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Black, Holly, & Ted Naifeh :
The Good Neighbors, Book One: Kin
(Scholastic/Graphix 978-0-439-85562-4, $16.99, 117pp, hardcover, September 2008)
Graphic fantasy novel, first of a series, about a faerie girl whose mother had disappeared and whose father is suspecting of killer her mother.
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Scholastic's site has this video interview about the book.
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Carolyn Cushman reviewed it in the September issue of Locus Magazine -- "Naifeh's distinctive art complements the story nicely, capturing the angry-teen-meets-faerie mood just fine, with a gothic edge that's a pleasant change from the too-pretty manga so popular these days."
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Cashore, Kristin :
Graceling
(Harcourt 978-0-15-206396-2, $17, 471pp, hardcover, October 2008)
Young adult fantasy novel about a teenage warrior-girl whose one green eye and one blue eye, and ability to kill with her bare hands, mark her as a Graceling -- a person with a special talent.
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The author's blogsite has this description, with links to reviews and best-of-the-year lists, including Publishers Weekly's -- "An exquisitely drawn romance, political intrigue, a take-charge heroine and a magnificently imagined fantasy realm." It's also on Amazon's Best Books of 2008 list.
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Amazon has its own review by Heidi Broadhead: "Combining elements of fantasy and romance, Cashore skillfully portrays the confusion, discovery, and angst that smart, strong-willed girls experience as they creep toward adulthood..."
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Carolyn Cushman reviewed it in the September issue of Locus Magazine: "It's a fun adventure, and a very solid first novel."
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Chester, Deborah :
The Crown
(Ace 978-0-441-01657-0, $7.99, 298pp, mass market paperback, December 2008)
Fantasy novel, second book in "The Pearls and the Crown", following The Pearls (2007), about an emperor's sister abducted by political enemies.
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The author's what's new page has flash introduction to the new book.
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Amazon has enthusiastic reader reviews.
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Cortes, Carlos :
Perfect Circle
(Bantam Spectra 978-0-553-59162-0, $6.99, 482pp, mass market paperback, December 2008)
SF novel about a geologist employed by the scheming International Mining Company who makes a mysterious discovery deep in the African Congo.
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Bantam's site has this introduction with an excerpt.
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The author's website also has an excerpt, and a link to his blog.
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Flint, Eric, & Virginia De Marce :
1635: The Dreeson Incident
(Baen 978-1-4165-5589-6, $26, 590pp, hardcover, December 2008, cover art Tom Kidd)
Alternate history novel in the "1632" or Ring of Fire series that began with Flint's 1632 (2000), concerning 17th century European history as affected by West Virginians from the 20th century.
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See Wikipedia's entry for details of the series thus far.
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Baen's site has this description with links to excerpts and the table of contents.
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Amazon has a description and reader reviews.
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Freeman, Pamela :
Deep Water
(Orbit 978-0-316-03563-7, $12.99, 495pp, trade paperback, November 2008)
Fantasy novel, second in the "Castings" trilogy following Blood Ties (2008), set in the Eleven Domains.
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Series website www.castingstrilogy.com has this page with descriptions of the three novels. The third book, Full Circle, is due in September 2009.
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Amazon's "Look Inside" function includes an excerpt.
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Greenberg, Martin H., & Daniel M. Hoyt :
Better Off Undead
(DAW 978-0-7564-0512-0, $7.99, 312pp, mass market paperback, November 2008)
Anthology of 18 original stories about the lives of the undead.
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Contributors include Sarah Hoyt, Laura Resnick, Alan Dean Foster, Nina Kiriki Hoffman, S.M. Stirling, Devon Monk, and Robert A. Hoyt.
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The publisher's site has this description.
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Gunn, Derek :
Vampire Apocalypse: Descent Into Chaos
(UK: Black Death Books 978-0-9799881-3-4, $12.99, 285pp, trade paperback, September 2008)
Horror novel, sequel to Vampire Apocalypse: A World Torn Asunder (2006), about human survivors of a war with vampires.
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The author's website has this page about the book, with a description and extract.
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Amazon has a 5 star reader review from Harriet Klausner.
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Reeve, Laura :
Peacekeeper
(Roc 978-0-451-46245-9, $6.99, 324pp, mass market paperback, December 2008)
Military SF novel, the author's first novel and first in the series about Major Ariane Kedros, a former N-space pilot who's sent on an undercover assignment after several of her former crewmates are killed.
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The author's site has a description and an extract, plus a page about the series and a list of characters.
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Amazon has Harriet Klausner's reviews.
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Weeks, Brent :
Beyond the Shadows
(Orbit 978-0-316-03366-4, $7.99, 689pp, mass market paperback, December 2008, cover illustration Calvin Chu)
Fantasy novel, third in the "Night Angel" trilogy following The Way of Shadows and Shadow's Edge (both 2008), about assassin Durzo Blint and his apprentice Azoth.
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The author's site has descriptions of all three books, with spoilers hidden in white text but available when highlighted.
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Amazon has several five-star reader reviews.
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Westerfeld, Scott :
Bogus to Bubbly: An Insider's Guide to the World of Uglies
(Simon Pulse 978-1-4169-7436-9, $8.99, 196pp, trade paperback, October 2008)
Nonfiction guide to the "Uglies" series of YA science fiction novels by Westerfeld -- Uglies, Pretties (both 2005), Specials (2006), and Extras (2007) -- set in a future in which teenagers undergo surgery to look beautiful.
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Illustrations are by Craig Phillips.
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The publisher's site has this description with an excerpt.
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Zakour, John :
The Flaxen Femme Fatale
(DAW 978-0-7564-0519-9, $7.99, 340pp, mass market paperback, December 2008, cover art Michael Koelsch)
Humorous SF hardboiled detective novel, sixth in a series following The Plutonium Blonde (2001), The Doomsday Brunette (2004), The Radioactive Redhead (2005), The Frost-Haired Vixen (2006), and The Blue-Haired Bombshell (2007).
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In this book P.I. Zach Johnson tracks down a beautiful woman who happens to be a deadly secret weapon.
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The author's website links to his new blog.
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The publisher's site has a description.
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