YetiStomper Picks for October

So I'm going to run through my October picks a little quicker than usual. And a little later than usual. Not just because I'm somewhat time deficient at the moment. More so that there are TWENTY ONE books to discuss.

For an industry that's dying, that's a pretty steady heartbeat.

Swell - Corwin Ericson

Stand Alone Novel - Swell is a curious little book that straddles the fine line between literature and genre, depicting an absurd adventure that never takes itself too seriously. Ericson's prose might be a little overwrought at times but he hits far more often than he misses, resulting in a impressive debut that never fails to entertain. (October 25 from Dark Coast Press)

The Children of the Sky - Vernor Vinge

Zones of Thought, Book 2 -  It's been 18 years since Vinge's modern SF classic of galactic proportions took the SF world by storm. The universe established in A Fire Upon The Deep begged for a sequel and we've finally got it. The early buzz is that The Children of the Sky doesn't quite live up to the standard set by it's progenitor but if it's even half as good, it will still be one of the best SF books of the year. (October 11 from Tor)

Osama: A Novel - Lavie Tidhar

Stand Alone Novella - The early contender for timely release of the year before Steve Jobs's autobiography became the book of 2011, Osama is a title everyone should recognize. But the character which Tidhar depicts is not the Bin Laden we all know and despise. Has Tidhar constructed a modern version of Philip K. Dick's seminal The Man in the High Castle? I suspect I'm not the only one who thinks so. (September 21 from PS Publishing)

The Cold Commands - Richard Morgan

A Land Fit For Heroes, Book 2 - Noted SF author Morgan's first foray into fantasy was met with mixed feelings. Now he's back for another go at hard edged fantasy in the vein of Martin and Abercrombie with The Cold Commands. (October 11 from Del Rey)

The Third Section - Jasper Kent

The Danilov Quintet, Book 3 - Kent's vampire saga reaches the halfway point as Dmitry Alekseevich Danilov picks up the fight his father started over 40 years ago. Part sprawling historical epic, part dark fantasy, The Danilov Quintet is one of Pyr's best offerings. (October 25 from Pyr)

Infidel - Kameron Hurley

God's War Trilogy, Book 2 - Only a few months ago, Kameron Hurley was turning heads with a debut novel that blended religion, race, and gender in a far future world unlike anything else in the industry today. Now she returns to that world with Infidel, as ex-assassin Nyx is forced to kill once more to protect a fragile peace. (October 18 from Night Shade Books)

Kingdom of Gods - N. K. Jemisin

Inheritance Trilogy, Book 3 -  A pure storyteller in the same vein as Gaiman and Le Guin, Jemisin has ability to tell a story that transcends the simple words on the page. At first glance, her world of gods and mortals, life and death, freedom and slavery, love and hate might appear overly dichotomous but be assured that in the end, nothing is quite so simple. Whatever "it" is, Nora K. Jemisin has it is droves. (October 27 from Orbit)

The End Specialist - Drew Magary

Stand Alone Novel - No one wants to get old. What if you didn't have to? Awesome, right? Keep in mind that that bus will still kill you, no questions asked. Drew Magary explores the implications of living in a world in which natural death has been removed from the rulebook through the blog of "end specialist" John Farrell. Magary himself is a blogger, and his experience lends itself well to the dark, satirical perspective of the book. (UK: September 29 from Harper Voyager / US: Aug 30 from Penguin)

Snuff - Terry Pratchett

Discworld Novels, Book 39 - It's Pratchett. It's Discworld. I think this is a City Watch novel but that doesn't really matter, does it? (October 11 from Harper)

Riptide - Paul S. Kemp

Star Wars, Jaden Korr, Book 2 - Paul Kemp's Crosscurrent (review) was the best Star Wars book of 2010. Normally, that's not saying much but Kemp brings it - regardless of whether "it" is Star Wars, Forgotten Realms, or his work of his own creation. It's been a long wait to find our what happened to the escaped band of insane cloned Jedi (I know, right?) but I'm excited to watch (mostly) sane Jedi Knight Jaden Korr track them down. (October 25 from Lucasbooks)

The Night Eternal - Guillermo Del Toro and Chuck Hogan

The Strain Trilogy, Book 3 - Twilight this is not. Del Toro and Hogan understand that vampires aren't sparkly cuddle puppies. They are bloodthirsty monsters who want to eat you or breed you like cattle for their eventual consumption. As such, if you encounter a vampire, please exterminate it with extreme prejudice. Still don't understand? This hybrid horror/thriller will demonstrate until even the zombies get it. (October 25 from William Morrow)

1Q84 - Haruki Murakami

Stand Alone Novel - Hmmm.... I don't even how to begin describe this 944 page monstrosity in a couple of sentences. It may or may not be 1984. There may or may not be two moons. A math teacher and a novelist are rewriting a story. Probably. I'm reasonable sure it's not a Tolkien knock-off, if that helps... I've not yet read 1Q84 but the word on the street is that Murakami is one of the best novelists writing in any language today. And everyone seems to agree that IQ84 is (another) masterpiece. (October 25 from Knopf)

King's War - Maurice Broaddus

The Knights of Breton Court Trilogy, Book 3 - Whoever said you shouldn't bring a knife to a gunfight obviously wasn't referring to Excalibur. Broaddus wraps up his inspired retelling of the Arthurian Saga set in modern day Indianapolis amidst the gang plagued Breton Court projects. If West Side Story is Romeo & Juliet + racial tensions in 1950s New York set to music, The Knights of Breton Court is Arthurian Legend + gang violence told as Urban Fantasy. But when your version of Camelot is the projects, what is your Avalon?  (October 25 from Angry Robot)

