10 new science-fiction and fantasy books to read

Mort(e) by Robert Repino (Soho Press, $26.96)

When sentient ants wage a war against mankind, one housecat-cum-hero, Mort(e), remains dedicated to the human resistance. With poignant flashes of a morality tale, this debut novel makes us rethink our relationship to all of Earth’s creatures (since they may someday turn on us).

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Inside a Silver Box by Walter Mosley (Tor Books, $25.99)

This new sci-fi adventure is ripe with artificial intelligence, malevolent beings from another world and a race to save humankind. But Mosley’s writing shines brightest in his portrayal of his two heroes and their efforts to connect, despite so many differences.

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The Just City by Jo Walton (Tor Books, $25.99)

In Walton’s Platonic Republic, gods, goddesses and mortals from across time live side by side, and the author weaves a classically philosophic story about good, evil and justice. Oh, and there are robots, too.

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The Book of Phoenix by Nnedi Okorafor (DAW Books, $24.95)

A prequel to Okorafor’s award-winning novel Who Fears Death, the author’s latest tells the tale of a biologically accelerated superwoman named Phoenix and how her life, her lost love and the genetic experiments that made her all become wrapped up with the fate of humanity.

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Near Enemy: A Spademan Novel by Adam Sternbergh (Crown, $24)

Sternberg returns to the story of Spademan, the hit man/antihero he first introduced in Shovel Ready, and constructs an impressively thrilling narrative of terrorism, virtual reality and never quite knowing who, or what, the enemy is.

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A Darker Shade of Magic by V.E. Schwab (Tor Books, $25.99)

In Schwab’s imagined universe, parallel Londons exist and only one man, Kell, can travel between them. But when he undertakes to smuggle others into the alternate worlds, his life takes a treacherous, treasonous turn.

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The Only Ones by Carola Dibbell (Two Dollar Radio, $16.99)

A well-known rock critic, Dibbell infuses her debut novel with the stylistic grace of a seasoned writer. In her post-apocalyptic landscape, one woman ends up the caretaker of a genetically altered baby, whom she must protect from…just about everyone else.

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Radiance by Catherynne M. Valente (Tor Books, $24.99)

We delight in all of Valente’s magic-tinged books and are eagerly anticipating her first adult novel in more than three years. In this alternate-history space opera, the author takes notes from classic science fiction, old movies and more to tell the story of a documentary filmmaker who explores the universe.

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The Country of Ice Cream Star by Sandra Newman (Ecco, $26.99)

In Sandra Newman's dystopian future, all humans die from a mysterious disease before the age of 20, leaving behind a planet populated by children. But when Ice Cream Star's brother begins to show signs of illness, she takes an epic journey to change her world.

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The Three-Body Problem by Cixin Liu (Tor Books, $25.99)

For the first time, legendary Chinese science-fiction author Cixin Liu's work is available to English-speaking readers. His masterpiece puts forth the classic dilemma of how to welcome—or how to fight—beings from another world.

Buy The Three-Body Problem

10 new science-fiction and fantasy reads