Book Haul - The Thirteen Hallows, Eden

Eden (Kindle) by Tony Monchinski (Gallery) - This looks like a really cool zombie book. I will definitely be reading it.

Seemingly overnight the world transforms into a barren wasteland ravaged by plague and overrun by hordes of flesh-eating zombies. A small band of desperate men and women stand their ground in a fortified compound in what had been Queens, New York. They've named their sanctuary Eden.

Harris--the unusual honest man in this dead world--races against time to solve a murder while maintaining his own humanity. Because the danger posed by the dead and diseased mass clawing at Eden's walls pales in comparison to the deceit and treachery Harris faces within.

The Thirteen Hallows (Kindle) by Michael Scott and Colette Freedman (Tor) - Michael Scott is the author of the Secrets of the Immortal Nickolas Flamel series (beginning with The Alchemyst) and I really love the cover. Those are the two things I'm going off.

The Hallows. Ancient artifacts imbued with a primal and deadly power. But are they protectors of this world, or the keys to its destruction?

A gruesome murder in London reveals a sinister plot to uncover a two-thousand-year-old secret.

For decades, the Keepers guarded these Hallows, keeping them safe and hidden and apart from each other. But now the Keepers are being brutally murdered, their prizes stolen, the ancient objects bathed in their blood. Now, only a few remain.

With her dying breath, one of the Keepers convinces Sarah Miller, a practical stranger, to deliver her Hallow—a broken sword with devastating powers—to her American nephew, Owen.
The duo quickly become suspects in a series of murders as they are chased by both the police and the sadistic Dark Man and his nubile mistress.

As Sarah and Owen search for the surviving Keepers, they unravel the deadly secret the Keepers were charged to protect. The mystery leads Sarah and Owen on a cat-and-mouse chase through England and Wales, and history itself, as they discover that the sword may be the only thing standing between the world… nd a horror beyond imagining.

The Thirteen Hallows is the beginning of a spellbinding new saga, a thrilling tale of ancient magic and modern times by a New York Times bestselling author and an award-winning playwright.

Book Haul - M.L.N. Hanover

Thanks to Pocket Books (Simon and Schuster) for this haul, which I'm really looking forward to.

Unclean Spirits by M.L.N. Hanover - I love Daniel Abraham aka M.L.N. Hanover aka (half of) James S.A. Corey and when the UF mood strikes me, I'm all over these.

In a world where magic walks and demons ride, you can't always play by the rules.

Jayné Heller thinks of herself as a realist, until she discovers reality isn't quite what she thought it was. When her uncle Eric is murdered, Jayné travels to Denver to settle his estate, only to learn that it's all hers -- and vaster than she ever imagined. And along with properties across the world and an inexhaustible fortune, Eric left her a legacy of a different kind: his unfinished business with a cabal of wizards known as the Invisible College.

Led by the ruthless Randolph Coin, the Invisible College harnesses demon spirits for their own ends of power and domination. Jayné finds it difficult to believe magic and demons can even exist, let alone be responsible for the death of her uncle. But Coin sees Eric's heir as a threat to be eliminated by any means -- magical or mundane -- so Jayné had better start believing in something to save her own life.

Aided in her mission by a group of unlikely companions -- Aubrey, Eric's devastatingly attractive assistant; Ex, a former Jesuit with a lethal agenda; Midian, a two-hundred-year-old man who claims to be under a curse from Randolph Coin himself; and Chogyi Jake, a self-styled Buddhist with mystical abilities -- Jayné finds that her new reality is not only unexpected, but often unexplainable. And if she hopes to survive, she'll have to learn the new rules fast -- or break them completely....

Darker Angels by M.L.N. Hanover

Jayné Heller must enter the world of voodoo in order to take on a body-switching serial killer in this sequel to Unclean Spirits.

Vicious Grace by M.L.N. Hanover

When you’re staring evil in the eye, don’t forget to watch your back . . .

For the first time in forever, Jayné Heller’s life is making sense. Even if she routinely risks her life to destroy demonic parasites that prey on mortals, she now has friends, colleagues, a trusted lover, and newfound confidence in the mission she inherited from her wealthy, mysterious uncle. Her next job might just rob her of all of them. At Grace Memorial Hospital in Chicago, something is stirring. Patients are going AWOL and research subjects share the same sinister dreams. Half a century ago, something was buried under Grace in a terrible ritual, and it’s straining to be free. Jayné is primed to take on whatever’s about to be let loose. Yet the greatest danger now may not be the huge, unseen force lurking below, but the evil that has been hiding in plain sight all along—taking her ever closer to losing her body, her mind, and her soul. . . .

