2013 Promises Blood (and More Bearded Debut Authors)

I'm still pulling together my list of 2012 debuts worth looking out for but I thought I would jump in the TARDIS for a quick look ahead to 2013.

I never get publishing contracts for my birthday...

Sometime in the past few months, Orbit outbid a few other houses for the right to publish PROMISE OF BLOOD, a debut fantasy novel from Brian McClellan (pictured above) as well as the 2nd and 3rd volumes of his intended trilogy. Now that the contracts have all been signed it's possible to share a little bit more about the book.

Here's the back of the baseball card as far as I be able to confirm:

Titles: PROMISE OF BLOOD / Untitled / Untitled
Series Title: Untitled Fantasy Trilogy
Release Window: Spring/Summer 2013
Release Format: Unknown
Elevator Pitch: Magic and Muskets
Burj Khalifa Elevator Pitch: Field Marshal Tamas and his powder mages have
staged a coup against the king of Adro. Their one night of bloody revolution
sparks the first war between the Nine kingdoms in fourteen hundred years as
the old regimes of nobility and Privileged sorcerers strike hard against the
upstart powder mages. Ancient sorcerers emerge from the woodwork as forces
take sides in the conflict and rumors of gods once thought long dead walk
the city streets.
Intended Series Length: 3 Books
Contract length: 3 books

Here's The Publisher's Marketplace announcement, lifted from McClellan's blog.

Brian McClellan's PROMISE OF BLOOD, a debut trilogy set in a world inspired by the revolutionary turmoil of 18th-century Europe complete with guillotines, starving peasants, fanatical royalists and a hero whose survival depends on a small group of honorable mages, including his own estranged son, to Devi Pillai at Orbit , in a good deal, in a three-book deal, for publication in Summer 2013, by Caitlin Blasdell at Liza Dawson Associates (World English).
Field Marshal Tamas has staged a coup against the king of Adro. His powder mages have slaughtered the king's Privileged cabal of sorcerers and the nobility has been rounded up to face the guillotine with their king. Tamas has brought revolution to his country in one bloody night to save his people and right the wrongs caused by the old regime. Yet his actions have far-reaching consequences of which no reasonable man could have conceived, and the king will prove the easiest obstacle to overcome in his quest to free Adro.

Captain Taniel Two-shot is a powder mage of considerable skill. Gunpowder makes him stronger and faster than other men. He can manipulate its properties to shoot out a man's eye at twice the length of a battlefield. It makes him perfect for killing the old Privileged sorcerers with their destructive magic. One of those Privileged has escaped Tamas' cull. The problem is, she's stronger than any sorcerer Taniel has ever seen, and the mercenaries sent to help him track her are of dubious reliability.

When Adamat is summoned to the palace in the middle of the night, the last thing the veteran investigator expects is to arrive during a regime change. His new employer is none other than the man responsible for overthrowing the current government and he has some unfinished business with the king's sorcerers. The dying Privileged cabal has left the Field Marshal with a riddle. It could be nothing, but Tamas does not like loose ends. Adamat knows from long experience that one doesn't ask questions unless one is willing to learn--and believe--the answers. To add to his problems, the Field Marshal isn't the only one interested in the answer to the dying sorcerers' riddle. As enemies emerge from the shadows and the investigation takes a disturbing turn, Adamat must decide where his loyalties lie.

Now I haven't had the opportunity to read any of PROMISE OF BLOOD yet but I did have the opportunity to speak with McClellan about his upcoming work at ConFusion. Based on that conversation and the fact it the rights went to auction, I wouldn't be surprised to see it as one of Orbit's flagship debut titles next year. I'll be sure to keep an eye out and post more when I have it but if you want to follow him directly feel free to bookmark his blog.

In Which I Disguise Self Interest As Compassion

Hey.

I want you to give Tobias Buckell money. Not because he deserves it (he does). Not because he needs it (I'm sure he wouldn't say no). Not even because he got a raw deal when his publisher decided not to continue publishing his Xenowealth books (those bastards!)

You should give Tobias Buckell money because I want to read his next Xenowealth book and I won't be able to do it unless other people contribute to his Kickstarter. This may appear to be a nice post about contributing to a worthy author, but make no mistake, it's not. It's a shameless plug for me to get what I want: a sequel to Crystal Rain, Ragamuffin, and Sly Mongoose. And to do that, I need you to contribute to the Kickstarter account for the 4th Xenowealth book,  The Apocalypse Ocean. And don't try to pull any of that "the rest of the loyal YetiStomper minions will pick up the slack" nonsense. I've got like 14 readers, total, and only one is ugly enough to be considered minion-esque. So when I say you, I mean you, not them, do you understand me?

There are various tiers of patronage each of which will buy you a continually more impressive book package. Tier 1 is an eBook, Tier 2 is a Hardcover + eBook, and so and so forth, up to Tier 26 after which he will name his next child whatever you want for a mere $2,426,982. He's looking to get $10,000 in seed contributions and currently sitting at around 45% of that total.

So I'm asking you, as an unapologetically self-interested fan of Buckell's work, to help make The Apocalypse Ocean a reality. You can do it because Buckell is a good author and he writes stuff worth reading. Or maybe you're the human personification of a Care Bear Stare, and want to make sure his family "gets enough food to eat", whatever that means. Or make up your own reason: whatever gets you to give Tobias Buckell money.

This is me asking you nicely. There are still 21 days left to give Tobias Buckell money. If it gets down to a week and one of your pets and/or smaller children happens to "mysteriously disappear," you can probably figure out how to get them back.

