Locus Online: New Books, last week April 2007

* Andrews, Ilona : Magic Bites
(Ace 978-0-441-01489-7, $6.99, 260pp, mass market paperback, April 2007, cover art Chad Michael Ward)

Urban fantasy novel, first in the "Kate Daniels" series, about a female mercenary in a magical Atlanta.
• The publisher's site has a brief description.
• The author's site has an excerpt, with a link to an excerpt from the sequel, Sisters of the Crow.
• Carolyn Cushman reviews it in the May issue of Locus Magazine: "A female mercenary gets dragged into a murder investigation for the Order of Knights of Merciful Aid in this entertaining urban fantasy set in a world where magic has returned. ... It's an intriguing world, and a promising first novel from a pseudonymous husband and wife writing team."

(Fri 27 Apr 2007) • Purchase this book from Amazon | BookSense • (Directory Entry)

* Bell, Hilari : Shield of Stars
(Simon & Schuster 1-416-90594-4, $16.99, 267pp, hardcover, April 2007, jacket illustration Gene Mollica)

Young adult fantasy novel, first book in the "The Shield, Sword, and Crown", about a former pickpocket named Weasel whose benefactor, Justice Holis, is arrested for treason.
• The publisher's site has this description; "... With extraordinary craftsmanship, Hilari Bell weaves a fantasy adventure story that will have readers captivated from the first word to the last."

(Sat 28 Apr 2007) • Purchase this book from Amazon | BookSense • (Directory Entry)

* Clare, Cassandra : The Mortal Instruments, Book One: City of Bones
(Simon & Schuster/McElderry 1-416-91428-5, $17.99, 485pp, hardcover, April 2007, jacket illustration Cliff Nielsen)

Young adult fantasy novel, first in the "Mortal Instruments" trilogy, about a 15-year-old girl who witnesses a murder in New York City committed by Shadowhunters, warriors dedicated to ridding the earth of demons.
• The publisher's site has this description and an excerpt.
• Amazon has posts by the author, including her book signing tour beginning May 7th.
• Locus Magazine listed the book among its New and Notable for May 2007: "A young woman witnesses an impossible murder and becomes involved in a supernatural war in this smart young-adult urban dark fantasy, the first volume in the Mortal Instruments trilogy. The first professionally published novel from a well-known fan-fic writer (as Cassandra Claire)."

(Sat 28 Apr 2007) • Purchase this book from Amazon | BookSense • (Directory Entry)

* Eric Flint, & Weber, David : 1634: The Baltic War
(Baen 1-4165-2102-X, $26, 728pp, hardcover, May 2007, cover illustration Tom Kidd)

Alternate history time travel novel, sequel to 1632 by Flint alone and 1633 by both authors. It's part of the "1632" series by various authors, about the city of Grantville, West Virginia that is transported from 2000 to Germany in 1631.
• Flint's website links to www.1632.org, with a dictionary, FAQ, maps, and submission guidelines for The Grantville Gazette.
• Amazon has the Publishers Weekly review -- "While the technology that the modern Americans employ is decidedly useful, Flint and Weber emphasize the effect that the ideas of liberty, equality and the rule of law have, and not just on the peasantry and middle classes. ... Readers will eagerly look forward to further installments in this richly imagined alternate history series." -- and enthusiastic reader reviews.

(Fri 27 Apr 2007) • Purchase this book from Amazon | BookSense • (Directory Entry)

* Greenberg, Martin H., & Russell Davis, eds. : If I Were an Evil Overlord
(DAW 978-0-7564-0384-3, $7.99, 306pp, mass market paperback, March 2007)

Anthology of 14 original stories about evil overlords. Authors include Esther Friesner, Dave Bischoff, Jody Lynn Nye, Dean Wesley Smith, and Nina Kiriki Hoffman.
• Amazon has the publisher's description: "Who hasn't dreamed of being an evil overlord? Today's finest fantasy authors have delivered fourteen tales that run the gamut from humorous to serious, fantasy to science fiction. Certain to appeal to role-playing gamers, fantasy lovers, and megalomaniacs who want to rule the world."

(Fri 27 Apr 2007) • Purchase this book from Amazon | BookSense • (Directory Entry)

* Martin, Gail Z. : The Summoner
(Solaris 1-84416-468-3, $7.99, 637pp, mass market paperback, February 2007, cover art Michael Komarck)

Fantasy novel, first in the "Chronicles of the Necromancer", about a prince who summons the ranks of the dead to avenge the death of his father.
• Solaris' website has a description and a PDF sample chapter.
• The author's official site has background, a blog, quotes from reviews, a map, and much else.
• Amazon has posts by the author, with news of the second book's title.

(Fri 27 Apr 2007) • Purchase this book from Amazon | BookSense • (Directory Entry)

* Pinborough, Sarah : The Taken
(Leisure 0-8439-5896-0, $6.99, 323pp, mass market paperback, April 2007)

Horror novel about the ghost of a little girl who died 30 years ago who has returned to a small English town to take revenge on those responsible for her death.
• The publisher's site has this description and an excerpt.
• Amazon has the Publishers Weekly review: "Wisely, Pinborough (Breeding Ground) opts to build suspense subtly, rather than bludgeon readers with horrific imagery or buckets of gore, giving this nicely executed, surprisingly moving ghost story an old-fashioned feel in the best possible sense."

(Wed 18 Apr 2007) • Purchase this book from Amazon | BookSense • (Directory Entry)

* Rochelle, Warren : Harvest of Changelings
(Golden Gryphon Press 1-930846-46-0, $24.95, 313pp, hardcover, May 2007, cover painting Matt Hughes)

Fantasy novel about the father of a half-fairy son who needs to reach a gateway to Faery at Halloween and evade the enemy Fomorii.
• Golden Gryphon's site has this page for the book, with a description, and blurbs from Jim Grimsley, Andy Duncan, and Nancy Kress, who says the book "is an original and fascinating blend of Faerie and Christian belief, with a final battle that will leave you tingling."
• The author has this webpage.
• Amazon has the starred Publishers Weekly review, from its April 16th issue, calling it "an excellent traditional fantasy that draws on centuries-old Celtic fairy lore" and concluding "The book's strength lies in the sensitive characterizations and the texture of its contemporary reality. Some Wiccans may be upset by depictions of black witchcraft (though Rochelle is clearly aware of white witchcraft), but otherwise this should be a book with wide appeal, as it touches so sensitively on basic emotions, recognizable by anyone who remembers childhood."

(Mon 30 Apr 2007) • Purchase this book from Amazon | BookSense • (Directory Entry)

* Scalzi, John : The Last Colony
(Tor 978-0-765-31697-4, $23.95, 320pp, hardcover, May 2007, jacket art John Harris)

SF novel, third in a trilogy following the author's popular first novel Old Man's War (2005) and its sequel The Ghost Brigades (2006). In this book John Perry and his family emigrate to a new colony planet.
• Tor's website has this page for the book with a description and an excerpt.
• Amazon has the Publishers Weekly review: "Full of whodunit twists and explosive action, Scalzi's third SF novel lacks the galactic intensity of its two related predecessors, but makes up for it with entertaining storytelling on a very human scale..."

(Fri 27 Apr 2007) • Purchase this book from Amazon | BookSense • (Directory Entry)

* Somoza, Jose Carlos : Zig Zag
(HarperCollins/Rayo 0-06-119371-2, $24.95, 504pp, hardcover, April 2007)

SF thriller about string-theory researchers whose invention of a way to see historic events unleashes a sinister force that's killing the team members, one by one.
• HarperCollins has this description and an excerpt.
• The author's official website is in Spanish; Wikipedia has this entry.
• Amazon has the Publishers Weekly review: "an ingenious novel with an original intellectual premise that delivers a megaton of action and adventure... While not quite up to Michael Crichton standard, this page-turner is sure to please thrillers fans."

