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Fantasy and Science Fiction January 2019
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| City of Broken Magic by Mirah BolenderIntroducing: the Sweepers, the (downsized) emergency response unit that protects the city of Amicae from magical "infestations."
What happens: Apprentice Sweeper Laura struggles to learn the ropes of a difficult and dangerous job while dealing with a demanding boss.
For fans of: the industrialized fantasy setting of Max Gladstone's Craft novels, the inventive amulet-centered magical system of Brandon Sanderson's Stormlight Archive. |
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No sleep till doomsday
by Laurence MacNaughton
The third instalment in the Dru Jasper series about an inexperienced crystal sorceress and her half-demon boyfriend Greyson. Can Dru save Greyson’s soul, salvage her friendships, and find the apocalypse scroll in time to stop doomsday?
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Thin air
by Richard K. Morgan
To return to Earth, Hakan Veil, an ex-corporate enforcer equipped with a military-grade body tech that makes him a human killing machine, becomes the bodyguard for an EO investigator, which makes him a target of powerful enemies determined to destroy him.
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Trail of lightning
by Rebecca Roanhorse
While most of the world has drowned beneath the sudden rising waters of a climate apocalypse, Dinétah (formerly the Navajo reservation) has been reborn. The gods and heroes of legend walk the land, but so do monsters. When a small town needs her help in finding a missing girl, Maggie Hoskie, a Dinetah monster hunter and supernaturally gifted killer, reluctantly enlists the help of an unconventional medicine man to uncover the terrifying truth behind the disappearance—and her own past.
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Mecha samurai empire
by Peter Tieryas Liu
"The Man in the High Castle meets Pacific Rim in this action-packed alternate history novel from the award-winning author of United States of Japan. Germany and Japan won WWII and control the U.S., and a young man has one dream: to become a mecha pilot. Makoto Fujimoto grew up in California, but with a difference--his California is part of the United States of Japan. After Germany and Japan won WWII, the United States fell under their control. Growing up in this world, Mac plays portical games, haphazardly studies for the Imperial Exam, and dreams of becoming a mecha pilot. Only problem: Mac's grades are terrible. His only hope is to pass the military exam and get into the prestigious mecha pilot training program at Berkeley Military Academy. When his friend Hideki's plan to game the test goes horribly wrong, Mac washes out of the military exam too. Perhaps he can achieve his dream by becoming a civilian pilot. But with tensions rising between Imperial Japan and Nazi Germany and rumors of collaborators and traitors abounding, Mac will have to stay alive long enough first..."
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The Tower of Living and Dying
by Anna Smith Spark
Marith has been a sellsword, a prince, a murderer, a demon, and dead. But something keeps bringing him back to life, and now there is nothing stopping him from taking back the throne that is rightfully his. Thalia, the former high priestess, remains Marith’s only tenuous grasp to whatever goodness he has left. His left hand and his last source of light, Thalia still believes that the power that lies within him can be used for better ends. But as more forces gather beneath Marith’s banner, she can feel her influence slipping.
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| The Mortal Word: An Invisible Library Novel by Genevieve CogmanWhat it is: the 5th installment of the Invisible Library series.
Starring: dimension-hopping librarian-spy Irene Winters, tapped to investigate the assassination of a diplomat; Irene's former apprentice, dragon prince Kai; and their friend, Great Detective Peregrine Vale.
For fans of: Doctor Who, Jasper Fforde's Thursday Next series, and Jodi Taylor's The Chronicles of St. Mary's novels. |
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The consuming fire
by John Scalzi
Interdependency leader Emperor Grayland II races to safeguard humanity's interstellar empire from the collapse of the extra-dimensional conduit that billions depend on for survival.
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| Senlin Ascends by Josiah BancroftWhat it's about: For their honeymoon, schoolmaster Thomas Senlin takes his new bride Marya to the Tower of Babel. When they get separated, Thomas must ascend the Tower's "ringdoms" to get her back.
Is it for you? To its classic hero's journey, this allegorical fantasy adds intricate Kafka-esque scenarios and Steampunk-inflected world-building.
Series alert: Originally self-published, this debut is the 1st installment of a planned four-book series; book 2, Arm of the Sphinx, is available now. |
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| The Tethered Mage by Melissa CarusoWhat it's about: When Lady Amalia Cornaro places a magical jess (restraint) on rogue fire warlock Zaira, she becomes a Falconer and Zaira, her rebellious Falcon. Now the Serene Empire of Raverra depends on their ability to work together.
Why you might like it: The Tethered Mage offers a well-drawn setting reminiscent of the Republic of Venice and spirited heroines caught up in the power struggle between its various factions.
Series alert: This opening installment of the Swords and Fire series continues with The Defiant Heir. |
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| The Rule of Luck by Catherine CervenyWhat it's about: When Russian crime boss Alexei Petriv walks into her shop in Nairobi's Night Alley, tarot card reader Felicia Sevigny discovers that, like it or not, their fates are intertwined.
Why you might like it: Set in a 30th-century world in which a single world government has arisen in the wake of climate change, this debut blends action-packed SF adventure and steamy romance.
Series alert: The Rule of Luck is the 1st book in a trilogy that continues with The Chaos of Luck and The Game of Luck. |
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| Noumenon by Marina J. LostetterWhat it's about: The discovery of an anomalous extrasolar star leads to the launch of Project Noumenon, a convoy of generation ships piloted by a crew of clones.
Why you might like it: Structured as a series of vignettes, this thought-provoking debut explores human relationships without skimping on science.
You might also like: Neal Stephenson's Seveneves, Kim Stanley Robinson's Aurora, or Adrian Tchaikovsky's Children of Time. |
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| Wonderblood by Julia WhickerIn a (post-apocalyptic) world... where Disease has decimated the human population, the doctrine of Wonderblood has produced a nomadic "carnival" culture that revolves around ritual beheadings.
What happens: Taken captive by sadistic self-styled "True King" Mr. Capulatio, adolescent Aurora is forced to accompany him to the "holy city" of Cape Canaveral as his chosen Queen.
Want a taste? "When they rode, they took severed heads with them, in canvas sacks, in saddlebags, and set them out wherever they stopped..." |
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