I'm joking, of course. Besides it won't even come to that. Will it....

Oh, and in case you missed the link which I so subtly dropped throughout the flowing genius word assemblage above. Here it is again. There's even a cool video and junk. And if Kickstarter works the way it's suppossed to, you should see a status bar right down here.

Note: if you read this sentence before you see a Kickstarter widget - damnit.

John Scalzi's Next Novel Gets A Title

From Whatever -

Redshirts: A Novel With 3 Codas. I know what you're thinking. However, Scalzi has already confirmed that it's not a Star Trek novel. Based on the title, I suspect it's intended to be quasi-humorous, if not to the same extent as Scalzi's excellent The Android's Dream.

Unfortunately, the title is all we've got to work with at the moment. Scalzi has read from the book at several conventions but Scalzi swore everyone to secrecy and surprisingly, no details have leaked out. Which is an incredible feat in and of itself.

Joe Abercrombie Confirms Speculated 4 Book Deal!

Thanks to the Mad Hatter, I learned that Joe Abercrombie has finally announced the signing of 4 more books in his First Law universe, more humorously referred to as "The Song of the Sword of Time of the Fallen."

I'm glad somebody let him know, I've been talking about it for months now. While I was wrong about it being a quadrilogy, I was right about the quantity of books and the time frame. I guess this proves scrounging around on Amazon isn't completely worthless. Here's what Joe had to say to confirm my suspicions:

"Therefore stand amazed as I announce that I last year signed a contract with my doughty UK publisher, Gollancz, for four more books set in the world of The First Law. That’s right. FOUR MORE BOOKS. Twice two. Or more accurately, one plus three, since at the moment, those books are looking like they’ll be another semi-standalone in the style of Best Served Cold and The Heroes, followed by another trilogy, though obviously I reserve the right to be coy and change my mind, possibly while flouncing out of a meeting. It’s a lady’s privilege, don’t you know.


In terms of timescale things are still a little hazy. I’ve been writing at the rate of about a book every 18 months or so, so one might reasonably expect the first of these books to appear on shelves sometime around the summer 2012 sort of a mark, but obviously I reserve the right to be coy and completely miss a date even that vague. I’ve barely started writing it, so we shall see whether, now I am installed in my new abode, the words fly from my fingertips like lightning or … not. As for the books after, there’s no point in even being vague at this stage. If they do end up as a trilogy, I might well aim to draft the whole thing before publishing the first book, which would leave something of a gap between the standalone and the first of the trilogy, but would hopefully ensure that the books of the trilogy could come out no more than a year apart, possibly less, and that they would form a coherent and cohesive whole. Or as coherent and cohesive as I am capable of producing. We shall see. It’s a long way off. Far enough for me to safely pretend that it’ll never happen."

While summer 2012 is a long way off, it's hard not to be excited by the promise of 4 more books in Abercrombie's First Law universe. Joe didn't say anything about the content of either project but my money stills on the return of the Bloody Nine.

As I've said in the past, Abercrombie is the reigning king of blood-soaked fantasy. Or at least the prince-in-waiting with a pile of gold, a hidden dagger, and an eye on the throne. Abercrombie's next book, The Heroes, comes out later this month in the UK and February in the US.

Dreamblood Duology - N.K. Jemisin signs new two book deal with Orbit

The latest Orbit book deal has me a little perplexed. Why is it that authors who write high quality, original fiction always seem to be signing new contracts? It like their work is worth reading or something. It's just bizarre...

Today, Orbit announced the acquisition of a new two book series from fantasy author N.K. Jemisin. Jemisin lept onto the scene this year with the first two novels of The Inheritance Trilogy - February's The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms and November's The Broken Kingdoms. If you haven't heard of her, don't feel bad, she'll make plenty of Best of the Year lists later this month and I wouldn't be surprised if a blogger or two mentioned 100K for the Best Debut of 2010. In it, Jemisin raises the stakes on the traditional coming-of-age fantasy to divine proportions. With a cast of gods and mere mortals, she demonstrates an effortless style that should belong to a seasoned storyteller rather than the new kid on the block.

But at the rate Orbit is publishing her work, she won't be considered the new kid much longer. After 2011's The Kingdom of Gods concludes The Inheritance Trilogy, Jemisin will turn her attention toward the Dreamblood Duology. Comprised of individual novels, REAPER and CONQUEROR, the Dreamblood Duology will be published back to back in July and August 2012.  Even though it means a longer wait for her next book, I'm more than happy with a rapid fire publishing schedule like that. Here's what Jemisin and Orbit had to offer regarding the first book:

In the city-state of Gujaareh, peace is the only law. Along its ancient stone streets, where time is marked by the river’s floods, there is no crime or violence. Within the city’s colored shadows, priests of the dream-goddess harvest the wild power of the sleeping mind as magic, using it to heal, soothe… and kill.

But when corruption blooms at the heart of Gujaareh’s great temple, Ehiru most famous of the city’s Gatherers — cannot defeat it alone. With the aid of his cold-eyed apprentice and a beautiful foreign spy, he must thwart a conspiracy whose roots lie in his own past. And to prevent the unleashing of deadly forbidden magic, he must somehow defeat a Gatherer’s most terrifying nemesis: the Reaper.

Over on her website, Jemisin provides a bit more commentary, citing various influences including ancient Egypt, Freudian dream theory, and Jung’s theory of a collective unconscious. Sounds like some serious stuff. But based on success of first two books of The Inheritance Trilogy, Jemisin's on the short list of authors I would trust to deliver.

