Joe Sherry recently posted a list of the books he was looking forward to in the first quarter of the new year, including a link to Locus magazine’s forthcoming books list. This prompted me to do a little looking of my own and what follows is a mostly, but not entirely, genre-filled list of books coming out over the next several months that are already on my TBR list.

The Best of Larry Niven ~edited by Jonathan Strahan

Release Date: November 30th, 2010 (although I have yet to see it in stores)
Publisher: Subterranean Press

From Publisher’s Weekly: Starred Review. These 27 short stories, originally published from 1965 to 2000, demonstrate Niven’s tremendous range and literary prowess in the fields of SF (Hugo winners “Neutron Star” and “The Borderland of Sol,” featuring clever pilot Beowulf Shaeffer), fantasy (“Not Long Before the End”), nonfiction (the famously footnote-heavy “Man of Steel, Woman of Kleenex” ), and mystery (“The Deadlier Weapon”). Standouts include “All the Myriad Ways,” about what happens when everything in alternate time lines actually comes true, and 1973’s prescient “Flash Crowd,” about the ways that cheap, fast transportation and communication can transform global culture. An introduction by frequent Niven collaborator Jerry Pournelle (Escape from Hell) focuses on Niven’s attraction to hard SF, and brief headnotes by Niven himself provide context and color. This spellbinding collection is a must for fans of classic SF.

My Thoughts: I have long been a fan of Larry Niven, despite having barely made a dent in his oeuvre. I’m a fan of Subterranean Press too. This one should be good.

Release Date: December 7th, 2010 (Update: Purchased Dec 9th)
Publisher: Ace Books

From Publisher’s Weekly: World Fantasy Award winner McKillip (The Bell at Sealey Head) offers a rich, resonant story of poetry, riddles, mystery, and magic. Phelan Cle never wanted to be a bard–that’s his decidedly unmusical father’s ambition for him–but now that he’s about to graduate from Bardic School at Caerau, he’s determined to make it easy on himself. He chooses what should be a straight-forward thesis topic: Bone Plain, where legend says all poetry originated, where Nairn the Wanderer, the Fool, the Cursed, the Unforgiven, one of the greatest bards in history, failed the mysterious Three Trials and disappeared forever. History surrounds the school and the nearby standing stones, where archaeologist Princess Beatrice digs up an unusual artifact that may hold the key to the mysteries of Bone Plain. McKillip seduces readers with lyrical prose; intriguing, complex characters; and resonant riddles-within-riddles.

My Thoughts: I have been reading Patricia A. McKillip for three decades and I am quick to purchase each new release, particularly because these lovely hardback editions are hard to find on store shelves not long after their initial release. I’ll be snagging this on Tuesday.

Release Date: December 2010 (Update: Received review copy from Tor)
Publisher: Tor Books

From Publisher’s Weekly: Starred Review. This stellar anthology features 22 original stories set in the far future of Grand Master Jack Vance’s 1950 classic The Dying Earth, wherein sorcerers, rogues and demons squabble for power beneath the waning light of a bloated red sun. Some of the field’s most talented writers successfully adopt Vance’s convoluted style, ironic dialogue and amoral protagonists, as in Dan Simmons’s epic novella The Guiding Nose of Ulfänt Banderoz, which relates the desperate quest of Shrue the diabolist to find a dead wizard’s Ultimate Library, and Liz Williams’s excellent Caulk the Witch-chaser, concerning a minor wizard forced to ally himself with his quarry. Exquisitely illustrated by Tom Kidd, these are tales to savor and a fitting tribute to one of the field’s finest authors.

My Thoughts: I was kicking myself when I did not order the special edition of this book from Subterranean Press, with its gorgeous Tom Kidd cover. Jeff showed his copy to me when it arrived and I slobbered jealously (and probably muttered some gibberish about how happy I was for him). Now this volume is being released in a hardback edition for the rest of us. Though the cover is plain by comparison, Tom Kidd’s interior illustrations accompany this version and I could not be more thrilled…

…particularly because as I was sitting here working on this post the mailman came and delivered a copy to me from Tor Books. I had forgotten that I requested a copy for review and its arrival could not have been more serendipitous.

