Books in the Mail (W/E 2012-04-07)

This is one of the largest batches of arrivals at the 'o Stuff household in quite some time. Lots from Black Library the mass markets for late April/Early May from Del Rey, the monthly (May 2012) Mass Markets from DAW, the May 2012 releases from Ace and an upcoming red little dandy from Orbit.


Prospero Burns (Audio) (Horus Heresy) by Dan Abnett and read by Martyn Eliis (Black Library, Abridged CD 04/10/2012) – Two Horus Audio adaptations this week. The BL folks are bouncing around the series not putting these things out in the same order in which the books were publisherd.

The Emperor is enraged. Primarch Magnus the Red of the Thousand Sons Legion has made a terrible mistake that endangers the very safety of Terra. With no other choice, the Emperor charges Leman Russ, Primarch of the Space Wolves, with the apprehension of his brother from the Thousand Sons home world of Prospero. This planet of sorcerers will not be easy to overcome, but Russ and his Space Wolves are not easily deterred. With wrath in his heart, Russ is determined to bring Magnus to justice and bring about the fall of Prospero.

Invincible (The Lost Fleet: Beyond the Frontier #2) by Jack Campbell (Ace Hardcover 05/01/2011) – I read the first installment of this sequels series The Lost Fleet: Dreadnaught about a year ago when it first published and enjoyed it. So, when the opportunity arose for me to write and participate in Military Science Fiction on Tor.com I jumped at the chance to contribute an appreciation for The Lost Fleet: Dauntless. In other words, I’ll be reading this one, which arrived almost exactly a year after the previous volume and as I was reading his earlier work on the Hemry name Stark’s War.

Admiral John "Black Jack" Geary earned his rank after being revived from cryogenic sleep to lead the Alliance to victory against the Syndicate Worlds. But his superiors question his loyalty to the regime. Now in command of the First Fleet, Geary is tasked with exploring the frontier beyond Syndic space, a mission he fears deliberately puts the fleet--and himself--in harm's way. An encounter with the alien enigmas confirms Geary's fears. Attacked without warning, he orders the fleet to jump star systems--only to enter the crosshairs of another hostile alien armada. Ignoring all of the First Fleet's attempts to communicate peaceful intentions, this system's species sends its ships into battle on suicide runs while it guards the exiting jump point with a fortress of incalculable power. Now, with a faction of his officers determined to eliminate this new threat at any cost, Geary must figure out how to breach the enemy's defenses so the fleet can reach the jump point without massive casualties--even though the enigmas could be waiting on the other side.

Battleship by Peter David (Del Rey Mass Market Paperback 04/24/2012 ) – Peter David is THE go-to guy for film novelizations. Not sure what to think of a movie based off of a board game, but this film does have Liam Neeson.

YOU SANK THE WRONG BATTLESHIP

During a routine naval drill at Pearl Harbor, American forces detect a ship of unknown origins that’s crashed in the Pacific Ocean. Lieutenant Alex Hopper, an officer aboard the USS John Paul Jones, is ordered to investigate the ominous-looking vessel—which turns out to be part of an armada of ships that are stronger and faster than any on Earth. And that’s when the Navy’s radar goes down. Ambushed by a ravenous enemy they cannot see, a small U.S. fleet makes their last stand on the open ocean, armed with little more than their instincts, to defend their lives—and the world as we know it.

The official novel of the blockbuster film!
Based on the screenplay by Erich Hoeber and Jon Hoeber


The Emperor’s Gift by Aaron Dembski-Boween (Black Library, Hardcover 06/07/2012) –Dembski-Bowden seems to have a book a month publishing with Black Library and the good thing about that is this – his WH fiction is well regarded. This is seemingly the launch of a new series and odd thing about the hardcover, it doesn’t have a dust jacket.


The Grey Knights are all that stands between mankind and the ravages of Chaos. Since their secretive beginnings during the Horus Heresy, these legendary Space Marine daemon hunters have journeyed into the dark realms of the warp – and beyond – in pursuit of their supernatural enemies. Through an intensive regime of psychic training, new recruits are brought to the clandestine fortress of Titan to join the hallowed and vaunted ranks of the 666th Chapter. More than ever, these legendary battle-brothers must be vigilant and ever ready to defend the Imperium for the forces of Chaos are never truly defeated, and Armageddon beckons…


(Star Wars: Scourge by Jeff Grubb (Del Rey Mass Market Paperback 04/24/2012 ) – Grubb has done A LOT of work for Wizards of the Coast/Dungeons and Dragons, I think this is his first Star Wars novel

In the heart of crime-ridden Hutt Space, a Jedi Scholar searches for justice.

While trying to obtain the coordinates of a secret, peril-packed, but potentially beneficial trade route, a novice Jedi is killed—and the motive for his murder remains shrouded in mystery. Now his former Master, Jedi archivist Mander Zuma, wants answers, even as he fights to erase doubts about his own abilities as a Jedi. What Mander gets is immersion into the perilous underworld of the Hutts as he struggles to stay one step ahead in a game of smugglers, killers, and crime lords bent on total control.