It's a long way off, but keep a watch for Dreamblood in 2012.

Brandon Sanderson Is Ridiculous (And Publishing Two More Novels)

So we all know that Brandon Sanderson is ridiculous. Not only is he finishing doorstopper-class fantasy series The Wheel of Time, he's also penning another 10-book series with The Stormlight Archives. For reference, Book #1, Way of Kings (my review), checked in at 1004 pages. Combine those two series with his YA work (Alcatraz Versus the Evil Librarians) and he's pushing a million words of published work a year. Sound like a lot right?

So I was not exactly expecting the press release announcing that Brandon "Writes While He Sleeps" Sanderson has just sold another two novels to Tor. Here are the respective blurbs:

Mistborn: The Alloy of Law [4th Mistborn Book]

Sanderson’s first new project will be an original, standalone short novel set in the universe of his Mistborn trilogy (Mistborn, The Well of Ascension, and The Hero of Ages). Sanderson previously announced plans for a sequel trilogy set in the far future of that world, and the new novel, entitled Mistborn: The Alloy of Law, is set during a frontier era where “allomancy” meets gunplay. The Alloy of Law will be published in late 2011.

The Rithmatist [Standalone]

Sanderson’s second project, titled The Rithmatist, was first drafted in 2007 and perfected this year. Set in an alternate-history America where magic users (called “Rithmatists”) battle wild chalk creatures, The Rithmatist introduces Joel, a student at the Rithmatist academy with great interest in but no ability to use the magic. But when students start vanishing, it’s up to him to expose the sinister figure behind the disappearances. The Rithmatist will be published in 2012 after the publication of A Memory of Light.

So between 2011 and 2012, Sanderson will publish

• Mistborn: The Alloy of Law [Mistborn #4]
• A Memory of Light [Wheel of Time #14]
• The Rithmatist
• High Prince of War [The Stormlight Archives #2]

and that's not including the potential for more Alcatraz Versus the Evil Librarians books or other stuff. Keep in mind that all of Sanderson's work falls within the shared universe (referred to as the Hoidverse) where all magic is tied back to a currently undisclosed source/event. Talk about worldbuilding...

So if anyone is wondering why they have no writing talent or drive, it's because Sanderson took it. Look for and forward to plenty of Sanderson books in the years to come.

Untitled Abercrombie Quadrilogy?

I was poking around Amazon.co.uk (for a to be disclosed reason) and I stumbled on this potential gem.

Untitled Abercrombie [1 of 4] - Paperback - Due out Sept 1 2012

Or something like this...

Now, Abercrombie is a big name hardcover caliber author (if not, he should be) so chances are that his future books wouldn't debut in paperback. But at the same time, Sept 1, 2010 is a long wait for his next book considering the extraordinary rate he has produced Best Served Cold and The Heroes. Independently, those two facts suggest this isn't a real book. But taken together, this could very well be a paperback release of a late 2011 Hardcover?

Take a look at the product description:

The First Law trilogy was Joe's take on the great epic fantasy tales. Then, in Best Served Cold, he took on a fantasy version of a classic revenge story, and we have a superb tale of war waged in the frozen north still to come. With this, his next novel, Joe Abercrombie is once again venturing in a new direction, and on a new adventure, with one of the most enduring, powerful and popular characters of the First Law trilogy. It's going to be their biggest challenge yet . . .

The description makes mention of The First Law Trilogy, Best Served Cold, and although not by name it refers to The Heroes as a superb tale of war waged in the frozen north. It seems pretty clear that The Heroes is not the "next novel" mentioned here. It promises a new direction and on a new adventure with one of the most enduring, powerful, and popular characters of the First Law. The Heroes takes place in the North (an old direction) and without any major characters (Black Dow barely qualifies) from The First Law. So it's pretty clear that this is a new book / set of books.

But centered on who?

The description is intentionally vauge. Their? Not his or her? There are only a few characters from The First Law that fit the provided description. I don't think it's Glotka or Jezal as they arleady have roles to play running the Union so I doubt they are going anywhere soon. A new direction and adventure could see Ferro exploring the heretical southern lands on her quest for vengeance. But I don't know if Ferro would count as enduring, powerful, and popular. That description suggests something else entirely...

Doth the Bloody Nine return?

Sequel to METAtropolis Coming This Fall!

Cover Artist: Paint/WordArt

One of the key attributes of a well-developed world is the sense that there is a lot more to the story than what fits on the page. The world has a history and a future, regardless of what substory the author actually writes. Or authors, in the case of shared world anthologies, which occassionally spring into existence when you put too many authors in a room together. But when you create a world that begs for further exploration, that further exploration is more often than not an inevitable conclusion.

So when I saw that the authors behind METAtropolis were reuniting for more stories, part of me wasn't exactly overwhelmed with surprise. But the other part of me was excited, mostly because the original anthology a spectacular example of dystopian SF from a crack force of talented newcomers. The anthology focused several new cities in a future America that was different than our own while retaining the roots that grounded it to today's reality.



Tobias Buckell, contributor to both METAtropolis and it's sequel, broke the news on his blog today.

I’m here to announce that a novella of mine, called Byways, will be in the sequel to METAtropolis, called METAtropolis: Cascadia.

METAtropolis was an audio project by Audible.com that you could purchase from Audible or iTunes featuring a shared world glimpse at the future of cities from an awesome cast of authors, each with their own take.

