Thanks for stopping by another SF Book Releases This Week. If you are an indie or small press author and would like your book included in this list, email us at adventuresinscifipublishing [at] gmail [dot] com.
Hieroglyph: Stories and Visions for a Better Future
by Ed Finn and Kathryn Cramer
Inspired by New York Times bestselling author Neal Stephenson, an anthology of stories, set in the near future, from some of today’s leading writers, thinkers, and visionaries that reignites the iconic and optimistic visions of the golden age of science fiction.
In his 2011 article “Innovation Starvation,” Neal Stephenson argued that we—the society whose earlier scientists and engineers witnessed the airplane, the automobile, nuclear energy, the computer, and space exploration—must reignite our ambitions to think boldly and do Big Stuff. He also advanced the Hieroglyph Theory which illuminates the power of science fiction to inspire the inventive imagination: “Good SF supplies a plausible, fully thought-out picture of an alternate reality in which some sort of compelling innovation has taken place.”
In 2012, Arizona State University established the Center for Science and the Imagination to bring together writers, artists, and creative thinkers with scientists, engineers, and technologists to cultivate and expand on “moon shot ideas” that inspire the imagination and catalyze real-world innovations.
Now comes this remarkable anthology uniting twenty of today’s leading thinkers, writers, and visionaries—among them Cory Doctorow, Gregory Benford, Elizabeth Bear, Bruce Sterling, and Neal Stephenson—to contribute works of “techno-optimism” that challenge us to dream and do Big Stuff. Engaging, mind-bending, provocative, and imaginative, Hieroglyph offers a forward-thinking approach to the intersection of art and technology that has the power to change our world.
Available September 9, 2014
Exo: A Novel (Jumper)
by Steven Gould
Award-winning author, Steven Gould, returns to the world of his classic novel Jumper in Exo, the sequel to Impulse, blending the drama of high school with world shattering consequences.
Cent can teleport. So can her parents, but they are the only people in the world who can. This is not as great as you might think it would be—sure, you can go shopping in Japan and then have tea in London, but it’s hard to keep a secret like that. And there are people, dangerous people, who work for governments and have guns, who want to make you do just this one thing for them. And when you’re a teenage girl things get even more complicated. High school. Boys. Global climate change, refugees, and genocide. Orbital mechanics.
But Cent isn’t easily daunted, and neither are Davy and Millie, her parents. She’s going to make some changes in the world.
Available September 9, 2014
City of Stairs
by Robert Jackson Bennett
An atmospheric and intrigue-filled novel of dead gods, buried histories, and a mysterious, protean city–from one of America’s most acclaimed young fantasy writers.
The city of Bulikov once wielded the powers of the gods to conquer the world, enslaving and brutalizing millions—until its divine protectors were killed. Now Bulikov has become just another colonial outpost of the world’s new geopolitical power, but the surreal landscape of the city itself—first shaped, now shattered, by the thousands of miracles its guardians once worked upon it—stands as a constant, haunting reminder of its former supremacy.
Into this broken city steps Shara Thivani. Officially, the unassuming young woman is just another junior diplomat sent by Bulikov’s oppressors. Unofficially, she is one of her country’s most accomplished spies, dispatched to catch a murderer. But as Shara pursues the killer, she starts to suspect that the beings who ruled this terrible place may not be as dead as they seem—and that Bulikov’s cruel reign may not yet be over.
Available September 9, 2014
The Falcon Throne (The Tarnished Crown Series)
by Karen Miller
WHEN KINGDOMS CLASH, EVERY CROWN WILL BE TARNISHED BY THE BLOODY PRICE OF AMBITION.
A bastard lord leads a rebellion against his tyrant king — and must live with the consequences of victory.
A royal widow plots to win her daughter’s freedom from the ambitious lords who would control them both.
An orphaned prince sets his eyes on regaining his father’s stolen throne.
And two brothers, divided by ambition, will learn that the greater the power, the more dangerous the game.
A masterful tale of the thirst for power and the cost of betrayal. Epic fantasy at its bloodiest, action-packed best.
Available September 9, 2014
Yesterday’s Hero
by Jonathan Wood
Another day, another zombie T-Rex to put down. All part of the routine for Arthur Wallace and MI37—the government department devoted to defending Britain from threats magical, supernatural, extraterrestrial, and generally odd. But a zombie T-Rex is only the first of Arthur’s problems, as Russian cyborg wizards threaten his life, and his coworkers threaten his sanity.
Available September 9, 2014
RAKER
by Christopher A. Gray
RAKER
1. noun
Remote Armed Kinesthetic Engagement & Reconnaissance android, used primarily by Fire Departments and Police Departments in the United States. RAKERs are deployed for rescue, bomb disposal, and other tasks which are deemed too dangerous for humans. Some models are being manufactured for the armed forces to serve as offensive battlefield weapons.
Christopher A. Gray’s RAKER follows an incident one evening when Dr. Norman Stravinsky sends his RAKER android Plato out to deliver a sensitive file to a colleague. When Plato encounters a crime in progress, the android must decide whether to interrupt its primary duties as bodyguard to Stravinsky in order to prevent the crime from continuing. The decision results in a confrontation between itself and the Seattle Police Department.
Available September 9, 2014
Robert Junker – AISFP Contributor
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Ragnarok Publications also released this week, Chelsea Avenue by Armand Rosimilia http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B00N740DHG/timcwar-20
“I don’t come across books like Rosamilia’s CHELSEA AVENUE often. Infused with the dreamlike quality of memory, Rosamilia here fulfills the full measure of the promise I first saw in his DYING DAYS series. Beautifully dark, this book held me entranced. I couldn’t get enough!” -Joe McKinney, Bram Stoker Award-winning author of DOG DAYS and PLAGUE OF THE UNDEAD
Some things never stop until the deed is done.
On July 8th 1987, in Long Branch, New Jersey, The Haunted House Pier and Murphy’s Law club fires destroyed not only local landmarks, but everything Manny Santiago found dear.
And it isn’t over.
The entity responsible for killing Manny’s family and wreaking devastation in the small seaside community has reappeared. Again. And is growing in power.
Now every July 8th it returns, and this time survivors of the fires, including Manny, are being led back to the now-vacant lot on Chelsea Avenue, where the entity intends to finish what it started in 1987 once and for all.
Also, Outlaw by Edward W. Robertson
http://www.amazon.com/Outlaw-Rebel-Stars-Book-1-ebook/dp/B00N86X5FK
IN THE YEAR 2010, an alien virus nearly wiped out the human race. A thousand years later, mankind has recovered and ventured into space. There has been no sign of the aliens since. Humanity remains confined to the Solar System.
All that is about to change.
Mazzy Webber is a lowly janitor on a third-rate cargo ship. Deeply in debt, when his captain decides to turn pirate, he leaps at the chance.
A modern Robin Hood–minus the part where he gives back to the poor–Webber lays down a few ground rules. No attacking manned ships, and no stealing from anyone who can’t afford it. Within months, he and the crew are out of debt. Their next target will make them rich.
But the attack goes all wrong. The target’s cargo could be the death of them–or it could be the key to reaching the stars.
~
Set in the far future of the bestselling BREAKERS novels, OUTLAW is the first book in a new series of piracy, conspiracy, and space’s deadliest janitor.