Field Guide for the Formerly Villainous by Autumn K England
Release Date: Early July

Stefen Says: This is one for fans of cosy tales, and I don’t have much to add that the blurb doesn’t already give you except that it is book one in a series and it is one for fans who like their cosy fantasy really cosy in some places and with a side order of exploring PTSD in others. It’s got a bit of a lighter romance subplot but mostly it’s about coming home and finding community, family and happiness again with after surviving something terrible.

From the Publisher: When Oaklin Nettlewood accidentally joined an evil world-ending cult, mind control magic forced them to do unspeakable things. Years later, the realm’s heroes have finally saved the day, defeated the villain, and shattered the last remnants of the spell…leaving destruction in their wake. And so, with a spell-damaged memory and whole bushel of trauma, Oaklin escapes to a small farm on the edge of Mossley’s Rest and swears an oath: After all the things they were forced to do with their magic, they will never use it again. Ever.
The no-nonsense ghost granny who lives in Oaklin’s house has other ideas. As she coaxes Oaklin out of their shell and back into the world, they find companionship (a grumpy horse and a very good dog), friendship (a local bard and magical baker who should just kiss already), and tentative romance (a paladin-librarian who makes Oaklin’s heart come alive for the first time in ages.) Magic even seems possible again—though strictly for foraging magical mushrooms and protecting the farm from bugs.
Healing comes in gentle waves, and Oaklin doesn’t have to do it alone. So what does it mean when an inquisitor comes to town to hunt former cultists just as Oaklin begins to think that maybe, just maybe, they deserve a happy ending after all?

The Mortons by Scott Westerfeld & Justine Larbalestier
Release Date: Late July

Stefen Says: I’m not really sure what genre this is, though I’m tempted to call it gothic academia since there’s a school involved and a coming-of-age story and profoundly creepy family situations. There’s no magic but the various crime families at Helshire college are just as weird has anything you’ll find in those sorts of books and probably worse. They are certainly more homicidal. Technically I suppose I should put this in the crime section but fans of dark academia with secret societies would enjoy this one just as much and you won’t miss the magic at all.

From the Publisher: A darkly funny, action-packed gothic thriller following a modern-day, old-money crime family with murderous intent. It’s The Secret History meets The Sopranos, with a dash of Saltburn!
Meet the Mortons: In this family, murder is currency – and business is booming.
The Mortons are a modern-day, old-money dynasty with impeccable taste, from their exquisitely crafted cocktails to their expertly tailored vintage garments. They are also stone-cold killers.
They, along with the other crime families, send their progeny to Helshire College, where legacy students learn to exercise control over their wealthy peers. Jessica Morton has always excelled at Helshire, secure in her knowledge that she is the prodigy of her generation. Now, having committed her first kill, it should be Jessica’s moment, her honour.
But that kill will cut more ways than one – and it will set in motion a series of consequences from which there is no turning back.
Sharp and hypnotic, The Mortons is an epic novel of alliances and power, loyalty and kinship, and the consequences of ruthless ambition.

Shadows Over Innsmouth by H P Lovecraft, Kim Newman & Basil Copper, edited by Stephen Jones
Release Date: Late July

Stefen Says: I’m not sure if H P Lovecraft‘s Cthulhu mythos has the most secondary works written by other authors about it of any setting but it would certainly be high on any list. This collection features a variety of well-regarded contemporary and older authors offering their own takes and explorations of Lovecraft‘s bizarre universe. It’s a terrific collection for Lovecraft fans and if you have the right kind of nerdy background and are observant you probably noticed that it features stories by Kim Newman  under his own name and also under the pseudonym he uses for his black library contributions Jack Yeovil.

From the Publisher: Today’s masters of horror dare to conjure terrifying tales inspired by H P Lovecraft’s classic works. In this anthology, discover a monstrous secret beneath a derelict church, a search for buried treasure gone terribly wrong, a blood sacrifice gone horribly right, and a return to the legendary forsaken New England fishing village full of sparkling treasure, loathsome denizens, and unspeakable evil.
Featuring 17 chilling stories curated by World Fantasy Award-winning editor Stephen Jones, as well as the original masterpiece of horror by H P Lovecraft. This newly redesigned edition also includes a revised and updated introduction and contributor notes, along with additional artwork exclusive to this printing.
Including stories from: 
H P Lovecraft, Ramsey Campbell, Adrian Cole, Basil Copper, David Langford, D F Lewis, Brian Lumley, Brian Mooney, Kim Newman, Nicholas Royle, Guy N Smith, Michael MarshallSmith, Brian Stableford, David Sutton, Peter Tremayne, Jack Yeovil.