METAtropolis: Cascadia moves the geographical focus to the Pacific Northwest. Jay Lake took on editing and leading the concept for this sequel, and the launch date for it is November 16th.

Buckell goes on to provide the table of contents:

• THE BULL DANCERS by Jay Lake
• WATER TO WINE by Mary Robinette Kowal
• BYWAYS by Tobias S. Buckell
• CONFESSOR by Elizabeth Bear
• DEODAND by Karl Schroeder
• A SYMMETRY OF SERPENTS AND DOVES by Ken Scholes

As well as the blurb for Byways, his personal contribution.

The Pacific Northwest has been transformed — politically, economically, and ecologically — into the new reality of Cascadia. Conspiracies and secrets threaten the tenuous threads of society. The End of Days seems nearer than ever. And the legend of the mysterious Tygre Tygre looms large.

I'll see what I can do to get blurbs from some of the other authors. Now I'm disappointed that John Scalzi (one of my favorite authors) dropped out of the book after contributing to and editing the original. At the same time it's hard to be disappointed with the addition of Ken Scholes and Mary Robinette Kowal. Kowal and Scholes are both Authors Worth Watching in my opinion and they're proven time and time again they know their short fiction.

I have to wonder if the sales figures for dystopian SF are inversely proportional to the state of the economy (which is increasingly dystopian itself). But if you are going to invest some of your hard earned money in a book this fall, METAtropolis: Cascadia is a pretty safe investment.

As Buckell, mentions the Audible.com project launch is right around the corner on Novermber 16th with print editions likely to follow.

Covering Covers: The Alchemist and The Executioness [Print Editions!]

Do you want to experience Paolo Bacigalupi's and Tobias Buckell's shared world novellas but only consume media in a format you can afford to throw at the wall?

Well good news! Subterranean Press announced today that they've secured the rights to print The Alchemist and The Executioness in all the gravity demanding glory inherent in a pair of signed hardcovers.

Cover Artist: J. K. Drummond



Now I hoped that Subterranean would put them together in a back to back edition like those old pulp SF doubles but with covers this good I can't complain. (Even if both characters look younger and healthier than their stories would actually indicate). Even better, the blurb on Subterranean's website also promises interior illustrations, something I consider to be severely underrated.

I've actually known that they were publishing print editions ever since I received some unexpected ARCs earlier this summer. That being the case, I've already read AND listened to these novellas and a review is just around the corner. If you want to know more about the story, check out the original story about the Audible.com exclusive audiobook.

The Alchemist and The Executioness will be out from Subterranean Press in January of 2011 from these two:

I had to show this one more time...

Big News from Joe Schreiber

Over at his blog, The Scary Parent, horror writer Joe Schreiber has some exciting news. First, he has sold a new YA novel, entitled Au Revoir, Crazy European Chick. Schreiber mentions that he wrote Au Revoir in a three week fit of whatever the opposite of writer's block is earlier this year and after a choice bit of editing, he's been trying to find a home for it. Well that home is Houghton Mifflin, and they've bought not only Au Revoir but an unwritten sequel as well.

Schreiber goes on to provide some more information about the book.

"Au Revoir is a middle-aged novelist's attempt to recapture what it feels like to be back in high school again, that simultaneous sense of anything-is-possible exhiliration and sheer adrenalized panic."

and

"...what might happen if John Hughes had been hired to write La Femme Nikita.Basically, Au Revoir is about a high school kid with a female foreign exchange student living in his house, who turns out to be an international assassin with a one-night multi-kill job in New York City before she gets sent back home. As the night gets progressively wilder, our teenage hero gets roped into driving her around whether he likes it or not. The idea kind of drove me nuts, in a very pleasant way, like a pop song that you can't get out of your head..."

Sounds like your standard novel sale right? It was, and then someone mentioned the sale in a industry magazine with the tagline "Ferris Bueller meets the Girl with the Dragon Tattoo." To put it more bluntly, "Classic Movie Beloved Across Generations" + "Biggest Book on the Planet Right Now"

Any guesses what happened next?

If you are thinking, Joe Schreiber solo dance party, you are only partially correct. But if you guessed Hollywood bidding war, you're right. Paramount eventually ended up with the rights and while by no means a guarantee any movie will ever be made, it's still a step in the right direction and a sign that there is something special in the story. And while Au Revoir, Crazy European Chick isn't the catchiest title I've ever heard the book itself does sound pretty cool. I'll be keeping an eye out for this one.


In an industry where rejections outweigh sales by a sizeable margin, it's always cool when you hear news like this. Congrats to Joe and good luck with the new property!

SubPress Announces New Peter V. Brett Novella

Like many of my fellow genre readers, I am somewhat of a completist. And by somewhat, I mean that I have 100+ Star Wars novels and counting. It's an addiction, and an expensive one. But on the plus side, it means I keep an eye out for material that flies under the radar. A great place for that kind of material is Subterranean Press, a small press that features high quality, signed, and often exclusive titles.

Today they announced another exclusive Peter V. Brett novella set in the same world as The Painted Man and The Desert War. Earlier this year, they offered The Great Bazaar and Other Stories, a signed collection of Brett's work that tied into his larger mythos. That book sold out upon printing and is now very difficult to find (impossibly so if you are looking for something cheap). The new novella is titled Brayan's Gold and will feature exclusive art as well as some interior illustrations from Lauren K. Cannon. I think interior illustrations are a brilliant touch.

