Omnibuses, sequels, debuts, reissues, and more appear among the 32 science fiction titles releasing in June. Genevieve Valentine continues the tale begun in Persona; Neil Clarke collects the year’s best science fiction; Lavie Tidhar’s Bookman series gets a new look; and Mira Grant collects all the short fiction in her Newsflesh world. Your summer reading is ready.
Fiction Affliction details releases in science fiction, fantasy, and “genre-benders.” Keep track of them all here. Note: All title summaries are taken and/or summarized from copy provided by the publisher.
WEEK ONE
Three Faces of Asprin—Robert Asprin (June 7, Baen)
Omnibus. Combines three action packed science fiction novels by New York Times best-selling author and creator of the Myth Adventures series: The Cold Cash Wars, The Bug Wars, and Tambu.
The Medusa Chronicles—Stephen Baxter & Alastair Reynolds (June 7, Saga Press)
A sequel to Sir Arthur C. Clarke’s Nebula Award–winning novella “A Meeting with Medusa,” this novel continues the thrilling adventure of astronaut Howard Falcon, humanity’s first explorer of Jupiter, from two modern science fiction masters. Howard Falcon almost lost his life in an accident as the first human astronaut to explore the atmosphere of Jupiter—and a combination of human ingenuity and technical expertise brought him back. But he is no longer himself. Instead, he has been changed into an augmented human: part man, part machine, and exceptionally capable.
The Best Science Fiction of the Year Vol. 1—Neil Clarke, editor (June 7, Night Shade)
A biological plague begins infecting artificial intelligence; a natural-born Earth woman seeking asylum on another planet finds a human society far different from her own; a food blogger’s posts chronicle a nationwide medical outbreak; trapped in a matchmaking game, a couple tries to escape from the only world they know; a janitor risks everything to rescue a “defective” tank-born baby he can raise as his own. The Best Science Fiction of the Year Vol. One provides a year-in-review and 31 of the best stories published by both new and established authors in 2015.
Spear of Light (Glittering Edge #2)—Brenda Cooper (June 7, Pyr)
When the post-human Next suddenly re-appear in a solar system that banished them, humans are threatened. Their reactions vary from disgust and anger to yearning to live forever like the powerful Next, who are casually building a new city out of starships in the heart of the re-wilded planet Lym. The first families of Lym must deal with being invaded while they grapple with their own inner fears. The Shining Revolution threatens to undo everything by attacking the Next on Lym, and their desire to eradicate the post-humans is greater than their desire to save humanity’s home. It is entirely possible that they will draw the wrath of the Next onto all of humanity. In the meantime, the Next’s motives remain inscrutable.
Death’s Bright Day—David Drake (June 7, Baen Books)
Captain Daniel Leary thinks that his marriage will allow him to slip into the quiet role of a naval officer in peacetime. His friend, the spy and cybrarian Adele Mundy, is content to be collating data in her library. But high officials of both superpowers are involved! Those who want Daniel and Adele to become involved in the Tarbell Stars claim that only they can prevent a war between the Republic of Cinnabar and its great rival, the Alliance of Free Stars. The conflict is political, but at the sharp end it means blazing warfare and cold-blooded murder. Daniel and Adele will be at the sharp end.
The Tabit Genesis—Tony Gonzales (June 7, Gollancz)
They left Sol in two great ships, carrying with them the last hope for humankind. Destined for different stars, their mission was to ensure the survival of our species. One ship was never heard from again. Decades later, the other arrived at a lifeless world, where the survivors learned that Earth was lost not to famine, but to an alien species determined to eradicate humans from existence. Man is not alone in the universe, and the last of us are hunted.
Like a Boss (Windswept #2)—Adam Rakunas (June 7, Angry Robot)
In this followup to Windswept, former labor organizer Padma’s worst nightmare comes true: she gets yanked out of early retirement. After buying her favourite rum distillery and settling down, she thought she’d heard the last of her arch nemesis, Evanrute Saarien. But Saarien, fresh out of prison for his misdeeds in Windswept, has just fabricated a new religion, positioning himself as its holy leader. He’s telling his congregation to go on strike, to fight the system. And unfortunately, they’re listening to him. Now Padma’s summoned by the Union president to help stop this strike from happening. The problem is, she’s out of practice.
