What’s going on? When was the last month we had science fiction releases in the double-digits? But yes, there are 13 new releases this month. Okay, some are aimed at young adults, but still. Ann Aguirre has a new entry in her popular Sirantha Jax series, and there are new series books from Larry Niven and Edward M. Lerner, Dani and Eytan Kollin, Michael Z. Williamson, Katherine Kerr, John Ringo, and Richard Paul Evans. And if you don’t find what you’re looking for here, check back tomorrow for the “Genre Benders” list.
Fiction Affliction details releases in science fiction, fantasy, urban fantasy, paranormal romance, and “genre-benders.”
WEEK ONE
Glitch (Glitch #1), by Heather Anastasiu (August 7, St. Martin’s)
In the Community, there is no more pain or war. Implanted computer chips have wiped humanity clean of destructive emotions, and thoughts are replaced by a feed from the Link network. When Zoe starts to malfunction (or “glitch”), she suddenly begins having her own thoughts, feelings, and identity. Any anomalies must be immediately reported and repaired, but Zoe has a secret so dark it will mean certain deactivation if she is caught: her glitches have given her uncontrollable telekinetic powers.
Love on the Run (Nola O’Grady #4), by Katherine Kerr (August 7, DAW)
Nola O’Grady is sick and tired of psychic squid-images following her everywhere, waving their tentacles and generally making nuisances of themselves. She and her partner, Ari Nathan, have a dangerous job on their hands, hunting down two criminals who have escaped into another level of the multiverse, the San Francisco of Terra Six. Terrorists have turned parts of that city into a deathtrap—religious fanatics, yes, but from what religion? Nola suspects that the Peacock Angel Chaos cult lies behind the bombings and mass murders. As she gathers evidence, she finds herself face-to-face with part of her own personal past that she’d prefer to bury forever. And by the way, just who is it that keeps trying to kill her?
Queen of Wands (Special Circumstances #2), by John Ringo (August 7, Baen)
Soccer mom and demon fighter Barbara Everette has a problem. It seems Janea, Barbara’s assistant and The Foundation for Love and Universal Faith’s best operative, has been thrown into a coma by some very nasty magic she’s stirred up. Barbara must track down the perpetrators and break the spell or Janea’s soul will be forever lost on the astral plane. Oh, and if she can’t break the spell, zombies will destroy all mankind.
When Diplomacy Fails (Freehold: Ripple Creek #3), by Michael Z. Williamson (August 7, Baen)
Alex Marlow and Ripple Creek Security’s best personal security detail really don’t like their principal, World Bureau Minister Joy Herman Highland—a highly-placed bureaucrat with aspirations to elected office. Even worse, Highland’s assistant wants to publicize every movement and action for his boss’s pending campaign, which is anathema to good security. With a person of this status, it’s not a case of someone wanting her dead. The only question is how many people want her dead, and what are they bringing to the fight?
WEEK TWO
False Memory (False Memory #1), by Dan Krokos (August 14, Hyperion)
Miranda wakes up alone on a park bench with no memory. In her panic, she releases a mysterious energy that incites pure terror in everyone around her. Except Peter, a boy who isn’t at all surprised by Miranda’s shocking ability. Left with no choice but to trust this stranger, Miranda discovers she was trained to be a weapon and is part of an elite force of genetically-altered teens who possess flawless combat skills and powers strong enough to destroy a city. Young Adult.
Rise of the Elgen (Michael Vey #2), by Richard Paul Evans (August 14, Simon Pulse/Mercury Ink)
Michael was born with special electrical powers—and he’s not the only one. His friend Taylor has them too, and so do other kids around the world. With Michael’s friend Ostin, a techno-genius, they form the Electroclan, an alliance meant to protect them from a powerful group, the growing Order of Elgen, who are out to destroy them. Young Adult.
The Kill Order (Maze Runner Prequel), by James Dashner (August 14, Delacorte)
Before WICKED was formed, before the Glade was built, before Thomas entered the Maze, sun flares seared the earth and mankind fell to disease.
WEEK THREE
Fate of Worlds: Return from the Ringworld, by Larry Niven and Edward M. Lerner (August 21, Tor)
For decades, the spacefaring species of Known Space have battled over the largest artifact—and grandest prize—in the galaxy: the all-but-limitless resources and technology of the Ringworld. But without warning the Ringworld has vanished, leaving behind three rival war fleets. Something must justify the blood and treasure that have been spent. But the crises converging upon the trillion Puppeteers of the Fleet of Worlds go far beyond even the onrushing armadas.
The Rise of Nine (Lorien Legacies Trilogy #3), by Pittacus Lore (August 21, HarperCollins)
Until the day I met John Smith, Number Four, I’d been on the run alone, hiding and fighting to stay alive. Together, we are much more powerful. But it could only last so long before we had to separate to find the others. I went to Spain to find Seven, and I found even more, including a tenth member of the Garde who escaped from Lorien alive. Ella is younger than the rest of us, but just as brave. Now we’re looking for the others, including John. But so are they.
The Unincorporated Future (Unincorporated Man #4), by Dani Kollin and Eytan Kollin (August 21, Tor)
Sandra O’Toole is the president of the Outer Alliance, which stretches from the asteroid belt to the Oort Cloud beyond Pluto. Resurrected following the death of Justin Cord, the unincorporated man, O’Toole has become a powerful political figure and a Machiavellian leader determined to win the Civil War against the inner planets at almost any cost.
WEEK FOUR
Bloodstar (Star Corpsman #1), by Ian Douglas (August 28, Harper Voyager)
In the 23rd Century, war is still hell. Navy Corpsman Elliot Carlyle joined up to save lives and see the universe. Now he and Bravo Company’s Black Wizards of the interstellar Fleet Marine Force are en route to Bloodworld—a hellish, volatile rock colonized by the fanatical Salvationists who desired an inhospitable world where they could suffer for humanity’s sins. Their penance could prove fatal—for the Qesh, a strange alien race detected but still mysterious for six decades, have made violent first contact.
Endgame (Sirantha Jax #6), by Ann Aguirre (August 28, Ace)
Sirantha Jax has the J-gene, which permits her to “jump” faster-than-light ships through grimspace. She loves nothing more than that rush, but the star roads have to wait. Her final mission takes her to La’heng, a planet subjugated during first contact. Since then, the La’hengrin homeworld has been occupied by foreign conquerors. All that’s about to change.
Erasing Time, by C.J. Hill (August 28, Katherine Tegen Books)
There is no escape from the future for two contemporary girls pulled out of their own time. When twins Sheridan and Taylor wake up 400 years in the future, they find a changed world: domed cities, no animals, and a language that’s so different, it barely sounds like English. And the worst news: They can’t go back home. Young Adult.
Author Suzanne Johnson is a book geek with a fondness for a good dystopia. Royal Street, the first in her Sentinels of New Orleans series, is set in New Orleans during and after Hurricane Katrina. Find Suzanne on Twitter.