Included with the announcement was a basic summary:

Humanity has been brought to the brink of extinction. Each night, the world is overrun by demons-bloodthirsty creatures of nightmare that have been hunting the surface for over 300 years. A scant few hamlets and half-starved city-states are all that remain of a once proud civilization, and it is only by hiding behind wards, ancient symbols with the power to repel the demons, that they survive. A handful of Messengers brave the night to keep the lines of communication open between the increasingly isolated populace.


Arlen Bales is seventeen, an apprentice Messenger in brand new armor, about to go out for the first time alongside a trained Messenger on a simple overnight trip. Instead Arlen finds himself alone on a frozen mountainside, carrying a dangerous cargo to Count Brayan's gold mine, one of the furthest points in the duchy. And One Arm, the giant rock demon, hunts him still.


But Brayan's Gold may offer a way for Arlen to be free of One Arm forever, if he is willing to wager his life on the chance.

 Subterranean doesn't have the cheapest books, but they sure are pretty. Brayan's Gold should see print in Jan 2011 and will probably sell out way before that. You don't need to buy it, but if you're interested I'd recommend ordering sooner rather than later.

Cemetery Dance Announces New Norman Partridge Anthology - Johnny Halloween!

Cover Artist: Alex McVey

That cover is correct. The October Boy is back!

I discovered Norman Partridge after a recommendation from Joe Schreiber and I haven't looked back since. After the outstanding Dark Harvest (my review) which Schreiber recommended, I picked up his next collection, Lesser Demons (my review), and only found more to love. Partridge's prose is paradoxically perfect. It's heavenly prose married to hellish content. It's dense but incredibly readable. It's heavy on metaphor and symbolism but the end result often evokes a unforgettable image. It's bloody but beautiful.  It's just damn good.

So far I've been unable to track down his other short fiction collections but I've made a point to keep track of what Partridge has been up to. Yesterday on his blog, American Frankenstein, Partidge announced a new collection complete with a return to the world of the excellent Dark Harvest.

"Given that little slice of history, it's with great pleasure that I announce Johnny Halloween is back at Cemetery Dance, this time as the lead story in a special Halloween collection due this fall. Along with a fantastic Alex McVey cover, Johnny Halloween features a half-dozen tales of the darkest season, including a new story set in the world of Dark Harvest.

That's right. The October Boy returns in the pages of Johnny Halloween -- and this time he's got a shotgun and one bad döppelganger on his tail. There's also a brand new introduction and a nonfiction piece on the Zodiac Killer ("The Man Who Killed Halloween"). You can check out all the details right here, plus snag a $15 coupon for a future purchase if you preorder the book in the next seven days.

In the meantime, keep your eyes on the shadows. Listen for the whisper of that October wind. It's coming your way... and sooner than you might think."

He also posted the Alex McVey cover to the anthology. Normally, I wouldn't be the biggest far of that cover art but if you've read Dark Harvest it captures the essence of the October Boy perfectly. And the more I look at it, the more I like it. The textural elements that look like knife slashes are subtle but brilliant and the block lettering for the title and Partridge's name is an excellent font choice. I don't think the "Johnny Halloween" necessarily matches the "Tales of the Dark Season" but I can forgive that small issue.

You can order Johnny Halloween from the Cemetery Dance website, which also provides a bit more detail about the contents of the collection.

Norman Partridge's Halloween novel, Dark Harvest, was chosen as one of Publishers Weekly's 100 Best Books of 2006. A Bram Stoker Award winner and World Fantasy nominee, Partridge's rapid-fire tale of a small town trapped by its own shadows welcomed a wholly original creation, the October Boy, earning the author comparisons to Stephen King, Ray Bradbury, and Shirley Jackson.

Now Partridge revisits Halloween with a collection featuring a half-dozen stories celebrating frights both past and present. In “The Jack o' Lantern,” a brand new Dark Harvest novelette, the October Boy races against a remorseless döppelganger bent on carving a deadly path through the town's annual ritual of death and rebirth. “Johnny Halloween” features a sheriff battling both a walking ghost and his own haunted conscience. In “Three Doors,” a scarred war hero hunts his past with the help of a magic prosthetic hand, while “Satan's Army” is a real Partridge rarity previously available only in a long sold-out lettered edition from another press.

But there's more to this holiday celebration besides fiction. “The Man Who Killed Halloween” is an extensive essay about growing up during the late sixties in the town where the Zodiac Killer began his murderous spree. In an introduction that explores monsters both fictional and real, Partridge recalls what it was like to live in a community menaced by a serial killer and examines how the Zodiac's reign of terror shaped him as a writer.

Halloween night awaits. Join a master storyteller as he explores the layers of darkness that separate all-too-human evil from the supernatural. Let Norman Partridge lead you on seven journeys through the most dangerous night of the year, where no one is safe…and everyone is suspect.

I'm not quite ready for summer to be over, but if fall promises another Partridge collection, I won't be as sad to see it go.

Buckeillgalupian Goodness Arrives July 6th

No that's not a race of metaphorically altered humans straight out of Gulliver's Travels 2: Steampunk Boogaloo. It's what you get when you combine up-and-coming authors Paolo Bacigalupi and Tobias Buckell.

Like Bradgelina, but... I'm so sorry...

A few months back, the news broke that Buckell and Bacigalupi were writting a pair of fantasy novellas set in the same shared universe. He compared it to those old Ace paperbacks which were two SF novellas published back-to-back. Sounds cool, no?