(Wed 18 Apr 2007) • Purchase this book from Amazon | BookSense • (Directory Entry)

* Wilson, Daniel H. : Where's My Jetpack?: A Guide to the Amazing Science Fiction Future that Never Arrived
(Bloomsbury 1-59691-136-0, $14.95, 192pp, trade paperback, April 2007)

Humorous nonfiction survey of various as-yet-unrealized futuristic technological wonders. Illustrations are by Richard Horne.
• Like the author's previous book, How to Survive a Robot Uprising, this is a smallish trade paperback (slightly larger than the earlier book) on heavy stock with a foil cover and color-edged pages (blue this time).
• Topics include jetpacks, moving sidewalks, flying cars, teleportation, robot pets, universal translators, food pills, rays guns, space elevators, and moon colonies.
• Bloomsbury's site has this description.
• The author's website (where he wears a tie and glasses to look very smart and intimidate people) has links to reviews.
• Publishers Weekly's review noted that "Happily, this Ph.D. isn't trading in idle speculation; among plenty of jokes and silliness he deals in solid -- and fascinating -- science. ... Though readers of this slim guide may not be inspired to 'raise your voice, and demand your personal jetpack,' it's got plenty of encouragement and info for frustrated futurists."

(Tue 24 Apr 2007) • Purchase this book from Amazon | BookSense • (Directory Entry)

