Anderson, Kevin J. : The Key to Creation
(Orbit 978-0-316-00424-4, $7.99, 784pp, mass market paperback, July 2012)
Nominal Publication Date: Tue 26 Jun 2012
Terra Incognita #3

(First edition: Orbit, July 2011)

Epic fantasy novel, third in the “Terra Incognita” series following The Edge of the World (2009) and The Map of All Things (2010), about a religious war between two kingdoms as they explore unknown continents on their planet.
• The author’s site has descriptions of all three books, with details about two music CDs.
• Amazon’s “Look Inside” function provides a preview.

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Cline, Ernest : Ready Player One
(Broadway 978-0307887443, $14, 384pp, trade paperback, June 2012)
Nominal Publication Date: Tue 5 Jun 2012

(First edition: Crown, August 2011)

Near-future SF novel, the author’s first novel, set in 2044 and concerning OASIS, a virtual reality world whose creator left three keys to inherit his fortune.
• Official book site http://www.readyplayerone.com/ has excerpts and other features.
• Adrienne Martini reviewed the book in the August 2011 issue of Locus Magazine: “What Cline has done here doesn’t break new ground, but what Ready Player One does, it does with a joyful enthusiasm that makes it a fun read for both hardcore gamer geeks and ’80s survivors alike.”
• Amazon’s “Look Inside” function provides a preview. Amazon has a guest review by Daniel H. Wilson, a Q&A with the author, and 878 reader reviews, averaging 4.5 out of 5.

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Gould, Steven : 7th Sigma
(Tor 978-0812561555, $7.99, 384pp, mass market paperback, July 2012)
Nominal Publication Date: Tue 26 Jun 2012

(First edition: Tor, July 2011)

SF novel in which the American southwest has been invaded by self-replicated robotic insects that devour metal, forcing survivors in the area to live primitive lives without metal.
• Tor’s site has this description.
• Amazon’s “Look Inside” function provides an excerpt.

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Goyer, David S., & Michael Cassutt : Heaven’s Shadow
(Ace 978-1937007645, $9.99, 544pp, mass market paperback, July 2012)
Nominal Publication Date: Tue 26 Jun 2012
Heaven’s War #1

(First edition: Ace, July 2011)

SF novel, first in a trilogy, about an enormous asteroid approaching the sun that is guided by aliens seeking humanity’s help.
• The second novel, Heaven’s War, was published this month in hardcover.
• The publisher’s site has this this description with an excerpt.

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Kollin, Dani, & Eytan Kollin : The Unincorporated Woman
(Tor 978-0-7653-3050-5, $15.99, 416pp, trade paperback, July 2012)
Nominal Publication Date: Tue 3 Jul 2012
Unincorporated Man #3

(First edition: Tor, August 2011)

SF novel, third in a series following The Unincorporated Man (2009) and The Unincorporated War (2010).
• Tor’s site has this description with quotes from reviews.
• Amazon’s “Look Inside” function provides a preview.

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Mann, George : The Immorality Engine
(Tor 978-0-765-32777-2, $14.99, 352pp, trade paperback, July 2012)
Nominal Publication Date: Tue 3 Jul 2012

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Steampunk SF novel set in an alternate early-20th century London, third in a series following The Affinity Bridge (UK 2008, US 2009) and The Osiris Ritual (UK 2009, US 2010).
• Tor’s site has this description.
• Amazon’s “Look Inside” function includes an excerpt.

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Monette, Sarah, & Elizabeth Bear : The Tempering of Men
(Tor 978-0-7653-6412-8, $7.99, 320pp, mass market paperback, July 2012)
Nominal Publication Date: Tue 26 Jun 2012
Companion to Wolves #2

(First edition: Tor, August 2011)

Fantasy novel, sequel to A Companion to Wolves (2007).
• Tor’s site has this description.
• Amazon’s “Look Inside” function provides an excerpt.

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Stross, Charles : Rule 34
(Ace 978-1937007669, $7.99, 352pp, mass market paperback, July 2012)
Nominal Publication Date: Tue 26 Jun 2012
Halting State #2

(First edition: Ace, July 2011)

SF novel, sequel to Halting State (2007), about a police investigation into a series of murders related to Internet spamming. The book’s title refers to the Internet meme “if it exists, there’s porn about it”.
• The publisher’s site has this description with an excerpt.
• The author’s site has this spoiler thread.
• The novel ranked 3rd in this year’s Locus Poll for Best SF Novel (ranked results to be posted shortly).

