The Leaning Pile of Books is a feature where I discuss books I got over the last week–old or new, bought or received in the mail for review consideration (usually unsolicited). Since I hope you will find new books you’re interested in reading in these posts, I try to be as informative as possible. If I can find them, links to excerpts, author’s websites, and places where you can find more information on the book are included.

Last week ended up being too packed for me to finish writing a review so, without further ado, here are the latest book arrivals!

Apocalypse Nyx by Kameron Hurley

Apocalypse Nyx (Bel Dame Apocrypha) by Kameron Hurley

This collection by BSFA and Hugo Award–winning author Kameron Hurley contains the following five novellas about Nyx from the Bel Dame Apocrypha series (which begins with her Nebula and Arthur C. Clarke Award–nominated novel God’s War):

  1. The Body Project
  2. The Heart Is Eaten Last
  3. Soulbound
  4. Crossroads at Jannah
  5. Paint It Red

Apocalypse Nyx will be released on July 17 (trade paperback, ebook).

 

Move over Mad Max—here comes Nyx.

Ex-government assassin turned bounty-hunter, Nyx, is good at solving other people’s problems. Her favorite problem-solving solution is punching people in the face. Then maybe chopping off some heads. Hey―it’s a living.

Her disreputable reputation has been well earned. To Nyx’s mind, it’s also justified. After all, she’s trying to navigate an apocalyptic world full of giant bugs, contaminated deserts, scheming magicians, and a centuries-long war that’s consuming her future. Managing her ragtag squad of misfits has required a lot of morally-gray choices.

Every new job is another day alive. Every new mission is another step toward changing a hellish future―but only if she can survive.

Apocalypse Nyx is the much-anticipated print edition of Kameron Hurley’s five newest Nyx novellas, as well as the first e-book collection of her gritty, exciting adventures.

The Oddling Prince by Nancy Springer

The Oddling Prince by Nancy Springer

This Celtic fantasy novel by Tiptree Award–winning author Nancy Springer will be released on May 15 (trade paperback, ebook).

 

In the ancient moors of Scotland, the king of Calidon lies on his deathbed, cursed by a ring that cannot be removed from his finger. When a mysterious fey stranger appears to save the king, he also carries a secret that could tear the royal family apart.

The kingdom’s only hope will lie with two young men raised worlds apart. Aric is the beloved heir to the throne of Calidon; Albaric is clearly of noble origin yet strangely out of place.

The Oddling Prince is a tale of brothers whose love and loyalty to each other is such that it defies impending warfare, sundering seas, fated hatred, and the very course of time itself. In her long-awaited new fantasy novel, Nancy Springer (the Books of Isle series) explores the darkness of the human heart as well as its unceasing capacity for love.

The Underwater Ballroom Society edited by Stephanie Burgis and Tiffany Trent

The Underwater Ballroom Society edited by Stephanie Burgis and Tiffany Trent

This anthology of stories with underwater ballrooms will be released on April 30. It includes Stephanie Burgis’ novella “Spellswept”—a prequel to Snowspelled (my review) focusing on Amy—plus stories by Laura Anne Gilman, Cassandra Khaw, Ysabeau S. Wilce, Y. S. Lee, and more.

 

An anthology of sparkling adult f/sf stories featuring underwater ballrooms of one sort or another, from a 30s ballroom to a Martian hotel to a grand rock ‘n roll ball held in the heart of Faery itself. Edited by Stephanie Burgis and Tiffany Trent.

The Freeze-Frame Revolution by Peter Watts

The Freeze-Frame Revolution (Sunflower Cycle) by Peter Watts

This science fiction novel by Aurora and Hugo Award–winning author Peter Watts will be released on June 12 (trade paperback, ebook). It’s related to the stories in the Sunflowers universe (“The Island,” “Giants,” and “Hotshot”). These three stories and more can be found on the author’s website.

 

She believed in the mission with all her heart.
But that was sixty million years ago.

How do you stage a mutiny when you’re only awake one day in a million? How do you conspire when your tiny handful of potential allies changes with each shift? How do you engage an enemy that never sleeps, that sees through your eyes and hears through your ears and relentlessly, honestly, only wants what best for you?

Sunday Ahzmundin is about to find out.

Bandwidth by Eliot Peper

Bandwidth (Analog #1) by Eliot Peper

This near-future science fiction novel will be released on May 1 (hardcover, ebook, audiobook). The Verge has an excerpt from Bandwidth.

 

A rising star at a preeminent political lobbying firm, Dag Calhoun represents the world’s most powerful technology and energy executives. But when a close brush with death reveals that the influence he wields makes him a target, impossible cracks appear in his perfect, richly appointed life.

Like everyone else, Dag relies on his digital feed for everything—a feed that is as personal as it is pervasive, and may not be as private as it seems. As he struggles to make sense of the dark forces closing in on him, he discovers that activists are hijacking the feed to manipulate markets and governments. Going public would destroy everything he’s worked so hard to build, but it’s not just Dag’s life on the line—a shadow war is coming, one that will secure humanity’s future or doom the planet to climate catastrophe. Ultimately, Dag must decide the price he’s willing to pay to change the world.