17 more SF/F books to check out for the rest of August

Title wave!

August has been chugging along, and I've been spending a good amount of time this month burning through my TBR: I recently finished The Folded Sky by Elizabeth Bear, The Devil Reached Toward the Sky by Garrett M. Graff and Automatic Noodle by Annalee Newitz (review), and I'm been working on figuring out how I need to prioritize the rest of the list over the next couple of months for reviews, interviews, and commentary.

It's not the worst thing in the world, and I've been finding that it's so much healthier to turn to an audiobook instead of a podcast while I'm walking or driving, or taking my lunch out on the porch at work rather than sit and scroll through social media. I recommend it, especially now that we're in the midst of the summer, where I can hang out in the sun and enjoy a couple of chapters.

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You can read the prior installments of this series via the Book List tag. In case you missed it, here's the first list for August:

Alrighty: here are 17 new SF/F books that you should check out over the remainder of August:

Lessons in Magic and Disaster by Charlie Jane Anders (August 19th)

In this new fantasy from Charlie Jane Anders, Jamie seems like she's your usual New England academic: she's got her dissertation underway, is in a stable relationship, and is dealing with a bit of generational trauma. She's also a witch. Her mother Serena has been hiding from the world after the death of her wife and abrupt disintegration of her career.

Jamie has been trying to help, teaching her spells from a centuries-old spell book, and is trying to figure out what happened to her mother and how secrets from her past are coming back to haunt her before both of their lives are completely upended.

Kirkus Reviews gave the book a starred review, saying "This compact novel is about many things: a literary treasure hunt that strongly recalls A.S. Byatt’s Possession; the struggle to negotiate obligations to parents, spouses, and oneself; moving forward from grief; and a self-taught witch’s fraught journey toward understanding her own magic."

The Martians: The True Story of an Alien Craze That Captured Turn-of-the-Century America by David Baron (August 26th)

Here's a book that's right up my alley: The Martians: The True Story of an Alien Craze that Captured Turn-of-the-Century America by David Baron. In the early 20th century, there was a widespread belief that life existed on Mars, thanks in part to astronomer and businessman Percival Lowell, who founded the Lowell Observatory and observed a series of features that he identified as canals, which he speculated was created by an intelligent civilization. His theories captured the attention of the nation, and eventually toppled his career and reputation.

Publishers Weekly gave the book a starred review, saying "While Baron points to the dangers of conspiracy theories and bunk science, he also presents the saga as one of infectious optimism that inspired subsequent generations of science fiction writers and scientists. It’s an enthrallingly bizarre and surprisingly poignant account of humankind’s limitless willingness to believe."

The Possession of Alba Díaz by Isabel Cañas (August 19th)

Isabel Cañas came to my attention a couple of years ago when she released Vampires of El Norte, an excellent horror / romance set during the Mexican-American war in the 1800s. Her next brings us to 1762 Mexico as a plague devastates the city of Zacatecas. Alba flees with her parents and fiancé to her family's mine to wait it out, but once there, she begins experiencing hallucinations, convulsions, and sleepwalking: she's possessed by something uncanny.

At the same time, her fiancé's cousin Elías has escaped to the New World ahead of a troubled past, and begins noticing that there's something wrong with Alba. The two become entangled in a string of secrets and conspiracies that could spell their doom.

Publishers Weekly says "Cañas creates a lush, detailed atmosphere thick with tension and dread. Despite a slow opening and somewhat uneven pacing throughout, the richly layered narrative offers much to hold readers’ interest as it probes themes of colonialism, patriarchy, and autonomy."

The Art of Legend by Wesley Chu (August 26th)

This is the final installment of Chu's War Arts Saga (preceded by The Art of Prophecy and The Art of Destiny), and takes place in a distant kingdom where a man was destined to defeat the Eternal Khan.

Things didn't turn out that way: the Eternal Khan died and changed the prophecy, leaving the destined hero Jian to chart a new path. Training under his mentor Taishi, he became a great warrior, and now, there are rumors of war and the possible return of the Khan.