Release Date: December 28, 2010
Publisher: Solaris

Product Description: The universe shifts and changes: suddenly you understand, you get it, and are filled with a sense of wonder. That moment of understanding drives the greatest science-fiction stories and lies at the heart of Engineering Infinity. Whether it’s coming up hard against the speed of light and, with it, the enormity of the universe, realizing that terraforming a distant world is harder and more dangerous than you’d ever thought, or simply realizing that a hitchhiker on a starship consumes fuel and oxygen with tragic results, it’s hard science-fiction where sense of wonder is most often found and where science-fiction’s true heart lies. The exciting and innovative science-fiction anthology collects together stories by some of the biggest names in the field including Stephen Baxter, Charles Stross and Greg Bear.

My Thoughts: As I sit here in my fourth decade of reading science fiction I can look back and count less than a dozen stories that I have read that could be classified as “hard sf”. I am looking forward to expanding my horizons with this soon-to-be-released collection by one of my favorite editors, Jonathan Strahan.

Release Date: January 2011
Publisher: Pyr Books

Product Description: America, 1984 – not our version of America, but an America that calls itself the Real, an America in which the invention of Turing Gates has allowed it access to sheaves of alternate histories. For ten years, in the name of democracy, the Real has been waging clandestine wars and fomenting revolution, freeing versions of America from communist or fascist rule, and extending its influence across a wide variety of alternate realities. But the human and political costs have proven too high, and new President Jimmy Carter has called an end to war, and is bringing troops and secret agents home. Adam Stone is called out of retirement when his former comrade, Tom Waverly, begins to murder different versions of the same person, mathematician Eileen Barrie. Aided by Waverly’s daughter, Linda, Adam hunts for his old friend across different sheaves, but when they finally catch up with Waverly, they discover that they have stumbled into the middle of an audicious conspiracy that plans to exploite a new property of the Turing Gates: it will change not only the history of the Real, but that of every other sheaf, including our own. COWBOY ANGELS combines the high-octane action and convoluted plots of the TV series 24 in a satirical, multi-layered alternate reality thriller.

My Thoughts: McAuley’s books, with their cover images by artist Sparth, have always caught my eye, but I have yet to read one. I have a feeling Cowboy Angels will be the book to right to this wrong. A science fiction spy thriller combination sounds great and the cover image is already calling my name.

Release Date: January 18th, 2011
Publisher: Tor Books

Product description: Gene Wolfe takes us to a future North America at once familiar and utterly strange. A young man and woman, Skip and Chelle, fall in love in college and marry, but she is enlisted in the military, there is a war on, and she must serve her tour of duty before they can settle down. But the military is fighting a war with aliens in distant solar systems, and her months in the service will be years in relative time on Earth. Chelle returns to recuperate from severe injuries, after months of service, still a young woman but not necessarily the same person—while Skip is in his forties and a wealthy businessman, but eager for her return.

Still in love (somewhat to his surprise and delight), they go on a Caribbean cruise to resume their marriage. Their vacation rapidly becomes a complex series of challenges, not the least of which are spies, aliens, and battles with pirates who capture the ship for ransom. There is no writer in SF like Gene Wolfe and no SF novel like Home Fires.

My Thoughts: I have only read a few Gene Wolfe stories…but I was blown away by them. I am very interested in the premise of this one. Could be fun.

Release Date: February 8th, 2011
Publisher: Delacorte Press

Product Description: Award-winning author Alan Bradley returns with another beguiling novel starring the insidiously clever and unflappable eleven-year-old sleuth Flavia de Luce. The precocious chemist with a passion for poisons uncovers a fresh slew of misdeeds in the hamlet of Bishop’s Lacey—mysteries involving a missing tot, a fortune-teller, and a corpse in Flavia’s own backyard.

Flavia had asked the old Gypsy woman to tell her fortune, but never expected to stumble across the poor soul, bludgeoned in the wee hours in her own caravan. Was this an act of retribution by those convinced that the soothsayer had abducted a local child years ago? Certainly Flavia understands the bliss of settling scores; revenge is a delightful pastime when one has two odious older sisters. But how could this crime be connected to the missing baby? Had it something to do with the weird sect who met at the river to practice their secret rites? While still pondering the possibilities, Flavia stumbles upon another corpse—that of a notorious layabout who had been caught prowling about the de Luce’s drawing room.

