I haven’t been writing very much about books of late. That’s not because I haven’t been reading any. It is because I have been very busy. The reading has been awesome. Indeed this is one of the best years for fantastic fiction that I can remember. Here, for example, are three absolutely terrific books, any one of which I’d be happy to see carry off major awards next year:

• Kraken, China Miéville [buy isbn=”9780345497499″]
• Under Heaven, Guy Gavriel Kay [buy isbn=”9780007342013″]
• The Dervish House, Ian McDonald [buy isbn=”9781616142049″]

If that’s not enough for you, William Gibson has a new novel, Zero History, due out in September. People who have seen it say it is one of his best works.

Then there are some awesome newcomers too. I’ve already enthused about N.K. Jemisin’s The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms [buy isbn=”9781841498171″]. Nnedi Okorafor’s Who Fear’s Death [buy isbn=”9780756406172″] (not a first novel, but a first adult novel) is a very powerful book. Hannu Rajaniemi’s The Quantum Thief is getting rave comments from those who have seen it. And of course we shouldn’t forget Paolo Bacigalupi’s Ship Breaker [buy isbn=”9780316056212″]. All in all it is very exciting.