The Sacred Band - David Anthony Durham

Acacia Trilogy, Book 3 - In a genre where everyone can start a fantasy series but no one can finish one, David Anthony Durham stands out for his ability to not only close out a trilogy but to do so with a level of quality on par with, if not exceeding, that of the introductory volume. Simultaneously fantastic and realistic, the world Acacia is one of the genre's best kept secrets. (October 4 from Doubleday)

Aloha from Hell - Richard Kadrey

Sandman Slim, Book 3 - Unapologetic urban fantasy at its best, Aloha from Hell wraps up the first
Sandman Slim trilogy as James Stark returns to Hell to save the girl, stop a killer, and maintain the balance of good and evil. These books would be so wrong, if they just weren't so much fun. (October 18 from Harper Voyager)

Master of the House of Darts - Aliette de Bodard

Obsidian and Blood Trilogy, Book 3 - If you haven't guessed by now, October is "Finish Your Trilogy Month." De Bodard wraps up her South American infused series with the Master of the House of Darts. If Game of Thrones and its ripoffs have got you tired of Medieval European fantasy analogues give de Bodard's Mesoamerican saga a try. Or don't. It's not like she demonstrates a disturbingly complete understanding of human sacrifice or anything. (October 25 from Angry Robot)

Zone One - Colson Whitehead

Stand Alone Novel - Insert "BRAAIINNZZZZ..." joke here. Zone One is the intellectual's zombie novel, focusing more on the emotional stress of hunting down zombie remnants in a devastated Manhattan reclaimed from the zombie hordes rather than the emotional stress of hunting down zombie remnants in a devastated Manhattan reclaimed from the zombie hordes. But Whitehead's got it all wrong. I've played Left4Dead. Zombie hunting is like getting warm blankets straight out of the dryer. (October 18 from Doubleday)

Iron Jackal - Chris Wooding

Tales of the Ketty Jay, Book 3 - The rapscallious crew of the Ketty Jay returns for a third adventure across the skies of Vardia. Wooding's mashup of steampunk and Firefly probably won't win the Booker Prize but I wouldn't put it past Captain Frey and company to just steal it from whoever does. Train heists, airship races, master thievery; what's not to like? (October 20 from Gollancz)

Context - Cory Doctorow

Essay Collection - As good as his speculation is, there's something to be said for the quality of Doctorow's pontifications. Post-scarcity economics, the efficacy of digital rights management, and 21st century copyright concerns are only a few of the bleeding edge topics touched upon by Doctorow in the follow-up to last year's Content. Thought-provoking, well-written, and alarming, Doctorow's work is a must read for anyone concerned about the well being of digital artists.  (October 1 from Tachyon Publications)

Fox & Phoenix - Beth Bernobich

Long City, Book 1 - A young adult fantasy novel set in the same Chinese influenced fantasy world as Bernobich's novelette "Pig, Crane, Fox", Fox & Phoenix is a quirky blend of humor, character, and adventure. You can download "Pig, Crane, Fox" for free here. Why not give it a try? (October 13 from Viking Children's)

The White People and Other Weird Stories - Arthur Machen

Short Story Collection - What's Halloween without a good scary story? This month Penguin Classics publishes collections of not one but two masters of horror in Arthur Machen and H.P. Lovecraft. I chose to focus on Machen over Lovecraft due to my unfamiliarity with Machen's work but make no mistake, the genre wouldn't be what it is today without these two terrors. (September 27 from Penguin Classics)

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YetiStomper Pick Of The Month: So many options. Too many options. I give up. I'll just flip a coin. At least, when I find a twenty-one sided one. Do they even make dice that multifaceted?

Back on track. It's tempting to go with something of the horror variety, being October and all, but seeing as I'm actually posting this in November, I'm going to go in a different direction. Damn, no turkey themed books either.

So this isn't helping. What happened to the months with two books? I miss those. Let's start by identifying a short(er) list.

• 1Q84
• The Master of the House of Darts
• The Sacred Band
• Kingdom of Gods
• The Children of the Sky

Ugh, and that's ignoring Kameron Hurley and Richard Kadrey. AND Terry Pratchett. Are you still reading this? I wouldn't be.

So now I need to choose between a master of the modern novel (1Q84), an alternate history work that rejects the framework of 99% of modern fantasy (The Master of the House of Darts), the conclusion to one of the most complete fantasy trilogies in ages (The Sacred Band), the closing volume of a series that launched a new voice with the potential to enter the ranks of master storytellers (Kingdom of Gods), and the sequel to one of the best SF novels of the past 20 years (The Children of the Sky).

It's a five way tie!

Let's go to the YetiRulebook: "In the case of a tie, the YetiPick goes to the author who would benefit most from selling an additional 2 books."

Well I don't think I'm going to help Murakami be more of a bestseller, so 1Q84 is out. Likewise for N.K. Jemisin, who is surprising no one after the surfeit of  critical acclaim The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms garnered last year. Let's also cut The Children of the Sky on the grounds it's been anticipated for 16 more years than this blog has been around.

So that takes it down to The Sacred Band and The Master of the House of Darts. Now I can flip a coin.

I don't believe it. It landed on its side.

The Master of the House of Darts and The Sacred Band are both my October YetiPicks of the Month.

Don't look at me like that, what did you think was going to happen when I posted two covers up there?

