Waiting On Wednesday: Besieged (The Outcast Chronicles) by Rowena Cory Daniells

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill over at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.



This week's pre-publication "can't-wait-to-read" selection is:



Besieged: The Outcast Chronicles by Rowena Cory Daniells



For nearly 300 years the mystics have lived alongside the true-men, who barely tolerate them, until...



King Charald is cursed with a half-blood mystic son. Sorne is raised to be a weapon against the mystics. Desperate to win his father’s respect, Sorne steals power to trigger visions. Unaware King Charald plans their downfall, the mystics are consumed by rivalry. Although physically stronger, the males’ gifts are weaker than the females. Imoshen, the only female mystic to be raised by males, wants to end the feud. But the males resent her power and, even within her own sisterhood Imoshen’s enemies believe she is addicted to the male gifts.



Sorne tries, but cannot win the respect of True-men. When he has a vision of half-bloods in danger he has to ask himself where his loyalty lies.



Convinced he can destroy the mystics, King Charald plans to lay siege to their island city. Will Imoshen win the trust of the mystic leaders and, if she does, will she believe the visions of a half-blood? (June 26, 2012)



While I haven't had a chance to dive into Daniells' first two series (King Rolen's Kin & Last T'En Trilogy), I'm anxious to give this one a read.

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Waiting On Wednesday: The Hammer and the Blade by Paul Kemp

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill over at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.



This week's pre-publication "can't-wait-to-read" selection is:



The Hammer and the Blade by Paul Kemp



Egil and Nix, adventurers and swords for hire, are pulled into the dark schemes of a decadent family with a diabolical secret. 



Kill the demon.

Steal the treasure.

Retire to a life of luxury.



Sounds easy when you put it like that.



Unfortunately for Egil and Nix, when the demon they kill has friends in high places, retirement is not an option.



A fast paced adventure redolent with the best of classic sword and sorcery tales.. (June 26, 2012)



Sometimes you want to read a thousand page epic work of mythological fantasy, and sometimes you just want some old-fashioned pulp sword-and-sorcery. I think this may just be the fix I need.

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Waiting On Wednesday: Amped by Daniel H. Wilson

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill over at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.



This week's pre-publication "can't-wait-to-read" selection is:



Amped: A Novel by Daniel H. Wilson



Technology makes them superhuman. But mere mortals want them kept in their place. The New York Times bestselling author of Robopocalypse creates a stunning, near-future world where technology and humanity clash in surprising ways. The result? The perfect summer blockbuster



As he did in Robopocalypse, Daniel Wilson masterfully envisions a frightening near-future world. In Amped, people are implanted with a device that makes them capable of superhuman feats. The powerful technology has profound consequences for society, and soon a set of laws is passed that restricts the abilities—and rights—of "amplified" humans. On the day that the Supreme Court passes the first of these laws, twenty-nine-year-old Owen Gray joins the ranks of a new persecuted underclass known as "amps." Owen is forced to go on the run, desperate to reach an outpost in Oklahoma where, it is rumored, a group of the most enhanced amps may be about to change the world—or destroy it.



Once again, Daniel H. Wilson's background as a scientist serves him well in this technologically savvy thriller that delivers first-rate entertainment, as Wilson takes the "what if" question in entirely unexpected directions. Fans of Robopocalypse are sure to be delighted, and legions of new fans will want to get "amped" this summer. (June 5, 2012)



While I have yet to read Robopocalypse (it's sitting in my TBR pile, I promise!), I'm really excited for this one. Technically,  I'm not really waiting, since I got the ARC last week, but I am anticipating the read.

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Waiting On Wednesday: God Save the Queen by Kate Locke

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill over at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.



This week's pre-publication "can't-wait-to-read" selection is:



God Save the Queen by Kate Locke



The undead matriarch of a Britain where the Aristocracy is made up of werewolves and vampires, where goblins live underground and mothers know better than to let their children out after dark. A world where being nobility means being infected with the Plague (side-effects include undeath), Hysteria is the popular affliction of the day, and leeches are considered a delicacy. And a world where technology lives side by side with magic. The year is 2012 and Pax Britannia still reigns.