Today, Buckell mentioned that the pair of novellas, entitled The Alchemist and The Executioness will be available on July 6th in audio format on Audible.com. Sounds a lot like Metatropolis, which Buckell also worked on. Now, I'm not a huge fan of audio (can't concentrate on just audio without closing my eyes, which leads to in-insomnia but for certain projects its worth the time. Still, how awesome would it be to see a resurgence of those doublesided books?

I don't have any more details on the actual story itself but given the work these two have put out it should be high quality. And Bacigalupian fantasy could be very, very interesting to say the least. I'll be listening.

Update: Buckell has provided a short Twitter blurb:

Short version: A world where magic has unintended consequences, a father struggles to save his world and a mother sets out on a quest of a vengeance.

Not much to go on but unintended consequences sounds fun and makes me think of the magic in Pushing Daisies.

Hannu Rajaniemi to the US!

Making the rounds on Twitter this morning when I saw some good news for Worth Watching Author Hannu Rajaniemi (and every US fan of science fiction).

Hannu's much hyped debut novel, THE QUANTUM THIEF, will be coming to the US next May in a Hardcover edition from Tor.

Quoting from John Jarrold's livejournal:

Susan Howe, Rights Director at Orion, has sold US rights in three novels by Finnish science fiction novelist, resident in Scotland, Hannu Rajaniemi to Patrick Nielsen Hayden of Tor pre-emptively, in a significant deal.


World rights in Hannu’s debut novel, THE QUANTUM THIEF, plus two further books were acquired pre-emptively by Simon Spanton of Gollancz (who publish in September 2010) from agent John Jarrold for a high five-figure sum in pounds sterling, on the basis of one chapter, in 2008. Tor will publish in hardback in May 2011.


‘I’ve known Patrick for twenty-five years and his team at Tor will do a marvellous job – Hannu and I couldn’t be happier,’ said John Jarrold.

If you don't know anything about The Quantum Thief, here's what Charles Stross had to say on the subject.

However, it made the hair on the back of my neck stand up when I read it, and I think Hannu's going to revolutionize hard SF when he hits his stride. Hard to admit, but I think he's better at this stuff than I am. And "The Quantum Thief" is the best first SF novel I've read in many years.

And a plot summary.

Jean le Flambeur is a post-human criminal, mind burglar, confidence artist and trickster. His origins are shrouded in mystery, but his exploits are known throughout the Heterarchy - from breaking into the vast Zeusbrains of the Inner System to steal their thoughts, to stealing rare Earth antiques from the aristocrats of the Moving Cities of Mars. Except that Jean made one mistake. Now he is condemned to play endless variations of a game-theoretic riddle in the vast virtual jail of the Axelrod Archons - the Dilemma Prison - against countless copies of himself. Jean's routine of death, defection and cooperation is upset by the arrival of Mieli and her spidership, Perhonen. She offers him a chance to win back his freedom and the powers of his old self - in exchange for finishing the one heist he never quite managed . . . The Quantum Thief is a dazzling hard SF novel set in the solar system of the far future - a heist novel peopled by bizarre post-humans but powered by very human motives of betrayal, revenge and jealousy. It is a stunning debut.

Congratulations to Hannu!The UK always seems to have a ton of quality science fiction that doesn't seem to get published accross the pond so I am glad to see that a least a few of the gems are making the trip.

Abraham, Priest, Scalzi, and Kemp

Apparently, four of my favorite authors have decided to start a law firm together. Ok, not really. But they all have posted some book announcements and updates over the past few days. I don't know about you but substantive book news is one of my favorite things to see on author blogs.

Daniel Abraham

Daniel Abraham is one of my favorite new authors. Over at his livejournal, Daniel provides updates on not 1 but 8 of his projects, including updates on his upcoming epic fantasy series The Dagger and the Coin and his Urban Fantasy series, Black Sun's Daughter (as M.L.N. Hanover)

Here are the highlights.

Price of Spring will not be released in MMPB. IMO, Tor has made some questionable decisions lately and I guess they don't feel like pushing The Long Price Quartet now that Abraham is now going to be writing for Orbit. This angers both the bibliophile in me and the Daniel Abraham fan. The Long Price Quartet is one of the most criminally underread series published of the last 10 years and it's upsetting to see it get harder to find.

Next Abraham (or is it MLN Hanover) notes that Vicious Grace (Book 3 in Black Sun's Daughter sequence) is currently in production. While I'm not sure exactly what that means, I'd say it's safe to assume that it's on track to meet the Nov 30th publication date. Book 4, Killing Rites, is also in progress, which bodes well for the success of the series as a whole. Plus MIDIAN, the scene stealing vampire from Unclean Spirtis, will return! I'm very excited to see him rejoin the series. I thought the first two books were a lot of fun although I was a bit disappointed by the amount of development in the series arc in Darker Angels (Book 2). If you are interested in knowing more, see my reviews for Unclean Spirits and Darker Angels.

Abraham also provides a strange link to an Amazon UK entry for Leviathan Wakes by one, James S. A. Corey. I'm assuming it's another pseudonym especially given some of Daniel's comments in the interview I did with him last year. When asked if he was planning on diversifying into different subgenres, Daniel replied "Oh yes. I'd love to. I have things on the back burner for a space opera, a mystery series, and a semi-literary horror/popular science book." Could this be the space opera moved to the front burner? Very curious to learn more on this book, which is also blurbed by GRRM. GRRM is a member of Critical Mass, the same writing group to which Abraham belongs. Stay tuned on this one.

Speaking of leviathans, Abraham's Subterranean Press collection, Leviathan Wept and Other Stories, is supposedly out and available. I think I need to have a discussion with mailman.