Pedaling Gladys, her faithful bicycle, across the countryside in search of clues to both crimes, Flavia uncovers some odd new twists. Most intriguing is her introduction to an elegant artist with a very special object in her possession—a portrait that sheds light on the biggest mystery of all: Who is Flavia?

As the red herrings pile up, Flavia must sort through clues fishy and foul to untangle dark deeds and dangerous secrets.

My Thoughts: Is there anyone left who does not know how infatuated I am with Alan Bradley’s Flavia de Luce mysteries? If any book has the potential to derail my science fiction reading during the upcoming Sci Fi Experience 2011, it is young miss Flavia.

Release Date: March 15th, 2011
Publisher: Night Shade Books

Product Description: The depth and breadth of science fiction and fantasy fiction continues to change with every passing year. The twenty-nine stories chosen for this book by award-winning anthologist Jonathan Strahan carefully map this evolution, giving readers a captivating and always-entertaining look at the very best the genre has to offer.

My Thoughts: Do you sense a trend here? My want list over the next year is full of books edited by Jonathan Strahan! It is an embarrassment of riches and I love it! The Table of Contents for this volume can be found on Jonathan Strahan’s site here.

Release Date: March 29, 2011
Publisher: Tor Books

Product Description: Freelance Sword Jockey Eddie LaCrosse is in the wrong place at the wrong time while conducting an undercover investigation on the island kingdom of Grand Bruan. When a poisoned apple kills a member of the queen’s personal guard, Eddie becomes the prime suspect in the murder. He must do some fast talking to keep his head attached to his shoulders. Trying to clear his name and find the real killer, Eddie becomes embroiled in a nasty political scandal. Someone is trying to ruin Queen Jennifer, and they don’t care who they kill along the way.

The more Eddie digs, the more twisted the lies become, until Eddie finds himself caught between two opposing armies. The fate of the entire kingdom lies in his hands.

Murder, betrayal, and magic—just another day on the job for Sword Jockey Eddie LaCrosse

My Thoughts: Alex Bledsoe’s Eddie LaCrosse series is among my favorites. These books are a clever, entertaining amalgam of the sword and sorcery and noir detective genres and they are great fun. I have two complaints about this upcoming third book in the series: the cover (though not bad at all) is wildly different than the first two, and this book is being released as a trade paperback and not as a hardcover like the first two. That is disappointing. I like seeing some uniformity to the presentation of books in a series and having a collection that is a mixture of hardcover and paperback is a bummer. Still, I’ll be picking this up first chance I get because I am a BIG FAN.

Special thanks to Phil from A Fantasy Reader for posting the cover image and blurb.

Release Date: April 1st, 2011
Publisher: Small Beer Press

Product Description: Joan Aiken’s stories captivated readers for fifty years. They’re funny, smart, gentle, and occasionally very, very scary. The stories in The Monkey’s Wedding are collected here for the very first time and include six never before published, as well as two previously published under the pseudonym Nicholas Dee. Here you’ll find the story of a village for sale . . . or is the village itself the story? There’s an English vicar who declares on his deathbed that he might have lived an entirely different life. After his death, a large, black, argumentative cat makes an appearance. . . . This hugely imaginative collection includes introductions by Aiken as well as by her daughter, Lizza Aiken.

Best known for The Wolves of Willoughby Chase, Joan Aiken (1924-2004) wrote over a hundred books and won the Guardian and Edgar Allan Poe awards. After her first husband’s death, she supported her family by copyediting at Argosy magazine and an advertising agency before turning to fiction. She went on to write for Vogue, Good Housekeeping, Vanity Fair, Argosy, Women’s Own, and many others.

My Thoughts: I hadn’t heard of Joan Aiken until I picked up a copy of The Wolves of Willoughby Chase a few years ago because its Edward Gorey illustrated cover caught my eye. It was an excellent book, as, I am given to understand, are the rest of the books in that series. I am very interested to see how her short fiction reads.

Release Date: April 14, 2011
Publisher: Viking Juvenile

Product Description: Mars! The Red Planet! For generations, people have wondered what it would be like to travel to and live there. That curiosity has inspired some of the most durable science fiction, including Ray Bradbury’s The Martian Chronicles and the work of Isaac Asimov. Now the award-winning anthologist Jonathan Strahan has brought together thirteen original stories to explore the possibilities. After reading Life on Mars, readers will never look at the fourth planet from the sun the same way again.

