Books Received February 2012

Last month's format of linking to the plot synopsis rather than telling it here seemed to work well, so I'm going to use that from now on when my lists get long.

Count to a Trillion - John Wright (space opera)
Arctic Rising - Tobias Buckell (climate change disaster)
Swipe - Evan Angler (dystopian)

The Alchemist of Souls - Anne Lyle (Tudor age swordsman)
Grave Mercy - Robin LaFevers (Assassin and handmaiden to Death)
The Man From Primrose Lane - James Renner (crime fiction for 231 pages, then SF)  I've read this one already and, while it's got some gruesome moments, the ending is absolutely brilliant.  I'll be posting my review soon.

The Undead: Organ Harvesting, the Ice-Water Test, Beating-Heart Cadavers -- How Medicine is Blurring the Line Between Life and Death - Dick Teresi. (non-fiction)
The Allow of Law - Brandon Sanderson, audiobook read by Michael Kramer (see my review here)
Halo: Glasslands - Karen Traviss, audiobook read by Euan Morton

How Firm a Foundation - David Weber, audiobook read by Charles Keating
The Thirteen Hallows - Michael Scott and Colette Freedman, audiobook read by Kate Reading
Shadows in Flight - Orson Scott Card, audiobook read by Stefan Rudnicki and Cast

Science Fiction and Fantasy Events in Toronto, February 2012

These events are from the science fiction & fantasy calendar I run.  If you have an event that's not listed, email me (jessica.strider@gmail.com) and I'll put it on the calendar and add it here.  While I try to get the details correct, always check the links to confirm event information. I'll be updating this post as I learn of more events.

Thursday 2

Dr Who Information Network (DWIN) Pub Night

There is a regular Doctor Who Tavern/Pub gathering in Toronto on the first Thursday of each month
Where: Paupers Pub, 539 Bloor Street West (near Bathurst). We meet up at the back near the dartboards.
When: People usually start to arrive around 8:00pm.

 Wednesday 8

The Chiaroscuro Reading Series: Featuring Madeline Ashby, Kari Maaren and Mike BryantWhen: 8:00 PM - 11:00 PM
Where: 152A Augusta Avenue, Toronto, Canada  (map)
Join us to welcome in a host of fantastic guests...

Madeline Ashby is a science fiction writer and futurist living in Toronto. Her debut novel, vN, will be available from Angry Robot Books this summer. Her other stories have been published in Nature, Flurb, Tesseracts, and the Shine anthology. She has also blogged for BoingBoing, WorldChanging, io9, and Tor.com. You can follow her on Twitter @madelineashby.

Kari Maaren uses her ukulele and her innocent demeanor to lure love songs into her clutches. Then she kills them, drains their blood, and sets their desiccated corpses on fire with the power of her disdain. She also teaches undergraduates about poetry.

Mike Bryant was once ejected from a Karaoke bar for performing the Weird Al Yankovic classic "Yoda", instead of Taking Things Seriously.nHe has released a spoken word CD entitled “Chicken Noodle Pants” and two novella

Thursday 9

Toronto Library Talk: Reading Boccaccio
When: 6:30 p.m. - 8:15 p.m.

Where: Deer Park Program Room - 2nd Floor

Professor Pietropaolo, Principal of St. Michael's College U fo T will look at Boccaccio as a late-medieval reader, and the reception history of the Decameron in relation to post-medieval editorial and reading practices. Registration required.


Monday 13

Toronto Public Library Talk: Anne Rice (Sold out, some rush spaces available)
When: 7:00 p.m. - 8:30 p.m.

Where: Toronto Reference Library The Appel Salon

Cost: Free, BUT you must get a ticket, which are available online at torontopubliclibrary.ca/appelsalon. Tickets will be available four weeks before the event, unless otherwise noted.

International bestselling author Anne Rice (The Vampire Chronicles, The Witching Hour and Christ: The Lord) makes her first Toronto visit in 10 years. She chats with CBC's Mary Hynes about her new book, The Wolf Gift, which reimagines and reinvents the werewolf story as only Rice could do.

Sunday 19

Space-Time Continuum SFF Discussion Group
Where: Bakka Phoenix Books, 84 Harbord Street
When: 1 pm
Topic: Under Heaven by Guy Gavriel Kay

Friday 24 - Sunday 26

Spellstorm: Toronto's Annual Table Top Gaming Convention is sailing into port.

Where: the Royal Canadian Legion 101, Long Branch.

When: from 1:00 pm on Friday 24th, till 5:00 pm on Sunday,

We have a raft of games on Deck, including D&D4e (LFR) and Pathfinder organized play, Old School Gaming, Boarding Games, Collectible Card Games and divers other treasures.

The location is easy to reach, right beside public transit, with available free parking, and nearby fast-food - see "transportation" below.

Don't find yourself marooned, book now and cut out your spot ahead of the crowd. Early birds get the treasure, matey - X marks the spot!