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Turtledove, Harry : The Big Switch
(Ballantine Del Rey 978-0-345-49187-9, $16, 448pp, trade paperback, July 2012)
Nominal Publication Date: Tue 26 Jun 2012
The War that Came Early #3

(First edition: Ballantine Del Rey, July 2011)

Alternate history novel, third in a series following Hitler’s War (2009) and West and East (2010) about an alternate World War II that followed when Neville Chamberlain stood up to Hitler rather than appeased him with the Munich Accord.
• Del Rey’s site has this description with an excerpt.
• Amazon’s “Look Inside” function provides a preview.

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VanderMeer, Ann, & Jeff VanderMeer, eds. : The Thackery T. Lambshead Cabinet of Curiosities
(Harper Voyager 978-0-06-211683-3, $14.99, 336pp, trade paperback, July 2012)
Nominal Publication Date: Tue 10 Jul 2012

(First edition: Harper Voyager, July 2011)

Anthology of 30 original steampunk fantasy stories, subtitled “Exhibits, Oddities, Images, and Stories from Top Authors and Artists”, set in the same world as 2003 anthology The Thackery T. Lambshead Pocket Guide to Eccentric & Discredited Diseases, concerning oddities found in Lambshead’s home after his death in 2003.
• Authors include Ted Chiang, Garth Nix, Jeffrey Ford, Lev Grossman, Michael Moorcock, China Miéville, Charles Yu, Alan Moore, and Brian Evenson. There are also numerous illustrations by Mike Mignola, J.K. Potter, and many others.
• HarperVoyager’s site has this description with a preview function.
• Amazon’s “Look Inside” function also provides a preview.

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Williams, Mazarkis : The Emperor’s Knife
(Night Shade Books 978-1597804028, $14.99, 352pp, trade paperback, July 2012)
Nominal Publication Date: Tue 26 Jun 2012

(First edition: UK: Quercus/Jo Fletcher, November 2011)

Fantasy novel, the author’s first novel, set in an empire plagued by a ‘Pattern’, concerning palace schemes to take control once the Pattern affects the Emperor.
• Night Shade’s site has this description. This is the paperback editoin of the first US edition of the first book in Jo Fletcher’s new line for UK publisher Quercus Books.
• Amazon’s “Look Inside” function provides an excerpt.

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Williamson, Michael Z. : Rogue
(Baen 978-1451637878, $7.99, 480pp, mass market paperback, July 2012)
Nominal Publication Date: Tue 26 Jun 2012
Freehold #6

(First edition: Baen, September 2011)

Military SF novel, sixth in the “Freehold” series following Freehold (2004), The Weapon (2005), Better to Beg Forgiveness (2007), Contact with Chaos (2009), and Do Unto Others (2010).
• Baen’s site has this description with links to several chapter excerpts.

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Wolfe, Gene : An Evil Guest
(Tor 978-0-7653-6097-7, $7.99, 304pp, mass market paperback, July 2012)
Nominal Publication Date: Tue 26 Jun 2012

(First edition: Tor, September 2008)

Supernatural horror novel set 100 years in the future, about “an actress who becomes the lover of both a mysterious sorcerer and private detective, and an even more mysterious and powerful rich man, who has been to the human colony on an alien planet and learned strange things there…”, according to the description on Tor’s website.
• Tor’s site has this description with an excerpt.
• There was an earlier trade paperback edition in November 2009.
• Amazon’s “look inside” function includes an opening excerpt.
• Amazon still has Publishers Weekly‘s “signature review” by Caitlin Kiernan, who calls it a “deliriously anachronistic novel, which, though seemingly set near or at the end of the 21st century, feels more like a wild confabulation of the ’20s, ’30s, ’40s and ’50s, with a bit of the ’80s sprinkled here and there, and just a dash of the first decade of our new millennium.”
• The novel placed 3rd in that year’s Locus Poll for Best Fantasy Novel.

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