Killing Rites by M.L.N. Hanover

Jayné Heller has discovered the source of her uncanny powers; something else is living inside her body. She's possessed. Of all her companions, she can only bring herself to confide in Ex, the former priest. They seek help from his old teacher and the circle of friends he left behind, hoping to cleanse Jayné before the parasite in her becomes too powerful.

Ex's history and a new enemy combine to leave Jayné alone and on the run. Her friends, thinking that the rider with her has taken the reins, try to hunt her down, unaware of the danger they're putting her in. Jayné must defeat the weight of the past and the murderous intent of another rider, and her only allies are a rogue vampire she once helped free and the nameless thing hiding inside her skin.

Star Trek: Mirror Universe: Rise Like Lions by David Mack - Haven't read the book to which this is the follow-up so odds are low... Cool Picard pic though.

In this follow-up by bestselling author David Mack, the Terran rebellion erupts into a full-scale revolution, toppling the Klingon-Cardassian Alliance and ushering in a new era for the Mirror Universe.

In this alternate Star Trek universe, Miles O’Brien struggles to hold together his fragile band of rebels in the fight against the overwhelming forces of the Klingon-Cardassian Alliance. The standoff provokes increasingly frequent and violent clashes of wills between Regent Martok of the Klingon Empire and Legate Dukat, leader of the Cardassian Union. Meanwhile, Dukat plans a secret invasion of Terok Nor as a means of gaining the political upper hand within the Alliance.

Book Haul - From Australia

This Book Haul is courtesy of the great ChrisW of sffmania fame among others. I won this from his site (linked above), which you should really visit because it's awesome...and not because he just paid me off. :)


Writer of the Future - Runsible Tales by Neal Asher - This is a chapbook that looks great. I've been meaning to read some Asher but only own Gridlinked, but besides reading the back

Postscripts by Multiple Authors - This even has signatures from authors such as Peter F. Hamilton and more. Very cool.

Gardens of the Moon by Steven Erikson - This is the UK edition, the edition with some of the best artwork, although the new ones are looking pretty good too. If you haven't already, I'd recommend taking the plunge into the Malazan Book of the Fallen. It's one of my all-time favorite series ever of always anytime. :)

The Malazan Empire simmers with discontent, bled dry by interminable warfare, bitter infighting and bloody confrontations. Even the imperial legions, long inured to the bloodshed, yearn for some respite. Yet Empress Laseen's rule remains absolute, enforced by her dread Claw assassins.

For Sergeant Whiskeyjack and his squad of Bridgeburners, and for Tattersail, surviving cadre mage of the Second Legion, the aftermath of the siege of Pale should have been a time to mourn the many dead. But Darujhistan, last of the Free Cities of Genabackis, yet holds out. It is to this ancient citadel that Laseen turns her predatory gaze.

However, it would appear that the Empire is not alone in this great game. Sinister, shadowbound forces are gathering as the gods themselves prepare to play their hand . . .

Conceived and written on a panoramic scale, Gardens of the Moon is epic fantasy of the highest order--an enthralling adventure by an outstanding new voice.

Book Haul - Prince of Thorns, The Dragon's Path, and More

I got a nice little haul this week, mostly Amazon purchases, and an ARC.


A Different Kingdom by Paul Kearney - The author considers this his best work, I've loved everything I've read, so I had to own this one.

A lyrical fantasy of Ireland's past and present, by the author of "The Way to Babylon". In a remote rural part of Northern Ireland, a small boy's enchanted life changes for ever when a chance fall on a riverbank opens up another world in which sword-bearing warriors do battle with beasts of legend.

The Whitefire Crossing by Courtney Schafer - This is sadly my first Night Shade Books book, but looks really good. Can't wait to jump in. (This one's the ARC)

Dev is a smuggler with the perfect cover. He''s in high demand as a guide for the caravans that carry legitimate goods from the city of Ninavel into the country of Alathia. The route through the Whitefire Mountains is treacherous, and Dev is one of the few climbers who knows how to cross them safely. With his skill and connections, it''s easy enough to slip contraband charms from Ninavel - where any magic is fair game, no matter how dark - into Alathia, where most magic is outlawed.

