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Fantasy and Science Fiction August 2019
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| The Affair of the Mysterious Letter by Alexis HallWhat it is: a witty Sherlock Holmes adaptation with a speculative twist and a LGBTQIA diverse cast.
Starring: Captain John Wyndham and his new roommate, consulting sorceress Ms. Shaharazad Haas; their first case involves Hass' former lover, Lady Eirene Viola, who's being blackmailed.
For fans of: Claire O'Dell's Janet Watson novels or G.S. Denning's Warlock Holmes series. |
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| The Outside by Ada HoffmanStarring: Dr. Yasira Shien, branded a heretic by the Gods after the reactor she invented warps reality and destroys a space station.
Why you might like it: This debut, which blends space opera and cosmic horror, introduces a heroine with autism and takes place in a universe ruled by superintelligent AI and their post-human angels.
For fans of: Yoon Ha Lee's Machineries of Empire series, beginning with Ninefox Gambit. |
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| This is How You Lose the Time War by Amal El-Mohtar and Max GladstoneWhat happens: Two time traveling operatives from competing futures fall in love, expressing their longing through letters composed in lava flows, glasses of water, tree rings, and more.
Why you might like it: Fritz Leiber's The Big Time meets Ian McDonald's Time Was in this lyrical epistolary love story.
About the authors: Lebanese-Canadian author Amal El-Mohtar is the author of The Honey Month; Campbell Award nominee Max Gladstone is best known for his popular Craft novels. |
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| The Record Keeper by Agnes GomillionIntroducing: Arika Cobane, the valedictorian of her graduating class, who has spent a decade training to become a Record Keeper.
But then... the arrival of a new student with dangerous ideas causes Arika to question her complicity in perpetuating the injustices of her racially segregated, rigidly hierarchical post-apocalyptic society.
For fans of: Rivers Solomon's An Unkindness of Ghosts, another lyrical Afrofuturist work that examines systemic racism through a speculative lens. |
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The Hive
by Orson Scott Card
The premise: A coalition of Earth's nations barely fought off the Formics' first scout ship. Now it's clear that there's a mother-ship out on edge of the system, and the aliens are prepared to take Earth by force. Can Earth's warring nations and corporations put aside their differences and mount an effective defense?
Series alert: A second prequel to Ender's Game continues the sci-fi history of the Formic Wars.
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| The Rage of Dragons by Evan WinterStarring: Tau Tafari, a reluctant warrior-in-training who fights his way to the top of a socially stratified society to exact revenge on his enemies.
Why you might like it: This debut, 1st in a series, boasts a sympathetic protagonist and a vividly depicted, African-inspired setting.
For fans of: the inventive system of magic in Brandon Sanderson's Mistborn novels, the gritty battles of Joe Abercrombie's First Law trilogy, and the world-building of Pierce Brown's Red Rising trilogy. |
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| Kill the Farm Boy by Delilah S. Dawson and Kevin HearneWhat it is: a quirky comedic fantasy adventure that riffs on classic genre tropes.
Featuring: a farm boy (briefly), a talking goat, a seven-foot-tall warrior in a chainmail bikini, an enchanted rabbit bard, an alektorophobic assassin, a sand witch, and a dark lord.
For fans of: William Goldman's The Princess Bride, Diana Wynne Jones' Dark Lord of Derkholm, or Terry Pratchett's Discworld series. |
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| The Last Adventure of Constance Verity by A. Lee MartinezIntroducing: 28-year-old Constance Verity, who has spent most of her life saving the world.
The goal: To achieve the normal existence she craves, Constance must track down the fairy godmother who blessed (or is that cursed?) her with an adventurous life.
Want a taste? "Trouble wasn't content to follow Constance Verity. Trouble was more proactive when it came to Connie." |
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Snuff
by Terry Pratchett
What happens: This installment in the bestselling Discworld series finds Commander Sam Vimes of the Ankh-Morpork City Watch attempting to take a vacation, but, as usual, nothing goes as planned.
Reviewers say: "Vimes takes on a fiendish murderer as well as the case for (in)human rights and social justice in this lively outing, complete with sly shout-outs to Jane Austen and gritty police procedurals" (Publisher's Weekly).
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| Space Opera by Catherynne M. ValenteWhat it's about: “Glamrock messiah” Danesh Jalo is fighting for mankind’s continued existence -- by taking center stage in an intergalactic talent show bursting with glitter, lipstick, and rock and roll.
Reviewers say: An “endearing, razzle-dazzle love song about destiny, finding one’s true voice, and rockin’ the house down” (Publishers Weekly).
Is it for you? If you like The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, David Bowie, or the Eurovision Song Contest, you'll like this humorous science fiction extravaganza. |
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Contact your librarian for more great books!
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