The Changeling by Kate Forsyth
Release Date: Early July

Stefen Says: I don’t think there are any folklore inspired books that are as true to the origins of the stories than this one. It’s a stand-alone work, set in 16th century Scotland and blends historic detail and Forsyth’s phenomenal knowledge of Scottish folklore. The result is something with the best of both. A must for Celtic folklore fans.

From the Publisher: On her fourteenth birthday, Caiti NicNeven discovers her true mother is the queen of the Sidhe, the faery folk who dwell beneath Scotland’s hollow hills. Bound by ancient grievance, the faery queen demands Caiti become the instrument of her revenge against the mortal crown stolen a thousand years before.
Drawing on a dangerous magic she barely understands, Caiti flees. She finds refuge at the treacherous court of Mary, Queen of Scots. As fear and religious fervour grip the country, Mary is pressured into passing an Anti-Witchcraft Act, placing every woman – and every whispered spell – in peril.
Watching from the shadows, the faery queen tightens her hold. When Caiti falls in love with Robbie, the son of a local laird, her mother strikes, cursing him to dance himself to death beneath the faery moon.
To save the man she loves, Caiti must cross into the faery realm and confront the mother who would destroy her – and claim a wild, dangerous magic of her own.
Inspired by the true story of Scotland’s first witch-hunt, The Changeling is a spellbinding tale of witchcraft, forbidden love and defying fate.

Terrible Worlds Destinations by Adrian Tchaikovsky
Release Date: Mid June

Stefen Says: This is the second collection of novellas written by Adrian Tchaikovsky that were originally either micro press print or digital and audio only. They’re not connected except by perhaps a shared theme of exploring ideas of new worlds, and they’re all brilliant. The story And Put Away Childish Things is probably my favourite for it’s deeply disturbing and dark reworking of one of the fundamental principles behind C S Lewis‘ Narnia stories. One for fans of Adrian Tchaikovsky, or anyone who likes twisty and clever novellas. The previous collection Terrible Worlds: Revolutions which features three novellas about societies in turmoil, again with a peculiar twist, is also available.

From the Publisher: The Future Is The Journey.
The vastness of space, the endless ribbon of time, worlds beyond our own: humanity has always been driven to explore, to pass the horizon and enter the unknown. For too many, that drive is what ultimately destroys us.
In three critically-acclaimed novellas, the “British master of science fiction” (Reactor) takes you into a mysterious artefact at the edge of the Solar system, to the very last day of time, into a world apparently born of children’s stories, with fearless – and sometimes hapless – explorers… and shows us why sometimes it’s best to stay at home.
Collecting Tchaikovsky‘s critically acclaimed novellas Walking to Aldebaran (2019), One Day All This Will Be Yours (2021) and And Put Away Childish Things (2023) for the first time, Terrible Worlds: Destinations gives you three glimpses of the limits of reality.

Jitterbug by Gareth L Powell
Release Date: Early July

Stefen Says: Gareth L Powell is one of those writers that works in multiple ways so you’re never really sure what you’re going to get from him. He’s as comfortable with high concept complicated science fiction as he is with a snappy dialogue space romp, and this one is the latter. In a future where humanity is forced by disaster to abandon the earth for space, A crew of bounty hunters bite off more than they can chew when a rescue mission involves them in a solar system wide conspiracy and all the ruthless and dangerous nasties that come with it. This is a standalone book and quite a light read with lots of humour, found family (which includes a sentient ship) and a little touch of romance. This one’s just for fun.

From the Publisher: “On Earth, they depicted justice as blindfolded and impartial, but out here on the frontier, she was red in tooth and claw.”
Jupiter and Saturn are gone, and a mysterious force has built a huge habitable sphere from their ashes. When criminals try to lose themselves on this new frontier, bounty hunters like Copernicus Brown and the crew of his sentient ship Jitterbug get paid to hunt them down.
But when Brown rescues Amber Roth, sole survivor of a pirate attack, the Jitterbug and her crew find themselves the target of powerful political factions who want control of the data chip hidden in Roth’s stomach.
And all the while, something vast and ancient creeps towards them from the depths of space…

Lavender Spike by Rachel Tremblay
Release Date: Late July

Stefen Says: The publishers info on this one is quite long so I’ll keep my bit short. What they don’t tell you is that this is a very strangely structured almost surreal cyberpunk near future story, Full of strange terminology a narrative time jumps geared more toward fans of the weird than cyberpunk. One for fans of Jeff Noon.

