Previews from Penguin Winter 2012 Catalog

The latest Berkley Trade Winter 2012 Catalog has come out (including publishing imprints such as ACE and DAW) and while it features things like the latest Patricia Briggs (Fair Game and Marcy Thompson), Simon R. Green’s Nightside, Charlaine Harris’ Sookie Stackhouse (True Blood) novel and Throne of the Crescent Moon by Saladin Ahmed - I thought I'd highlight a few that caught my eye. These are the ones I'll be looking out for over the winter.

City of the Lost by Stephen Blackmoore
On sale January 3, 2012

A sharp L.A. crime writer takes a bite out of zombie fiction with his thrilling new novel.

Joe Sunday has been a Los Angeles low-life for years, but his life gets a whole lot lower when he is killed by the rival of his crime boss—only to return as a zombie. His only hope is to find and steal a talisman that he learns can grant immortality. But, unfortunately for Joe, every other undead thug and crime boss in Los Angeles is looking for the same thing.

With illustrations by well-known comics artist Sean Phillips throughout, this unique book will appeal to fans of graphic novels as well as fans of zombie fiction

I'm a sucker for comics (as evidenced by my reviews for this blog) so this combination novel/graphic novel has my attention.

Dust of the Damned by Peter Brandvold
On sale January 3, 2012

A novel about werewolves, ghouls, and cowboys, all fighting for their piece of the
American frontier.

The Hell’s Angels are a gang of werewolves who have escaped from Hellsgarde Federal Penitentiary. They were the ones who tore the Confederates into submission at Gettysburg for Lincoln, thus ending the Civil War. Now they’ve headed West—to join the legions of other ghouls…

Armed with an arsenal of weapons, the deadliest being Marshal Angel Coffin, notorious ghoulhunter Uriah Zane must stop the hordes of shapeshifting creatures pushing west. Together, Zane and Coffin must stop the werebeasts from attaining final dominion over the earth—with humans as their servants...

Normally I don't seek out - well, ANY of these kinds of novels individually (cowboy novels, urban fantasy type novels, alternate history novels) - and yet, combine them together and color me intrigued.

The Shape of Desire by Sharon Shinn
On sale April 3, 2012

From national bestselling author Sharon Shinn—an original contemporary fantasy in which love and loyalty are tested at every turn.

For fifteen years Maria Devane has been desperately, passionately in love with Dante Romano. But despite loving him with all of her heart and soul, Maria knows that Dante can never give all of himself back—at least not all the time. Every month, Dante shifts shape, becoming a wild animal, and leaving Maria alone. Since the beginning, she has kept his secret, knowing that their love is worth the danger. But when a string of brutal attacks occur in local parks during the times when Dante is in animal form, Maria is forced to consider whether the lies she’s been telling about her life have become lies she’s also telling herself…

I don't need to read past the author's name Sharon Shinn to know I'll be picking this one up, and even with what might be a more urban fantasy setting, I'm still in.

So You Created a Wormhole: The Time Traveler’s Guide to Time Travel by Phil Hornshaw and Nick Hurwitch
On sale April 3, 2012

A one-of-a-kind survival guide to time travel, for fans of The Zombie Combat Manual and How to Survive a Robot Uprising.

People, from H.G. Wells, to Albert Einstein, to Marty McFly, have been fascinated by the possibilities of time travel. But novice travelers should learn the do’s and don’t’s before taking the plunge through the fabric of space-time. This handy guide offers essential knowledge for visiting any era, past, future, or otherwise, including:
• Why wormholes are the safest way to travel
• What to say and NOT to say when you meet your
past or future self
• How to befriend a dinosaur
• Avoiding “spaghettification” (this is not a
cooking term, but an awful way to die)

This one just sounds amusing.