* Adams, John Joseph, ed. : Under the Moons of Mars: New Adventures on Barsoom
(Simon & Schuster 978-1-4424-2029-8, $16.99, 349pp, hardcover, February 2012, cover illustration Mark Zug)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 7 Feb 2012

Anthology of 14 original stories inspired by Edgar Rice Burroughs’ Barsoom novels, which began with A Princess of Mars (1912), basis for the forthcoming film John Carter, to be released in March.
• Contributors include Peter S. Beagle, Theodora Goss, L.E. Modesitt, Jr., Genevieve Valentine, S.M. Stirling, Catherynne M. Valente, and Jonathan Maberry.
• Illustrations for the stories are by Gregory Manchess, Charles Vess, John Picacio, Michael Wm. Kaluta, and others.
• There’s also a 24-page appendix by Richard A. Lupoff, “Who’s Who and What’s What on Mars…”
• Adam’s dedicated site for the book has the table of contents, an art gallery, and links to Free Reads.
• Amazon’s page has a “Look Inside” preview function.

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* Ahmed, Saladin : Throne of the Crescent Moon
(DAW 978-0-7564-0711-7, $24.95, 288pp, hardcover, February 2012)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 7 Feb 2012
• Crescent Moon Kingdoms #1

Fantasy novel, the author’s first novel and first book in the “Crescent Moon Kingdoms” series, set in a quasi–Middle Eastern city.
• The author’s site has this description with a Chapter One excerpt and a map.
• Wikipedia: Saladin Ahmed.
• Publishers Weekly gives it a starred review: “Unobtrusive hints of backstory contribute to the sense that this novel is part of a larger ongoing tale, and the Arab-influenced setting is full of vibrant description, characters, and religious expressions that will delight readers weary of pseudo-European epics.”

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* Caine, Rachel : Unbroken
(Roc 978-0-451-46442-2, $7.99, 320pp, mass market paperback, February 2012)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 7 Feb 2012
• Outcast Season #4

Fantasy novel, fourth and concluding volume in the “Outcast Season” series following Undone (2009), Unknown (2010), and Unseen (2011), about Cassiel, an exiled djinn learning to live among humanity.
• The series site has this extract.

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* Daniel, Tony : Guardian of Night
(Baen 978-1451638028, $13, 352pp, trade paperback, February 2012)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 7 Feb 2012

SF novel about the commander of an alien invasion force who attempts to defect to Earth.
• Baen’s site has this description with links to several chapter excerpts.
• This is the author’s first novel since Superluminal (2004). His Wikipedia page identifies him as an editor at Baen Books.

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+ Deas, Stephen : The Order of the Scales
(Roc 978-0-451-46437-8, $25.95, 368pp, hardcover, February 2012)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 7 Feb 2012
• Memory of Flames #3

First US edition (UK: Gollancz, May 2011)

Fantasy novel, third in a series following The Adamantine Palace (2010) and The King of the Crags, set in a land where dragons are violent creatures subdued into servitude by human masters.
• The author’s website has this page for the book with a link to an excerpt.

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* Greenberg, Martin H., & Kerrie Hughes : Westward Weird
(DAW 978-0756407186, $7.99, 320pp, mass market paperback, February 2012)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 7 Feb 2012

Anthology of 13 original stories set in the Old West.
• Contributors include Jay Lake, Seanan McGuire, Dean Wesley Smith, Kristin Kathryn Rusch, and Jody Lynn Nye.
• SF Signal has the table of contents.

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* Hallaway, Tate : Almost Everything
(NAL 978-0-451-23566-4, $9.99, 306pp, trade paperback, February 2012)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 7 Feb 2012
• Vampire Princess #3

Young adult fantasy novel, third in a series following Almost to Die For (2010) and Almost Final Curtain (2011), about a teenage half witch, half vampire named Anastaija Parker.
• The publisher’s site has this description.
• Amazon’s “Look Inside” function has a preview.

