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Fantasy January 2013
"I am looking for someone to share in an adventure that I am arranging, and it's very difficult to find anyone."
~ J.R.R. Tolkien (1892-1973), English writer and philologist, The Hobbit
New and Recently Released!
The Silvered - by Tanya Huff
Publisher: DAW Books
Check Library Catalog Pub Date: 11/06/2012
Share The Silvered ISBN-13: 9780756407438
ISBN-10: 0756407435
Fantasy. The kingdom of Aydori, populated by mages and werewolves, faces invasion and conquest by the power-hungry Kresentian Empire. Mirian Maylin, a gifted young mage who has failed to live up to her early promise, must now satisfy her ambitious family's desire to marry her off to a high-ranking werewolf of the Hunt Pack. Tomas Hagen, the Pack Alpha's younger brother, is not expected to accomplish much. But when a prophecy leads to the Empire's abduction of five pregnant Aydori women -- including the Alpha's expectant wife -- it's up to Mirian and Tomas to rescue the kidnapped women and their unborn children. The Silvered kicks off a new series by Canadian fantasy author Tanya Huff; keep an eye out for future installments.
The Bones of the Old Ones - by Howard A. Jones
Publisher: Thomas Dunne Books
Check Library Catalog Pub Date: 12/11/2012
Share The Bones of the Old Ones ISBN-13: 9780312646752
ISBN-10: 0312646755
Sword and Sorcery. In this sequel to The Desert of Souls, scholar Dabir and his comrade, swordsman Captain Asim, must protect young noblewoman Najya, who's run afoul of a dangerous magical secret society that plans to plunge the world into an eternal winter. However, Najya, thanks to the curse she carries, may prove to be more dangerous than her pursuers, forcing Dabir and Asim to join forces with an old nemesis in order to save their world. Set in 8th-century Baghdad, this 2nd book in the engaging, intricately plotted Dabir and Asim series may appeal to fans of Saladin Ahmed's Throne of the Crescent Moon, which is also set in the Middle East and draws its inspiration from the Arabian Nights.
Still life with shape-shifter - Sharon Shinn
Publisher: Ace Books
Check Library Catalog Pub Date: 11/06/2012
Share Still life with shape-shifter ISBN-13: 9780425256817
ISBN-10: 0425256812
This gentle drama about two loving sisters, one of whom is a shape-shifter, is less about the extraordinary and more about the everyday. Melanie has always protected her younger half-sister, Ann, who can turn into a white husky, so when investigative reporter Brody Westerbrook comes calling with questions about shape-shifters for his new book, she ignores her attraction to him and sends him away. Keeping Ann's secret is too important to risk growing close to someone new. But Melanie can only put her life on hold for Ann for so long, and Brody proves too charming and tenacious to resist, especially when Ann, also newly in love, approves of the match. Always worried about her passionate, rambling sister, Melanie is troubled when Ann's health starts to decline rapidly, signaling an unforeseen problem with the natural lifespan of shape-shifters. Melanie and Ann's sisterly bond is the heart of this graceful story about love and loss, in which true magic lies in the sacrifices and compromises people make for love. 
-- Booklist Reviews 
Sailor Twain: Or, The Mermaid in the Hudson - by Mark Siegel
Publisher: First Second
Check Library Catalog Pub Date: 10/02/2012
Share Sailor Twain%3a Or, The Mermaid in the Hudson ISBN-13: 9781596436367
ISBN-10: 1596436360
Graphic Novel. As thick fog blankets the Hudson River, steamboat captain Elijah Twain of The Lorelei rescues an injured mermaid from the water and nurses her back to health. But his act of kindness will have serious repercussions -- for the ship's owner, the womanizing Dieudonné de Lafayette; for reclusive author and folklorist C.G. Beaverton; and for Twain himself. Library Journal calls Sailor Twain "beautiful and bewitching," and the book's smoky charcoal artwork adds to the atmosphere and lush romanticism of this intricate, dramatic story.
