The Complete Hammer's Slammers by David Drake

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Gardens of the Moon by Stephen Erikson

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Pirate Cinema by Cory Doctorow

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Pump Six and Other Stories by Paolo Bacigalupi

Bacigalupi  is a seriously talented writer and this collection of short stories shows off his skill. Most of these stories share the common theme of a future ecological catastrophes but they are about more than that. Really they are about how humans respond to these circumstances. For the most part the answer is depressing with haves and have nots, oppressors and oppressed. There are some very dark stories here such as the tale of future world where science has given the gift of immortality to all but the price of this boon is that new children are  tracked down and ruthlessly executed.

Also of note is that there are two stories set in the  gmo enthralled world of Bacigalupi's excellent novel: "The Windup Girl".

Belasarius Saga by David Drake and Eric Flint

I read all six books of this alternative history saga from start to finish. It is set in the time of the Emperor Justinian but his plans to re-conquer the Western Roman empire are scuppered a super intelligent machine
is sent back in time to alter the course of history for malevolent ends. Happily a friendly AI is also sent back to stop this happening and it enlists the help of the great General Belasarius to do so. As the saga unfolds a massive war develops with Roman, Persian and Ethiopian armies fighting an evil Inidan empire controlled by the machine.  By the end of the series we have Roman and Persian armies armies fighting machine guns. It is all a tremendously silly but if are prepared to put aside incredulity it makes for an entertaining read.

Big Chief Elizabeth by Giles Milton

This is a great retelling of the story behind the early British Colonies in Virginia. If you ever wanted to know about the Jamestown settlement or colony of Roanoke and wonder where people like Walter Raleigh, John Smith, Pocahontas and Virginia Dare fit in then I highly recommend this book. Entertaining as well as educational

Orcs (First Blood Trilogy) by Stan Nicholls

The unique selling proposition of Nicholls' trilogy is that orcs are the good guys while humans, for the most part are the baddies. This was enough of a hook to sell millions of books but to be honest it wasn't as revolutionary as it sounds. These Orcs are not the baby eating monsters of legend, they are worthy and honourable fighters who are far more sinned against than sinning. Thankfully it doesn't matter because Nicholls has crafted a highly entertaining tale of a troop of Orc warriors who find themselves declared renegades when they inadvertently make off with a magical artifact. Learning that this artifact is only one of five and realising that they cannot return to their despotic queen they embark on a epic adventure to find all the pieces. Highly enjoyable.