Xandra Vardan is a member of the elite Royal Guard, and it is her duty to protect the Aristocracy. But when her sister goes missing, Xandra will set out on a path that undermines everything she believed in and uncover a conspiracy that threatens to topple the empire. And she is the key-the prize in a very dangerous struggle. (July 3, 2012)



I'm always game for a good alternate history novel, and this one seems to have all the necessary trappings to be a winner. Definitely looking forward to it.

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Waiting On Wednesday: The Apocalypse Codex by Charles Stross

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill over at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.



This week's pre-publication "can't-wait-to-read" selection is:



The Apocalypse Codex by Charles Stross



In the world of the Laundry, there is One True Religion — and we know how to deal with cultists when we find them. When a prominent televangelist with connections to 10 Downing Street shows disturbing signs of being able to work miracles, it’s only natural for the Laundry, the secret service for dealing with occult threats, to take an interest. But there’s a fly in the ointment: the first rule of the secret services is, spying on the Prime Minister and their associates is forbidden. It’s time to send in the freelancers – except in the world of the Laundry, officially there’s no such thing…(July 3, 2012)



Despite having 3 titles on my shelf (Glasshouse, Rule 34, and Saturn's Children), I've yet to give Stross a read. Something about this one has really snagged my attention, though, so it may be time to catch up on some laundy . . . sorry for the bad pun. :)

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Waiting On Wednesday: The Long Earth by Terry Pratchett & Stephen Baxter

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill over at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.



This week's pre-publication "can't-wait-to-read" selection is:

The Long Earth by Terry Pratchett & Stephen Baxter



An unmissable milestone for fans of Sir Terry Pratchett: the first SF novel in over three decades in which the visionary inventor of Discworld has created a new universe of tantalizing possibilities—a series of parallel “Earths” with doorways leading to adventure, intrigue, excitement, and an escape into the furthest reaches of the imagination. The Long Earth, written with award-winning novelist Stephen Baxter, author of Stone Spring, Ark, and Floodwill, captivate science fiction fans of all stripes, readers of Kurt Vonnegut, Douglas Adams, and Carl Hiaasen, and anyone who enjoyed the Terry Pratchett/Neil Gaiman collaboration Good Omens. The Long Earth is an adventure of the highest order—and an unforgettable read. (June 19, 2012)



I don't read a lot of humour because I find that the story either suffers at the expense of a cheap joke, or the jokes fall flat in an attempt to tell a story. Terry Pratchett is one of the very few authors who can do humorous fantasy and do it well - his Good Omens with Neil Gaiman is an absolute classic, and I have high hopes for this.

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Waiting On Wednesday: The Janus Affair by Pip Ballantine & Tee Morris

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill over at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.



This week's pre-publication "can't-wait-to-read" selection is:



The Janus Affair by Pip Ballantine & Tee Morris



Evildoers beware! Retribution is at hand, thanks to Britain's best-kept secret agents!!



Certainly no strangers to peculiar occurrences, agents Wellington Books and Eliza Braun are nonetheless stunned to observe a fellow passenger aboard Britain's latest hypersteam train suddenly vanish in a dazzling bolt of lightning. They soon discover this is not the only such disappearance . . . with each case going inexplicably unexamined by the Crown.



The fate of England is once again in the hands of an ingenious archivist paired with a beautiful, fearless lady of adventure. And though their foe be fiendishly clever, so then is Mr. Books . . . and Miss Braun still has a number of useful and unusual devices hidden beneath her petticoats. (May 29, 2012)



The first Ministry of Peculiar Occurrences novels, Phoenix Rising, was one of those books I picked up on a whim and ended up breezing through in a weekend. Kind of a steampunk take on the old Avengers TV show with Patrick Macnee & Diana Rigg, it was fun, fast, and clever enough that I'm eager to take on the sequel.

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"Waiting On" Wednesday: Scourge of the Betrayer by Jeff Salyards

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill over at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.



This week's pre-publication "can't-wait-to-read" selection is:



Scourge of the Betrayer by Jeff Salyards



Many tales are told of the Syldoon Empire and its fearsome soldiers, who are known throughout the world for their treachery and atrocities. Some say that the Syldoon eat virgins and babies-or perhaps their own mothers. Arkamondos, a bookish young scribe, suspects that the Syldoon's dire reputation may have grown in the retelling, but he's about to find out for himself. 



