Notable new SF, Fantasy, and Horror books seen : October 2004 Week #4

Nonfiction anthology of 17 essays by philosophical experts. Contributors include Tom Morris, Jerry L. Walls, Steven W. Patterson, and Gareth B. Matthews. Essays are divided into four sections: "Gryffindor: The Characters of Harry's World"; "Hufflepuff: Morality in Rowling's Universe"; "Slytherin: Knockturn Alley and the Dark Arts"; and "Ravenclaw: Many-Flavored Topics in Metaphysics". Includes index.
• The publisher's site has this description.
(Fri 22 Oct 2004) • Purchase this book from Amazon | BookSense

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SF novel in which AI's have destroyed San Francisco and taken over the western US.
• The book has its own URL, www.prometheusroad.com, which has this excerpt, plus links to an author bio, news, etc.
• Amazon has Harriet Klausner's review, which calls it "a cross between The Matrix and the Terminator".
(Wed 27 Oct 2004) • Purchase this book from Amazon | BookSense

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Vampire novel, first of a five-book series, concerning a mercenary knight in the Second Crusade who is given the 'kiss of life'.
• The publisher's site has this description. The author's website has a page of wicked bits and an excerpt from Chapter 1.
• Harriet Klausner likes this one too: "a truly terrific horror novel."
(Wed 13 Oct 2004) • Purchase this book from Amazon | BookSense

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Third volume of the manga series, translated from the 2004 Japanese edition, set in an alternate reality and concerning archaeological digs and mysterious powers. This series crosses over with the same authors' xxxHOLiC series.
• Del Rey's site has this description.
(Tue 19 Oct 2004) • Purchase this book from Amazon | BookSense

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Third volume of the manga series, translated from the 2004 Japanese edition, about a man indentured to a time-space witch. Cynthia Ward reviewed the first volume in this Locus Online article. This series crosses over with the same authors' Tsubasa series.
• Del Rey has this description.
(Wed 13 Oct 2004) • Purchase this book from Amazon | BookSense

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Anthology, first of a planned series, of winners and shortlisted works for the annual James Tiptree, Jr. Award for works that "explore and expand gender roles in science fiction".
• This volume has an excerpt for the winning work from 2003, Matt Ruff's novel Set This House in Order, and shortlisted stories by Geoff Ryman, Richard Calder, Kara Dalkey, Carol Emshwiller, Sandra McDonald, and Ruth Nestvold.
• Also included are Karen Joy Fowler's Nebula Award-winning "What I Didn't See", Kelly Link's "Travels with the Snow Queen", and Hans Christian Andersen's "The Snow Queen".
• The book reprints an essay/letter by Tiptree and has original essays by Ursula K. Le Guin, Suzy McKee Charnas,, and Joanna Russ.
• The publisher's site still lists the book on its Forthcoming page; the book just debuted at last weekend's World Fantasy Convention.
• Amazon's page has a description of the book and background of the editors.
(Sun 31 Oct 2004) • Purchase this book from Amazon | BookSense

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Fantasy novel, first of a trilogy about "magic and power, hidden birthrights and prophecies", according to the publisher's description.
• The publisher also has this excerpt.
• Amazon has the PW review, which says that despite "names like Éireamhóine and Baillébachlein", "Classical fantasy elements, such as the eternal war between Light and Dark and the royal-born savior adopted by ignorant strangers, share space with a surprisingly original setting and story."
(Thu 14 Oct 2004) • Purchase this book from Amazon | BookSense

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YA fantasy novel, first of a series, about a boy who's transported to an alternate world where his mother hasn't died, but where she had a daughter instead of a son.
• The publisher's site has this description, an excerpt, and a reading guide.
• Amazon has reviews from School Library Journal and Booklist.
• Carolyn Cushman reviewed it in the August issue of Locus, calling it "atmospheric and moving" and a book that has "two endings, both emotionally wrenching yet satisfying, while still leaving room for future adventures."
(Thu 14 Oct 2004) • Purchase this book from Amazon | BookSense

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Fantasy novel, third in the "Hunter's Blades" trilogy following The Thousand Orcs and The Lone Drow, about the popular dark elf character Drizzt Do'Urden.
• The publisher's site has this description, an interview with the author, an excerpt linked as a zip file, wallpaper download, and more.
(Wed 27 Oct 2004) • Purchase this book from Amazon | BookSense

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Fantasy novel about a man, Thomas Wilander, trying to salvage an abandoned ship, Viator, off the coast of Alaska.
• The publishers's site has this description.
• Amazon has the Publishers Weekly review, which begins "Filled with long, beautiful sentences that play out like never-ending riffs from a jazz musician's horn, the new novel by World Fantasy Award-winner Shepard works as a stylistic experiment and as a short, edgy look at the intricacies of fate and the power each individual may or may not have over his own destiny."
• Nick Gevers has a review in an upcoming issue of Locus Magazine: "This is Shepard at his most magnificently baroque, a triumph of style."
(Fri 29 Oct 2004) • Purchase this book from Amazon | BookSense