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YetiStomper Debut Of The Month: Fortunately, while everyone else was playing "Shut Up and Finish Your Trilogy," only Drew Magary and Corwin Ericson were in catch-up mode, trying to claim a readership of their own. That means there are only two debuts to choose between, a much more manageable number.

While neither is perfect, in both books the positives outweigh the negatives by a wide margin. I'd feel comfortable recommending either to any of you freaks whose to-read lists haven't yet hit triple digits. Both books contain a certain level of satirical absurdity, although more so in Swell. For the most part, The End Specialist tries to draw logical conclusions from illogical premises; Swell feels no such obligation.

In the end, I'm giving the nod to Swell, mostly for its playful prose and unique brand of absurdity. While The End Specialist does offer a fresh perspective on the "end-of-death" scenario, the concept of "post-mortality" itself is one I've seen before through a number of different lenses. These days I find myself more and more drawn away from traditional genre topics and toward the unpredictable and entertaining. Swell, my YetiStomper Debut of the Month, is exactly that.

YetiStomper Cover Of The Month: Maybe I should just stop pretending I'll post these. It's not like I'm already a month behind in my YetiPicks...

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As always, if you are interested in more detail regarding any of the above books, just click on through the Amazon links. And don't worry, thanks to new state legislation, I don't get a single penny, nickel, or dime from it. It's been hard restructuring my budget without that extra $10 a year but I think I'll survive. Be sure to let me know if there is anything I may have missed in the comments.

You can view previous installments of YetiStomper Picks here.

YetiStomper Picks for September

Sorry Yetifans. I know this is late. Really late. Legendarily late. Or as I like to call it, "exactly on yeti standard time." To be truthful, I was doing a little experiment. I've suspected for months that io9 takes my YetiStomper Picks, subtracts one book, adds another and then claims that it as their own "original" picks for the month. I originally became suspicious when they copied my selection of A Dance With Dragons as a "highly anticipated" book. Bastards...

But it turns out, when I didn't post my selections this month, neither did they. That and my tinfoil hat prevented them from looking directly into my brain. Reynold's Wrap, humanity would be lost without you.

Or I was just a lazy ball of blogger this month. Your pick. Either way, better late than never, right?

Reamde - Neal Stephenson

Stand Alone, Book - As prolific as some writers are, Stephenson might put them all to shame. Less than a year after the hernia inducing Anathem, we've got another kilopage tome to get us through the winter months. Both as reading material and combustible fuel. And if a thousand pages a year doesn't impress you enough, bear in mind that Stephenson writes his novels longhand. Reamde is the latest entry in a new wave of MMORPG-centric cyberpunk thrillers which blend all aspects of twenty first century culture into a reality spanning epic. You know - billionaires, hackers, organized crime, terrorists, computer viruses, twitter - the usual.  Early reviews are calling it Stephenson's most accessible book yet - but is that a good thing? (September 20 from William Morrow)

Ganymede - Cherie Priest

The Clockwork Century, Book 4 - The first of two Cherie Priest books due out this month, Ganymede continues chronicling The Clockwork Century, a steampunk alternate American timeline in which the Civil War was never won and the West was never tamed. The titular Ganymede is a mysterious submarine that could finally end the decades long war in the North's favor, if only they could figure out how to use it. Andan Cly is the man whose been tasked to do just that, provided it doesn't kill him first. Personally, I'm getting a little bit tired of steampunk but The Clockwork Century is a series that has me hooked through til the end.  (September 27 from Tor)

Goliath - Scott Westerfeld

The Leviathan Trilogy, Book 3 - Okay, maybe I spoke too soon. Like Ganymede, Scott Westerfeld's steampunk series showcases a historic war with a steampunk slant. In the Leviathan Trilogy, it's World War I all over again but nothing like you the one you learned about it school. Now the Allied Powers pit genetically engineered "Darwinist" creations against walking mechanized monstrosities fielded by the Central Powers. Goliath follows young protagonists Deryn and Alek as they continue their mysterious mission around the world, stopping in Japan before heading to New York for the climatic conclusion of Westerfeld's YA trilogy. I'm about 10 years out of the YA target demographic but that doesn't make this series any less fun. If you're looking for something you can read along with your kids, Westerfeld is your guy. (September 20 from Simon Pulse)

The Girl of Fire and Thorns - Rae Carson

The Fire and Thorns Trilogy, Book 1 - I don't always read debut YA fantasy novels about princesses but when I do they better be worth reading. Fortunately, Rae Carson can deliver the goods. With a strong female lead, clever supporting cast, and mature yet effortless prose, Carson's take on world spanning fantasy represents the future of YA fiction. Carson has already been compared to the likes of Turner and Cashore; don't be surprised if new authors are labeled as "the next Rae Carson" in a few years. (September 20 from Greenwillow)

The Night Circus - Erin Morgenstern

Stand Alone - Are creepy circuses (circii?) the new vampires zombies steampunk? Just when I thought Genevieve Valentine was a lock for "best debut circus and/or vaudeville themed novel of 2011," Erin Morgenstern comes out of nowhere with another atmospheric tale more than worth the price of admission. Morgenstern's dark and moody debut has earned starred reviews from every legit source I've ever heard of (and several I haven't). Le Cirque des Reves features two rival magicians - and if they're not careful - for a limited time only. (September 13 from Doubleday)

