Publisher: Orbit
Check Library Catalog Pub Date: 11/13/2012
ISBN-13: 9780316187213
ISBN-10: 0316187216

Military Fantasy. When Shy South returns from a trip to town with her stepfather, Lamb, she finds the family farm burned to the ground and her younger siblings missing. Suspecting that this is the work of child-abducting slave traders from the North, Shy and Lamb embark on a perilous journey to rescue the children. Although it's set in the same world as author Joe Abercrombie's First Law Trilogy, this novel (itself a loose sequel to the stand-alone book The Heroes) requires no previous knowledge of the series. However, newcomers who enjoy gritty, violent military-focused fantasy will no doubt want to immerse themselves in the books' vividly rendered setting.

Publisher: Ace Books
Check Library Catalog Pub Date: 10/02/2012
ISBN-13: 9781937007867
ISBN-10: 1937007863

Historical Fantasy. The year is 1348, and France and England are at war, but their territorial disputes are a mere skirmish compared to the cosmic clash between good and evil that's currently tearing Heaven and Earth apart. In this bleak, battle-scarred landscape, knight-turned-bandit Thomas meets a young woman named Delphine, compelled by angel voices to Avignon to seek an audience with the Pope. Thomas and Delphine face a perilous quest through plague-devastated countryside, fending off monsters, lethal black fog, and cannibals at every turn. But the greatest danger of all could come from Delphine, who can't be certain whether she's mad or divinely inspired.

Publisher: Tor
Check Library Catalog Pub Date: 10/02/2012
ISBN-13: 9780765330598
ISBN-10: 0765330598

Fantasy. Scarred by a fey curse, Jane Eliot wears an iron mask to prevent others from being infected by residual magic. Five years after The Great War between the human race and the fey, Jane -- both feared and pitied for her "ironskin" status, as well as barred from most forms of employment -- is grateful for the opportunity to serve as governness to a telekinetic child named Dorie, whom Jane suspects to be fey-cursed. As Jane works with Dorie to help the little girl manage her powers, she becomes intrigued by Dorie's father, widowed artist Edward Rochart, who is decidedly not what he seems. This steampunk-inspired blend of Jane Eyre and "Beauty and the Beast" will enchant fans of both gothic fiction and fairy tale retellings.

First Chapter  

Publisher: HarperCollins
Check Library Catalog Pub Date: 10/16/2012
ISBN-13: 9780062117854
ISBN-10: 0062117858

Urban Fantasy. Having rejected the magical community in which he was raised, ex-warlock Gage Powell is now the proprietor of Asylum, a tattoo parlor in Low Town. Although he's been appointed a Guardian to ensure that he doesn't misuse his magic, Gage does manage to infuse his ink with special charms -- whether for luck, love, or even "a hex on an ex." Unfortunately, flying under the radar is tough when you keep a cellar full of magical contraband and employ a beautiful tattoo artist who's really an elf in disguise (and on the lam). And that's before Gage runs afoul of the Grim Reaper. Featuring a likeable hero who can't seem to stay out of supernatural trouble, this 1st book in the Asylum Tales series may appeal to fans of Benedict Jacka's Alex Verus novels or Kevin Hearne's Iron Druid Chronicles.

Publisher: Tor
Check Library Catalog Pub Date: 10/02/2012
ISBN-13: 9780765333100
ISBN-10: 0765333104

Urban Fantasy. In the city of Alt Coulumb, gods communicate directly with humans, who use magic -- or Craft -- in a manner similar to the practice of law. Associate Craftswoman Tara Abernathy, a new hire at the firm of Klenthres, Albrecht, and Ao, has just received her first big assignment: resurrect fire god Kos and investigate how (and why) he died. Helping Tara solve the mystery is chain-smoking priest Abelard, who's been undergoing a crisis of faith ever since Kos' demise. Although the setting of Three Parts Dead is more modern, its diverse cast of characters and complicated relationships between mortals and their (not always immortal) gods may appeal to fans of N.K. Jemisin's Inheritance Trilogy.

First Chapter  

Publisher: Ace Books
Check Library Catalog Pub Date: 11/06/2012
ISBN-13: 9780425256817
ISBN-10: 0425256812

Contemporary Fantasy. Ever since they were children, Melanie Landon has protected her younger half-sister Ann, a shapeshifter who can take the form of a white dog. But keeping carefree Ann's secret takes a toll on Melanie, especially when journalist Brody Westerbrook shows up and starts poking around in their lives. Although attracted to Brody, Melanie has never allowed herself to get too close to anyone, lest she endanger her sister. Ann, meanwhile, has her own issues -- among other things, new love and rapidly deteriorating health. Set in the same world as Sharon Shinn's previous The Shape of Desire, the subtly magical Still Life With Shape-Shifter is a touching tale about trust, loyalty, and family ties.

