Monday, October 03, 2016

Reviewing the Mail: Week of 10/1

I have once again run out of snappy openings for this regular post. So I'll instead simply say that I have here three new books, which I hope some of you will be thrilled to learn about and/or read. I haven't read any of them myself, mind you, but I think I can tell you some things about them even with that handicap.

First up -- meaning it's on top of the pile right at this second -- is Barbara Barnett's The Apothecary's Curse, a trade paperback from Pyr that hits stores on October 11. This looks to be a book taking place in two eras -- Victorian London and the modern world -- centering on what might be an accidental immortality drug and the gigantic Transdiff Genomics. I'm particularly happy to see a book involving 19th century London that isn't steampunk; those are very rare these days.

Next is a TV tie-in, which you might recognize from the key art on the cover: The Librarians and the Lost Lamp. The cover letter doesn't exactly say, but this appears to be a new story based on the TV show rather than a novelization of a TV storyline. (Those of you who watch the show will know better.) It's by veteran writer Greg Cox, and follows the reborn Librarian organization as they investigate the ten-year-old case that rejuvenated their group and battle the evil Forty Thieves, who are once again trying to steal Aladdin's Lamp. It's available from Tor on October 11th in trade paperback, hardcover, ebook, and probably papyrus (if you ask nicely).

Third and last is the new novel in L.E. Modesitt, Jr.'s "Imager Portfolio" series: Treachery's Tools. (Gee, I wasn't aware you got tools when you betrayed someone. I may need to rethink my career plans; I could use some good tools.) It's a Tor hardcover, also hitting stores on October 11. We're deep into this series by now -- this is the tenth book -- so I'm not going to be much help in explaining what's going on. But it is set thirteen years after the last book (Madness in Solidar) and features the same hero (Alastair), who here seems to be acting as a detective and political leader to solve a series of murders of students and defuse a growing conflict between a newly powerful merchant class and the (presumably aristocratic) High Holders.

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