Tricked (The Iron Druid Chronicles #4) by Kevin Hearne (Del Rey, Mass Market Paperback 04/24/2012) – This is one of my more highly anticipated 2012 releases, not only because my review of Hammered is blurbed don the front, but because I also really enjoyed Hounded, loved it and posted the Hexed.

Druid Atticus O’Sullivan hasn’t stayed alive for more than two millennia without a fair bit of Celtic cunning. So when vengeful thunder gods come Norse by Southwest looking for payback, Atticus, with a little help from the Navajo trickster god Coyote, lets them think that they’ve chopped up his body in the Arizona desert.

But the mischievous Coyote is not above a little sleight of paw, and Atticus soon finds that he’s been duped into battling bloodthirsty desert shapeshifters called skinwalkers. Just when the Druid thinks he’s got a handle on all the duplicity, betrayal comes from an unlikely source. If Atticus survives this time, he vows he won’t be fooled again. Famous last words.

Life Guard in the Hamptons (Willow Tate #4) by Celia Jerome (DAW Mass Market Paperback 05/07/2012 ) – The continuing the adventures of Jerome’s artist who can bring things from Faerie into the real world.

SOMETHING'S FOUL IN PAUMANOK HARBOR.

Graphic novelist Willow Tate has never wanted supernatural powers. But if you're from the little Long Island town of Paumanok Harbor you don't always have a choice. Still, she's managed to survive a giant red troll, night mare horses, and fire-setting bugs. This time it's a creature from Unity who needs her help. And it doesn't hurt that handsome veterinarian Matt Spenser is ready and willing to assist Willow in her efforts...

God Save the Queen (Immortal Empire #1) by Kate Locke (Orbit Hardcover 07/03/2012) – Locke is a pseudonym for Kate Cross, and with this novel, she seemingly takes a page out of Kim Newman’s Anno Dracula and launches a new pan-name and alternate history / urban fantasy / Steampunk / vampire saga.

The undead matriarch of a Britain where the Aristocracy is made up of werewolves and vampires, where goblins live underground and mothers know better than to let their children out after dark. A world where being nobility means being infected with the Plague (side-effects include undeath), Hysteria is the popular affliction of the day, and leeches are considered a delicacy. And a world where technology lives side by side with magic. The year is 2012 and Pax Britannia still reigns.
Xandra Vardan is a member of the elite Royal Guard, and it is her duty to protect the Aristocracy. But when her sister goes missing, Xandra will set out on a path that undermines everything she believed in and uncover a conspiracy that threatens to topple the empire. And she is the key-the prize in a very dangerous struggle.

Fevre Dream by George R.R. Martin (Bantam Spectra, Mass Market Paperback 04/24/2012) – With the MASSIVE popularity of A Song of Ice and Fire and Game of Thrones Bantam is re-releasing GRRM’s backlist in mass market. Some consider this book to be his best.

A THRILLING REINVENTION OF THE VAMPIRE NOVEL BY THE MASTER OF MODERN FANTASY, GEORGE R. R. MARTIN

Abner Marsh, a struggling riverboat captain, suspects that something’s amiss when he is approached by a wealthy aristocrat with a lucrative offer. The hauntingly pale, steely-eyed Joshua York doesn’t care that the icy winter of 1857 has wiped out all but one of Marsh’s dilapidated fleet; nor does he care that he won’t earn back his investment in a decade. York’s reasons for traversing the powerful Mississippi are to be none of Marsh’s concern—no matter how bizarre, arbitrary, or capricious York’s actions may prove. Not until the maiden voyage of Fevre Dream does Marsh realize that he has joined a mission both more sinister, and perhaps more noble, than his most fantastic nightmare—and humankind’s most impossible dream.

Eye of Vengeance (Space Marines) by Graham McNeill, Narrated by Sean Barrett, performed by Rupert Degas and Saul Reichlin (Black Library, Abridged CD 05/10/2012) –One of the growing library of audio dramas BL is releasing, focusing on McNeill’s popular Space Marines.

When the twisted Dark Mechanicus priests of the Bloodborn descend upon Quintarn, the Ultramarines are quick to move in defence of their prized agri-world. However, it soon becomes apparent that the planet’s fate will not be decided by the massed battle companies of the Space Marines, but by the actions of just one lowly sergeant – Torias Telion. A master marksman and Scout with a long history of service to the Chapter, Telion must now face the worst of the Bloodborn’s technological terrors and secure the city of Idrisia from the enemy advance, if the Ultramarines are to have any hope of prevailing against an enemy whose numbers swell with every victory.


A Thousand Sons (Audio) (Horus Heresy) by Graham McNeill and read by Martyn Ellis (Black Library, Abridged CD 4/10/2012) –These audio versions are a lot of fun, as my reviews for Horus Rising and False Gods might suggest. The folks at BL jumped a few volumes in the saga but this tale takes place around the time of the second book, so it makes chronological sense

Censured at the Council of Nikea for his flagrant use of sorcery, Magnus the Red and his Thousand Sons Legion retreat to their homeworld of Prospero to continue their use of the arcane arts in secret. But when the ill-fated primarch forsees the treachery of Warmaster Horus and warns the Emperor with the very powers he was forbidden to use, the Master of Mankind dispatches fellow primarch Leman Russ to attack Prospero itself. But Magnus has seen more than the betrayal of Horus and the witnessed revelations will change the fate of his fallen Legion, and its primarch, forever.