Hired to chronicle the exploits of a band of rugged Syldoon warriors, Arki finds himself both frightened and fascinated by the men's enigmatic leader, Captain Braylar Killcoin. A secretive, mercurial figure haunted by the memories of those he's killed with his deadly flail, Braylar has already disposed of at least one impertinent scribe . . . and Arki might be next. Archiving the mundane doings of millers and merchants was tedious, but at least it was safe. As Arki heads off on a mysterious mission into parts unknown, in the company of the coarse, bloody-minded Syldoon, he is promised a chance to finally record an historic adventure well worth the telling, but first he must survive the experience! 



A gripping military fantasy in the tradition of Glen Cook, Scourge of the Betrayer explores the brutal politics of Empire-and the searing impact of violence and dark magic on a man's soul. (May 1, 2012)



I haven't heard much advance buzz surrounding this one, but the cover looks great, and there's just something about the cover blurb that really appeals to me. Looking forward to a new author discovery.

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"Waiting On" Wednesday: Witch House by Edward Lee

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill over at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.



This week's pre-publication "can't-wait-to-read" selection is:



Witch House by Edward Lee:



Many witches were burnt, hanged and tortured in seventeenth-century New England, including notorious coven-leader Evanore Wraxall and her incestuous father. Not all of them died. Now, on a trip to Wraxall House in Haver-Towne, NH, Stewart Fanshawe, cable television finance pundit, is about to meet them. [May 1]







Yeah, the release is a bit light on details, but Edward Lee, Richard Laymon, and Bentley Little are my unholy trinity, always good for an over-the-top, B-grade dose of horror and gore.

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"Waiting On" Wednesday: The Wind Through the Keyhole by Stephen King

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill over at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.



This week's pre-publication "can't-wait-to-read" selection is:



The Wind Through the Keyhole by Stephen King:



For those discovering the epic bestselling Dark Tower series for the first time—and for its legions of dedicated fans—an immensely satisfying stand-alone novel and perfect introduction to the series.Beginning in 1974, gaining momentum in the 1980s and coming to a thrilling conclusion when the last three novels were published in 2003-2004, the Dark Tower epic fantasy saga stands as Stephen King’s most beguiling achievement. It has been the basis for a long-running Marvel comic series.



Now, with The Wind Through the Keyhole, King has returned to the rich landscape of Mid-World. This story within a story within a story finds Roland Deschain, Mid-World’s last gunslinger, in his early days during the guilt-ridden year following his mother’s death. Sent by his father to investigate evidence of a murderous shape-shifter, a “skin-man,” Roland takes charge of Bill Streeter, a brave but terrified boy who is the sole surviving witness to the beast’s most recent slaughter. Roland, himself only a teenager, calms the boy by reciting a story from the Book of Eld that his mother used to read to him at bedtime. “A person’s never too old for stories,” he says to Bill. “Man and boy, girl and woman, we live for them.” 



Sure to captivate the avid fans of the Dark Tower epic, this is an enchanting introduction to Roland’s world and the power of Stephen King’s storytelling magic. [April 24]



With just 1 month left to go, the countdown has officially begun . . . NEW DARK TOWER!

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"Waiting On" Wednesday: Triggers by Robert J. Sawyer

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill over at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.



This week's pre-publication "can't-wait-to-read" selection is:



Triggers by Robert J. Sawyer:



On the eve of a secret military operation, an assassin's bullet strikes President Seth Jerrison. He is rushed to the hospital, where surgeons struggle to save his life.



At the same hospital, researcher Dr. Ranjip Singh is experimenting with a device that can erase traumatic memories.



Then a terrorist bomb detonates. In the operating room, the president suffers cardiac arrest. He has a near-death experience-but the memories that flash through Jerrison's mind are not his memories.



It quickly becomes clear that the electromagnetic pulse generated by the bomb amplified and scrambled Dr. Singh's equipment, allowing a random group of people to access one another's minds.



And now one of those people has access to the president's memories- including classified information regarding the upcoming military mission, which, if revealed, could cost countless lives. But the task of determining who has switched memories with whom is a daunting one- particularly when some of the people involved have reason to lie... [April 3]



Okay, I'll admit it, I have yet to read Robert J. Sawyer, despite the fact that he's a fellow Canadian, and despite the fact that books like Illegal Alien and Flashforward have been sitting on my shelves for far too long/

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"Waiting On" Wednesday: The Company of the Dead by David Kowalski

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill over at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.