But smuggling a few charms is one thing; smuggling a person through the warded Alathian border is near suicidal. Having made a promise to a dying friend, Dev is forced to take on a singularly dangerous cargo: Kiran. A young apprentice on the run from one of the most powerful mages in Ninavel, Kiran is desperate enough to pay a fortune to sneak into a country where discovery means certain execution - and he''ll do whatever it takes to prevent Dev from finding out the terrible truth behind his getaway.

Yet the young mage is not the only one harboring a deadly secret. Caught up in a web of subterfuge and dark magic, Dev and Kiran must find a way to trust each other - or face not only their own destruction, but that of the entire city of Ninavel.

The Dragon's Path by Daniel Abraham - Abraham is a must buy for me, he can do no wrong in my book.

Summer is the season of war in the Free Cities.

Marcus wants to get out before the fighting starts. His hero days are behind him and simple caravan duty is better than getting pressed into service by the local gentry. Even a small war can get you killed. But a captain needs men to lead -- and his have been summarily arrested and recruited for their swords.

Cithrin has a job to do -- move the wealth of a nation across a war zone. An orphan raised by the bank, she is their last hope of keeping the bank's wealth out of the hands of the invaders. But she's just a girl and knows little of caravans, war, and danger. She knows money and she knows secrets, but will that be enough to save her in the coming months?

Geder, the only son of a noble house is more interested in philosophy than swordplay. He is a poor excuse for a soldier and little more than a pawn in these games of war. But not even he knows what he will become of the fires of battle. Hero or villain? Small men have achieved greater things and Geder is no small man.

Falling pebbles can start a landslide. What should have been a small summer spat between gentlemen is spiraling out of control. Dark forces are at work, fanning the flames that will sweep the entire region onto The Dragon's Path -- the path of war.

Dawn of War by Tim Marquitz - Tim is another must buy for me. He just gets me. :)

For hundreds of years, the bestial Grol have clawed at the walls of Lathah without success. Now armed with O'hra, mystical weapons of great power, they have returned, to conquer.

Witness to the Grol advance, Arrin can abide his exile no longer. He returns to Lathah, in defiance of death, with hopes to save his beloved princess and the child born of their illicit affair. He finds her unwilling to abandon her people. At her behest, Arrin searches for a sanctuary for them only to be confronted by the Sha'ree, a powerful race long thought gone from the world. Through them, he learns it is not just the Grol that threaten the land.

Empowered by a magic never before seen, the savage nations spread chaos and ruin across the realm. With Lathah under siege, and the world on the brink of cataclysmic war, Arrin must strike a deal with the Sha'ree to take the fight to the Grol, or forever lose his one true love: his family.

Prince of Thorns by Mark Lawrence - I can't wait to jump into this one, I see this going really well.

"Before the thorns taught me their sharp lessons and bled weakness from me I had but one brother, and I loved him well. But those days are gone and what is left of them lies in my mother's tomb. Now I have many brothers, quick with knife and sword, and as evil as you please. We ride this broken empire and loot its corpse. They say these are violent times, the end of days when the dead roam and monsters haunt the night. All that's true enough, but there's something worse out there, in the dark. Much worse."

Once a privileged royal child, raised by a loving mother, Jorg Ancrath has become the Prince of Thorns, a charming, immoral boy leading a grim band of outlaws in a series of raids and atrocities. The world is in chaos: violence is rife, nightmares everywhere. Jorg's bleak past has set him beyond fear of any man, living or dead, but there is still one thing that puts a chill in him. Returning to his father's castle Jorg must confront horrors from his childhood and carve himself a future with all hands turned against him.

Prince of Thorns is the first volume in a powerful new epic fantasy trilogy, original, absorbing and challenging. Mark Lawrence’s debut novel tells a tale of blood and treachery, magic and brotherhood and paints a compelling and brutal, sometimes beautiful, picture of an exceptional boy on his journey toward manhood and the throne.

Book Haul

Some biggies this week. I want to read everything, but there's just this little problem, I don't have enough ... places to talk about them. Did you think I was going for something else? :)

Shadow Ops: Control Point by Myke Cole (Ace) - Peter V. Brett's blurb calling this Black Hawk Down meets the X-Men has me über excited to read this.

