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!
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| Cover Artist Unknown |
Duchamp, L. Timmel.
The Waterdancer's World [Aqueduct, 2016]
Publisher's Blurb
Humans have been struggling to live on Frogmore for almost five centuries, adapting themselves to punishing gravity and the deadly mistflowers that dominate its ecology. Financier Inez Gauthier, patron of the arts and daughter of the general commanding the planet's occupation forces, dreams of eliminating the mistflowers that make exploitation of the planet's natural wealth so difficult and impede her father's efforts to crush the native insurgency. Fascinated by the new art-form of waterdancing created by Solstice Balalzalar celebrating the planet's indigenous lifeforms, Inez assumes that her patronage will be enough to sustain Solstice's art even as she ruthlessly pursues windfall profits at the expense of all that has made waterdancing possible.
Why We Want It: We're big fans of Duchamp's powerful Marq'ssan Cycle and we've been eagerly waiting these past eight years for her next novel. Now it's here.
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| Cover Art by Sam Weber |
Liu, Ken.
The Wall of Storms [Saga, 2016]
Publisher's Blurb
In the much-anticipated sequel to the “magnificent fantasy epic” (NPR) Grace of Kings, Emperor Kuni Garu is faced with the invasion of an invincible army in his kingdom and must quickly find a way to defeat the intruders.
Kuni Garu, now known as Emperor Ragin, runs the archipelago kingdom of Dara, but struggles to maintain progress while serving the demands of the people and his vision. Then an unexpected invading force from the Lyucu empire in the far distant west comes to the shores of Dara—and chaos results.
But Emperor Kuni cannot go and lead his kingdom against the threat himself with his recently healed empire fraying at the seams, so he sends the only people he trusts to be Dara’s savvy and cunning hopes against the invincible invaders: his children, now grown and ready to make their mark on history.
Why We Want It: Liu's impressive debut, Grace of Kings, was a landmark epic fantasy. We look forward to seeing how Liu can expand and build on that first novel.
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| Cover Art by Jamie Stafford-Hill |
McIntosh, Will.
Faller [Tor, 2016]
Publisher's Blurb
Faller is a new gripping standalone, science fiction thriller by Hugo Award-winning author Will McIntosh.
Day One: No one can remember anything—who they are, family and friends, or even how to read. Reality has fragmented and Earth consists of an islands of rock floating in an endless sky. Food, water, electricity—gone, except for what people can find, and they can't find much.
Faller's pockets contain tantalizing clues: a photo of himself and a woman he can't remember, a toy solider with a parachute, and a mysterious map drawn in blood. With only these materials as a guide, he makes a leap of faith from the edge of the world to find the woman and set things right.
He encounters other floating islands, impossible replicas of himself and others, and learns that one man hates him enough to take revenge for actions Faller can't even remember.
Why We Want It: If Will McIntosh writes a novel, we'll read it. He primarily writes standalone novels, and perhaps this is why he is not quite as well known as he should be, but his speculative fiction is top notch.
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| Cover Design by Kerri Resnick |
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Moreno-Garcia, Silvia.
Certain Dark Things [Thomas Dunne Books, 2016]
Publisher's Blurb
Welcome to Mexico City… An Oasis In A Sea Of Vampires…
Domingo, a lonely garbage-collecting street kid, is busy eeking out a living when a jaded vampire on the run swoops into his life.
Atl, the descendant of Aztec blood drinkers, must feast on the young to survive and Domingo looks especially tasty. Smart, beautiful, and dangerous, Atl needs to escape to South America, far from the rival narco-vampire clan pursuing her. Domingo is smitten.
Her plan doesn’t include developing any real attachment to Domingo. Hell, the only living creature she loves is her trusty Doberman. Little by little, Atl finds herself warming up to the scrappy young man and his effervescent charm.
And then there’s Ana, a cop who suddenly finds herself following a trail of corpses and winds up smack in the middle of vampire gang rivalries.
Vampires, humans, cops, and gangsters collide in the dark streets of Mexico City. Do Atl and Domingo even stand a chance of making it out alive?
Why We Want It: Signal to Noise, the debut novel from Silvia Moreno-Garcia was an excellent urban fantasy set within the music and magic of Mexico City. Tonally, Certain Dark Things appears to be nothing like Signal to Noise, but we'll follow Moreno-Garcia anywhere.
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| Cover Design by Fort |
Penny, Laurie.
Everything Belongs to the Future [Tor.com Publishing, 2016]
Publisher's Blurb
Time is a weapon wielded by the rich, who have excess of it, against the rest, who must trade every breath of it against the promise of another day's food and shelter. What kind of world have we made, where human beings can live centuries if only they can afford the fix? What kind of creatures have we become? The same as we always were, but keener.
In the ancient heart of Oxford University, the ultra-rich celebrate their vastly extended lifespans. But a few surprises are in store for them. From Nina and Alex, Margo and Fidget, scruffy anarchists sharing living space with an ever-shifting cast of crusty punks and lost kids. And also from the scientist who invented the longevity treatment in the first place.
Everything Belongs to the Future is a bloody-minded tale of time, betrayal, desperation, and hope that could only have been told by the inimitable Laurie Penny.
Why We Want It: A world where time is very nearly money and the rich can extend their lives at the expense of the poor? This sounds both topical and absolutely fascinating. Yes, please!
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| Cover Art by Adam Tredowski |
Strahan, Jonathan (ed).
Bridging Infinity [Solaris, 2016]
Publisher's Blurb
The latest volume in the Hugo award-winning Infinity Project series, showcasing all-original hard science fiction stories from the leading voices in genre fiction.
Sense of wonder is the lifeblood of science fiction. When we encounter something on a truly staggering scale - metal spheres wrapped around stars, planets rebuilt and repurposed, landscapes transformed, starships bigger than worlds - we react viscerally. Fear, reverence, admiration - how else are we to react to something so grand?
Bridging Infinity puts humanity at the heart of these vast undertakings - as builder, as engineer, as adventurer - reimagining and rebuilding the world, the solar system, and even the entire universe.
This continuation of the award-winning Infinity Project anothology series features bold new stories from Stephen Baxter, Elizabeth Bear, Gregory Benford, Zachary Brown, Pat Cadigan, Kameron Hurley, Scott Lynch, Vonda N. McIntyre, Hannu Rajaniemi, Allan Steele, and many more.
Why We Want It: Even though not every story will be a hit, Jonathan Strahan's Infinity Project has been one of our must read short fiction series since he began the project in 2010. Now in it's fifth iteration, Bridging Infinity continues to inspire with broad imaginings of how humanity could shape the future.
POSTED BY: Joe Sherry - Writer / Editor at Adventures in Reading since 2004, Nerds of a Feather contributor since 2015, editor since 2016. Minnesotan.
