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The Wild Girl by Kate Forsyth

Though best known for her children’s books, Kate Forsyth has now written two adult novels in a row on fairy tale themes.

The Friday Society by Adrienne Kress

Author, actor and director Adrienne Kress (Alex and the Ironic Gentleman, Timothy and the Dragon’s Gate) attacks her first young adult novel with cinematic verve.

Best SF/F of 2012

We’ve checked the stacks and come up with an incredible list of the best SF/F reads of 2012.

Best of 2012

American Science Fiction: Nine Classic Novels of the 1950s edited by Gary K. Wolfe
This anthology includes nine groundbreaking works from the infant age of novels of science fiction.

The Year’s Best Science Fiction edited by Gardner Dozois
The 29th publication of The Year’s Best Science Fiction edited by Gardner Dozois annual needs little announcement, yet not discussing it at least a bit would seem like an oversight.

The Rise of Nine by Pittacus Lore
It seems ironic that the author who suffered a scandal for weaving too much fiction into his memoir should come back as part of a writing team that claims no earthly connection.

The Sword & Scorcery Anthology edited by David G. Hartwell and Jacob Weisman
In his foreword to The Sword & Scorcery Anthology, David Drake writes, “Good sword and scorcery has character and all the other elements of good fiction generally; but the thing S&S must have is story.”

Rasputin’s Bastards by David Nickle
As always, Nickle is right on point. The prose here is thoughtful, energetic and sharp. Most importantly of all, the plot of Rasputin’s Bastards is complicated and it’s told in a complex way.

Under My Skin by Charles de Lint
Charles de Lint is one of the ranking names in SF/F. With 36 novels to his credit, as well as 36 collections of short fiction, he is prolific as well as fiercely talented.

Ison of the Isles by Carolyn Ives Gilman
 Like some of the very best of the genre, you really have to work at it for a while to discover the richness.

The Thirteen Hallows by Michael Scott and Colette Freeman
Whatever you’re expecting when you first pick up The Thirteen Hallows, lay it aside. This will never be the book you guessed it would be. And while that’s not necessarily a bad thing, it’s best to go in with your eyes open.

The Uncertain Places by Lisa Goldstein
In The Uncertain Places, Goldstein is in fine form with a darkly compelling modern fairytale.

The Fecund’s Melancholy Daughter by Brent Hayward
You don’t need a crystal ball to know that Brent Hayward’s The Fecund’s Melancholy Daughter will fall into an interesting category. The title alone sets the stage.

Naked City edited by Ellen Datlow
The fact that Ellen Datlow is the editor of Naked City is almost all you need to know about this compilation to go forward. If you know this type of fiction, you know Datlows’s name.

Anno Dracula by Kim Newman
It’s terrific to see the amazing Kim Newman’s Anno Dracula back in print at this most vampire-appropriate time. After all, since the book’s original publication back in 1992, we’ve come a very long way both as a culture and as consumers of all things vampiric.

Mind Storm by K.M. Ruiz
Two Hundred and Fifty years from now, Threnody Corwin is a soldier-slave to the human government. Threnody is of the human class known as psion, the result of nuclear fallout. Like all of her kind, she has special psi skills. Hers is the ability to channel electricity.

Sleight of Hand by Peter S. Beagle
Though the work of Peter S. Beagle has been widely awarded and celebrated, it’s possible you don’t know his name. Even if that is the case, however, you probably do know his work.

The Door to Lost Pages by Claude Lalumière
Coming as it does while the selling of books as we have known it would seem to be in its death throes, The Door to Lost Pages at times reads like a dark love letter to the tiny, magical bookstores all of us with a bookish bent have known and loved.

Crucified Dreams: Tales of Urban Horror edited by Joe R. Lansdale
Though Crucified Dreams reaches beyond SF/F, the roots in that genre are strong enough for this book that this will be its necessary identification.

Best Books of 2010
Of the thousands of books our editors read and reviewed in 2010, here are the hundred or so that they liked best.

All Clear by Connie Willis
It seems absolutely appropriate that, the year after she was inducted into the Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Connie Willis should publish not one, but two massive books.

Katja From the Punk Band by Simon Logan
The publisher created its own label for Katja From the Punk Band, calling it “Jackie Brown meets the Sex Pistols -- a face-paced industrial crime-thriller,” but -- of course and as you know -- there actually is no such thing.

The Last Man Anthology edited by Hunter Liguore
If you’re looking for a happy little collection of speculative fiction, keep on going: The Last Man Anthology is certainly not that.

Behemoth by Scott Westerfeld
It does not matter -- it should not matter -- that Behemoth is simply one of the most beautiful books you’re likely to see in this format. From the strikingly beautiful cover design, through the remarkable end-papers, the clear and careful typography and even Keith Thompson’s wonderfully illustrative pen and ink sketches.

Noise by Darin Bradley
In every niche and genre and corner of fiction, critics and fans always have their ears open for the voice that will lead them into the future or, at very least, will define the fictional moment in terms of the art and the craft of wielding those words.

The Wildkin’s Curse by Kate Forsyth
The Wildkin’s Curse a so-called “companion volume” to The Starthorn Tree, can be read as a stand-alone story, though it takes place some years later.

The Bradbury Report by Steven Polansky
In what I feel certain will come to be known as the year of fictional dystopia, Steven Polansky's debut is one of several bright spots.

The Year’s Best Science Fiction edited by Gardner Dozois
Fiction anthologies like The Year’s Best Science Fiction give readers a unique opportunity. Not only do they skim the top of what is being written by the best writers in their fields, but read in a certain light, they offer a view -- or, at least, the slice of a view -- into what's going on in a certain aspect of fiction writing.

Secrets of the Sands by Leona Wisoker
Ten years ago Leona Wisoker’s debut novel -- the first book in a series -- would have been published to much fanfare by a large house. Secrets of the Sands has the kind of clarity of voice and vision and extreme depth of scope that one associates with large publishing companies and media fanfare.

The Machinery of Light by David J. Williams
The future David J. Williams writes in his Autumn Rain trilogy is a little too real and some of what he writes is a little too close for comfort.

The Desert Spear by Peter V. Brett
A year after the publication of his mammoth debut novel, The Warded Man, super skilled thumbtyper Peter V. Brett is back with the second installment in his series that features demons in a setting that should satisfy readers of both fantasy and novels of the paranormal.

See previous January Magazine review in science fiction and fantasy   -->