For a mil­len­nium, magic has been Latent in the world. Now, with the Great Reawak­en­ing, peo­ple are “com­ing up Latent,” man­i­fest­ing dan­ger­ous mag­i­cal abil­i­ties they often can­not con­trol. In response, the mil­i­tary estab­lishes the Super­nat­ural Oper­a­tions Corps (SOC), a deadly band of sor­cer­ers ded­i­cated to hunt­ing down “Self­ers” who use magic out­side gov­ern­ment con­trol. When army offi­cer Oscar Brit­ton comes up Latent with a rare and pro­hib­ited power, his life turns upside down. Trans­formed overnight from gov­ern­ment agent to pub­lic enemy num­ber one, his attempt to stay alive and evade his for­mer friends dri­ves him into a shadow world he never knew lurked just below the sur­face of the one he’s always lived in. He’s about to learn that magic has changed all the rules he’s ever known, and that his life isn’t the only thing he’s fight­ing for.

Harbor by John Ajvide Lindqvist (Thomas Dunne) - From the author of Let the Right One in, I'm excited to read my first book by said author.

“John Ajvide Lindqvist is rightly seen as one of the most exciting writers working in the horror genre at the moment – a rival, indeed, to Stephen King.” --TheScotsman.com

From the author of the international and New York Times bestseller Let the Right One In (Let Me In) comes this stunning and terrifying book which begins when a man's six-year-old daughter vanishes.One ordinary winter afternoon on a snowy island, Anders and Cecilia take their six-year-old daughter Maja across the ice to visit the lighthouse in the middle of the frozen channel. While the couple explore the lighthouse, Maja disappears -- either into thin air or under thin ice -- leaving not even a footprint in the snow. Two years later, alone and more or less permanently drunk, Anders returns to the island to regroup. He slowly realises that people are not telling him all they know; even his own mother, it seems, is keeping secrets. What is happening in Domaro, and what power does the sea have over the town's inhabitants?

As he did with Let the Right One In and Handling the Undead, John Ajvide Lindqvist serves up a blockbuster cocktail of suspense in a narrative that barely pauses for breath.

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern (Doubleday) - This is actually something I won. Haven't done that in a while. I really don't know what to think about this one though, the reviews have been up and down.

The circus arrives without warning. No announcements precede it. It is simply there, when yesterday it was not. Within the black-and-white striped canvas tents is an utterly unique experience full of breathtaking amazements. It is called Le Cirque des Rêves, and it is only open at night.

But behind the scenes, a fierce competition is underway—a duel between two young magicians, Celia and Marco, who have been trained since childhood expressly for this purpose by their mercurial instructors. Unbeknownst to them, this is a game in which only one can be left standing, and the circus is but the stage for a remarkable battle of imagination and will. Despite themselves, however, Celia and Marco tumble headfirst into love—a deep, magical love that makes the lights flicker and the room grow warm whenever they so much as brush hands.

True love or not, the game must play out, and the fates of everyone involved, from the cast of extraordinary circus per­formers to the patrons, hang in the balance, suspended as precariously as the daring acrobats overhead.

Written in rich, seductive prose, this spell-casting novel is a feast for the senses and the heart.

Legends of the Dragonrealm (Vol. III) by Richard A. Knaak (Gallery) - I really love the cover for this and all the blurbs, especially the one from R.A. Salvatore, have me looking for Vol. I.

The epic fantasy series Legends of the Dragonrealm continues in this omnibus edition by New York Times bestselling author Richard A. Knaak...including three bonus novellas in print for the first time!

Book Haul

Star Trek: Enterprise: The Romulan War: To Brave the Storm by Michael A. Martin - Quite the title. Gotta be a record or something right? I will read a Star Trek novel, is 2012 the year?

EARTH STANDS ALONE

The Coalition of Planets has shattered, with Vulcan, Andor, and Tellar abrogating the treaty. Their pledge to come to the mutual defense of any power that is attacked has been shunted aside. Horrified by how easily the Romulans can seize control of their advanced starships, turning them into weapons, Andor and Tellar have joined Vulcan on the sidelines. Humanity is now the only thing that stands between the Romulan Star Empire and total domination of the galaxy.