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Fantasy novel, first volume of "Mythic Fantasy", based on Greek mythology.
• The publisher's site has this description (click 'read more'), and links to the brief prologue and an excerpt from the next volume, Rise of Rebellion, due in 2006.
• Not listed on Amazon; try Barnes & Noble or the publisher's site.
(Mon 25 Oct 2004) • Purchase this book from Amazon | BookSense

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Horror novel, sequel (in a sense) to last year's lost boy, lost girl, in which Tim Underhill, a writer whose nephew was apparently murdered in the first book, now discovers a character he's created in his journals has come into existence.
• The Random House site has this description, and an excerpt.
• Amazon has the starred Publishers Weekly review, from its Oct. 4th issue, which concludes "Moving briskly while ranging from high humor to the blackest dread, this is an original, astonishingly smart and expertly entertaining meditation on imagination and its powers; one of the very finest works of Straub's long career, it's a sure bet for future award nominations."
• Gary K. Wolfe reviews it in the November issue of Locus Magazine, calling it "one of the stronger works of Straub's career" and remarking on "the boldness with which he interrogates the nature of narrative itself; the novel literally does things that I've seen few other novels even attempt."
(Wed 27 Oct 2004) • Purchase this book from Amazon | BookSense

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Historical fantasy about William the Conqueror.
• Tarr's site has a description on the bibliography page (scroll down).
• Amazon has the PW review and the starred Booklist review, which describes this as the author's latest "scrupulously researched historical fiction that blends myth, mystery, historical fact, and page-turning-good action."
(Thu 14 Oct 2004) • Purchase this book from Amazon | BookSense

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YA fantasy novel, sequel to Shadowmancer, the bestseller often described as a Christian alternative to Harry Potter. It's about a comet, called Wormwood, that strikes 18th-century London.
• The publisher's site has a description and an excerpt.
• The books' site has this page with a description and a link to the author's tour schedule.
• Amazon has reviews from School Library Journal (an "unremittingly dark fantasy") and Booklist.
(Thu 14 Oct 2004) • Purchase this book from Amazon | BookSense

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SF novel, sequel to City of Pearl (described in March), about an environmental enforcement officer on a dangerous planet.
• The publisher's site has this description and a chapter excerpt.
• The author's website is www.karentraviss.com.
• Russell Letson reviews it in the November issue of Locus Magazine, comparing the author's work to that of Le Guin, Arnason, Kress, and Cherryh.
(Wed 27 Oct 2004) • Purchase this book from Amazon | BookSense

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Alternate history novel in which the Japanese, following their bombing of Pearl Harbor, invade and occupy Hawaii.
• Amazon has the PW review, which concludes "With an emphasis on tactics and warfare technology, this exciting, well-researched alternate history will please history buffs and SF fans alike."
• Steven H Silver has posted this review, noting that the book is first of a two-book series.
(Wed 27 Oct 2004) • Purchase this book from Amazon | BookSense

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Military SF novel set in the Star Kingdom of Manticore but not involving Honor Harrington, popular character at the focus of most books in the series. This novel takes a more global view of how a military organization works, according to the PW review on the Amazon page.
• Baen's site has this description, and links to several chapter excerpts.
(Wed 27 Oct 2004) • Purchase this book from Amazon | BookSense

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Collection of 11 stories, 4 novel excerpts, and numerous non-fiction items. A center color section has reproductions of the "Beyond Mars" comic strip (drawn by Lee Elias) and an illustrated chronology.
• Stories include "The Metal Man", an excerpt from "The Legion of Space", "Collision Orbit", "With Folded Hands", "Jamboree", an excerpt from "Demon Moon", Hugo and Nebula Award winner "The Ultimate Earth", and an excerpt from nonficiton "H.G. Wells: Critic of Progress", Williamson's doctoral thesis first published in 1973.
• The book is edited by Stephen Haffner & Richard A. Hauptmann, and has a foreword by Connie Willis, an introduction by Arthur C. Clarke, and an afterword by Williamson.
• The publisher also offers a signed, slipcased, limited edition of 75 (for $175.00 each) and a deluxe lettered edition of 26 ($2,000.00) -- contact Haffner Press, 5005 Crooks Rd, Suite 35, Royal Oak MI 48073-1239.
• The Amazon page has a more detailed description.
• Brian A. Hopkins has posted photos taken during this year's Jack Williamson Lectureship at Williamson's home and at Eastern New Mexico University.
(Sat 30 Oct 2004) • Purchase this book from Amazon | BookSense

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The torchlight seemed such a meager thing against the unrelenting darkness of the dwarven caves.

About 9:45 on a Wednesday morning early in a rain-drenched September, a novelist named Timothy Underhill gave up, in more distress than he cared to acknowledge, on his ruined breakfast and the New York Times crossword puzzle and returned, far behind schedule, to his third-floor loft at 55 Grand Street.

The missile salvo came screaming in from astern.

At sixteen, Alaric and Naia were as alike as any two people of opposite sexes can be.