Galactic Games—Bryan Thomas Schmidt, editor (June 7, Baen Books)
The Olympic Games—pushing skills, minds, brains and bodies to their limits in the ultimate competition on Earth. But once mankind has reached the stars, playing sports will travel with us. Yet galactic sports come with new challenges and possibilities. And new dangers. From downhill figure skating to horse racing with alien life forms; from baseball played with speedboats to basketball on Mars and golf on the Moon; from alien opponents to literally death defying stakes, Galactic Games takes the competition to a whole new level. Includes stories by George R.R. Martin, Mercedes Lackey, Seanan McGuire, Robert Silverberg, Gene Wolfe, and more.
Just One Damned Thing After Another (The Chronicles of St. Mary’s #1)—Jodi Taylor (June 7, Night Shade)
Behind the seemingly innocuous facade of St. Mary’s Institute of Historical Research, a different kind of academic work is taking place. Just don’t call it “time travel”—these historians “investigate major historical events in contemporary time.” And they aren’t your harmless eccentrics either; a more accurate description, as they ricochet around history, might be unintentional disaster-magnets. The Chronicles of St. Mary’s tells the chaotic adventures of new recruit Madeleine Maxwell and her compatriots as they travel through time, saving St. Mary’s (too often by the very seat of their pants) and thwarting time-travelling terrorists, all the while leaving plenty of time for tea.
The Bookman—Lavie Tidhar (June 7, Angry Robot)
Reissue. When his beloved is killed in a terrorist atrocity committed by the sinister Bookman, young poet Orphan becomes enmeshed in a web of secrets and lies. His quest to uncover the truth takes him from the hidden catacombs of a London on the brink of revolution, through pirate-infested seas, to the mysterious island that may hold the secret to the origin, not only of the shadowy Bookman, but of Orphan himself…
Super Extra Grande—Yoss (June 7, Restless Books)
Set in a distant future, after the invention of faster-than-light space travel has propelled a still-immature mankind into the far corners of the Milky Way, Super Extra Grande features creatures of immense variety, all of which serve as colleagues, fellow adventurers, sex partners, teachers, or members of the military high command in the Galactic Community governing this part of the universe. Jan Amos Sangan Dongo has a special role in this otherworldly menagerie: He is a veterinarian who specializes in treating enormous animals across the galaxy. When a colonial conflict threatens the fragile peace between the Galaxy’s seven intelligent species, Dr. Sangan must embark on a daring mission to enter a gigantic creature and find two swallowed ambassadors—who also happen to be his competing love interests.
WEEK TWO
Blood in the Water (Destroyermen #11)—Taylor Anderson (June 14, Roc)
Ever since the USS Walker came from another world war to defy the terrifying Grik and diabolical Dominion, Matt Reddy and his crew have given their all to protect the oppressed Lemurians. But with the Walker in desperate need of repairs just as the Grik’s First General is poised to strike, Reddy is desperate. With more enemies than ever before arrayed against them, the crew of the Walker needs new allies. That means combing the lethal wilds of Madagascar to find the Lemurians’ fabled ancestors, as well as the enigmatic dwellers east of the Pass of Fire. But what Reddy’s crew unearths may be more than they can handle—discoveries so shattering they could tilt the balance of the war in either direction.
Stories of Your Life and Others—Ted Chiang (June 14, Vintage)
Reissue. Combining the precision and scientific curiosity of Kim Stanley Robinson with Lorrie Moore’s cool, clear love of language and narrative intricacy, this award-winning collection offers readers the dual delights of the very, very strange and the heartbreakingly familiar. Stories of Your Life and Others presents characters who must confront sudden change—the inevitable rise of automatons or the appearance of aliens—while striving to maintain some sense of normalcy. In the amazing and much-lauded title story, a grieving mother copes with divorce and the death of her daughter by drawing on her knowledge of alien languages and non-linear memory recollection.
