Dr. Ian Malcolm: God creates dinosaurs. God destroys dinosaurs. God creates man. Man destroys God. Man creates dinosaurs.

Dr. Ellie Sattler: Dinosaurs eat man. Woman inherits the earth.

-Jurassic park film dialogue (1993)

In this month’s selection of newly acquired science fiction and fantasy titles, we have The meister of Decimen City by Brenna Raney in which genetically engineered dinosaurs are let loose on an unsuspecting town.

Dinosaurs and science fiction have always had a close affinity: The lost world (by Sherlock Holmes creator Arthur Conan Doyle) , Journey to the center of the Earth by Jules Verne and The land that time forgot by Edgar Rice Burroughs are all classic science fiction novels that boast dinosaurs galore or in some cases, to be scientifically precise, ancient creatures. These early science fiction writers were perhaps fascinated by the idea because, at the time, there was the vague possibility that dinosaurs still lived on remote, unexplored parts of the planet.

Of course in recent times Michael Crichton’s  Jurassic Park really caught the popular imagination, perhaps because the novel seemed indicative of what science might actually be able to achieve in the future, the tantalisingly idea that we might actually see these mighty creatures resurrected.

Other science fiction legends like Ray Bradbury and Anne McCaffery have  also written about dinosaurs, in their novels Dinosaur Tales and Dinosaur Planet respectively. These days there are a dizzying array of science fiction titles that feature dinosaurs, in fact it takes up a whole sub-genre of Science Fiction. Into   these illustrious ranks, we welcome Decimen City.

The meister of Decimen City / Raney, Brenna
“Supergenius and quasi-villain Rex normally can’t go a week without accidentally endangering Decimen City with her science shenanigans. It’s been two weeks since her genetically engineered dinosaurs rampaged through town–a good streak for her–but the peace is broken when actual villain Last Dance sets his sights on Decimen. And he wants Rex’s help. Before Rex can say “I didn’t do it,” superheroes who’ve dragged her to jail on her worst days are crowding her lab to conscript her into quasi-herodom. Rex would rather stay out of it and deal with the dinosaurs that keep calling her Mom, but she can’t ignore that she was somewhat responsible for Last Dance’s villainy…” (Adapted from Catalogue)

Thirsty animals / Atalla, Rachelle
“With supply in the Scottish cities drying up, Aida is forced back home to live with her mum at their rural farm. For now, they are safe with just enough to get by. Yet at the border, tensions are close to breaking point as more and more southerners chase the delusion that Scotland is an eternal spring – while fewer and fewer are allowed through. The service station where Aida works grows emptier with every day. Then, when suspicious strangers arrive at the farm asking for help, Aida and her family face a terrible decision. How much water can they afford to share? And then the taps are turned off. Now they must survive long enough for the rain to come.” (Adapted from Catalogue)

Orphia and Eurydicius / John, Elyse
” Their love transcends every boundary. Can it cheat death? Orphia dreams of something more than the warrior crafts she’s been forced to learn. Hidden away on a far-flung island, her blood sings with poetry and her words can move flowers to bloom and forests to grow … but her father, the sun god Apollo, has forbidden her this art. A chance meeting with a young shield-maker, Eurydicius, gives her the courage to use her voice. After wielding all her gifts to defeat one final champion, Orphia draws the scrutiny of the gods…” (Adapted from Catalogue)

Engines of chaos / Ford, R. S.
“Torwyn burns as Sanctan Egelrath tightens his grip on power. The Draconate Ministry has gathered its forces, determined to eradicate the Guilds, but Rosomon Hawkspur still stands in their way. Her only hope could lay with Lancelin Jagdor, sent to gather allies in their struggle against the usurper. Can even the greatest warrior in Torwyn hope to succeed with so many adversaries determined to stop him? Tyreta returns home with newfound strength and mysterious sorcerous abilities, only to discover it is not the land she left behind. She will have to call upon her untested powers to survive when she embarks on a mission that could turn the tide of war…” (Adapted from Catalogue)

Arca / Macallister, G. R
” The Drought of Girls has ended, but the rift it broke open between the Queendoms is not so easily healed. Political tensions roil the senate of Paxim, where Queen Heliane vows to make her son Paulus the nation’s first ruling King or die trying. Scorpican troops amass on the border of Arca, ready to attack. And within Arca itself, its young, unready queen finds her court a nest of vipers and her dreams besieged by a mysterious figure with unknown intentions. As iron and magic clash on the battlefield and powerful women scheme behind the scenes, danger and violence abound. Can anyone stop chaos from ripping the Queendoms apart?” (Adapted from Catalogue)

Frontier / Curtis, Grace
“In the distant future most of the human race has fled a ravaged Earth to find new life on other planets. For those who stayed, a lawless society remains. What passes for justice is presided over by the High Sheriff, and carried out by his ruthless Deputy. Then a ship falls from the sky, bringing the Stranger, a crew member on the first ship in centuries to attempt a return to Earth and save what’s left. The Stranger finds herself adrift in a ravaged, unwelcoming landscape, full of people who hate and fear her space-born existence. Scared, alone, and armed, she embarks on a journey across the wasteland to return to her ship, her mission, and the woman she loves.” (Adapted from Catalogue)

A tidy armageddon : a novel / Panhuyzen, Brian
“The world is utterly transformed: every product of human creation has been organized by an unknown hand into a vast grid of nine-story blocks, each comprised of a single item type: watering cans, lighthouses, fake Christmas trees, helicopters, plastic spoons, and everything else Earth’s culture and technology have ever produced, stacked in homogenous towers and separated by a maze of passageways. Navigating this depopulated environment, a small contingent of diverse soldiers tries to make sense of this enigmatic apocalypse while desperately searching for survivors…” (Adapted from Catalogue)

The way home : two novellas from the world of The last unicorn / Beagle, Peter S
“One brand-new, long-awaited novella, and one Hugo and Nebula award winning novella, both featuring characters from the beloved classic The Last Unicorn, from renowned fantasy writer Peter S. Beagle. Beagle’s long-awaited return to the world of that novel came with “Two Hearts,” which garnered Hugo and Nebula awards in 2006, and continued the stories of the unicorn, Molly Grue, and Schmendrick the Magician from the point of view of a young girl named Sooz. In this volume, Peter S. Beagle also presents for the first time “Sooz,” a novella that sees the narrator of “Two Hearts,” all grown up and with a perilous journey ahead of her, in a tender meditation on love, loss, and finding your true self.” (Adapted from Catalogue)