Publisher: Tor
Check Library Catalog Pub Date: 08/31/2010
ISBN-13: 9780765358523
ISBN-10: 0765358522

Norse Fantasy. At the beginning of All the Windwracked Stars, the opening volume of Elizabeth Bear's Edda of Burdens series, the valkyrie Muire stands alone in the blood-stained snow of Valdyrgard, the sole survivor of Ragnarök. In this pre-apocalyptic prequel, we learn of the events that led up to that final, fateful battle. Armed with crystal swords, the immortal "Children of Light," the einherjar and the valkyries, serve as the guardians of the human race. But everything changes when the warrior Strifbjorn rescues a woman from the sea. Known only as the Lady, she is neither human nor valkyrie -- and could be their savior or the author of their destruction. For more fantasy based on Norse mythology, try Betsy Tobin's Ice Land, Ed Greenwood's Niflheim series, or -- if you like a bit of science fiction-tinged urban fantasy -- Greg van Eekhout's Norse Code.

Publisher: Del Rey/Ballantine Books
Check Library Catalog Pub Date: 07/31/2007
ISBN-13: 9780345484109
ISBN-10: 034548410X

Fantasy. As the world ends, the last remaining Knights of the Word, Logan Tom and Angel Perez, attempt to preserve the balance of magic that binds the universe while searching for a special child known as "the gypsy morph," on whom will depend the fate of all that exists. Armageddon's Children is the 1st book in the Genesis of Shannara trilogy, followed by The Elves of Cintra and The Gypsy Morph. This series serves as both a continuation of the author's post-apocalyptic Word & Void Trilogy (beginning with Running with the Demon) and a bridge to the Tolkienesque Sword of Shannara and its many sequels -- but it's not necessary to have read the original Shannara series in order to enjoy these books.

First Chapter  

Publisher: William Morrow
Check Library Catalog Pub Date: 03/01/2006
ISBN-13: 9780060853969
ISBN-10: 0060853964

Humorous Fantasy. The world is coming to end...or is it? Although the Antichrist has been born, two major players -- a demon and an angel -- have become accustomed (and somewhat attached) to their earthly lives and the humans who are part of them. Not wanting things to change, they decide to work together to stop Armageddon. Originally published in 1990, this collaborative novel by authors Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett is "hilariously naughty" (Kirkus Reviews). For another irreverent and even more fantastical take on the world's end, check out Pratchett's 26th Discworld novel, Thief of Time.

First Chapter  

Publisher: Ace Books
Check Library Catalog Pub Date: 10/02/2012
ISBN-13: 9781937007867
ISBN-10: 1937007863

The year is 1348. Thomas, a disgraced knight, has found a young girl alone in a dead Norman village. An orphan of the Black Death, and an almost unnerving picture of innocence, she tells Thomas that plague is only part of a larger cataclysm—that the fallen angels under Lucifer are rising in a second war on heaven, and that the world of men has fallen behind the lines of conflict.

Is it delirium or is it faith? She believes she has seen the angels of God. She believes the righteous dead speak to her in dreams. And now she has convinced the faithless Thomas to shepherd her across a depraved landscape to Avignon. There, she tells Thomas, she will fulfill her mission: to confront the evil that has devastated the earth, and to restore to this betrayed, murderous knight the nobility and hope of salvation he long abandoned.

As hell unleashes its wrath, and as the true nature of the girl is revealed, Thomas will find himself on a macabre battleground of angels and demons, saints, and the risen dead, and in the midst of a desperate struggle for nothing less than the soul of man.

Publisher: Ace Books
Check Library Catalog Pub Date: 07/03/2012
ISBN-13: 9781937007461
ISBN-10: 1937007464

Science Fantasy. Having successfully completed a management training seminar held by the ultra-secret British spy agency known as "The Laundry," computational demonologist Bob Howard may be about to validate the Peter Principle -- i.e. he has officially risen to his level of incompetence. As he pursues his latest assignment, shadowing a pair of freelance operatives as they investigate a charismatic televangelist who may help bring about the end of the world, Bob begins to miss his old job -- which, among other stressors, involved encounters with both zombie assassins and the forces of evil. Starting with book 1, The Atrocity Archives, you can track Bob's rise through the ranks of the mystical, yet highly bureaucratic Laundry in this witty, compelling series, which combines Lovecraftian horror, spy-thriller suspense, and a hefty dose of workplace satire.