Sunday, November 18, 2012

Books in the Mail (W/E 2012-11-17)

The flavor this week seems to be Steampunk, at least for half of the books I received this week.  Five authors I've never read and one of these books does look interesting.


The Lazarus Machine (A Tweed &; Nightingale Adventure
by Paul Crilley (Pyr Hardcover 11/06/2012) – Pyr has been doing quite impressive things in the market of Young Adult Steampunk. This is another snazzy looking book, from an author well-versed in genre storytelling (short stories and work on Star Wars media properties)


An alternate 1895. . . 

A world where Charles Babbage and Ada Lovelace perfected the Difference Engine. Where steam and Tesla-powered computers are everywhere. Where automatons powered by human souls venture out into the sprawling London streets. Where the Ministry, a secretive
government agency, seeks to control everything in the name of the Queen.

It is in this claustrophobic, paranoid city that seventeen-year-old Sebastian Tweed and his conman father struggle to eke out a living.
But all is not well. . . 

A murderous, masked gang has moved into London, spreading terror through the criminal ranks as they take over the underworld. As the gang carves up more and more of the city, a single name comes to be uttered in fearful whispers. 

Professor Moriarty.

When Tweed's father is kidnapped by Moriarty, he is forced to team up with information broker Octavia Nightingale to track him down. But he soon realizes that his father's disappearance is just a tiny piece of a political conspiracy that could destroy the British
Empire and plunge the world into a horrific war.




Crown of Vengeance(Book One of The Dragon Prophecy) by Mercedes Lackey and James Mallory (Tor Hardcover 11/13/2012) – Lackey is another writing machine, she’s got many series ongoing and overall, this is her seventh collaboration with Mallory in the same world, though this looks very approachable for new readers. Every time I saw one of their earlier books, I thought they looked like pretty interesting High Fantasy and Lackey seems like a writer I should at least try once. This might be the book



Mercedes Lackey and James Mallory, bestselling authors individually and together, return to the world of their New York Times and USA Today bestselling Obsidian and Enduring Flame Trilogies with Crown of Vengeance.

Here, readers will learn the truth about the Elven Queen Vielissiar Faricarnon, who was the first to face the Endarkened in battle and the first to bond with a dragon. She worked some of the greatest magics her world has ever known, and paid the greatest Price.

Crown of Vengeance is an exciting fantasy adventure that will appeal to fans of Mercedes Lackey's Valdemar series. No previous knowledge of Lackey and Mallory's collaborations is necessary to enjoy this fast-paced, action-packed novel, but returning readers will be excited to discover this amazing story.




King of the Dead (Book One of The Jeremiah Hunt Chronicles #2) by Joseph Nassise (Tor Hardcover 11/27/2012) – Sequel to Eyes to See published just about a year ago and the second in his urban fantasy series.



Joseph Nassise shook up the urban fantasy genre with Eyes to See, a novel New York Times bestselling author Jonathan Maberry called “heartbreaking, deeply insightful, powerful and genuinely thrilling.” In a devil’s deal, Jeremiah Hunt sacrificed his human sight in exchange for the power to see the hidden world of ghosts and all of the darker spirits that prowl the streets. Hunt uncovered a world of murder and magic that took his daughter from him and nearly cost him his life, but that was only the beginning....

Now Hunt is on the run from the FBI, who have pegged him as a mass-murdering dark sorcerer. His flight from the law is diverted to New Orleans when his companion, a potent witch, has a horrific vision of the city under magical siege. When they arrive, they realize that the situation is more dire than they could have imagined: the world of the living faces a terrifying attack by forces from beyond the grave. King of the Dead, the second book in this groundbreaking series, promises more of Nassise’s electrifying writing that will enthrall readers looking for a supercharged, supernatural thrill.



A Conspiracy of Alchemists (Book One in The Chronicles of Light and Shadow) by Liesel Schwarz (Del Rey 03/05/2013) – Schwarz’s debut novel is also the launch of a Steampunk series with what seems to be vampires added for good measure. This one seems like it would appeal a great deal to fans of Gail Carriger.



LEAVE IT TO CHANCE. Eleanor “Elle” Chance, that is—a high-flying dirigible pilot with a taste for adventure and the heroine of this edgy new series that transforms elements of urban fantasy, steampunk, and paranormal romance into pure storytelling gold.

It is 1903, and the world is divided between light and shadow. On the side of light is a wondrous science that has transformed everyday life by harnessing magical energies to ingenious new technologies. But each advance of science has come at the expense of shadow—the traditional realm of the supernatural.

Now two ancient powers are preparing to strike back. Blood-sucking immortal Nightwalkers and their spellcasting Alchemist allies have a plan to cover the whole world in shadow. All they require is the sacrifice of a certain young woman whose past conceals a dangerous secret.

But when they come after Elle, they get more than they bargained for. This enterprising young woman, the daughter of a scientific genius, has reserves of bravery and determination that even she scarcely suspects. Now she is about to meet her match in more ways than one: a handsome yet infuriating Warlock named Hugh Marsh, whose agenda is as suspect as his charms are annoyingly irresistible.




No comments: