SFF Hot from Printers: New Releases discussion

Nominations are currently open for the 2022 Hugo Awards! Let's use this thread to share our favorites in whatever categories we want. This will help us all have an idea of what we need to make sure to at least check out before sending in our nominations. Don't want to miss something good!

I'm planning to edit this comment as I think of more stuff.

Novel:
Ariadne
Far from the Light of Heaven
Sorrowland
The Memory Theater
^These were my favorites. This is probably going to be my ballot. Don't quote me on that, haha. The rest of these below are ones that I think are worth checking out, but probably won't end up making my ballot....or maybe they will but I'm not sure yet.
The Echo Wife
Hummingbird Salamander
The Chosen and the Beautiful
The Inheritance of Orquídea Divina
A Desolation Called Peace
Symbiosis
Jade Legacy
Black Water Sister

Novellas:
Inside Man
Comfort Me with Apples
We Shall Sing a Song Into the Deep
The Past Is Red
One Day All This Will Be Yours

Novelette:
Don't think I've read any yet.

Short Story:
The Revolution Will Not Be Served with Fries by Meg Elison
https://www.lightspeedmagazine.com/fi...
Stronger by K. J. Parker
https://www.beneath-ceaseless-skies.c...
I Was a Teenage Space Jockey by Stephen Graham Jones
https://www.lightspeedmagazine.com/fi...
The Frankly Impossible Weight of Han by Maria Dong
https://www.khoreomag.com/fiction/the...
All Worlds Left Behind by Iona Datt Sharma
https://www.khoreomag.com/fiction/all...


Series: (I put these first to last ranking.)
The Greenbone Saga
Jade City
The Dandelion Dynasty
The Grace of Kings
The Rampart Trilogy
The Book of Koli
The Kingston Cycle
Witchmark

Graphic Story:
Haven't read any. Is Far Sector eligible?

Related Work:
Do Better: SFF Without Sexual Violence (Goodreads group and book list)
Mask Off (Lindsay Ellis video essay)
Levar Burton Reads (podcast)
FIYAHCon 2021


Dramatic Presentation (Long Form):
Infinity Train Book Four Duet
Encanto
WandaVision

Dramatic Presentation (Short Form):
Maybe an episode from Lost in Space


Fancast:
World Building for Masochists - https://worldbuildingformasochists.po...
Hugo's There - https://hugospodcast.com/feed/podcast...
Onyx Pages - https://www.youtube.com/c/ONYXPages
Literature Science Alliance - https://www.youtube.com/c/LiteratureS...

Lodestar:

Astounding:
Micaiah Johnson
Jennifer Saint

Thanks for starting!
Let's start with novels. My shortlist of award-worthy include
The Memory Theater
Shards of Earth
Project Hail Mary
The Hood
Notes from the Burning Age
Rabbits
She Who Became the Sun

Thanks Kristen! I'll update this thread with my picks as I go, but to be honest I've kind of given up on being able to nominate with any sense of comprehensiveness. Just too busy with parenting, school, and work this year, and I've been focusing on translations. So I haven't read much that I can put on this list.

Novel:
The Memory Theater

Novella:
A Psalm for the Wild-Built
The Prophet of Corruption (in I'm Waiting for You and Other Stories)
One Day All This Will Be Yours
Fugitive Telemetry

Novelette:
I'm Waiting For You (in I'm Waiting for You and Other Stories)

Short Story:
none yet

BDP-Long:
Dune

BDP-Short:
Still deciding

This year I'm simple and stubborn :D

novel:

Shards of Earth

novella:

One Day All This Will Be Yours or
Elder Race

(am I allowed to nominate 2 books by the same author in the same category?)

Gabi wrote: "This year I'm simple and stubborn :D

All:
Adrian Tchaikovsky

(am I allowed to nominate 2 bo..."

lol
yep, you can nominate more than one distinct work from one author in a category.

Thanks, Kalin!

^^' - it's just that nearly none of my nominations made it last year and I wasn't happy with the actual nominees list. So I won't bother this year. Yet since I still am allowed to nominate from last year's membership and I promised Adrian Tchaikovsky to nominate him, I will do just that.

Aw, you just have to try, Gabi. Make your voice heard to the degree that you can.

