You can tell I’m behind on my blogging because my TBR discussion comes after I start my second book of the month. Nevertheless, I shall try to get back on schedule. Here we go.

TBR

I started the month with a Star trek novel, and am not planning to read any more until I’ve read through my non-Trek stack. The first of these non-Trek books is Christopher Ruocchio’s The Dregs of Empire & Other Stories. Despite a few philosophical quibbles over the direction the Sun Eater series is taking, Ruocchio is still, for my money, one of the best writers in the field right now. Reading the short story collection also means I’ll be ready for Disquiet Gods when it arrives later in the year.

After that I’ve got the next two books in the Grand Tour universe, Apes & Angels and Survivors, by Ben Bova. Having enjoyed Death Wave, I’ve got lofty expectations for these two. Survivors has an extra bit of significance, as it’s the last unread book from my visit to New York last year.

The other two books on my TBR are The Sanctuary, a standalone by Andrew Hunter Murray, and The Defector, by Chris Hadfield. The former is a near-future thriller that I’m hoping will be as good as Murray’s debut, even if the science fiction elements are less apparent from the cover description. As for the Hadfield, while it is technically a follow-up to the excellent The Apollo Murders, it appears to be a largely standalone affair.

The other reading commitment I have is a review copy of David Mack’s upcoming Star Trek: Picard novel Firewall. The book itself publishes at the end of the month, so I’ve got plenty of time to read it. You can expect my review to go up around the publication date. And as a bonus treat, I’ve got an interview with the author himself scheduled for the same week.

Assuming I don’t buy any more books this month, which is always a bold assumption to make, I’ll be seeing the month out with some more Star Trek in the form of a handful of TNG numbered novels, which I’ll likely review as a set.

& BEYOND

The Boundary’s Edge Social Club is still running our first ever buddy read, so there’ll be a review of Walter Miller’s A Canticle for Leibowitz heading your way before the end of the month. Anything else I listen to will likely be Warhammer related, and thus saved for next month.

I’m still toiling away in the spreadsheet mines, doing research for my ‘History of SF’ and ‘A-Z of SF’ projects. Major progress has been made on both, however, and they could well bear fruit before the end of the month. I can guarantee there’ll be at least one new article out this month, though only time will tell what I end up getting to first.

In other longer-term news, I’m on the hunt for the Best of British SF, so if you have any recommendations on that front, let me know. I’m currently engaged in an online bidding war for a whole batch of British SF, so don’t be surprised if there’s an Anglophile look to the blog a few months from now.

Aside from that, it’s going to be a fairly quiet month on the blog. After all, those sheep won’t lamb themselves.

RELEASE SCHEDULE

5th until 9th – Black Library Celebration – This is the time of year when we get some hints about Black Library’s upcoming releases, as well as surprise pre-orders on some new books. This is especially handy now that they no longer have a Coming Soon page. Originally, Mike Brooks’ Da Big Dakka and Jude Reid’s Morvenn Vahl were supposed to have limited editions going on sale, but it appears they’ve been delayed for logistical reasons. nevertheless, we may well get standard editions of these books, and Gary Kloster’s Lazarus novel should also be up for pre-order sometime this month. Odds are also good on getting some cover reveals, announcements , and author interviews on the Warhammer Community site.

27th – HALO: Epitaph, by Kelly Gay – I am far outside the loop when it comes to Halo, buy Gay is one of their best authors, and I’m hoping she can do justice to the tragic story of the Didact.

27th (US)/29th (UK) – Star Trek: Picard: Firewall, by David Mack – Having been rejected by Starfleet, Seven of Nine forges her own path, one that leads her to the vigilantes of the Fenris Rangers.