Debris - Jo Anderton

The Veiled Worlds, Book 1 - Sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic, correct? Such is the station of futuristic pionner Tanyana, a woman with the ability to manipulates the building blocks of matter itself. At least until she is framed for an accident she didn't commit. Can a technoalchemist ever catch a break? Angry Robot brings us another fantastic debut as Anderton produces a breakneck novel on the driving strength of her first person perspective. (September 27 from Angry Robot)

Spellbound - Blake Charlton

The Spellwright Trilogy , Book 2 - Upstart novelist / medical student / professional shame shaman Blake Charlton returns to make you feel like an abject failure [but I'm at least the 121,594th best book blogger out there!] with the second volume of his Spellwright Trilogy. While he's not saving lives, Dr. Charlton relaxes by penning his own take on traditional fantasy. The Spellwright series focuses on Nicodemus Weal, complete failure and/or the only one who can stop the demonic Typhon from devouring human language itself. Well that's okay, we can just play charades right? Wrong. Language serves as the foundation of Charlton's complex and highly original magic system, so its annihilation might cause a few problems. Problems that Weal himself is intimately familiar with - a demonic curse (guess who) has prevented him from stringing a simple magical sentence together without chaotic consequences since an early age. But don't let the thinly veiled dyslexia metaphor stop you, Spellbound is fantasy at his finest. I would, however, recommend starting with Spellwright (Book 1) to get the full effect. (September 13 from Tor)

Hellbent - Cherie Priest

The Cheshire Red Reports, Book 2 - How funny is it that there are two books this month by different authors both named Cherie Priest? You would think that they would pick different pen names. I mean, one is writing about airships, smugglers, and steampunk submarines; the other is writing about vampire thieves, cross dressing ex-Navy SEALs, and ancient penis parts. That Venn diagram looks like a solar system map of Mercury and Pluto. [Is to a planet!]. And by that I mean there's no overlap. Except for me. Oh, and whoever likes good stories. Like the one that Cherie Priest #2 started with her highly entertaining "Chesire Red Reports" back in January's Bloodshot. With unforgettable characters, potentially gratuitous levels of violence, and "wit" that's one smart-ass comment away from being full blown snark, Hellbent demonstrates that you don't need to reinvent the wheel when it comes to urban fantasy; you just need to make it well rounded, get it moving and run some stuff over. Between Hellbent and Ganymede, good luck picking which Priest to worship. Unless they are by freak occurrence the same person. But that would just be weird.

Update: I'm an idiot. (September 6 from Spectra)

One Salt Sea - Seanan McGuire

October Daye, Book 5 - Multi-pseudonymous author Seanan McGuire continues her series of faerie tales with One Salt Sea in which protagonist October "Toby" Daye is forced to investigate the disappearance of some random but important merkids in order to prevent a war between air and water. Or as faerie folk like to call it, your typical Tuesday. McGuire continues to expand the world governed by Oberon's Laws, both in scope with the introduction of the realm of Saltmist and in depth with an increased focus on Daye's supporting cast of characters. In the paranormal realm, Jim Butcher owns wizards, Charlaine Harris commands vampires, and  Carrie Vaughn controls werewolves. As these books continue to improve, it's clear that Seanan McGuire has claimed the fae as her own with ironclad certainty. My only question is why is Daye still doing grunt work? She's a freaking Countess now. What good are titles if they don't come with minions? (September 6 from DAW)

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YetiStomper Pick Of The Month: Some authors are everywhere. They're blogging their fingers off. They're doing interviews for anyone and everyone with a question worth asking. They're writing guest posts for John Scalzi, Tor.com and whichever bloggers need to take time out of their posting schedules to feed their families. They're engaging readers through twitter, facebook, and geocities. They're mailing out review copies on their own dime. They're traveling around their region of the country doing two signings a day out of the back of their 1996 Pontiac Grand Prix. All while writing the next book and keeping the day job. These are the authors who make the genre what it is, an writhing tangle of nervous energy devoted to the goal of capturing a reader's imagination and doing all kinds of unspeakable things to it.

But there are also authors who are willing to let their work speak for itself and who don't give a frak if you understand it, much less like it. Authors who are willing to write a trillion bazillion words about the origins of calculus, the common problems of 17th century European adventurers, and how the modern banking system came to be because they found numismatic history to be interesting while doing research for their equally tome-tacular cryptogasmic opus. And then to follow that up with Anathem, as if they were doing their publisher a favor with a book that takes a tree and a half to print. It takes a special kind of author to do that. It takes Neal Stephenson to do all that and still hit #1 on the NYT Bestseller List. Reamde might be Stephenson's most accessible book yet but anyone familiar with his work knows that's not necessarily saying much. At the same time, saying the name Stephenson is enough for me - which is why Reamde is my YetiStomper Pick of the Month. Not that he would care.

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YetiStomper Debut Of The Month: The Woman Who Hates Everything Gazette. Americans Against Fictional Clowns Quarterly. The One Guy Who Liked Twilight Suicide Note. That's it.

That's the full list of publications who didn't give The Night Circus a starred review. It's a hell of lot shorter that the list of people who did. I originally tried typing that out which is what is responsible for my Books of September Post going up on the 29th rather than the 1st of the month. Apparently Google has a character limit, who knew?

Anyway, Morgenstern completely and utterly delivers on the hype and then some, resulting in a novel on par with such memorable debuts as Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell and The Time Traveler's Wife. It's stylistic, brilliant, moody, evocative and a hell of a lot better than any first novel has any right being. Read The Night Circus, September's YetiStomper Debut of the Month. I dare you to disagree.