Books You May Have Missed
Seven Princes - by John R. Fultz
Publisher: Orbit
Check Library Catalog Pub Date: 01/03/2012
Share Seven Princes ISBN-13: 9780316187862
ISBN-10: 0316187860
Epic Fantasy. When immortal necromancer Elhathym slaughers the royal house of Yaskatha and takes the throne, only young Prince D'zan and his bodyguard, Olthacus, survive the massacre. Together, they journey to seven neighboring kingdoms, enlisting the aid of their rulers. But even as the seven princes form an alliance, Elhathym joins forces with Empress Ianthe of Khyrei, an evil sorceress. Library Journal, in a starred review, calls this debut a "stand-out fantasy series," praising its characterization, action-packed battles, and detailed world-building. If you enjoy the epic scope and blood-soaked heroics of Seven Princes, you'll be pleased to learn that it's the 1st volume in a forthcoming trilogy.
Silver - by Rhiannon Held
Publisher: Tor
Check Library Catalog Pub Date: 06/05/2012
Share Silver ISBN-13: 9780765330376
ISBN-10: 0765330377
Contemporary Fantasy. As Enforcer for the Roanoke Pack, werewolf Andrew Dare is responsible for tracking down and capturing any lone were-creatures that set foot in his territory. But his latest quarry -- a young woman who calls herself "Silver," who can no longer shift into her wolf-form because she's been injected with poisonous silver -- proves to be Andrew's biggest challenge yet, and not just because she claims to see Death in the form of a large black wolf. Disregarding the Roanoke Alpha's instructions to kill Silver, Andrew instead decides to investigate the group that captured and tortured her -- a group whose methods could endanger every werewolf in North America.
The Shadowed Sun - by N.K. Jemisin
Publisher: Orbit
Check Library Catalog Pub Date: 06/12/2012
Share The Shadowed Sun ISBN-13: 9780316187299
ISBN-10: 0316187291
Epic Fantasy. Gujaareh, the once peaceful city-state of dreams, has come to know violence and civil unrest for the first time, now that they exist under the rule of the Kisuati Protectorate. Gujaareh's fate rests with two individuals: Hanani, the first-ever female Sharer-Apprentice (magical healer) of the Hetawa (the priesthood of the dream goddess), and exiled prince Wanahomen, who's plotting to overthrow the Kisuati by uniting the separate, fractious Banberra tribes under his banner. This 2nd installment of the Dreamblood series takes place a decade after the events of book 1, The Killing Moon. Due to the detailed world-building, political intrigue, and complex system of magic, newcomers should start at the beginning.
Royal Street - by Suzanne Johnson
Publisher: Tor
Check Library Catalog Pub Date: 04/10/2012
Share Royal Street ISBN-13: 9780765327796
ISBN-10: 0765327791
Urban Fantasy. Junior wizard sentinel Drusilla "DJ" Jaco protects New Orleans from Old Orleans, an otherworldly version of the city inhabited by ghosts, including notorious Voodoo practitioner Marie Laveau and infamous pirate Jean LaFitte. When Hurricane Katrina breaches the city's levees, the storm also demolishes the magical boundaries that separate the two realms -- and causes the disappearance of her mentor. Ordered by the Congress of Elders to defend the living from the dead, Drusilla -- along with her assigned partner, grenade-flinging Enforcer Alexander Warin -- must track a supernatural serial killer while attempting to restore order. Royal Street is the 1st book in the Sentinels of New Orleans series, followed by River Road.
The Drowning Girl: A Memoir - by Caitlín R. Kiernan
Publisher: Roc
Check Library Catalog Pub Date: 03/06/2012
Share The Drowning Girl%3a A Memoir ISBN-13: 9780451464163
ISBN-10: 0451464168
Dark Fantasy. India Morgan Phelps -- known as "Imp" to her friends and family -- is a struggling artist who suffers from schizophrenia (which has claimed the lives of several of Imp's relatives). Although therapy, medication, and her devoted partner Abelyn help keep her on a relatively even keel, Imp's obsessions, including fairy tales and a painting called "The Drowned Girl," threaten to overwhelm her after an encounter with mysterious Eva Canning. But who is Eva? A ghost? A werewolf? A figment of her fragmented imagination? As Imp writes and rewrites her account of what happened -- an account that shifts as frequently and abruptly as her own perception of reality -- readers are treated to a lush, evocative account of the interplay between art and madness.
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