My Thoughts: Inspired by classic and contemporary literature and the fact that we have machines currently working on the surface, Mars is a planet that holds a great deal of fascination for me. I am excited that this anthology will feature all original stories. And what a great cover image! I am quite giddy about this one and cannot wait to have a copy in my hands.

(Image found at 4th Dimension Art. Art by Richard Powers, chosen as a place holder because Eclipse Three had a cover illustrated by Powers)

Eclipse Four: New Science Fiction and Fantasy ~edited by Jonathan Strahan

Release Date: May 1st, 2011
Publisher: Night Shade Books

From Nightshade Books: Award winning editor Jonathan Strahan continues the spectacular and award winning original genre fiction series, Eclipse. This series encompasses science fiction, fantasy, horror, and everything in between. Continuing the spirit of the genre’s previous groundbreaking original anthology series (Universe, Orbit, and Starlight, etc.), Eclipse continues to provide a high profile home for cutting edge genre fiction, helping define what the fantastic genres can aspire to be in the twenty-first century.

My Thoughts: I got on board with the release of the first volume in this original anthology series, hoping to be a part of a long-running anthology series, walking in the footsteps of those readers who were able to experience science fiction and fantasy anthologies in their heyday. I have enjoyed all three volumes of this series and am disappointed that I have to wait so long for volume 4. It is sure to be worth the wait.

Release Date: May 10th, 2011
Publisher: Tor Books

From Galleycat earlier this year: Today science fiction author and prolific blogger John Scalzi announced he’d sold a “reboot” of H. Beam Piper‘s 1962 science fiction novel Little Fuzzy to Tor Books. Publication is scheduled for next year.

Last week Scalzi revealed that he will revisit the classic novel in a new kind of book: “I took the original plot and characters of Little Fuzzy and wrote an entirely new story from and with them. The novel doesn’t follow on from the events of Little Fuzzy; it’s a new interpretation of that first story and a break from the continuity that H. Beam Piper established in Little Fuzzy and its sequels.

My Thoughts: Other than the fact that I am not a fan of this cover, all I can really say is that it is a new book from John Scalzi: ’nuff said.

Release Date: May 24th, 2011
Publisher: Pyr Books

Blurb from Cybermage: Boss, a loner, loved to dive derelict spacecraft adrift in the blackness of space. But one day, she found a ship that would change everything–an ancient Dignity Vessel–and aboard the ship, the mysterious and dangerous Stealth Tech. Now, years after discovering that first ship, Boss has put together a large company which finds Dignity Vessels and finds “loose” stealth technology. Following a hunch, Boss and her team come to investigate the city of Vaycehn, where fourteen archeologists have died exploring the endless caves below the city. Mysterious “death holes” explode into the city itself for no apparent reason, and Boss believes stealth tech is involved. As Boss searches for the answer to the mystery of the death holes, she will uncover the answer to her Dignity Vessel quest as well—and one more thing, something so important that it will change her life—and the universe—forever…

My Thoughts: I tore through the first collection of Boss’ adventures earlier this year and was thrilled to see that Rusch is continuing to pen stories in this universe. Exposure to Diving into the Wreck and a couple of her stories in Asimov’s this year has made me an enthusiastic fan.

(Place holder image of the first Vanguard novel cover art)

Release Date: June 2011, December 2011
Publisher: Pocket Books

Product Description, from the Memory Alpha website: Vanguard – Declassified is the title of a forthcoming collection of four novellas set in the Star Trek: Vanguard series.

Due for release in June 2011, the collection will feature individual contributions from Dayton Ward, Kevin Dilmore, David Mack, and Marco Palmieri – who will be making his Star Trek author debut with this release, having been a co-creator of Vanguard with Mack.

December– As-yet unnamed Star Trek: Vanguard novel, by Dayton Ward and Kevin Dilmore.

My Thoughts: I really enjoyed the first novel in this series, am collecting the rest, and am a big fan of the original series time period. After publishing shakeups last year I am happy to see that this series is back on track.

Well, that is it…for now. 🙂

What have I missed?