I was super disappointed with the novella category this past year. I hope it is better this year.

Ok, I think I'm done editing for a while. I've been curious about the Babel series that starts with Senlin Ascends. That will be eligible for best series this year. Do any of you think it is worth checking out?

Thanks for sharing all your favorites, everyone! I've added or reprioritized some of my tbr now. I'm going to check out Notes from the Burning Age, The Hood, and I'm Waiting for You and Other Stories (is everything in this collection eligible?).

Gabi wrote: "(am I allowed to nominate 2 books by the same author in the same category?)..."

A few years back when Murderbot novellas were all the rage, I guess 3 made it to nominees and the author chose to withdraw to allow others to be nominated. She still won. So, multiple by the same author is fine

Kristenelle wrote: "... I've been curious about the Babel series that starts with Senlin Ascends. ..."

I enjoyed book 1. I felt that was enough for me. I have several friends who have continued with the rest of the series. It is fun, but not deep. (Of course a tower should be tall, not deep, but still....)

Kristenelle wrote: "Senlin Ascends. Do any of you think it is worth checking out?"

I liked the first book and still plan to continue the series. Check my review if you wish - https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

As for The Hood, it is the 2nd volume even if they are extremely closely connected

Gabi wrote: "
novella:
One Day All This Will Be Yours or
Elder Race."

Don't forget Bear Head!

Antti wrote: "Gabi wrote: "
novella:
One Day All This Will Be Yours or
Elder Race."

Don't forget Bear Head!"

:D Actually I didn't feel like Bear Head and Expert System's Champion were nomination material. I was more impressed by his other works this year.

There's also The Expert System's Champion by Tchaikovsky, I've never seen anyone in our group discussing it though.

Kristen: yes, all the stories from I'm Waiting For You are eligible.

My favorite short stories so far
A Stranger Goes Ashore by Adam R. Shannon BCS 328
Best-Laid Plans by David D. Levine Clarkesworld 176
Dreadnought by Michael Swanwick F&SF 07‑08|21
The Three-Day Hunt by Robert R. Chase Asimov's 01‑02|21
A Dime by Megan Lindholm F&SF 11‑12|21
Alien Ball short story by Kristine Kathryn Rusch
Tweak short story by Taimur Ahmad
Sentient Being Blues short story by Christopher Mark Roseb
The Fear of Missing Out short story by Robert H. Cloake
Heart of Stone short story by Tom Jolly
In-Flight Damage short story by Sara Kate Ellis
The Pond Who Sang short story by Charles Hand

Novelettes
(emet) by Lauren Ring F&SF 07‑08|21
A Vast Silence by T.R. Napper F&SF 11‑12|21
Bots of the Lost Ark by Suzanne Palmer Clarkesworld 177
Broad Dutty Water: A Sunken Story by Nalo Hopkinson F&SF 11‑12|21
By the Will of the Gods by Charles Q. Choi Analog 01‑02|21
Philly Killed His Car novelette by Will McIntosh
Giving Up the Ghost novelette by Megan Lindholm (Robin Hobb)
Huginn and Muninn—and What Came After novelette by Michael Swanwick
Fibonacci's Humors novelette by Rudy Rucker and Bruce Sterling
Año Nuevo novelette by Ray Nayler 05-06|21
Super Sprouts novelette by Ian Creasey Asimov's 05-06|21
Damocles novelette by Sean McMullen



Novella
Out of the Box novella by Jay O'Connell
A Rocket for Dimitrios [Sylvia Aldstatt] novella by Ray Nayler
The Unlikely Heroines of Callisto Station novella by Marie Vibbert

Oleksandr wrote: "Kristenelle wrote: "Senlin Ascends. Do any of you think it is worth checking out?"

I liked the first book and still plan to continue the series. Check my review if you wish - https..."

Thanks! Does The Hood stand alone or do I need to read the first one first?

Oleksandr wrote: "Novella
Out of the Box novella by Jay O'Connell
A Rocket for Dimitrios [Sylvia Aldstatt] novella by Ray Nayler
The Unlikely Heroines of Callisto Station novella by Marie Vibbert."

