New Books (August)

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Featuring: Joe Abercrombie, Luke Arnold, Hari Conner, Alan Davies, Laurie Elizabeth Flynn, Guy Haley, Clive Hamilton, Kristin Hannah, Essa Hansen, James Hibberd, Darius Hinks, Iris Johansen, Laura Lam, John Lanchester, Jessica J. Lee, Katie Lowe, Elizabeth May, Elizabeth McCracken, Claire North, Mareike Ohlberg, Kim Stanley Robinson, Simon Stephenson, Christina Sweeney-Baird, Adrian Tchaikovsky, Vendela Vida, K.S. Villoso, Dawnie Walton, Aliya Whiteley (x2)

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New Books (August)

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Featuring: Mary Adkins, Jussi Adler-Olsen, David Annandale, Jessica Barry, Flynn Berry, Miles Cameron, M.R. Carey, Victor Montgomery Cornwall, Craig Davidson, Sebastien de Castell, N.S. Dolkart, Esi Edugyan, Ben Fountain, William W. Freehling, John French, Christopher Golden, David Gordon, Charlaine Harris, D.B. Jackson, Gregory B. Jaczko, Steven James, Eyal Kless, Sam Lipsyte, Jonathan Maberry, Mindy Mejia, Sara Paretsky, Matthew Quirk, Kim Stanley Robinson, Axl Rosenberg, Tom Rosenstiel, Michael Rutger, David Small, Anna Smith Spark, Arthur St. John Trevelyan, Martha Wells, Cherise Wolas, Chris Wraight, Jane Yolen

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Upcoming in 2017… Orbit Books

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Here are some of my most-anticipated novels published by Orbit Books…

Featuring: Jordanna Max Brodsky, M.R. Carey, Nicholas Eames, Charlie Fletcher, Dale Lucas, Brian McClellan, David Mealing, Elizabeth Moon, Claire North, Jon Skovron, Kim Stanley Robinson, Sam Sykes

[Updated on January 16th with five more books; and on February 2nd with a video of interviews with new Orbit authors.]

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New Books (Nov-Dec 2016)

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Featuring: David Annandale, Marie Brennan, Maurice Broaddus, Paul Cornell, Michael Crichton, Thoraiya Dyer, Warren Ellis, Christopher Golden, Lee Irby, Kathleen Kent, Christina Kovac, Jonathan Lethem, Laura Lippman, Gregory McDonald, Claire North, Andrew Pyper, Joshua Reynolds, Suzanne Rindell, Kim Stanley Robinson, Steven Savile, Norman Spinrad, Ingrid Thoft, Tim Walker, Alex Wells, Jen Williams, Jason Zinoman

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Video: Kim Stanley Robinson talks AURORA

RobinsonKS-AuroraAurora, the next novel by Kim Stanley Robinson, is one of my most-anticipated of the year. Luckily, I have an ARC, so I’ll be reading it very soon. Above is a video in which the author discusses his new novel, which is published in July by Orbit Books in the US and UK. Here’s the synopsis:

A major new novel from one of SF’s most powerful voices, telling the incredible story of mankind’s first voyage beyond the solar system in search of a new home

Our voyage from Earth began generations ago. 

Now, we approach our destination. 

A new home. 

Aurora.

An Aside: On a Bit of a SF Buying Binge…

I seem to be on an unusual sci-fi purchasing kick at the moment. Or, if not actively purchasing/pre-ordering sci-fi novels, I’m filing them away on my To Buy list, or on my Amazon wishlist. Today, I purchased Becky Chambers’s The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet — which was recently published by Hodder.

This is a little bit strange, because I don’t really read much sci-fi. Sure, I read almost everything set in Black Library’s Horus Heresy series (which is becoming a tad drawn-out), and I used to read every Star Wars novel I could get my hands on (as long as it was set after New Hope). But, over the past couple of years, I’ve cooled on SW novels (mainly because I haven’t really liked any that I’ve tried to read over the past couple of years). This has left a rather gaping SF hole on my shelves. Save for a mere handful of SF novels by Richard Morgan, Rachel Aaron, and … well, actually I think that’s about it… I just don’t read much SF. I read the first book in James S.A. Corey’s Expanse series, Leviathan Wakes (Orbit), which was pretty good.

This fleeting observation made me look at my various lists and TBR pile, and it looks like there are going to be some interesting SF book in the next few months. Alongside Chambers’s novel, above, I recently acquired an ARC of Kim Stanley Robinson’s next novel, Aurora (Orbit, July 9th), which I’m really interested in reading; and also Justina Robson’s The Glorious Angels (Gollancz). I also pre-ordered Jason LaPier’s Unexpected Rain (Voyager, May 7th), and will probably buy Jamie Sawyer’s The Lazarus War: Artefact (Orbit) in the not-too-distant future. Looking a bit further ahead, Rob Boffard’s Tracer looks interesting (Orbit, July 2nd), as do Mike Brooks’s Dark Run (Del Rey UK, June 4th), Alex Lamb’s Roboteer (Gollancz, July 16th – I’ve preordered this, only £1.99!) and Al Robertson’s Crashing Heaven (Gollancz, June 18th). There’s also J.P. Smythe’s Way Down Dark (Hodder, July2nd). And, of course, there’s Ernest Cline’s Armada (Century, July 16th)… [Details for all of these titles after the break.]