False Hearts—Laura Lam (June 14, Tor Books)
Twin sisters Taema and Tila, conjoined until the age of sixteen, are in their mid-twenties when they’re drawn into a deadly battle for control of a drug that facilitates a disturbing form of lucid dreaming. One night Tila stumbles home, terrified and covered in blood. She’s arrested for murder, the first homicide by a civilian in decades. The San Francisco police suspect involvement with Verve, an illicit narcotic that allows violent minds to enact their darkest desires in a terrifying dreamscape, and they offer her twin Taema a chilling deal. If Taema assumes Tila’s identity and obtains the information needed to take down the city’s drug syndicate, the police may let her sister live.
Ninefox Gambit—Yoon Ha Lee (June 14, Solaris)
Captain Kel Cheris of the hexarchate is disgraced for using unconventional methods in a battle against heretics. Kel Command gives her the opportunity to redeem herself by retaking the Fortress of Scattered Needles, a star fortress that has recently been captured by heretics. Cheris’s career isn’t the only thing at stake: If the fortress falls, the hexarchate itself might be next. Cheris’s best hope is to ally with the undead tactician Shuos Jedao. The good news is that Jedao has never lost a battle, and he may be the only one who can figure out how to successfully besiege the fortress. The bad news is that Jedao went mad in his first life and massacred two armies, one of them his own. As the siege wears on, Cheris must decide how far she can trust Jedao—because she might be his next victim.
Into Everywhere—Paul McAuley (June 14, Gollancz)
Humanity’s future has been disrupted and shaped by the mysterious alien Jackaroo. We spread to the planets they gave us, and we discovered the ruins of a dozen previous clients of the Jackaroo, all dead. So far we have escaped that fate—but we have also escaped from the Jackaroo’s planets and begun to explore the galaxy. But humanity’s failings and conflicts are always with us. A piece of alien code has awakened, and the end of our species may be happening around us. And we may finally discover if the aliens really are here to help us.
The Long Cosmos (Long Earth #5)—Terry Pratchett and Stephen Baxter (June 14, Harper)
Nearly six decades after Step Day, a new society continues to evolve in the Long Earth. Now, a message has been received: “Join us.” The Next—the hyper-intelligent post-humans—realize that the missive contains instructions for kick-starting the development of an immense artificial intelligence. But to build this computer the size of an Earth continent, they must obtain help from the more populous and still industrious worlds of mankind. Meanwhile, on a trek in the High Meggers, Joshua Valienté is saved from death when a troll band discovers him. Living among the trolls as he recovers, Joshua develops a deeper understanding of this collective-intelligence species and its society—and something much more profound about life and its purpose in the Long Earth.
Orbs—Nicholas Sansbury Smith (June 14, Simon451)
The year is 2061, and the planet is dying. Cataclysmic solar storms have forced leaders from around the world to finally put aside their differences and agree to jump ship. The human race is headed to Mars. Dr. Sophie Winston is hired by New Tech Corporation to test a biosphere deep within the heart of Cheyenne Mountain, a mission she believes will help prepare the company for the three-year flight to the red planet. But when the blast doors hiss open, Winston’s team finds a changed world outside. Humans are gone, and the planet’s water is gone, too. As the team explores their surroundings, they find thousands of luminous blue orbs lining the streets. It isn’t until they uncover what’s inside that they realize the nightmare that lies ahead.
Escapology—Ren Warom (June 14, Titan)
Shock Pao is the best. In the virtual world the Slip there’s nothing he can’t steal for the right price. Outside the Slip, though, he’s a Fail—no degree, no job. So when his ex offers him a job, breaking into a corporate databank, he accepts—it’s either that, or find himself a nice bench to sleep under. Amiga works for psychotic crime lord Twist Calhoun so when Shock’s war comes to her, it’s her job to bring him to Twist, dead or alive.
Mechanical Failure—Joe Zieja (June 14, Saga Press)
Mankind in the Galactic Age had finally conquered war, so what was left for the military to do but drink and barbecue? That’s the kind of military that Sergeant R. Wilson Rogers lived in before he left the fleet to become a smuggler. But it turns out that smuggling is hard. Like getting-arrested-for-dealing-with-pirates-and-forced-back-into-service kind of hard. It doesn’t seem so bad—the military was a perpetual tiki party anyway—but when Rogers returns after only a year away, something has changed. These are soldiers—actual soldiers doing actual soldier things like preparing for a war that Rogers is sure doesn’t exist. Rogers vows to put a stop to all this nonsense—even if it means doing actual work.