And in case you haven't guessed, there may be a pirate theme to the activities. Arrr.

Science Fiction and Fantasy Books Coming in February 2012

This list is primarily comprised of books listed for February on the Indigo website.  I've added books from a few other sources, and only list ebooks from Carina Press, as they have advance listings.  If I've missed a book, or you spot an error, please comment about it and I'll fix it ASAP.

Hardcover:

Throne of the Crescent Moon – Saladin Ahmed

Fair Game – Patricia Briggs

Arctic Rising – Tobias Buckell

Songs of the Earth – Elspeth Cooper

The Order of the Scales – Stephen Deas

The Scar – Sergey Dyachenko

A Perfect Blood – Kim Harrison

City of Dragons – Robin Hobb

The Lost Goddess – Tom Knot

World Divided – Mercedes Lackey, Cody Martin, Denise Lee & Veronic Giguere

Thief's Covenant – Ari Marmell

Hitchers – Will McIntosh

Warhammer 40K: The Last Ditch – Sandy Mitchell

Echoes of Betrayal – Elizabeth Moon

Fair Coin – E. C. Myers

Touchstone – Melanie Rawn

The Wolf Gift – Anne Rice

Ashes of Candesce – Karl Schroeder

Trade Paperback:

The Legend of Eli Monpres, Omnibus – Rachel Aaron

The Troupe – Robert Jackson Bennett

The Ruined City – Paula Brandon

Blackveil – Kristen Britain

John Carter of Mars Omnibus 1 – Edger Rice Burroughs

Forgotten Realms: The Haunted Lands – Richard Lee Byers
CassaFire - Alex Cavanaugh

Garrett Takes the Case – Glen Cook

Guardian of Night – Tony Daniel

Eyes Like Leaves – Charles de Lint

Orb Sceptre Throne – Ian Esslemont

Freaks in a Blx: The Mythos of Media – Paul Di Filippo, Ed.

Carpathia – Matt Forbeck

Exodus of the Xandim – Maggie Furey

Glimmering – Elizabeth Hand

Enormity – W. G. Marshall

Pathfinder Tales: Song of the Serpent – Hugh Matthews

The Zharmae Anthology: Ends of Man – Anna McDermott, Ed.

When We Were Executioners – J. M. McDermott

The Dervish House – Ian McDonald

Warhammer 40K: Iron Warriors, Omnibus – Graham McNeill

Raven Calls – C. E. Murphy

Forerunner – Andre Norton

Afterblight Chronicles: Blood Ocean – Weston Ochse

The Clockwork Vampire Chronicles – Andy Remic, Omnibus

Robots: The Recent A.I. – Rachel Swirsky

Deathless – Cahterynne Valente

The Fourth Wall – Walter Jon Williams

Mass Market Paperback:

Warhammer 40K: Know No Fear – Dan Abnett

Sir Dominic Flandry: THe Last Night of Terra – Poul Anderson

Outpost – Adam Baker

The White-luck Warrior – R. Scott Bakker

River Marked – Patricia Briggs

The Gravity Pilot – M. M. Buckner

Overkill – Robert Buettner

Forgotten Realms: The Masked Witches – Richard Lee Byers

Unbroken – Rachel Caine

Firelight – Kristen Callihan

Warhammer 40K: Path of the Renegades – Andy Chambers

Shadow Ops: Control Point – Myke Cole

King of the Crags – Stephen Deas

Singularity – Ian Douglas

The Crippled God – Steven Erikson

By A Thread – Jennifer Estep

A Kingdom Besieged – Raymond Feist

Undone Deeds – Mark Del Franco

Forest Moon Rising – P. R. Frost

Westward Weird – Martin Greenberg & Kerrie Hughes, Ed.

Kings of Morning – Paul Kearney

Apocalypse To Go – Katharine Kerr

The Amazon Legion – Tom Kratman

The Dread – Gail Martin

Chasing the Moon – A. Lee Martinez

Darkening Skies – Juliet McKenna

A Sliver of Shadow – Allison Pang

Shadow Chaser – Alexey Pehov

Warhammer: Knight of the Blazing Sun – Josh Reynolds

Star Wars: Red Harvest – Joe Schreiber

A Hundred Words For Hate – Thomas Sniegoski

Star Trek: That Which Divides – Dayton Ward

Vortex – Robert Charles Wilson

Ebooks (Carina Press)

Prehistoric Clock – Robert Appleton

Synthetic Dreams – Kim Knox

Blood of the Pride – Sheryl Nantus

The Last Night – Rico Rosso

Pack and Coven – Jody Wallace

Under Her Brass Corset – Brenda Williamson

YA Fiction

Pure – Julianna Baggott

Katana – Cole Gibson

The Wood Queen – Karen Mahoney

Buried – Linda Joy Singleton

Blessed – Cynthia Leitich Smith

Time Gangsters – Berin Stephens