Before Superman: Superhumans of the Radium Age edited by Joshua Glenn (August 19th)

Joshua Glenn adds a new installment of his Radium Age series with Before Superman: Superhumans of the Radium Age. This series (now published through MIT Press) is his attempt to chart a new origin story for the science fiction genre, unearthing the prot0-genre works that were published at the turn of the 20th century that went on to influence the modern genre.

I'm looking forward to digging into this one. This collection pulls together short stories written between 1902 and 1928, by such authors as Francis Stevens, H. Rider Haggard, Hugo Gernsback, Arthur Conan Doyle, Edgar Rice Burroughs, and more, all examining the ways that humanity could be transformed in all sorts of terrifying ways.

20th Century Ghosts 20th Anniversary Edition by Joe Hill (August 19th)

With books like Horns, NOS4A2, and The Fireman, Joe Hill has become one of my favorite horror authors, but that stems back to his original collection of short fiction, 20th Century Ghosts, which came out 20 years ago this year.

This book was transformative for me when my college professor F. Brett Cox assigned it for my Gothic Lit class nearly two decades ago: it really helped introduce me (a non-horror reader) to the genre. The book is getting a snazzy new edition to mark the occasion, with a new cover and sprayed edges.

The End of the World as We Know It: New Tales of Stephen King's The Stand edited by Christopher Golden and Brian Keene (August 19th)

Stephen King's The Stand is a monumental classic of post-apocalyptic fiction, telling the story of a world devastated by a global pandemic and the epic fight of good vs. evil. It's been adapted a number of times for television and film, but now there's a new expansion coming: an anthology of stories set in the same world, written by some of the field's best authors.

This volume's table of contents is packed: King provided an introduction to the book, and the authors in it include Maurice Broaddus, S. A. Cosby, Tananarive Due and Steven Barnes, Gabino Iglesias, Josh Malerman, Usman T. Malik, Premee Mohamed, Alex Segura, Paul Tremblay, Catherynne M. Valente, Chuck Wendig, and a ton more.

Library Journal gave the book a starred review, saying calling it "an incredible achievement that manages to expand, enrich, and improve its source material."

Corvus by Marko Kloos (August 19th)

Marko Kloos continues his Frontlines: Evolution series with a second installment, Corvus (preceded by Scorpio). This series is set on an alien world years after the Lankies forced a human colony underground, and a woman named Alex and her dog Ash find themselves evading the aliens after their home is discovered.

In this installment, Alex survived the attack, and signed up to join the NAC Defense Corps. She and her friend are deployed to the Alpha Corvi system to track down the whereabouts of a missing warship, and they discover that the system has been invaded by the Lankies, and has to face her past as she helps mount a rescue mission, only to find that the job has gotten much, much harder when they're stranded. The only way out is through the alien lines, and they've gotten more dangerous in the intervening years.

Katabasis by R.F. Kuang (August 25th)

R.F. Kuang has released a string of excellent books in recent years: I particularly liked Babel and Yellowface. Her next looks intriguing: Alice Law has been working on a singular goal her whole life: to become a master magician, sacrificing anything that stood in the way of working with Cambridge Professor Jacob Grimes, the greatest magician in the world.

When he dies in a mysterious accident (that she might have caused), he's sent down to Hell, and she sets off after him, hoping to score a recommendation that will secure her future. She's accompanied by her rival, Peter Murdoch, and together, the pair need to rely on their knowledge of stories like Orpheus and Dante, whatever chalk they can carry with them to save someone they don't even particularly like.

Kirkus Reviews gave the book a starred review, saying "Kuang melds a fantasy adventure (don’t look too closely at the magic—that’s not the point) with a rumination on academia’s problems to create a new take on the journey through the underworld."

Positive Obsession: The Life and Times of Octavia E. Butler by Susana M. Morris (August 19th)

Octavia Butler is one of the genre's greatest authors: books like Kindred and Parable of the Sower have only grown in relevancy since they were first published, and there's been a resurgence in interest in her works. There's been a lot of new scholarship into her work and life in recent years, and we now have a new biography of her life by Georgia Institute of Technology professor Susana M. Morris. I'm very eager to pick this one up.

In this book, Morris examines Butler's life through the broad lens of the Civil Rights, Women's Liberation, and Queer Rights movements, as well as the country's political and economic tides to see how the world shaped her life and views, and how they trickled into her writing and stories.