	MONITOR New Books Apr #3 Greg Bear Simon Brown Jim Butcher Kay Kenyon Louise Marley Sandra McDonald Natasha Mostert Vicki Pettersson Joel Shepherd J.R.R. Tolkien John C. Wright New Books Apr #2 Alma Alexander Janine Cross Camille Gabor Matt Haig Justine Larbalestier Scott Nicholson Luis Ortiz Robin D. Owens Jeff Prucher Eva Swan Saskia Walker 2007 Archive 2007 Books Directories Advertisement KEY This page lists selected newly published SFFH books seen by Locus Online (independently from the listings compiled by Locus Magazine). Review copies received will be listed (though reprints and reissues are on other pages), but not galleys or advance reading copies. Selections, some based only on bookstore sightings, are at the discretion of Locus Online. * = first edition + = first US edition Date with publisher info is official publication month; Date in parentheses at paragraph end is date seen or received. LINKS Links Portal Bookseller Links Your purchase of books through Amazon.com and Amazon UK links (click on titles or covers) helps support Locus Online Publisher Links E-mail Locus Online		New SF, Fantasy, and Horror books seen : last week April 2007 posted 3 May 2007 * Andrews, Ilona : Magic Bites (Ace 978-0-441-01489-7, $6.99, 260pp, mass market paperback, April 2007, cover art Chad Michael Ward) Urban fantasy novel, first in the "Kate Daniels" series, about a female mercenary in a magical Atlanta. • The publisher's site has a brief description. • The author's site has an excerpt, with a link to an excerpt from the sequel, Sisters of the Crow. • Carolyn Cushman reviews it in the May issue of Locus Magazine: "A female mercenary gets dragged into a murder investigation for the Order of Knights of Merciful Aid in this entertaining urban fantasy set in a world where magic has returned. ... It's an intriguing world, and a promising first novel from a pseudonymous husband and wife writing team." (Fri 27 Apr 2007) • Purchase this book from Amazon \| BookSense • (Directory Entry) \| * Bell, Hilari : Shield of Stars (Simon & Schuster 1-416-90594-4, $16.99, 267pp, hardcover, April 2007, jacket illustration Gene Mollica) Young adult fantasy novel, first book in the "The Shield, Sword, and Crown", about a former pickpocket named Weasel whose benefactor, Justice Holis, is arrested for treason. • The publisher's site has this description; "... With extraordinary craftsmanship, Hilari Bell weaves a fantasy adventure story that will have readers captivated from the first word to the last." (Sat 28 Apr 2007) • Purchase this book from Amazon \| BookSense • (Directory Entry) \| * Clare, Cassandra : The Mortal Instruments, Book One: City of Bones (Simon & Schuster/McElderry 1-416-91428-5, $17.99, 485pp, hardcover, April 2007, jacket illustration Cliff Nielsen) Young adult fantasy novel, first in the "Mortal Instruments" trilogy, about a 15-year-old girl who witnesses a murder in New York City committed by Shadowhunters, warriors dedicated to ridding the earth of demons. • The publisher's site has this description and an excerpt. • Amazon has posts by the author, including her book signing tour beginning May 7th. • Locus Magazine listed the book among its New and Notable for May 2007: "A young woman witnesses an impossible murder and becomes involved in a supernatural war in this smart young-adult urban dark fantasy, the first volume in the Mortal Instruments trilogy. The first professionally published novel from a well-known fan-fic writer (as Cassandra Claire)." (Sat 28 Apr 2007) • Purchase this book from Amazon \| BookSense • (Directory Entry) \| * Eric Flint, & Weber, David : 1634: The Baltic War (Baen 1-4165-2102-X, $26, 728pp, hardcover, May 2007, cover illustration Tom Kidd) Alternate history time travel novel, sequel to 1632 by Flint alone and 1633 by both authors. It's part of the "1632" series by various authors, about the city of Grantville, West Virginia that is transported from 2000 to Germany in 1631. • Flint's website links to www.1632.org, with a dictionary, FAQ, maps, and submission guidelines for The Grantville Gazette. • Amazon has the Publishers Weekly review -- "While the technology that the modern Americans employ is decidedly useful, Flint and Weber emphasize the effect that the ideas of liberty, equality and the rule of law have, and not just on the peasantry and middle classes. ... Readers will eagerly look forward to further installments in this richly imagined alternate history series." -- and enthusiastic reader reviews. (Fri 27 Apr 2007) • Purchase this book from Amazon \| BookSense • (Directory Entry) \| * Greenberg, Martin H., & Russell Davis, eds. : If I Were an Evil Overlord (DAW 978-0-7564-0384-3, $7.99, 306pp, mass market paperback, March 2007) Anthology of 14 original stories about evil overlords. Authors include Esther Friesner, Dave Bischoff, Jody Lynn Nye, Dean Wesley Smith, and Nina Kiriki Hoffman. • Amazon has the publisher's description: "Who hasn't dreamed of being an evil overlord? Today's finest fantasy authors have delivered fourteen tales that run the gamut from humorous to serious, fantasy to science fiction. Certain to appeal to role-playing gamers, fantasy lovers, and megalomaniacs who want to rule the world." (Fri 27 Apr 2007) • Purchase this book from Amazon \| BookSense • (Directory Entry) \| * Martin, Gail Z. : The Summoner (Solaris 1-84416-468-3, $7.99, 637pp, mass market paperback, February 2007, cover art Michael Komarck) Fantasy novel, first in the "Chronicles of the Necromancer", about a prince who summons the ranks of the dead to avenge the death of his father. • Solaris' website has a description and a PDF sample chapter. • The author's official site has background, a blog, quotes from reviews, a map, and much else. • Amazon has posts by the author, with news of the second book's title. (Fri 27 Apr 2007) • Purchase this book from Amazon \| BookSense • (Directory Entry) \| * Pinborough, Sarah : The Taken (Leisure 0-8439-5896-0, $6.99, 323pp, mass market paperback, April 2007) Horror novel about the ghost of a little girl who died 30 years ago who has returned to a small English town to take revenge on those responsible for her death. • The publisher's site has this description and an excerpt. • Amazon has the Publishers Weekly review: "Wisely, Pinborough (Breeding Ground) opts to build suspense subtly, rather than bludgeon readers with horrific imagery or buckets of gore, giving this nicely executed, surprisingly moving ghost story an old-fashioned feel in the best possible sense." (Wed 18 Apr 2007) • Purchase this book from Amazon \| BookSense • (Directory Entry) \| * Rochelle, Warren : Harvest of Changelings (Golden Gryphon Press 1-930846-46-0, $24.95, 313pp, hardcover, May 2007, cover painting Matt Hughes) Fantasy novel about the father of a half-fairy son who needs to reach a gateway to Faery at Halloween and evade the enemy Fomorii. • Golden Gryphon's site has this page for the book, with a description, and blurbs from Jim Grimsley, Andy Duncan, and Nancy Kress, who says the book "is an original and fascinating blend of Faerie and Christian belief, with a final battle that will leave you tingling." • The author has this webpage. • Amazon has the starred Publishers Weekly review, from its April 16th issue, calling it "an excellent traditional fantasy that draws on centuries-old Celtic fairy lore" and concluding "The book's strength lies in the sensitive characterizations and the texture of its contemporary reality. Some Wiccans may be upset by depictions of black witchcraft (though Rochelle is clearly aware of white witchcraft), but otherwise this should be a book with wide appeal, as it touches so sensitively on basic emotions, recognizable by anyone who remembers childhood." (Mon 30 Apr 2007) • Purchase this book from Amazon \| BookSense • (Directory Entry) \| * Scalzi, John : The Last Colony (Tor 978-0-765-31697-4, $23.95, 320pp, hardcover, May 2007, jacket art John Harris) SF novel, third in a trilogy following the author's popular first novel Old Man's War (2005) and its sequel The Ghost Brigades (2006). In this book John Perry and his family emigrate to a new colony planet. • Tor's website has this page for the book with a description and an excerpt. • Amazon has the Publishers Weekly review: "Full of whodunit twists and explosive action, Scalzi's third SF novel lacks the galactic intensity of its two related predecessors, but makes up for it with entertaining storytelling on a very human scale..." (Fri 27 Apr 2007) • Purchase this book from Amazon \| BookSense • (Directory Entry) \| * Somoza, Jose Carlos : Zig Zag (HarperCollins/Rayo 0-06-119371-2, $24.95, 504pp, hardcover, April 2007) SF thriller about string-theory researchers whose invention of a way to see historic events unleashes a sinister force that's killing the team members, one by one. • HarperCollins has this description and an excerpt. • The author's official website is in Spanish; Wikipedia has this entry. • Amazon has the Publishers Weekly review: "an ingenious novel with an original intellectual premise that delivers a megaton of action and adventure... While not quite up to Michael Crichton standard, this page-turner is sure to please thrillers fans." (Wed 18 Apr 2007) • Purchase this book from Amazon \| BookSense • (Directory Entry) \| * Wilson, Daniel H. : Where's My Jetpack?: A Guide to the Amazing Science Fiction Future that Never Arrived (Bloomsbury 1-59691-136-0, $14.95, 192pp, trade paperback, April 2007) Humorous nonfiction survey of various as-yet-unrealized futuristic technological wonders. Illustrations are by Richard Horne. • Like the author's previous book, How to Survive a Robot Uprising, this is a smallish trade paperback (slightly larger than the earlier book) on heavy stock with a foil cover and color-edged pages (blue this time). • Topics include jetpacks, moving sidewalks, flying cars, teleportation, robot pets, universal translators, food pills, rays guns, space elevators, and moon colonies. • Bloomsbury's site has this description. • The author's website (where he wears a tie and glasses to look very smart and intimidate people) has links to reviews. • Publishers Weekly's review noted that "Happily, this Ph.D. isn't trading in idle speculation; among plenty of jokes and silliness he deals in solid -- and fascinating -- science. ... Though readers of this slim guide may not be inspired to 'raise your voice, and demand your personal jetpack,' it's got plenty of encouragement and info for frustrated futurists." (Tue 24 Apr 2007) • Purchase this book from Amazon \| BookSense • (Directory Entry) \| Previous New Books: April #3
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