To drive humans from the stars, the Romulans employ ruthless and murderous tactics . . . and even dare to strike on the Vulcan homeworld with the hopes of demoralizing their Vulcan brethren. Heartened by their victories, the Romulans carry their all-out war assault closer to the heart of humanity—Earth.

But the tattered remains of Starfleet stand unwavering, with the resolution that never again would any enemy strike ever reach Earth. On the front lines of the Earth- Romulan War is the United Earth flagship, the Starship Enterprise. Her captain, Jonathan Archer, has seen his vessel of exploration become a battleship. Once hailed for his work bringing the Coalition of Planets into existence, Archer is now a pariah. Undaunted, the captain keeps fighting, searching for allies and determined to do his duty: to save Earth and forge a new federation of planets.

CassaFire by Alex J. Cavanaugh - I've missed these characters and I'm excited to get back into this series. Comes out Feb. 28, 2012.

CassaStar was only the beginning…

The Vindicarn War is a distant memory and Byron’s days of piloting Cosbolt fighters are over. He has kept the promise he made to his fallen mentor and friend - to probe space on an exploration vessel. Shuttle work is dull, but it’s a free and solitary existence. The senior officer is content with his life aboard the Rennather.

The detection of alien ruins sends the exploration ship to the distant planet of Tgren. If their scientists can decipher the language, they can unlock the secrets of this device. Is it a key to the Tgren's civilization or a weapon of unimaginable power? Tensions mount as their new allies are suspicious of the Cassan's technology and strange mental abilities.

To complicate matters, the Tgrens are showing signs of mental powers themselves, the strongest of which belongs to a pilot named Athee, a woman whose skills rival Byron’s unique abilities. Forced to train her mind and further develop her flying aptitude, he finds his patience strained. Add a reluctant friendship with a young scientist, and he feels invaded on every level. All Byron wanted was his privacy…

Blackdog by K.V. Johansen - I had to request this book immediately after reading this review at LEC Book Reviews.

Long ago, in the days of the first kings in the north, there were seven devils...
And long ago, in the days of the first kings in the north, the seven devils,
who had deceived and possessed seven of the greatest wizards of the world,
were defeated and bound with the help of the Old Great Gods...
And perhaps some of the devils are free in the world,
and perhaps some are working to free themselves still...

In a land where gods walk on the hills and goddesses rise from river, lake, and spring, the caravan-guard Holla-Sayan, escaping the bloody conquest of a lakeside town, stops to help an abandoned child and a dying dog. The girl, though, is the incarnation of Attalissa, goddess of Lissavakail, and the dog a shape-changing guardian spirit whose origins have been forgotten. Possessed and nearly driven mad by the Blackdog, Holla-Sayan flees to the desert road, taking the powerless avatar with him.

Necromancy, treachery, massacres, rebellions, and gods dead or lost or mad, follow hard on the their heels. But it is Attalissa herself who may be the Blackdog's—and Holla-Sayan's—doom.

What I'm Reading Sept. 22 - Oct. 4

I jumped back into a couple series and I'm getting really far behind on my reviews.

Reading:

Dust of Dreams (Malazan 9) by Steven Erikson - 250 out of 889. Still plugging along and it's awesome. That first 100 or so pages was amazing and now we're back to the set-up phase, still good though.

Summer Knight (Dresden Files 4) by Jim Butcher - 100 out of 371. Picked this up randomly and suddenly I was 100 pages in. It's been a while since I read Grave Peril, but, and this is part of the reason I started taking longer breaks between Dresden books, it fills in all the details (and I mean all) as you go.

Everything You Ever Wanted To Know About Zombies by Matt Mogk - 80 out of 288. No progress. I'm letting this one sit for a bit. Good, but only in pieces, plus I'm trying to catch up on my goals.

Audiobook:

Shadow of the Hegemon by Orson Scott Card - 3 out of 11 CD's. Suddenly I'm reading tons of OSC, I don't know where this came from.

For Review:

Laddertop #1 by OSC and Emily Janice Card, Illustrated by Honoel A. Ibardolaza (manga)

Heaven's Needle by Liane Merciel - This was a great sequel that was even better than the first.

Low Town by Daniel Polansky - Been sitting on this to post, waiting to get closer to a possible interview.

The Prestige by Christopher Priest - Different enough from the movie to make it worth the read.