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!: Aurora(ARC) – Kim Stanley Robinson: A major new novel from one of science fiction’s most powerful voices, AURORA tells the incredible story of our first voyage beyond the solar system. Our voyage from Earth began generations ago. Now, we approach our destination. A new home. AURORA.
2: Mother of Eden(ARC) – Chris Beckett: sequel to DARK EDEN
3: The Dead Lands(ARC) – Benjamin Percy: In Benjamin Percy’s new thriller, a post-apocalyptic reimagining of the Lewis and Clark saga, a super flu and nuclear fallout have made a husk of the world we know. A few humans carry on, living in outposts such as the Sanctuary-the remains of St. Louis-a shielded community that owes its survival to its militant defense and fear-mongering leaders. Then a rider comes from the wasteland beyond its walls. She reports on the outside world: west of the Cascades, rain falls, crops grow, civilization thrives. But there is danger too: the rising power of an army that pillages and enslaves every community they happen upon. Against the wishes of the Sanctuary, a small group sets out in secrecy. Led by Lewis Meriwether and Mina Clark, they hope to expand their infant nation, and to reunite the States. But the Sanctuary will not allow them to escape without a fight.
4: Whirlwind(review copy) – Rick Mofina: An anguished mother loses her baby in a deadly storm… A kind stranger helps Jenna Cooper protect her baby boy when a killer tornado rips through a Dallas flea market. But in the aftermath, Jenna can’t find her son or the woman who’d been holding him. A journalist under pressure breaks the story… Upon discovering the tragedy, reporter and single mom Kate Page, battling for her career and trying to hold her life together, vows to determine what happened to tiny Caleb Cooper.
and the ebooks:
5: Starship Excelsior – Alan Lockley: It was the dawn of man’s last great adventure, a journey to the stars. Man’s vision for years and now, the starship Excelsior was set to begin its long trip to Alpha Centauri, the nearest star to Earth. The crew of three men and the most sophisticated android ever built, Doctor Wang, were ready to go into the unknown. Professor Jason Ashton was determined the mission would succeed but at what cost? Excelsior had hidden secrets, secrets that only Ashton knew.
Just how far had he gone to achieve his aim: “The Mission will not fail!”
6: The Tehran Text: The Tana Standish series – Nik Morton: Iran is in ferment and the British Intelligence Service wants Tana Standish’s assessment. It appears that CIA agents are painting too rosy a picture, perhaps because they’re colluding with the state torturers… Allegiances and loyalties are strained as Tana’s mission becomes deadly and personal. Old friends are snatched, tortured and killed by SAVAK, the Shah’s secret police. She has to use all her skills as a secret agent and psychic to stay one step ahead of the oppressors and traitors. As the country stumbles towards the Islamic Revolution, the Shah’s grip on power weakens. There’s real concern for the MI6 listening post near the Afghan border. Only Tana Standish is available to investigate; yet it’s possible she could be walking into a trap, as the deadly female Spetsnaz fighter Aksakov has been sent to abduct Tana.
7: Last Hand(review copy) – Rex Kusler: Tracy Green was a master at playing the odds. A professional stock trader, she made extra money as the head of a team of card counters. They had remained under the radar for years, operating shrewdly six times each year during the busiest holidays. But their luck finally went south the night they were barred from playing at the Clifton Casino in downtown Las Vegas. That wasn’t the worst event of the evening—a couple hours later Tracy encountered a deadly flaw in the notion of her own invincibility. She was shot to death in her lavish home on a secluded road north of Las Vegas. With little evidence and meager leads, Private Detectives Alice James and Jim Snow muddle through this new investigation as they continue to deal with Snow’s lackadaisical attitude and Alice’s desire for at least a modicum of professionalism.