Mystery, SF&F, and a touch of Romance

I’m not big on science fiction that places you somewhere so utterly foreign that several hundred pages in you’re still disoriented. Forty Signs of Rain is set in the same Washington, D.C. we know and read about daily, and follows the lives of several scientists and politicos. The characters are authentic and absorbing, and their travails center around the repercussions of global warming. By the time you get to books two and three of this trilogy, you are so dialed-in to their thoughts and idiosyncrasies that the plot can race along and not leave you behind. The scariest thing about this book is how close to non-fiction it truly is. – ZGR

I’ve been slowly working my way through this interpretation of Arthurian legend – the same one that inspired Disney’s “Sword and the Stone.” White’s narrative is whimsical, including a Merlin living chronologically in reverse. The Once and Future King takes you deep into Arthur’s world in a way that manages to be both enjoyable and meaty enough to keep you in for the long haul. -Kate

I like to think of Laurie King’s Mary Russell series as the perfect summer read: entertaining, charming, witty, and smart enough to keep the synapses firing. The series’ sharp protagonist, Mary Russell, is one of my favorite characters, and her famous sidekick is written with refreshing authenticity. Best of all? If you find yourself addicted, there are eight novels left to savor. –Kat

I love noir, but I especially love neo-noir set in an alternate Alaska established as the official Jewish state after WWII. Murder, shamanism, romance, chess, intrigue, snow and whole lot of Yiddish permeate this amazing novel. The ideas are so startlingly fresh and sharp that you read this novel knowing you’ve never read anything like it before. Chabon outdoes even his Pulitzer Prize-winning Kavalier & Clay with this work. – ZGR

HBO’s “True Blood” is based on these books – a set of mysteries about a Southern waitress who can read minds, and her vampire boyfriend. Dead Until Dark starts the series, offering a fast-paced mystery with a whole lot of twists that provide something new. Another big perk: if this is up your alley, there are many other books in the series to meet your Southern vampire needs. -Kate