A Thousand Sons is the story of Primarch Magnus the Red and the Thousand Sons Legion of Space Marines, mainly taking place before the Heresy starts. Following a reprimand by the Emperor for dabbling in sorcery, Magnus and his Legion secretly continue to study the forbidden subjects. Around the time of Horus' corruption (Book 2), Magnus learns through sorcery of his brother's impending betrayal. He tries – again through sorcery – to warn the Emperor, believing that the gravity of the news would justify his disobedience. However, Magnus overreaches with his powers and damages the vital and secret project the Emperor was undertaking (Book 1), endangering the safety of Terra itself in the process. The Emperor is enraged and orders Primarch Leman Russ and his Space Wolves Legion, accompanied by other Imperial forces, to Prospero, the Thousand Sons Legion's home world. They are to bring Magnus and his Legion to Terra to account for themselves

Chicory Up (The Pixie Chronicles #2) by Irene Radford (DAW Mass Market Paperback 5/7/2012) – This series continues with the spice and herb flavored titles about a girl with pixie friends from Oregon.

Halloween approaches and the town of Skene Falls is gearing up for one of its most important fund-raising festivals. The best part of the soggy scarecrows, witch hats, and fake cobwebs strewn about town will be the haunted maze inside the beloved Ten Acre Wood.

But Haywood Wheaton has escaped from jail and mutated into an insane half-Pixie, half-Faerie with a vengeance. He’s leading bands of enthralled dandelion Pixies and attacking humans as well as other Pixies. Will his poison dipped hawthorn spike swords and his fascination with fire destroy the entire festival before it gets started?

Once again Thistle Down gathers her friends, both Pixie and human, to save the town. But it may send her back to Pixie forever and end the deep love between her and Dick.

POD by Stephen Wallenfels (Ace Mass Market Paperback 04/24/2012) – This is an alien invasion story, and quite frankly, we haven’t had quite as many of them lately. From the little I gathered on the intarwebs, it looks like Mr. Wallenfels published an earlier version of this novel with a small press. .

Surviving a massive alien siege is one thing-­surviving humanity is another.

I'm all cried out. I'm still alone. The sky is full of giant spinning black balls that kill anyone stupid enough to go outside. I've only been out of the car twice-once to pee and once to look at the sky. That one look was enough for me. Now I sit alone in the car, staring out the window like a rat in a cage. But I don't have anyone to look at. The parking garage is empty, except for twisted-up cars, broken glass, and the smell of leaking gasoline.

POD is the story of a global cataclysmic event, told from the viewpoints of Megs, a twelve-year-old streetwise girl trapped in a hotel parking garage in Los Angeles; and sixteen-year-old Josh, who is stuck in a house in Prosser, Washington, with his increasingly obsessive-compulsive father. Food and water and time are running out. Will Megs survive long enough to find her mother? Will Josh and his father survive each other?

Shadow Raiders (The Dragon Brigade #1) by Margaret Weis and Robert Krammes (DAW, Mass Market Paperback 05/07/2012) – That Margaret Weis sure likes writing about dragons, this is the first in a ‘swashbuckling’ series with a new co-author..

Lord Captain Stephano de Guichen, formerly of the Dragon Brigade, and his disparate group of friends who call themselves the Cadre of the Lost, are hired by the powerful Countess de Marjolaine, to find a Royal Armory journeyman who has mysteriously vanished, along with an invention that could revolutionize warfare. The Countess fears the invention may fall into the hands of their enemies. Always in need of money, Stephano and his friends undertake what they think is an easy job, only to discover they are being dogged by spies and targeted by assassins.

Meanwhile, Father Jacob Northrop, a priest of the feared Arcanum, and his Knight Protector, Sir Ander Martel, are dispatched to investigate the massacre of a hundred nuns at the Abbey of Saint Agnes. A lone survivor claims the nuns were attacked by demons from Hell.

Stephano and his friends take to the skies in their airship, the Cloud Hopper, still on the trail of the journeyman. Their route takes them near the Abbey of Saint Agnes. As they draw near, the Cloud Hopper comes under attack by what appear to be demons riding giant bats. Stephano teams with Father Jacob and Sir Ander and a dragon from his old brigade to fight the hellish forces.

After the battle, one question is on everyone's mind: Are these truly demons sent by the Evil One? Is this the Apocalypse?

As Father Jacob searches the Abbey to find the answer, he uncovers a startling secret that nearly gets him and Sir Ander killed. Stephano's search for the journeyman almost ends in disaster, as he and his friends encounter the deadly Freyan assassin, Sir Henry Wallace.
Schemes and tricks, lies and intrigues culminate in an exciting chase through the skies that comes to a shocking end, when friends and foes alike are caught up in the unexpected and terrifying conclusion.