(Wed 18 Jan 2012)
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* Harris, Robert : The Fear Index
(Knopf 978-0307957931, $25.95, 304pp, hardcover, February 2012)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 31 Jan 2012

Financial thriller about an artificial intelligence developed to predict market activity.
• The publisher’s site has this description with a video trailer. The author’s previous books include alternate history Fatherland (1992) and the recent political thriller The Ghost Writer.
• Amazon’s “Look Inside” function provides a preview, and the site has an exclusive review of the book by Christopher Reich.
• Andrew Leonard posted this Salon column about the book: “It’s a book whose pages cannot be turned fast enough; a mystery with just a dash of science fiction and plot twists ripped from the business news headlines of the past year.”
• The Publishers Weekly review concludes, “Pure science enjoys an uneasy existence with large profit making at the expense of downward-market spirals. Despite some less than engaging characters and a story that sags a bit, this novel’s philosophical underpinnings will keep most readers engrossed.”

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* Hobb, Robin : City of Dragons
(Harper Voyager US 978-0-06-156163-4, $27.99, 352pp, hardcover, February 2012)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 7 Feb 2012
• Rain Wild Chronicles #3

Fantasy novel, third in the “Rain Wild Chronicles” following Dragon Keeper (UK 2009, US 2010) and Dragon Haven (2010), and set in the same world as her Liveship Traders and Tawny Man trilogies. It concerns a group of debilitated dragons, rejected by human culture, setting out to find their ancient home.
• The publisher’s site has this description with a “Read Now” function.

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* Ivey, Eowyn : The Snow Child
(Little, Brown/Reagan Arthur Books 978-0316175678, $24.99, 400pp, hardcover, February 2012)
• Nominal Publication Date: Wed 1 Feb 2012

Literary fantasy novel set in 1920 Alaska about a childless couple who find a mysterious young girl in the woods.
• The publisher’s site has this description with an excerpt function.
• Amazon names it a best book of February, with a review by Malissa Kent: “With the transparent prose of a fairy tale and descriptions to put nature writing to shame…”
• Amazon has a dozen 5-star reader reviews.
• Slate’s Lydia Kiesling wasn’t overwhelmed — Somewhere Between Magical Territory and Crazytown concludes, “This little snowflake of a book melts away before your eyes.”

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* Kerr, Katharine : Apocalypse to Go
(DAW 978-0-7564-0709-4, $7.99, 336pp, mass market paperback, February 2012)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 7 Feb 2012
• Nola O’Grady #3

Urban fantasy novel, third of a series following License to Ensorcell (2011) and Water To Burn (2011), about two agents who work for a secret government psychic agency.
• The author’s site has a description and excerpt of the first book.

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* Knox, Tom : The Lost Goddess
(Viking 978-0670023189, $26.95, 448pp, hardcover, February 2012)
• Nominal Publication Date: Thu 2 Feb 2012

Anthropological thriller about discoveries in France and in Southeast Asia and the demonic woman that links them.
• The publisher’s site has this description.
• The Publishers Weekly review says “This quirky novel from the pseudonymous Knox (British journalist Sean Thomas) combines elements of the best of several genres, shakes them up, then lays them out in surprisingly original patterns…”

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* Lackey, Mercedes, Cody Martin, Dennis Lee & Veronica Giguere : World Divided
(Baen 978-1-4516-3801-1, $25, 432pp, hardcover, February 2012, cover art Larry Dixon)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 7 Feb 2012
• Secret World Chronicle #2

Alternate history thriller, second in a series following Invasion (2011), about the emergence of ‘metahumans’ during World War II, and an attack by soldiers in robotic suits bearing Third Reich swastikas.
• Baen’s site has this description with links to several chapters.

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* Martin, Gail Z. : The Dread
(Orbit 978-0-316-09361-3, $7.99, 640pp, mass market paperback, February 2012)
• Nominal Publication Date: Wed 1 Feb 2012
• Fallen Kings Cycle #2

Fantasy novel, second in a series following The Sworn (2011).
• Orbit’s site has an extract.
• The author’s site has the book description with links to an extract from the book, and interviews with the author and the characters.
• The Publishers Weekly review is mixed but comments, “Ambitious in scope and meticulous in detail, this adventure has no shortage of intrigue and action.”