So, maybe I have a few months of (uncharacteristic) sci-fi reading coming up?

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New Books: March #1

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Or, “Lordy, 2015 is shaping up to be an incredible year for books…”

Featuring: John Joseph Adams, Richard Beard, Paul Beatty, Patricia Briggs, Col Buchanan, John Connelly, Rjurik Davidson, Joshua Gaylord, Dave Gross, Kazuo Ishiguro, Edan Lepucki, Robert Levy, Tom Lloyd, George R.R. Martin & Gardener Dozois, Stephen Metcalfe, Kristen Painter, Alastair Reynolds, Kim Stanley Robinson, V.E. Schwab, Lavie Tidhar, Marc Turner Continue reading

Early 2015 Most Wanted: Orbit Books

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While browsing Orbit US’s catalogue of upcoming books, I spotted a few I think people should be aware of and check out. Some of them have featured already on the site (at the previous location), but what the hell. I’m really interested in reading them, and ’tis the season for sharing lists and so forth. Here they are, with details…

Featuring: Alex Marshall, Gail Z. Martin, Brian McClellan, Kim Stanley Robinson, Sam Sykes, Jaye Wells Continue reading

Upcoming Orbit Titles (Spring/Summer 2015)

Orbit unveiled the covers for their Spring/Summer 2015 releases today (US/UK – although, they’re mostly the same), and I thought I’d share some of the ones that caught my eye, here. I present them without commentary, but I will say the Peeler cover is rather eye-catching not only because of its bold colouring, but because it’s rather amusing.

Daniel Abraham, The Spider’s War (Dagger & Coin #5)

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James S.A. Corey, Nemesis Games (Expanse #5)

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N.K. Jemisin, The Fifth Season

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This is the way the world ends. Again.

Three terrible things happen in a single day. Essun, a woman living an ordinary life in a small town, comes home to find that her husband has brutally murdered their son and kidnapped their daughter. Meanwhile, mighty Sanze – the world-spanning empire whose innovations have been civilization’s bedrock for a thousand years – collapses as most of its citizens are murdered to serve a madman’s vengeance. And worst of all, across the heart of the vast continent known as the Stillness, a great red rift has been been torn into the heart of the earth, spewing ash enough to darken the sky for years. Or centuries.

Now Essun must pursue the wreckage of her family through a deadly, dying land. Without sunlight, clean water, or arable land, and with limited stockpiles of supplies, there will be war all across the Stillness: a battle royale of nations not for power or territory, but simply for the basic resources necessary to get through the long dark night. Essun does not care if the world falls apart around her. She’ll break it herself, if she must, to save her daughter.

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Nicole Peeler, Jinn & Juice

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Cursed to be a jinni for a thousand years, Leila nears the end of her servitude – only to be bound once again against her will. Will she risk all to be human?

Born in ancient Persia, Leila turned to her house Jinni, Kouros, for help escaping an arranged marriage. Kouros did make it impossible for her to marry – by cursing Leila to live a thousand years as a Jinni herself.

If she can remain unBound, Leila’s curse will soon be over. But Ozan Sawyer, a Magi with the ability to See, Call, and Bind jinn has other plans.

Oz needs Leila to help him penetrate Pittsburgh’s steel-soaked magic, a juice potent but poisonous to supernatural creatures, in order to find a missing girl with her own mysterious connection to Kouros. Unfortunately for Leila, becoming Bound to Oz may risk more than just her chance to be human once more – it could risk her very soul…

Jinn and Juice is the first in a new series by fantasy writer, Nicole Peeler, set in a world of immortal curses, powerful jinni and belly dancing.

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Kim Stanley Robinson, Aurora

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Angus Watson, Clash of Iron (Iron Age #2)

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LEADERS ARE FORGED IN THE FIRES OF WAR

Iron Age warriors Dug and Lowa captured Maidun castle and freed its slaves. But now they must defend it.

A Roman invasion is coming from Gaul, but rather than uniting to defend their home, the British tribes go to battle with each other – and see Maidun as an easy target.

Meanwhile, Lowa’s spies infiltrate Gaul, discovering the Romans have recruited British druids. And Maidunite Ragnall finds his loyalties torn when he meets Rome’s charismatic general, Julius Caesar.

War is coming. Who will pay its price?

Congratulations to CHRIS BECKETT, Winner of the Arthur C. Clarke Award!

Yesterday I attended the Clarke Award ceremony at the Royal Society in London. The event opened with a panel discussion on science in five years (in 2,001 days… Geddit?) – I was pleased to learn that there are people currently working on World Ships. That was cool.

Anyway, the reason most of us were there was to learn who won the prize (and, ahem, the drinks afterwards…). And so, big congratulations to…

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CHRIS BECKETT, for his novel DARK EDEN (Corvus)

The runners-up, all equally interesting and high-quality science-fiction novels, were…

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Adrian Barnes, Nod (Bluemoose)

Nick Harkaway, Angelmaker (William Heinemann)

Peter Heller, The Dog Stars (Headline)

Ken MacLeod, Intrusion (Orbit)

Kim Stanley Robinson, 2312 (Orbit)

After the event, I had the pleasure of meeting a great number of people who I have long respected and/or only known on the other end of an email conversation or through Twitter. It was wonderful to meet so many of you and chat about all things genre and much other things besides. A great evening.