YetiStomper Cover Of The Month: Hmmmm.... Where did this go? Stay tuned to find out...eventually

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As always, if you are interested in more detail regarding any of the above books, just click on through the Amazon links. And don't worry, thanks to new state legislation, I don't get a single penny, nickel, or dime from it. It's been hard restructuring my budget without that extra $10 a year but I think I'll survive. Be sure to let me know if there is anything I may have missed in the comments.

You can view previous installments of YetiStomper Picks here.

YetiStomper Picks for August

I think I'm actually getting worse at this whole writing thing as I go along. Fortunately, these eight authors seems to know what they're doing.

Southern Gods - John Hornor Jacobs

Stand Alone - Remind me to never visit Arkansas. Any interest I may have had in visiting that fine state is now completely and utterly gone, thanks to genre newcomer John Hornor Jacobs. His debut horror novel, Southern Gods follows war veteran and hired hand Bull Ingram as he tracks down Ramblin' John Hastur, a blues player rumored to have made a deal with the devil himself. Jacobs mixes Lovecratian Horror, Americana, and sweet tea in a unique tale of obsession and redemption on par with the best horror has to offer. (July 26 from Night Shade Books)

Ready Player One - Ernest Cline

Stand Alone - If SDCC is known for one thing, it's the generation of hype. But geek love is often a fickle bitch, and she rarely leaves with the one who brought her. At this year's comic-con, one of the most talked about properties was Ready Player One, the debut novel from Fanboys director Ernest Cline. Cline offers hope to every geek by creating a world in which encyclopedic knowledge of twentieth century pop-culture isn't just acceptable - it's the key to unlocking untold power and riches within OASIS, the virtual utopia that has come to dominate life in 2044. This is a must read for any child of the 80s. (August 16 from Crown)

Low Town - Daniel Polansky

Low Town, Book 1 - Is historical urban fantasy a thing? It might be soon, if copycats latch on to Daniel Polansky's excellent noir fantasy debut. Magic and murder combine in a gritty adventure that should surprise fantasy fans, even those familiar with the darker tones the genre has adopted over the past few years. Drug dealers, hustlers, brothels, dirty politics, corrupt cops . . . and sorcery. Welcome to Low Town. (August 16 from Doubleday)

The Urban Fantasy Anthology - Peter S. Beagle & Joe R. Lansdale, eds.

Urban Fantasy Anthology, duh. - With what appears to be the least boldly titled anthology since Neil Gaiman and Al Sarrantonio edited Stories, Beagle and Lansdale prove that looks can be deceiving. Split into three parts, the surprisingly eclectic anthology examines each of the literary definitions that have been linked to the term "Urban Fantasy" over the years. Neil Gaiman, Jeffrey Ford, and Beagle himself contribute to the group of "Mythic Fiction" stories while Lansdale joins Holly Black and Tim Powers in composing tales of "Noir Fantasy." "Paranormal Romance" rounds out the trio of interpretations with contributions from heavy hitters Carrie Vaughn, Kelly Armstrong, and Patricia Briggs as well as YetiStomper favorite, Norman Partridge. Whatever you assumed this book would be, you're probably wrong. (August 15 from Tachyon Publications)

Kitty's Greatest Hits - Carrie Vaughn

Kitty Norville, Short Fiction Collection - Jim Butcher's Side Jobs and Charlaine Harris's A Touch of Dead have proved that the notion that "short fiction anthologies don't sell" doesn't exactly apply to NYT Bestselling Urban Fantasy Series. Now it's Carrie Vaughn's turn as Tor collects 14 of her Kitty Norville shorts in a single hardcover volume. (August 16 from Tor)

The Magician King - Lev Grossman

The Magician Series, Book 2 - Lev Grossman continues his meta-tacular dissection of fantasy tropes with The Magician King, a book that does for the quest fantasy what its predecessor, The Magicians, did for the coming-of-age tale. Grossman's self-aware series is perfect for those who wonder how a real person might react if they discovered an entire world hidden in the armoire. (August 9 from Viking Adult)

Bluegrass Symphony - Lisa Hannett

Short Fiction Collection - You might call Lisa Hannett's first collection "hard to find." I'd call it "a future collector's item." Published by Ticonderoga one hemisphere over and another down, Bluegrass Symphony highlights one of Australia's up-and-comers with 12 strange stories that will delight and disturb. (August 1 from Ticonderoga Publications)

The Black Lung Captain - Chris Wooding

Tales of the Ketty Jay, Book 2 - In the second of Wooding's adventurous tales, we return to the airship Ketty Jay and it's inscrutable captain, Darian Frey. Many people have drawn comparisons between Wooding's motley crew and that of the tragically canceled Firefly. I'd be hard pressed to disagree. (July 26 from Spectra)

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YetiStomper Pick Of The Month: I've heard a lot of people harping on Lev Grossman. "He's a literary wolf in genre clothing." "The Magicians is a Harry Potter rip-off. And a bad one." "Isn't it funny how the book critic for Time magazine writes the same filth that they would never review." "He pushed my grandmother down the stairs. On her birthday." Okay, I might have made that last one up but for whatever reason, there's a vocal contingent of people out there hell bent on giving Grossman a bad name. Maybe they don't get his books. Maybe they're jealous. Maybe they see him as the enemy, the type of person who sits in a high castle and claims the Chabons, the Gaimans, and the Niffeneggers as his own. Grossman might work with the "establishment" day in and day out but he's more than willing to take off the tweed jacket to come play in the mud. But just because your idea of playing pretend involves more magic and less angsty introspection doesn't mean you enjoy a dirt sandwich. Grossman champions a combination of plot and purpose - the profound notion that books can say something worth saying and be worth reading, all at the same time. With The Magician King, my selection for YetiStomper Pick of the Month, Grossman continues his grim exploration of fantasy from within. After all, just because your life feels like a fairy tale doesn't mean you get to live happily ever after.