Publishers Weekly says "Morris powerfully frames Butler’s work and career through her politics and personal struggles, including the way poverty “threatened to crush her spirit.” The result is a moving study of the life and creative pursuits of a literary pioneer."

Three Science Fiction Novellas: From Prehistory to the End of Mankind by J.-H. Rosny aîné, translated by Danièle Chatelain and George Slusser(August 5th)

This looks like a fascinating book: Wesleyan University Press has collected three novellas from Belgian writer J.-H. Rosny aîné. I've never heard of this author before, but he's apparently the first (or one of the first) to explore the idea of aliens and other life forms. The three novellas here were published between 1888 and 1910 and include "The Xipehuz," set in prehistoric times, "Another World", about strange beings who don't live in the same world as we do, and "The Death of Earth" about the end of humanity.

Writing in the Ancillary Review of Books, Eden Kupermintz says that it's "a fascinating and accessible view into the early years of science fiction, when the tropes of the genre were just emerging. Rosny’s unique and exciting style, coupled with the meticulous work that Chatelain and Slusser have done, means that Three Science Fiction Novellas: From Prehistory to the End of Mankind is a must-read for anyone interested in the roots of science fiction."

The Human Division and The End of All Things by John Scalzi (August 19th)

Ahead of the release of his next Old Man's War novel The Shattering Peace, Tor is re-releasing the fifth and sixth installments of the series, The Human Division and The End of All Things with a fresh trade paperback edition. They come with some slick new covers and each with a new introduction from Scalzi about the story behind the novels.

The Dragon Wakes with Thunder by K. X. Song (August 19th)

Last year, K.X. Song released The Night Ends with Fire, a reimagination of the legend of Mulan in which Meilin, rather than be married off to a violent drunk, disguises herself as a man and enlists in the army. In this sequel, the war she fought has come to an end, but she now faces the consequences of her actions: she's imprisoned because of her ruse and is now a pariah.

But word of her exploits has spread, and other factions find that they could use her help in their own fights to help bring the three kingdoms to a balance. Meilin is now pulled in all directions by everyone else's needs and ends, and she has to figure out who to trust, even as the dragon inside of her is coming to collect what he's owed.

The Lords of Creation by S. M. Stirling (August 19th)

Years ago (2006), I came across a neat book by S.M. Stirling: The Sky People. In it and its followup, In the Courts of the Crimson Kings, Stirling introduced us to an alternate history inspired by the pulpy planetary romances and a Venus and Mars that were inhabitable and populated with dinosaurs and other prehistoric creatures.

Nearly two decades later, he's now back with a finale to that never-finished series: The Lords of Creation. At the end of In the Courts of the Crimson Kings, we saw the activation of a piece of ancient technology that opened up a portal to another world, a Dyson Sphere. This book picks up a couple of years later, following two agents, Janice and Lee, who're on a mission to explore the new world, where they encounter some strange – and strangely familiar sights and peoples.

Kill or Be Killed by Peter Tieryas, illustrated by Mike Choi (August 20th)

I'm a big fan of Peter Tieryas's books (United States of Japan, Cyber Shogun Revolution, and Mecha Samurai Empire), and was thrilled to see that he's got a new one coming out: a short illustrated piece called Kill or Be Killed. It has a horrifying premise: you get a message on your phone that a loved one is in danger, and to save them, you need to kill someone and livestream it. It's the work of a serial killer known as the Friendship Killer, and when one of the people he targets decides to fight back, it leads them into a darker side of the tech world.

Dungeons & Dragons: The Book of Dragons by Michael Witwer (August 19th)

Michael Witwer has produced some outstanding D&D-related books over the years (including histories like Empire of Imagination: Gary Gygax and the Birth of Dungeons & Dragons, Art & Arcana: A Visual History, and Heroes' Feast: The Official D&D Cookbook), and he's got a new guide out: a definitive, illustrated guide to the best part of D&D: the dragons.

This is a new exploration of the game's dragons, complete with new artwork, which compiles decades of the franchise's lore and legends into one guide. It looks like a fantastic read for anyone who's steeped in the game's stories, or who just wants to read up about some dragons.

As always, let me know what caught your eye and what you're reading now!