From the Publisher: In a shattered future where art is outlawed for some and weaponized by others, one underground painter is forced to choose: stay true to her craft, or survive.
Isobel “Izzy” Ker is one of the last Purist artists left.
She survives in the slums outside Mahl City, secretly selling illegal paintings in a world ruled by the New Art Government. They keep their citizens in line through Trigger Art, a powerful, addictive form of creation that overwhelms the senses and rewires the mind.
When her studio is raided, Izzy has nowhere to run.
She is forced to find safety with the Half-Light Rebels, a group of anti-art radicals and glorified thieves who are determined to tear the system down.
But rebellion comes at a cost, and her first mission with the rebels fails.
Izzy is captured.
The New Art Government gives her a choice: rot in the city’s infamous prison, or convert and become a Trigger Artist.
Izzy accepts and is thrust into the spotlight as a rising Trigger Artist, intoxicated by the luxury, the power, and the dangerous pull of creation at its most extreme … not to mention her enigmatic bodyguard, Rilke.
The wild, engrossing act of creating her first public piece almost makes her forget what life was like in the Dumps.
Almost.
While the system remakes her into its most powerful weapon, Izzy plays a deeper game.
She works in secret with the rebels and prepares to unveil her audacious debut piece.
Because the most dangerous creation is defiance.
Written by a rising star in science fiction, Lavender Spike is a bold, wholly original cyberpunk novel in which art is both drug and religion.

Whalesong by Miles Cameron
Release Date: Early July

Stefen Says: This is more of a side story than a continuation of the story begun in Artefact Space and Deep Black. It begins with Marca N’baro and an incident that leaves her with the knowledge of new powerful enemies and in desperate need of a whale. It’s a strange start but it results in a rollicking space adventure with a bunch of new characters and plenty of tension and action. It also follows up some of the themes of Deep Space and we get to see the repercussions of some of the incidents at the end of that book. There’s probably enough in here that you could try and read it on its own but I wouldn’t recommend it. It’s much better as a work that explores the galaxy of Artefact Space. Overall it’s a really fun space opera that has rather more action than the previous books in the series.

From the Publisher: Thor Stokel had always dreamed of being master of his own ship, and the Silver Star is a dream ship: fast, sleek and powerful. But leaving the safety of his military career in the DHC behind to become an independent merchant fast becomes a nightmare of endless solo flights, paperwork, bad deals and customs disasters.
When he’s imprisoned over the latest customs and paperwork mistake, Thor’s luck finally starts to change. Incarceration leads to his first crewmate – and then a second. But it also leads to an increase in his paranoia: something doesn’t add up about his beautiful new ship, the AI is erratic, and he’s increasingly sure that his crewmates are hiding something. And now he thinks the Silver Star is being followed . . .
Exhausted, isolated, and still just trying to make ends meet, Thor Storkel is either the most paranoid man in space . . . or he’s a vital part of a galaxy-spanning conspiracy, that’s going to depend on his being paranoid enough to survive it . . .
. . . And Marca N’baro still needs a whale . . .

Beginning Operations by James White
Release Date: Early June

Stefen Says: I remember this series from back in my days working in science fiction book shops in the 90s, where they were hugely popular. It’s basically a medical drama in a space hospital with aliens, and all the strangeness that comes with it. There were 12 books published in the series and this volume collects the first 3. There are plans for a future masterworks release of the next three, but I’m not sure if there are any more planned after that. That’s fine however because it’s an episodic series and each novel is a complete story. A unique premise turned into great books. Highly recommended

From the Publisher: The first three novels in the incredible Sector General series.
Welcome to SECTOR GENERAL – a colossal space hospital that attends to species ranging from an ultra-intelligent prune in a blob of syrup, to a teleportative brontosaurus, to a shape-shifting amoeba that constantly melts like an ice lolly on a summer’s day. The hospital’s staff is equally diverse, counting among its ranks an exoskeletal, insect-like assistant and a six-legged, elephantine surgeon.
Then there is Dr Conway. An Earth-human, he is new to the job but will not let lingering first day jitters stop him from taking on his first big case: treating a hundred-unit gestalt of mind-sharing aliens. This esteemed position is its own double-edged sword, for doctors of this rank have up to ten ‘Education Tapes’ permanently imprinted in their brains. While these recordings are invaluable when it comes to treating such a wide variety of life-forms, they also pass on the personality of the donor, the consequences of which can range from a mere aversion to a particular food to a concerning attraction towards members of other species. But the interstellar society of Sector General and beyond is ultimately a peaceful one where, aside from the occasional pre-arranged war to release tensions, the biggest blows come from the acerbic tongue of the hospital’s Chief Psychologist, the enigmatic Major O’Mara.