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YetiStomper Debut Of The Month: For a relatively calm month [Aside: when did 8 books become a "calm" amount?], there's still no shortage of debuts to choose between. Polansky [Low Town], Cline [Ready Player One], Jacobs [Southern Gods], and Hannett [Bluegrass Symphony] are all first timers and they've got plenty to be proud of. I'm really intrigued by Cline's premise - it sounds like a Cory Doctorow novel written by Scott Pilgrim or a Goonies reboot scripted by Charlie Stross - but at the same time, I've been burned by hype before. I'm definitely excited for the book but I can't in good faith give it top billing without having read a single word. Then there's the Wunderkind, Daniel Polansky, who at 26 has published one more book that I probably ever will. There's part of me that wants to eliminate Low Town on spite alone. Fortunately, I don't have to - as impressive a debut as Low Town is, it's outshined by the polished prose and seductive story contained in John Hornor Jacobs' premiere. The YetiStomper Debut of the Month, Southern Gods, is Chicken Fried Lovecraft - sheer terror breaded in mystery and malice and deep fried in the muggy backwoods of 1960s Arkansas. I dare you to take a bite and walk away without wanting more.

YetiStomper Cover Of The Month: Hmmmm.... Where did this go? Stay tuned to find out...eventually

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As always, if you are interested in more detail regarding any of the above books, just click on through the Amazon links. And don't worry, thanks to new state legislation, I don't get a single penny, nickel, or dime from it. It's been hard restructuring my budget without that extra $10 a year but I think I'll survive. Be sure to let me know if there is anything I may have missed in the comments.

You can view previous installments of YetiStomper Picks here.

YetiStomper Picks for July

Stop. Please. Or at least slow down, for the love of all things ~(;,,;)~ . I can't keep up, much less catch up on everything else.

Here are the 18 books I've tracked for July, the largest single month of recommendations in Stomping on Yeti history. The funny thing? Out of the three biggest books of the month (A Dance With Dragons / Ghost Story / Rule 34), none were originally scheduled to be published this month.

Flashback - Dan Simmons

Stand Alone - If you would have asked me a month ago, the newest novel from Hugo and World Fantasy Award winning author Dan Simmons would have been on the top of my most wanted list (well after A Dance With Dragons, who am I kidding). Flashback warns of a world where a drug that enables you to experience the most euphoric moments of your life has all but crippled the United States. Can flashback-addict Nick Bottom "change the course of an entire nation turning away from the future to live in the past?" There's no denying it's an intriguing premise - but is that enough to ignore the slate of early reviews accusing Simmons of overt racism and OSC-class politiking? I'll file this one under "Approach With Caution." (July 1 from Reagan Arthur)

A Dance With Dragons - George R. R. Martin

A Song of Ice and Fire, Book 5 - Either you knew this was coming or you didn't. But let's pretend you were in a coma for the last 8 years. The Chinese Democracy of fantasy novels, A Dance With Dragons tells the the rest of the story only partially depicted in A Feast for Crows, much to the chagrin of GRRMbling fans. It's bee nearly a decade but we'll finally find out what Jon Snow, Daenerys Targaryen, and Tyrion Lannister have been up to since we last left them in A Storm of Swords. (July 12 from Bantam)

The Clockwork Rocket - Greg Egan

Orthogonal, Book 1 - Greg Egan's latest combines the themes of Theordore Sturgeon's classic "Microcosmic God" with Einstein's exploration of relativistic time dilation in a hard SF novel sure to challenge readers (in a good way). Yalda's world is in danger of being obliterated by an extraterrestrial threat, yet the technology that might save them might not be invented for generations. But if a science vessel is launched at a high enough speed, they'd be able to complete decades of research while only a few years pass "at home." Confused yet? Now imagine that all of this takes place in a universe where the laws of physics as we know them don't apply. (July 4 from Night Shade Books)

Ghost Story - Jim Butcher

Dresden Files, Book 13 - I won't spoil it for those who are still catching up but rarely does a book live up to its title than Butcher's 12th entry in the Dresden Files, Changes. Fans of the series have been dying to know what happened to I CAN'T BELIEVED YOU LOOKED! WHY WOULD YOU WANT TO BE SPOILED? and after being pushed from it's original March pub date, it's finally time to find out. The Dresden Files is the single best Paranormal Detective / Urban Fantasy series on shelves right now and it's not even close. (July 26 from Roc)

Heart of Iron - Ekaterina Sedia

Stand Alone - Ugh. Not another tale of historical intrigue set in 19th century Russia riffing on a potential war between the great powers of Britain, Russia, and China. That subgenre is so played out. Why can't Ekaterina Sedia just do something interesting for a change..? Falser words were never spoken. With Heart of Iron, Sedia cements her place as a font of original speculation in a genre that innovates far less than it would admit. (July 26 from Prime)

Dead Iron - Devon Monk

The Age of Steam, Book 1 - On the subject of  paranormal detectives, Urban Fantasy stalwart Devon Monk shifts her attentions from sulty spellcasters to steampunk werewolves with Dead Iron, the first entry in a new series which combines elements from the two hottest publishing trends into a foggy, fast paced free-for-all. (July 5 from Roc)

