I think I'm most looking forward to Ape House, the new book by Water for Elephants author Sara Gruen. The novel concerns bonobos involved in primate research, and was inspired in part by the author's visit to the Great Ape Trust. The fictional Great Ape Lab is bombed by activists, and a reporter follows the story, even communicating with the apes via sign language to get their input.
Steven Saylor's Empire also has my interest. It continues Roma, in which each chapter concerns a member of the Potitii family line in ancient Rome. These characters are often from different generations with little or no connection to the previous one, but the effect of seeing the blood line's fortunes and travails over time is unique. Empire takes us further down generations in, according to the cover, Imperial Rome.
Clockwork Angel begins a new series by Mortal Instruments author Cassandra Clare. More demons and Shadowhunters await Clare's fans, but this adventure takes place in Victorian-era London, rather than contemporary New York City.
The last is The Elephant's Journey, by the late Nobel-prize winner Jose Saramago. Saramago drew on historical resources for his fictional tale of an elephant and his keeper traveling from Portugal to Vienna. They travel along with Archduke Ferdinand and his entourage, as the elephant was a wedding gift to the Archduke from the King of Portugal in 1551.
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