of a major new voice. It still is, and it is also confirmation that Roanhorse is as good as everyone thought she was, and she can do it at novel length. Storm of Locusts is Roanhorse's follow up novel and it is sure to be a must read.


POSTED BY: Joe Sherry - Co-editor of Nerds of a Feather, 2017 & 2018 Hugo Award Finalist for Best Fanzine. Minnesotan.

6 Books with Lauren Beukes

Photo Credit: Ulrich Knoblauch

Lauren Beukes is most famous in the science fiction and fantasy world as the author of four novels, including Shining Girls and Broken Monsters. But did you know that she has also written for comics, most famously in her outstanding run on Bill Willingham's Fables spinoff: Fairest AND she that has written for television and directed an award winning documentary (Glitterboys & Ganglands)? Beukes is currently adapting her novel Zoo City into a screenplay. She can do it all, folks.

Today she shares her 6 books with us...


1. What book are you currently reading?
I’m late to it, but Marlon James’ A Brief History of Seven Killings is just remarkable. It’s a turbulent period of history I (shamefully) didn’t really know about Jamaica that breathes through its huge cast of characters. His skill with voice makes me really envious, you disappear into every perspective.

2. What upcoming book are you really excited about?
I can’t wait for Laurie Penny’s novella, Everything Belongs to the Future. I’m a huge fan of her switchblade-sharp journalism and non-fiction - you might have already read her terrifying gonzo behind-the-scenes at the Republican GOP party. With her insight into social issues and activism, I can’t wait to see what she does with speculative fiction!

3. Is there a book you're currently itching to re-read?
Nimona by Noelle Stevenson, about a troublesome teen girl shapechanger who apprentices herself to a not-quite-evil villain. I’ve read it to my seven year old about six times now, but it’s such a pleasure to go back to.

4. How about a book you've changed your mind about - either positively or negatively?
I’ve had to recontextualize the way I feel about HP Lovecraft, knowing that the creeping dread of the other was informed by his grotesque-even-for-his-time racism. Ditto Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card who has revealed himself as a bigot and a homophobe. I’d love to be able to separate the art from the artist, but you can’t. It’s there, in the words.

5. What's one book, which you read as a child or a young adult, that has had a lasting influence on your writing?
The Ballad of Halo Jones by Alan Moore and Ian Gibson. I read it in installments in 2000AD Monthly when I was 15, this wild, gritty, high adventure, fun and also often devastatingly bleak science fiction about a slum girl who wants to “go out”, be more than she is. I love V for Vendetta, Watchmen is perfect storytelling, but Halo Jones is my true love.

6. And speaking of that, what's *your* latest book, and why is it awesome?
This is a tough one! My first two novels, Zoo City and Moxyland have just been reissued by Mulholland with gorgeous new covers, so that’s technically my latest? I also have collection coming out this year, Slipping: Stories, Essays & Other Writing and the trade paperback (or graphic novel) of Survivors’ Club, the horror comic I co-wrote with Dale Halvorsen, with art by Ryan Kelly is out in time for Halloween. But what I’ve been working on is a new novel called Motherland, about a world where most of the male population have died, and a mom is trying to get her teenage son to a place of safety where he can be a human being rather than a sex object or a reproductive resource or lab rat. My last two novels dealt with serial killers and I felt like I’ve said all I want to say, for the moment, about murderous psychos, and I was tired of killing people. So, I solved it by killing 3.5 billion men instead! Motherland will be out next year.


POSTED BY: Joe Sherry - Writer / Editor at Adventures in Reading since 2004. Nerds of a Feather contributor since 2015, editor since 2016. Minnesotan.