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first experience with the underground,
alternate reality game known as Rabbits
resulted in a friend’s death—and nearly
his own as well. But when his parents
died soon thereafter, gaming became his
escape, and Rabbits his obsession. The
game, which is shrouded in secrecy, sends
players chasing after wild conspiracies—
and it’s said to be manipulated by “some-
thing out there watching from somewhere
else, staring into our world from an infi-
nite darkness.” Now a new round is
starting and a billionaire rumored to be
one of the few-ever winners reaches out to
K for help, telling him that the game is
broken and, if it goes unfixed, it could
spell the apocalypse. K and his girlfriend,
Chloe, must enter the game, following the
clues to fix whatever’s gone wrong. But as
an increasing number of players die or dis-
appear, will K and Chloe be next? Miles
masterfully combines mystery, danger,
and scientific theory to bring the game to
life until readers are just as caught up in
searching for the next clue as the charac-
ters themselves. It’s a wild ride and it
proves impossible to put down. (June)
Flame Riders
Sean Grigsby. Angry Robot, $9.99 mass mar-
ket (400p) ISBN 978-0-85766-901-8
Grigsby’s final Smoke Eaters urban fan-
tasy (after Ash Kickers) is resplendent with
action and adventure. It’s now well after
Emergence Day, when dragons of all
stripes made themselves known to
humans and sent the world into catas-
trophe. Guillermo “Gilly” Contreras
works for the New United States Army, a
mercenary organization formed to slay
the scalies and keep some semblance of
peace—and he hates it. Bullied by his
fellow soldiers during the army’s long,
cold marches, the only thing that keeps
Gilly going are the legends of smoke
eaters, outlaws with the magical ability
to withstand dragon fire. After he finally
gains the respect of his squad-mates, an
unfortunate encounter with his sergeant
sends him fleeing into the wilds of
Wisconsin—and straight into the arms of
a conspiracy led by the same smoke eaters
the military persecutes. The emotional
elements of the plot are a touch thin, but
familiar faces will please longtime fans,
and Gilly makes for a delightful addition
to the cast as he comes of age in an impos-
sible place and time. The result is a series
finale as fun as it is satisfying. Agent: John
Jarrold, John Jarrold Literary. (June)The Return of the Sorceress
Silvia Moreno-Garcia. Subterranean, $40
(96p) ISBN 978-1-64524-030-3
Bestseller Moreno-Garcia (Mexican
Gothic) packs an impressive plot into lim-
ited space in this dark sword-and-sorcery
secondary world fantasy. After Yalxi’s
childhood friend turned lover, Xellah,
steals the Diamond Heart that powers
her magic, Yalxi is ousted as Master of
the Guild of sorcerers and imprisoned.
She escapes and seeks out a nahual, a
magic spirit that can take the form of an
animal and must drink blood to perform
magic. After bargaining with the nahual
to heal her wounds, the pair set out to
regain the diamond, which is tainted
with the essence of Yalxi and Xellah’s
former master, Teotah, and will consume
Xellah if he continues to use it. Along
the way, Yalxi must make deals with
those she has wronged in her ascent to
the top and confront a past she has long
repressed. This well-plotted novella zips
along with the darkly fascinating Yalxi
at the helm. The steep price tag marks
this as being for the devoted Moreno-
Garcia fan, but Yalxi’s rage and ambition
are sure to entrance any fantasy reader
fond of antiheroines. Agent: Eddie
Schneider, JABberwocky Agency. (June)Hard Reboot
Django Wexler. Tor.com, $13.99 trade paper
(160p) ISBN 978-1-250-79026-2
Fantasy writer Wexler (Siege of Rage and
Ruin) envisions a future of robotic melees
in a short sci-fi novel that’s long on mecha
action and character development. Scholar
Zychtykas Three (“Kas to her friends, of
which she had none”) is part of an aca-
demic visit to Old Earth, where she’s
conned into betting away her academy’s
money by Zhi Zero, a robot pilot. To
regain her purse, Kas must use her knowl-
edge of ancient tech to help Zhi prepare a
secretly salvaged Third Empire warbot
for a return bout with Zhi’s nemesis.
The alternative would be to stay with her
faculty colleagues and surreptitiously
complete assignments on behalf of their
lazy but socially prominent prize pupil,
who prefers visiting the local brothels tostudying. Wexler takes a sardonic tone in
his descriptions of future Earth as a planet
where the physical and virtual landscapes
are littered with toxic waste, but the
inhabitants still foster a sense of commu-
nity and cheerful disdain for their wealthy
off-world visitors. Though this stands
alone, readers would surely welcome fur-
ther adventures featuring the unlikely
duo of Kas and Zhi. (May)Power Challenges
Ben Bova. Caezik, $28.50 (236p) ISBN 978-1-
64710-018-6
The fourth Power novel (after Power
Failure) from the late Bova (1932–2020)
feels like two stories tied loosely together:
a thoughtful, slow-burning narrative
about the political fight to put man back
on the moon, followed by an action-
packed, military-centric story about a
strategy to keep the world safe from
nuclear war. Returning hero Jake Ross,
the science advisor to the U.S. president,
is the father of the Artemis program,
which aims to
bring humanity
to the moon—
and eventually
beyond. Though
the program
faces many
obstacles, Jake
has the guts and
cleverness to
outmaneuver
all of them.
Though thought-provoking, the stakes to
Jake’s story feel mild as there’s little
doubt that he’ll succeed, and the climax
is underplayed as the novel switches its
focus to Capt. J.W. Hazard, the head of a
military space station within a globally
cooperative satellite network, first con-
ceived by Jake, to prevent a nuclear war.
Now those who oppose the network have
a plan to spark the nuclear apocalypse—
and Hazard must play long-shot odds to
stop them. While the execution is some-
what flatter than Bova’s typical work, the
far-thinking ideas and the characters’
determination to grab the last hope are
characteristic. Fans won’t want to miss
this coda to Bova’s prolific literary life.
Agent: Eleanor Wood, Spectrum Literary.
(May)