Both Melissa Marr's INK EXCHANGE and Jeaniene Frost's ONE FOOT IN THE GRAVE are both on the New York Times Bestseller lists this weeks--CONGRATULATIONS!!
To read sample chapters of INK EXCHANGE, click here.
For ONE FOOT IN THE GRAVE, click here.
Both authors are very talented, and I can't wait to publish them both in a fantasy anthology next year.
-- Diana
Clearly, sf/f is taking over at last! *insert evil laugh here*
First, Michael Chabon and Jeffrey Ford discuss genre and sf/f in a great article on Galleycat. Both authors a re fabulous writers, straddling genre and mainstream and blissfully writing what they want, and their thoughts here are both cogent and interesting.
Then, the New York Times has an article on steampunk. Granted, it's in the Fashion/style section, rather than on the many great steampunk books, but...
-- Diana
N.B. this blog's title belongs to Teresa Nielsen Hayden, whose adlibbed sign last year at BEA at the SF/F panel nearly made me fall out of my chair laughing. =)
Need another reason to visit Making Light? The no-holds-barred discussion of Cory Doctorow's brilliant LITTLE BROTHER, which is a must-read. Full-stop.
Our upcoming debut author Margaret Ronald has a terrific short story, "Knight of Coins," up at baens-universe.com (you can't read the entire thing if you're not a member, but you can read a good chunk of it, and then you can buy the single issue for $6 should you so desire). The protagonist of "Knight of Coins," Evie Scelan, is also the heroine of Margaret's first novel, SPIRAL HUNT, which comes out in February. I think Evie's pretty terrific (also Margaret, natch), but don't just take my word for it: The Fix agrees.
-- Kate
The free e-book for May and June is:
THE SERPENT BRIDE, Sara Douglass
Sara Douglass has won legions of fans around the world for her epic tales of sorcery, forbidden love, and heart-pounding action. Now, with the DarkGlass Mountain saga, she reveals her biggest adventure yet.
Rescued from unspeakable horror, Ishbel Brunelle has devoted her life to a Serpent cult that reads the future in the entrails of its human sacrifices. But the Serpent has larger plans for Ishbel than merely being archpriestess, plans that call for a dangerous royal marriage balancing on the edge between treachery and devotion, and an eerie, eldritch warning: Prepare for the Lord of Elcho Falling . . .
And there are other dangers. For while Tencendor is gone, even its fall cannot destroy the Icarii. As the Tyrant of Isembaard reaches for glory, both StarDrifter SunSoar and his son, Axis, are pulled into the deadly dance of intrigue and sorcery. The DarkGlass Mountain—once known as the Threshold—is waiting, and as the Dark God Kanubai rises from his prison in exile, no one will escape unscathed.
Click here to download your free e-book of THE SERPENT BRIDE. (N.B. It is free and you do not need to give any credit card information.) You can Browse Inside THE SERPENT BRIDE here.
Book Two of the Darkglass Mountain, THE TWISTED CITADEL, will be released at the end of the month.
-- Diana
From the author of The Undead Kama Sutra...
The Future Ain’t What It Used To Be
Recently, I was at the L.A. Times Festival of Books and saw a woman wearing a T-shirt that read:
Isn’t this supposed to be the future?
I knew what she meant. We are well into the 21st century and aren’t we supposed to be having perfect lives inside floating bubble cities? Evidently, the future ain’t what it used to be.
Where are we exactly? We’ve still got poverty, petty crime, crummy jobs, and gasbag politicians. Why does it feel less like TOMORROW and more like Mañana?
A nice round-up of reviews and pieces of interest for Lois McMaster Bujold's The Sharing Knife: Passage:
A piece from Lois about her first sale
A great review at bookloons.com, plus a blogger review
And an audio clip of Lois reading from her novella "Labyrinth" as well as Passage.
(The ever-constant reminder: to read the first four chapters of Passage online, click the link above and hit the "Browse Inside" link under the jacket image!)
First Look is the HarperCollins Advance Review program, and they've got several sf/f titles of interest this month, so check them out for your chance
NIGHTWALKER, Jocelynn Drake--If Alias's Sydney Bristow were a vampire, she'd be Mira, and this fast-paced, globe-trottingsupernatural debut would be her story. Eos will publish in August--find out why Kim Harrison, Vicki Pettersson, and Jeaniene Frost are all fans.
THE SERVANTS, Michael Marshall Smith--I loved SPARES, and I'm thrilled that Eos is able to publish this chilling, touching ghost story this September. Get an early look here.
Plus, in Morrow, there's this guy named Neal Stephenson, who has a new novel called ANATHEM appearing this fall...
Click here for First Look--your chance to read the best books early.
-- Diana
We're looking for 10 advance readers who would be willing to write a book review for Vicki Pettersson's THE TOUCH OF TWILIGHT, on sale May 27th!
Instant bestselling author Vicki Pettersson returns with her third explosive supernatural novel of superheroes and dark adventure set behind the scenes of Sin City.
Joanna Archer has accepted her role as the Archer, part of the supernatural Zodiac force dedicated to protecting the inhabitants of Las Vegas, and made an uneasy peace with a life she never expected, in an eternal war between Light and Shadow.
But now a frightening new player has entered the battle, one whom both sides fear. And as she spars with the deadly and enigmatic doppelganger, Joanna fears that that the third sign of the Zodiac is really the awakening of her Shadow side. For the Light is fading, and to save her friends Joanna must not only cut all ties to her past, but actually embrace the darkness and abandon this world.
If you're interested, send an email to eosbooks@harpercollins.com with your name and address.
(Editor's note: The Minneapolis Star Tribune ran a terrific profile of Lois last Sunday; click through the link above to read. AND Passage is the #1 e-book at Fictionwise.com (http://www.fictionwise.com/topstories.htm#how -- congratulations, Lois!)
I've had an interesting time playing with series structures in my fantasies for Eos, and working through the various kinds has made me very conscious of their differing strengths. In my earlier science fiction, I went with what I think of as the “Hornblower model”: a collection of separate adventures all centering around a main character aging in something like real time, which, when put together, form the story of his life. It’s a flexible, natural structure, also used heavily in mystery series. Its main internal advantage is how it allows, over many books, some pretty deep explorations of character growth and change. Its main external advantage is how it allows a reader to pick up a book about anywhere in the series and still get a complete read, although, as the pertinent backstory grew and grew, that became trickier for me. Its main disadvantage, for an SF or fantasy writer with entire universes and the depths of time to romp through, is the stories being constrained to such a modest segment of one’s potential stage.
Okay, so I grew up in the '80s and obviously love books, but even without that, this is classic. Children's editor Cheryl Klein has rewritten the immortal lyrics of Sir Mix-a-Lot's 'Baby Got Back,' for books. Totally made my afternoon (and it's not like I needed that tea anyway).
"[Female voice]
Oh, my, god. Becky, look at her book. It is so big. *scoff* She looks like, one of those, librarians' girlfriends. But, you know, who understands those librarians? *scoff* They only talk to her, because, she looks like a total bibliovore, 'kay? I mean, her book, is just so big. *scoff* I can't believe it's just so thick. It's like, out there. I mean - gross. Look! She's just so ... smart!"
Check it out here.
-- Diana