Star Wars: Choices of One - Timothy Zahn

Star Wars, Rebellion Era - It's been 20 years since Timothy Zahn reintroduced the Star Wars universe to readers everywhere with his spectacular Thrawn trilogy. Two decades later, Zahn returns to the galaxy far far away with another adventure set during the dark days of the Rebellion when Vader still lurked among the stars, the Battle of Yavin was a recent memory, and Luke still thought he had a chance with Leia. All the familiar faces return, including Zahn's own creations - Mara Jade and the Hand of Judgement. (July 19 from Del Rey / Lucas Books)

Hell Ship - Philip Palmer

Stand Alone - Is there anything more fun than self-aware pulp fiction? Philip Palmer and Orbit deliver more genre goodness with Hell Ship, a SF novel in the same vein as their previous collaborations Red Claw and Version 43. The titular vessel is a intergalactic slave ship, devastating worlds and taking the remnants captive. For obvious reasons, forces inside and out plot the Hell Ship's destruction - but will they succeed?  (July 1 from Orbit)

Heaven's Shadow - David S. Goyer and Michael Cassutt

Heaven's Trilogy, Book 1 - "The science fiction epic of our time has arrived." While I wouldn't go quite that far, there's no denying that The Dark Knight scribe Goyer and his co-conspirator Cassutt are swinging for the fences. Heaven's Shadow, the first in a trilogy of first contact, has already been optioned for film. Here's the text trailer "Three years ago, an object one hundred miles across was spotted on a trajectory for Earth's sun. Now, its journey is almost over. As it approaches, two competing manned vehicles race through almost half a million kilometers of space to reach it first. But when they both arrive on the entity, they learn that it has been sent toward Earth for a reason. An intelligent race is desperately attempting to communicate with our primitive species. And the message is: Help us." Grab your popcorn! (July 5 from Ace)

Rule 34 - Charles Stross

Halting State, Book 2 - In quite possibly the least googleable book in recent history, Charles Stross returns to the world of 2007's Halting State for another police procedural. That is, if your hour long crime drama is set ten years in the future, chronicles internet crimes so bleeding edge their not quite illegal yet, and is uniquely presented in second person perspective. And the best part? The book kept getting delayed after the stuff Stross dreamt up, actually came true. Multiple times. (July 5 from Ace)

The Goblin Corps - Ari Marmell

Stand Alone - Ever tire of all that Elfing Hero Propaganda? You know what I'm talking about - child of prophecy journeys accross vast distances, overcomes impossible odds, blah blah blah. Ari Marmell finally tells the other side of the story in The Goblin Corps, an "alternative" fantasy which sets out to sarcastically prove that just because life is nasty, brutish, and short in the dark lands of Kirol Syrreth doesn't mean it isn't also a lot of fun. "Welcome to the Goblin Corps. May the best man lose." (July 26 from Pyr)

Heartless - Gail Carriger

The Parasol Protectorate, Book 4 - Steampunk alternate history meets urban fantasy once more in Heartless, the penultimate book in The Parasol Protectorate. Carriger's latest outing follows Lady Alexia Maccon once more as she attempts to save the queen from a maniacal ghost among other paranormal problems. (June 28 from Orbit)

7th Sigma - Steven Gould

Stand Alone - Gould, the author of the popular Jumper books, switches microscopic gears from teleporation to self-replicating nanotechnology in his latest book, 7th Sigma. The territory is a dangerous land, plagued by self-replicating, solar-powered, metal-masticating machines. Yet life prevails, rebuilt on a platform of plastic, ceramic and wood. Kimble Monroe is one of the hardy few that chose to remain in the American Southwest among the swarms of synthetic bugs. He's also one in a billion. Intrigued? I am. (July 5 from Tor)

Vortex - Robert Charles Wilson

Spin Books, Book 3 - After the delightful diversion that was Julian Comstock, Robert Charles Wilson returns to the universe of 2006's Hugo-award winning Spin which continues to spin further and further out of control. In Spin, a mysterious group of powers known as "the Hypotheticals" quarantined Earth and catapulted it into the far future of the universe. Two books later and it's time to find out why as their motives are ultimately revealed. Like fellow Canadian SF author Robert J. Sawyer, Wilson specializes in approachable character based science fiction and his talents are on display once again. (July 5 from Tor)

The Year's Best Science Fiction: Twenty-eighth Annual Collection - Gardner Dozois, ed.

The Year's Best Science Fiction, Book 28 - After 27 entries, Dozois's yearly collection of science fiction shorts is an undeniable genre staple. Whether you're looking to wrap your brain around some new ideas or just discover a few new authors to satisfy novel needs, you won't find a better place to start than Dozois's latest weighty tome. (July 5 from St. Martin's Griffin)

Stories for Nighttime and Some for the Day - Ben Loory

Short Story Collection - Ben Loory's a new name on my radar but a interesting one. His relatively short collection is just over two hundred pages in length but boasts forty of the most peculiar (and often hilarious) stories I've ever read. Loory's short shorts feel like modern day fairy tales, albeit ones told by a Mother Goose with a penchant for hallucinogenics and whose eggs are more than a little scrambled. His style bundles complex themes in purposefully simplistic prose packages, providing plenty of dialogue tags bur far fewer conclusions. Frustration has never been this much fun. (July 26 from Penguin)

The Thackery T. Lambshead Cabinet of Curiosities - Ann & Jeff VanderMeer, eds.