This week's pre-publication "can't-wait-to-read" selection is:





The Company of the Dead by David Kowalski:



A mysterious man appears aboard the Titanic on its doomed voyage. His mission? To save the ship.



The result? A world where the United States never entered World War I, thus launching the secret history of the 20th Century.



In April 2012, Joseph Kennedy--nephew of John F. Kennedy--lives in an America occupied in the East by Greater Germany and on the West Coast by Imperial Japan. He is one of six people who can restore history to its rightful order -- even though it would mean his death, and the deaths of everyone he loves.



A magnificent alternate history, set against the backdrop of one of the the greatest maritime disasters of the 20th century. [March 13]



Between this and Carpathia, the Titanic is making a welcome genre resurgence. As somebody who vividly remembers the 1985 discovery of the remarkably well-preserved wreckage on on the ocean floor, and who was already a huge fan of Clive Cussler's Raise the Titanic, I'm really looking forward to this one.

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"Waiting On" Wednesday: Touchstone by Melanie Rawn

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill over at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.



This week's pre-publication "can't-wait-to-read" selection is:



Touchstone by Melanie Rawn:



Cayden Silversun is part Elven, part Fae, part human Wizard—and all rebel. His aristocratic mother would have him follow his father to the Royal Court, to make a high society living off the scraps of kings. But Cade lives and breathes for the theater, and he’s good—very, very good. With his company, he’ll enter the highest reaches of society and power, as an honored artist—or die trying. Cade combines the talents of Merlin, Shakespeare, and John Lennon: a wholly charming character in a remarkably original fantasy world created by a mistress of the art.



Although Touchstone can stand alone, it is the first book of a brilliant, utterly engaging new fantasy series from the author of the bestselling Dragon Prince series. [February 28]



While I didn't care for her urban fantasy series, and felt The Diviner was very uneven, I am very much looking forward to her return to epic fantasy.

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"Waiting On" Wednesday: Orb Sceptre Throne by Ian C. Esslemont

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill over at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.



This week's pre-publication "can't-wait-to-read" selection is:



Orb Sceptre Throne by Ian C. Esslemont:



The epic new chapter in the history of Malaz—the new epic fantasy from Steven Erikson's friend and co-creator of this extraordinary and exciting imagined world.



Darujhistan, city of dreams, city of blue flames, is peaceful at last; its citizens free to return to politicking, bickering, trading and, above all, enjoying the good things in life. Yet there are those who will not allow the past to remain buried. A scholar digging in the plains stumbles across an ancient sealed vault. The merchant Humble Measure schemes to drive out the remaining Malazan invaders. And the surviving agents of a long-lost power are stirring, for they sense change and so, opportunity. While, as ever at the centre of everything, a thief in a red waistcoat and of rotund proportions walks the streets, juggling in one hand custard pastries, and in the other the fate of the city itself.



Far to the south, fragments of the titanic Moon's Spawn have crashed into the Rivan Sea creating a series of isles...and a fortune hunter's dream. A Malazan veteran calling himself 'Red' ventures out to try his luck—and perhaps say goodbye to old friends. But there he finds far more than he'd bargained for as the rush to claim the Spawn's treasures descends into a mad scramble of chaos and bloodshed. For powers from across the world have gathered here, searching for the legendary Throne of Night. The impact of these events are far reaching, it seems. On an unremarkable island off the coast of Genabackis, a people who had turned their backs upon all such strivings now lift their masked faces towards the mainland and recall the ancient prophesy of a return.



And what about the ex-Claw of the Malazan Empire who now walks the uttermost edge of creation? His mission—the success or failure of which the Queen of Dreams saw long ago—is destined to shape far more than anyone could have ever imagined. [February 28]



While I enjoyed Night of Knives, Esslemont's first contribution to the Malazan Empire storyline, it didn't exactly blow me away the same way Gardens of the Moon did. Return of the Crimson Guard was a much better read, and enough to convince me that the empire was in good hands. I haven't caught up with Stonewielder yet (after The Crippled God I just had to walk away from the world for a bit), but I'm like Esslemont's style and I'm glad he's back with a new entry.

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