Are these all in Analog? How amazing are they? The only way to read them is to buy the Analog magazine issues, right? Is it worth it? Have you read other novellas this year? How do they compare? (Hope you don't mind all the questions. I'm just trying to decide if I need to actually buy the magazines. :-P)

First two - Asimov's SF Magazine, the last - Analog. They are good, not great. If you visit Ray Nayler's site, he had several earlier stories online, so you may taste them. I like his works so far but they are also sometimes just fine, sometimes award-worthy.

As for buying, I think anthologies like 'Year's Best SF' are a better choice than magazines, much less weak stuff

I haven't read enough short work to have an opinion, but on the main categories:

Novel:
A Master of Djinn
The Fall of Koli
A Desolation Called Peace

(My reading isn't complete here yet, and I still have a few target works to read, but I might throw in Project Hail Mary if I'm short of stuff, though I don't think it'll be lacking for nominations)

Novella:
Elder Race
One Day All This Will Be Yours
Fugitive Telemetry
A Psalm for the Wild-Built
Across the Green Grass Fields

(I've read 15/33 works for novellas, and everything which looked hot, so pretty happy with this. tastes differ, of course)

@MH, when you say 15/33 what do you mean, where are you getting that number from?

Does anybody have the word count on the stories in "I'm waiting for you and other stories"? I only have the audiobook. If those are eligible I will gladly put them on my nomination list as well.

Kalin wrote: "@MH, when you say 15/33 what do you mean, where are you getting that number from?"

The goodreads list:

https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/1...

Though the unofficial Hugo spreadsheet has 59 novellas listed - because they pay attention to magazines, which goodreads tends to exclude - and I've just added some likely prospects to my target list to read by April.

Gabi wrote: "Does anybody have the word count on the stories in "I'm waiting for you and other stories"? I only have the audiobook. If those are eligible I will gladly put them on my nomination list as well."

The Hugo spreadsheet has "Prophet of Corruption" at 37,056 (novella), "I'm waiting for you" at 15,077 (novelette), but nothing for anything else.

Thank you so much, MH! Those two are the ones I needed.

Also some nice short story available online: https://www.fantasy-magazine.com/fm/f...

MH wrote: "Novella:
Elder Race
One Day All This Will Be Yours
Fugitive Telemetry
A Psalm for the Wild-Built
Across the Green Grass Fields

(I've read 15/33 works for novellas, and everything which looked hot, so pretty happy with this. tastes differ, of course)."

15 our of 33 is pretty impressive. I'm not quite there myself (but currently reading several novellas and will catch up shortly.) I'd love to see your ranking of all the novellas you've read if you're willing. I'm happy to share mine too if anyone is interested.

I feel like it is pretty easy to predict what the Hugo novella shortlist is going to be at this point....

Fugitive Telemetry
Across the Green Grass Fields
A Psalm for the Wild-Built

And I'm less sure about these, but think they have a good chance...
Defekt
Remote Control
A Spindle Splintered
Fireheart Tiger

Have any of you read any Premee Mohamed? They have a couple novellas, but I'm not familiar with them at all.

I nearly forgot - last year I actually watched something that I liked, so I will put in for Dramatic Presentation (Short Form)

"The Dragon Reborn" (ep 104) and
"Blood calls blood" (ep 105)

from The Wheel of Time.

Kristenelle wrote: "Have any of you read any Premee Mohamed? They have a couple novellas, but I'm not familiar with them at all."

I liked These Lifeless Things, and its in the "just missing out" category (along with A Spindle Splintered). The Annual Migration of Clouds wasn't quite my thing - I'm not overly fond of post-apocalyptic pastoral - but it was a perfectly OK story. I haven't read their novels.

Kristenelle wrote: "Have any of you read any Premee Mohamed? They have a couple novellas, but I'm not familiar with them at all."

Beneath the Rising, a YA-ish C'thulu-ian horror, was nominated for a Best Novel Aurora, so I tried it. It was a DNF for me, I likely won't go back to it, but I'm not opposed to trying new writing by the author. The Annual Migration of Clouds will probably be an Aurora nominee this year, and I'll give it a shot.

Here is another short story I recently read that I think is worth checking out. You can listen or eye read!
The Sin of America by Catherynne M. Valente
https://uncannymagazine.com/article/t...