WEEK THREE
Waypoint Kangaroo—Curtis C. Chen (June 21, Thomas Dunne Books)
Kangaroo isn’t your typical spy. Sure, he has extensive agency training, access to bleeding-edge technology, and a ready supply of clever (to him) quips and retorts. But what sets him apart is “the pocket,” a portal that opens into an empty, seemingly infinite, parallel universe. Kangaroo is the only person in the world who can use it, and he’s pretty sure the agency only keeps him around to exploit his superpower. After he bungles yet another mission, Kangaroo gets sent away on a mandatory “vacation:” an interplanetary cruise to Mars. While he tries to make the most of his exile, two passengers are found dead, and Kangaroo has to risk blowing his cover. It turns out he isn’t the only spy on the ship–and he’s just starting to unravel a massive conspiracy which threatens the entire Solar System.
New Pompeii—Daniel Godfrey (June 21, Titan)
Some time in the near future, energy giant NovusPart develops technology with an unexpected side effect: it can transport objects and people from deep in the past to the present day. For post-grad historian Nick Houghton, the controversy surrounding the programme matters less than the opportunity the company offers him. NovusPart’s executives reveal their biggest secret: they have saved most of the people from Pompeii. Somewhere in central Asia, far from prying eyes, the company has built a replica of the city, full of real Romans. And Nick has been chosen to study them. But Nick soon realises that NovusPart are underestimating their captives. The Romans may be ignorant of modern technology—for now—but city boss Manius Barbatus wasn’t appointed by the emperor because he was soft.
Rise: The Complete Newsflesh Collection—Mira Grant (June 21, Orbit)
Collected here for the first time is every piece of short fiction from New York Times bestseller Mira Grant’s acclaimed Newsflesh series, with two new never-before-published novellas and all eight short works available for the first time in print. We had cured cancer. We had beaten the common cold. But in doing so we created something new, something terrible that no one could stop. The infection spread, a man-made virus taking over bodies and minds, filling them with one, unstoppable command… FEED. Mira Grant creates a chilling portrait of an America paralyzed with fear. No one leaves their houses and entire swaths of the country have been abandoned. And only the brave, the determined, or the very stupid, venture out into the wild.
Independence Day: Resurgence (Official Movie Novelization)—Alex Irvine (June 21, Titan Books)
Hybrid fighters merging human and alien technology. Massive cannon emplacements on the Moon and Mars. A planetary defense force with the finest military personnel ever trained. For two decades we’ve known the enemy would return. The nations of Earth have collaborated on a unified defense program designed to defend the planet. Yet nothing could prepare us for the immensity of their new assault, and only the courage and skill of a few brave men and women can hope to bring our world back from the brink of extinction.
Mirror in the Sky—Aditi Khorana (June 21, Razorbill)
Young adult. For Tara Krishnan, navigating Brierly, the academically rigorous prep school she attends on scholarship, feels overwhelming and impossible. Her junior year begins in the wake of a startling discovery: A message from an alternate Earth, light years away, is intercepted by NASA. The world lights up with the knowledge of Terra Nova, the mirror planet. At first, small shifts happen, like attention from Nick Osterman, the most popular guy at Brierly, and her mother playing hooky from work to watch the news all day. But eventually the discovery of Terra Nova seems like a black hole, bending all the light around it. As a new era of scientific history dawns, only one thing is clear: Nothing on Earth—or for Tara—will ever be the same again.
Something Coming Through—Paul McAuley (June 21, Gollancz)
The Jackaroo have given humanity fifteen worlds and the means to reach them. They’re a chance to start over, but they’re also littered with ruins and artifacts left by the Jackaroo’s previous clients. Miracles that could reverse the damage caused by war, climate change, and rising sea levels. Nightmares that could forever alter humanity—or even destroy it. Chloe Millar works in London, mapping changes caused by imported scraps of alien technology. When she stumbles across a pair of orphaned kids possessed by an ancient ghost, she must decide whether to help them or to hand them over to the authorities. Authorities who believe that their visions point towards a new kind of danger.