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* Meyer, Marissa : Cinder
(Feiwel and Friends 978-0-312-64189-4, $17.99, 400pp, hardcover, January 2012)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 3 Jan 2012
• The Lunar Chronicles #1

Young adult SF novel, first in a series, a reimagining of Cinderella involving a cyborg in a future where Earth is threatened by Lunars and from a plague called Letumosis.
• The publisher’s site has this description with a link to an excerpt.
• Publishers Weekly gave it a starred review: “Meyer’s far-future Earth is richly imagined, full of prejudice and intrigue, characters easy to get invested in, and hints of what might await in future books.”
• Adrienne Martini reviews it in the February issue of Locus Magazine: “I can’t wait to see what comes next.”

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* Ruff, Matt : The Mirage
(Harper 978-0-06-197622-3, $25.95, 432pp, hardcover, February 2012)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 7 Feb 2012

Alternate history in which Christian hijackers, on 11/9/2001, hijack four airliners and crash them into targets in Baghdad and Riyadh.
• The publisher’s site has this description.
• The author’s previous books include Tiptree Award winner Set This House In Order: A Romance Of Souls (2003), and Bad Monkeys (2007).
• Publishers Weekly gives it a starred review: “As the plot thickens, the ideas keep coming, with Ruff revising the history of, among other things, the gay rights movement, David Koresh, and Timothy McVeigh. This is both entertaining and provocative, exactly what the best popular fiction should be.”
• Tim Pratt reviews it in the February issue of Locus Magazine: “Matt Ruff has written a Man in the High Castle for the age of global terror.”

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* Sterling, Bruce : Gothic High-Tech
(Subterranean Press 978-1-59606-404-1, $25, 227pp, hardcover, January 2012)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 31 Jan 2012

Collection of 12 stories, first published from 2006 to 2010.
• Titles include Nebula nominee “Kiosk” (2006) and Sidewise finalist “Black Swan” (2009).
• Subterranean’s site has this description and order page with the table of contents.
• Originally scheduled for 2011, the book is included on the 2011 Locus Recommended Reading List. Amazon.com indicates Jan 31, 2012 publication, though neither it nor the publisher’s site had it for sale until this past week. The publisher’s site indicates the trade edition is sold out; Amazon indicates shipping in 3-6 weeks.
• Russell Letson reviewed the book in the January issue of Locus Magazine, saying the stories “all [feature] the usual sharp-eared and -eyed satirical humor and astute meditations on the synergies of technological and political change, along with flashes of serious humanity. To borrow the word that served as the title of his millennial novel, Sterling remains a poet of the zeitgeist, of the scene, the skinny, the inside dope, the most happening of what’s-happening-now-baby.”

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* Straub, Peter : The Ballad of Ballard and Sandrine
(Subterranean Press 978-1-59606-441-6, $20, 96pp, hardcover, January 2012)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 31 Jan 2012

Book edition of a novella first published in Conjunctions 56: Terra Incognita in 2011, about a couple on a yacht trip down the Amazon River.
• Subterranean’s site has this description and order page.
• Like the Sterling title above, Amazon.com indicates a publication date of Jan 31, 2012, though it has only become available in the past week.
• The Publishers Weekly review said, “Twisting time and expectations, Straub’s disturbing novella slowly submerges readers in an enigmatic nightmare…”

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* Willis, Connie : All About Emily
(Subterranean Press 978-1-59606-452-2, $20, 96pp, hardcover, January 2012)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 31 Jan 2012

Book edition of a novelette that first appeared in the December 2011 issue of Asimov’s magazine, about an aging Broadway star and a fan of hers named Emily.
• Subterranean’s site has this description and order page.
• The Publishers Weekly review concludes, “This low-key paean to intergenerational collaboration and passionate ambition, stuffed with film and theater references, will appeal to Willis fans, drama buffs, and anyone who likes having their heartstrings tugged.”

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