Thackery T. Lambshead Anthologies, Book 2 - If we're talking about things that belong in a curious cabinet, look no further than the VanderMeers' latest anthology. Fans of their editorial projects may recognize Thackery T. Lambshead as the fictional doctor responsible for compiling a collection of bizarre but entertaining diseases. Apparently he also had an affinity for collecting oddities as was apparently discovered in his imaginary home after his fictional death. In truth, a number of noted genre authors and artists have come together to stock his strange shelves, combining visual and written elements to create an anthology unlike any I've ever seen. Ted Chiang, China Mieville,  Mike Mignola and Alan Moore are only a few of the names that helped compile this abstract anthology of "exhibits, oddities, images, and stories" (July 12 from Harper Voyager)

Paradise Tales - Geoff Ryman

Short Story Collection - Small Beer Press's niche collections have always been a great place to find "Not Ready For Prime Time Players" in the speculative fiction space. Which isn't to say Ryman isn't ready for the big leagues. Quite the opposite in fact - Ryman already has 7 novels under his belt, including the BSFA and Arthur C. Clarke winning modern masterpiece Air: Or, Have Not Have. Which is probably why Ryman's first collection of SF tales - mundane and not - earned a Starred Review from Publisher's Weekly. (July 12 from Small Beer Press)

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YetiStomper Pick Of The Month: It's a good time to be George R. R. Martin (or if not him, one his fans). The almost flawless adaptation of Game of Thrones is HBO's newest smash hit. The graphic novel is due out in September from Dynamite Entertainment, to be penned by Yeti-favorite Daniel Abraham and illustrated by Tommy Patterson. And of course, Kong itself - the release of the book 5 years in the making. This month's YetiStomper Picks features more books than any other month in this blog's short history but out of all those books, only Jim Butcher's Ghost Story had even a shot of upsetting A Dance With Dragons for YetiStomper Pick of the Month. Now, I'm not fully caught up with A Song of Ice and Fire just yet but what I've read thus far has more than lived up to the hype. The only question is can A Dance With Dragons possibly live up to the colossal expectations placed upon it by the prolonged wait? The early word? - Yes!

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YetiStomper Debut Of The Month: There is a man. The man wrote a story. It was made up of smaller stories. The stories say everything and nothing. There is another man. He read the first man's story of stories. He was impressed. "I will pick this book," he says. Which is how Stories for Nighttime (and Some for the Day) came be July's YetiStomper Debut of the Month. Loory uses refreshingly simple prose while exploring  frustratingly elusive themes, resulting in a book that goes down smooth but leaves a pleasant aftertaste for you to mull over in your mind. I'm still not sure if Loory's debut is crazy good or just plain crazy but I'll admit I enjoyed it immensely. Undoubtedly the best collection I've read since Livia Llewellyn's Engines of Desire.

YetiStomper Cover Of The Month: Hmmmm.... Where did this go? Stay tuned to find out...eventually

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Anyway, as always, if you are interested in more details regarding any of the above books, just click on through the Amazon links. And don't worry, thanks to new state legislation, I don't get a single penny, nickel, or dime from it. It's been hard restructuring my budget without that extra $10 a year but I think I'll survive. Be sure to let me know if there is anything I may have missed in the comments.

You can view previous installments of YetiStomper Picks here.

Covering Covers: Percepliquis - Michael J. Sullivan

Cover Artist: Michael J. Sullivan

The Riyria Revelations is one of the most popular self-published/small-published fantasy series of recent years. As much as we're led to believe that a book should not be judged by it's cover, the undeniable success of Sullivan's work has been, at least in part, a result of the simple yet professional looking covers with which he has encased his stories. The cover of the latest (and last book), Percepliquis debuted today on Sullivan's blog. I've posted it above and for reference the first five books are shown below.



I really admire these covers. They aren't flashy but they aren't cheesy either, which is more than you can say about most self-produced cover. Sullivan appears to be cognizant of his own limitations, playing to his strengths rather than being overly ambitious. I like the clean imagery and the consistent style, even the repeated color scheme which I hadn't noticed before writing this piece. Pecepliquis isn't my favorite cover of the series - that honor goes to Avempartha or Nyphron Rising - but I'm happy the design and level of quality remained more or less consistent. Given that each book in the series sold a lot more copies than it's predecessor, Sullivan could have easily outsourced the cover art if he desired.

As for the book itself, Percepliquis is a strange story, one that really appeals to the book collector in me. As I discussed with him earlier this summer, Sullivan's series has been promoted to the majors with Orbit planning to republish the six books as a trilogy later this year. Even cooler, Orbit was gracious enough to allow Sullivan to publish Percepliquis under the Ridan Publishing imprint with the release of the Orbit omnibus, much to the delight of series completists everywhere.

I saw a great journey. Ten upon the road, she who wears the light will lead the way. The road goes deep into the earth, and into despair. The voices of the dead guide your steps. You walk back in time. The three-thousand-year battle begins again. Cold grips the world, death comes to all, and a choice is before you.

Percepliquis is the final installment of the epic fantasy, The Riyria Revelations. In this saga that began with The Crown Conspiracy, two thieves caught in the right place at the wrong time were launched on a series of ever escalating adventures that have all lead to this moment. Three thousand years have passed and the time for Novron’s heir to act has arrived.

The Ridan edition of Percepliquis should be available in the neighborhood of January 2012. You can send an e-mail to riyria6@gmail.com to make sure you are notified when it is.