WEEK FOUR
Wastelands 2: More Stories of the Apocalypse—John Joseph Adams, editor (June 28, Titan Books)
For decades, the apocalypse and its aftermath have yielded some of the most exciting short stories of all time. From David Brin’s seminal “The Postman” to Hugh Howey’s “Deep Blood Kettle” and Tananarive Due’s prescient “Patient Zero,” the end of the world continues to thrill. This companion volume to the critically acclaimed Wastelands offers 30 of the finest examples of post-apocalyptic short fiction, with works by authors including Junot Diaz, Maria Dahvana Headley, George R. R. Martin, Jack McDevitt, and Seanan McGuire.
Wolf’s Empire: Gladiator—Claudia Christian and Morgan Grant Buchanan (June 28, Tor Books)
When her mother and brother are murdered, young noblewoman Accala Viridius cries out for vengeance. But the empire is being torn apart by a galactic civil war, and her demands fall on deaf ears. Undeterred, Accala sacrifices privilege and status to train as a common gladiator. Mastering the one weapon available to her—a razor-sharp discus that always returns when thrown—she enters the deadly imperial games, the only arena where she can face her enemies. But Fortune’s wheel grants Accala no favors—the emperor decrees that the games will be used to settle the civil war, the indigenous lifeforms of the arena-world are staging a violent revolt, and Accala finds herself drugged, cast into slavery and forced to fight on the side of the men she set out to kill.
The Big Sheep—Richard Kroese (June 28, Thomas Dunne Books)
Los Angeles of 2039 is a baffling and bifurcated place. After the Collapse of 2028, a vast section of LA, the Disincorporated Zone, was disowned by the civil authorities, and became essentially a third world country within the borders of the city. Navigating the boundaries between DZ and LA proper is a tricky task, and there’s no one better suited than eccentric private investigator Erasmus Keane. When a valuable genetically altered sheep mysteriously goes missing from Esper Corporation’s labs, Keane is the one they call. But while the erratic Keane and his more grounded partner, Blake Fowler, are on the trail of the lost sheep, they land an even bigger case. Beautiful television star Priya Mistry suspects that someone is trying to kill her—and she wants Keane to find out who.
United as One (Lorien Legacies #7)—Pittacus Lore (June 28, HarperCollins)
Young adult. The Mogadorians have invaded Earth. Their warships loom over our most populated cities, and no country will risk taking them head on. The Garde are all that stand in the way, but they’ll need an army of their own to win this fight. Teenagers from across the globe, like John Smith’s best friend, Sam, have developed abilities. So John and the others must get to them before the Mogs, because if they don’t their enemies will use these gifted teens for their own sinister plan. John’s got nothing left to lose, and he’s just discovered he has been given an incredible new Legacy. Now he can turn himself into the ultimate weapon. So will he risk his life to save the world, or will he realize that power in numbers will save us all?
The Dark Side—Anthony O’Neill (June 28, Simon & Schuster)
Purgatory is the lawless moon colony of eccentric billionaire Fletcher Brass: a mecca for war criminals, murderers, sex fiends, and adventurous tourists. You can’t find better drugs, cheaper plastic surgery, or a more ominous travel advisory anywhere in the universe. When an exiled cop arrives in this wild new frontier, he immediately finds himself investigating a string of ruthless assassinations in which Brass himself—and his equally ambitious daughter—are the chief suspects. Meanwhile, two-thousand kilometers away, an amnesiac android, Leonardo Black, rampages across the lunar surface. Programmed with only the notorious “Brass Code”—a compendium of corporate laws that would make Ayn Rand blush—Black has only one goal in mind: to find Purgatory and conquer it.
Icon (Persona #2)—Genevieve Valentine (June 28, Saga Press)
A year ago, International Assembly delegate Suyana Sapaki barely survived an attempt on her life. Now she’s climbing the social ranks, dating the American Face, and poised for greatness. She has everything she wants, but the secret that drives her can’t stay hidden forever. When she quickly saves herself from a life-threatening political scandal, she gains a new enemy: the public eye. Daniel Park was hoping for the story of a lifetime. And he got her. He’s been following Suyana for a year. But what do you do when this person you thought you knew has vanished inside the shell, and dangers are building all around you? How much will Daniel risk when his job is to break the story? And how far will he go for a cause that isn’t his?