And finally, and possibly most importantly, an update on the much anticipated The Dagger and The Coin

The first draft of The Dragon's Path is complete and has been turned in to Darren and DongWon at Orbit. They're looking it over, and I should have the revisions done shortly. It'll be out around this time next year. The first reader reactions have thus far been decent, and will, I suspect, only get better.

Where can I sign up to supply a reader reaction? There are a few other notes about short stories and comic books plus a lot more detail so head on over to Daniel's page and check it all the news.

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Cherie Priest

I've never really respected Steampunk. It seemed like everyone was talking about it but no one was writing it. Can you name 5 Steampunk novels written before 2009? But now it looks like the Steampunk wave is finally rolling in and Cherie Priest is leading the way. Last year's Boneshaker earned absolutely fantastic reviews and the blogosphere is very excited for the follow-up novella Clementine and novel Dreadnought.

But it's time to get even more excited because Cherie has announced that there will be not one but two more Clockwork Century books published by Tor in the coming years. 2011 will see the release of Ganymede and 2012 will bring us Inexplicable. It looks like Steampunk is here to stay. 

Clementine also has a new cover more in tune with the grungy look of Boneshaker. If you didn't preorder the limited edition, Subterranean Press will be putting out a TPB version next year. Very cool stuff indeed.

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John Scalzi

Over at Whatever, John Scalzi provides a run down on the likelihood of seeing sequels the books he's written. Here's a quick summary.

• Old Man's War: Probable but no plans at the moment. More short stories also likely.
• The Android's Dream: Planned but not for another book or two. As a side note, The Android's Dream is absolutely soulcrushingly fantastic if you haven't read it.
• Agent to the Stars: Unplanned and unlikely although more modern era SF is possible.
• The God Engine: Unplanned and unlikely. Scalzi says he might like to write 3 more stories of similar subject and length and publish as an anthology of novellas.
• Fuzzy Nation: While this book hasn't even been released yet, Scalzi has some ideas if it ends up being a success.

If you like SF and haven't read Scalzi's work, you are doing yourself an injustice.

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Paul Kemp

And lastly, over at Paul Kemp's slick new website, he made the announcement that next year's sequel to January's Croscurrent (review here) is entitled RIPTIDE. Why Riptide? Here's what Kemp had to say:

Initially, I wanted to go with something containing “cross” but couldn’t come up with something everyone liked. So I tried to find something containing “current,” but had the same problem. Finally I hit upon Riptide and everyone seemed to like that. I liked it, too, because it suggested a dangerous, unseen current that tears one away from safety and out to sea, where one is left to sink or swim, alone and bereft. Symbolically, that works quite well with the novel’s story.

Not Riptide but awesome.

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Long story short, 2011 has a lot of good stuff in store for us genre readers. And that's not counting the fantasypalooza from Abercrombie, Rothfuss, Lynch and possibly even GRRM.

Everything You Need To Know About The Way of Kings

As every book blogger is most certainly posting, there is now an exclusive excerpt of The Way of Kings available at Tor.com. You can read it here. But here at Stomping on Yeti, I don't like just posting excerpts, so instead; I present to you all the relevant content I can find regarding The Way of Kings.

1) The Way of Kings is written by Brandon Sanderson, who previously wrote Elantris, The Mistborn Trilogy, Warbreaker, and who is currently tasked with finishing the late great Robert Jordan's Wheel of TimeSeries.

2) The Way of Kings is the first book in The Stormlight Archives, Tor's newest flagship series. Brandon Sanderson has previously posted a great spoiler-free summary of The Stormlight Archives on his own blog. If you are looking for a good summary of the scope and content of the series, definitely read this.

3) The Stormlight Archives is currently estimated to be 10 volumes long although that number comes from Tor, not Sanderson. Sanderson has said he has the entire series plotted/outlined but doesn't guarantee a number of volumes.

4) Amazon.com lists The Way of Kings at 1008 pages long and Sanderson estimated the book at about 390K words long. The standard novel length is around 100K. You will get your money's worth with this book.

5) Tor.com has posted an exclusive excerpt (about 50 pages or so) on their site here. I'm sure there will be plenty of cross posts with this everywhere.

6) The cover of The Way of Kings is up at the top, plus my thoughts if you care.

7) The publisher's description of The Way of Kings from Amazon.

Widely acclaimed for his work completing Robert Jordan’s Wheel of Time saga, Brandon Sanderson now begins a grand cycle of his own, one every bit as ambitious and immersive.

Roshar is a world of stone and storms. Uncanny tempests of incredible power sweep across the rocky terrain so frequently that they have shaped ecology and civilization alike. Animals hide in shells, trees pull in branches, and grass retracts into the soilless ground. Cities are built only where the topography offers shelter.

It has been centuries since the fall of the ten consecrated orders known as the Knights Radiant, but their Shardblades and Shardplate remain: mystical swords and suits of armor that transform ordinary men into near-invincible warriors. Men trade kingdoms for Shardblades. Wars were fought for them, and won by them.

One such war rages on a ruined landscape called the Shattered Plains. There, Kaladin, who traded his medical apprenticeship for a spear to protect his little brother, has been reduced to slavery. In a war that makes no sense, where ten armies fight separately against a single foe, he struggles to save his men and to fathom the leaders who consider them expendable.

Brightlord Dalinar Kholin commands one of those other armies. Like his brother, the late king, he is fascinated by an ancient text called The Way of Kings. Troubled by over-powering visions of ancient times and the Knights Radiant, he has begun to doubt his own sanity.
Across the ocean, an untried young woman named Shallan seeks to train under an eminent scholar and notorious heretic, Dalinar’s niece, Jasnah. Though she genuinely loves learning, Shallan’s motives are less than pure. As she plans a daring theft, her research for Jasnah hints at secrets of the Knights Radiant and the true cause of the war.

The result of over ten years of planning, writing, and world-building, The Way of Kings is but the opening movement of the Stormlight Archive, a bold masterpiece in the making.

Speak again the ancient oaths,

Life before death.
Strength before weakness.
Journey before Destination.

and return to men the Shards they once bore.

The Knights Radiant must stand again.

8) The Way of Kings will be published on August 31st, 2010.

I think that's it. The Way of Kings has been on my highly anticipated list for quite some time so I am very excited to see some actual pages.

Oh and look at this little guy. Shiny!

Paul S. Kemp Unveils New Star Wars Novel, Deceived

Over at his livejournal, SFF author Paul S. Kemp has posted the news (ok, it was like 3 weeks ago, be patient I'm catching up) that he is now able to share some detail on his 2nd Star Wars novel, DECEIVED, including the stunning cover.

Here is what Mr. Kemp had to say:

The man on the cover is Darth Malgus, who led the attack on the Jedi Temple, a precursor to the Imperial sneak attack that led to the sacking of Coruscant. He is also the man featured in the “Deceived” trailer, which you can see in the post below.


So, why did I choose to write about Malgus? Well, I saw that cinematic trailer and said to my editor, “I want to write about that guy.” And she said, “Funny thing, we want you to write about that guy, too.”

Here is the video that Kemp was talking about.



Funny thing, because I want to read about that guy. Star Wars tie-in work is one of my guilty pleasures. Sometimes it's not the best, but I can't help getting excited about it. Paul S. Kemp's Star Wars debut, Crosscurrent was not only the best Star Wars novel I've read in a long while, it was also a damn good SF novel in it's own right. You can read my full review here.

I knew that Kemp was working on a tie-in for the new MMORPG (entitled The Old Republic) but I was still slightly more excited for his third SW novel, a follow-up to the characters and events of Crosscurrent. But now that I've learned a bit more about Deceived and seen the cover, I'm equally excited to find out more about the newest Sith on the block.

The Old Republic MMORPG and all of the tie in novels, comics, and toys appears to be an absolutely huge event for Lucas & Co. so it's going to be very interesting to see how this relatively unexplored period of Star Wars history develops. I don't know if I will be playing the game or not (MMORPGs eat time like few other activities) but I will definitely be exploring the new story through the secondary sources. With Kemp on board, it's sure to be more fun than sniping wamp rats.

Now to test my Jedi powers. "Paul S. Kemp, you will send an ARC my way"



Please?

Congratulations to Ted Kosmatka!

Last week, word around the twitterverse was congratulations were in order as short fiction author Ted Kosmatka has sold his first novel!

Kosmatka is an author I've been watching since I interviewed him as part of my Keeping An Eye On series [and one well worth watching]. I reached out to Ted to offer my congratulations and find out a little bit more about the sale so I could share the good news with whoever reads this here.

The novel will be published by Del Rey and is tentatively titled The Helix Game.

Here is what Ted had to say:

The novel is a totally new, and not based on any of my previously published work, though it it does sit in the same general wheelhouse as my shorter fiction. It's a hard sci-fi set partially in laboratories, and it deals with genetics, virtual reality, and nature consciousness, among other things. Also, there's genetically engineered creatures. And the Olympics. And did I mention creatures?

Sound very interesting especially considering it's coming from Kosmatka. Unfortunately, there isn't an estimated release date at this point so there's no way of knowing how long until I can get my hands on it. Look for updated information as it comes available.

Congratulations again to Ted!

Paolobias Buckelligalupi Goodness!

No, that's not the scientific name of a recently discovered Madagascan tree frog. It's the portmanteaux SuperCoupling of outstanding SF writers Paolo Bacigalupi and Tobias Buckell. Why are they a SuperCouple?

But which is which?

Because they have written a shared world fantasy double novella due out this summer. Tobias Buckell broke the news on his blog this morning.

So I’ve talked about a novella I’ve been fiddling around with for the last year, The Executioness, off and on. I’m happy to report that it’s finished. But that’s not all.


The Executioness is going to be one of two novellas, put together back to back (like the old Ace doubles) to create a larger project that is about as long as a short novel. The other novella was written by Paolo Bacigalupi and is called The Alchemist. Together they’ll be The Alchemist & The Executioness.


The next twist is that both novellas share the same background. We created a world, characters, places, and each novella uses that. So together they create a cool glimpse at this world Paolo and I made. Both of us were also excited to write something we don’t get a chance to write often: Fantasy. With our own unique takes, of course.

I haven't read any fantasy by either Buckell or Bacigalupi but both authors are talented enough to get my attention if they are writing almost anything short of Twilight fanfic. This seems along the same lines as Metatropolis, a 5 author collaborative world written by Buckell along with Jay Lake, John Scalzi, Elizabeth Bear, and Karl Schroeder albeit in a fantasy setting instead of SF.

You will be able to consume The Alchemist & The Executioness sometime this summer but unfortunately it's only scheduled to be released in audio version from Audible.com. I don't like listening to books on tape (I'm far too easily distracted visually to concentrate on audio for the majority of the day and I'm liable to fall asleep when I can close my eyes and listen). On the other hand, I'm sure this will be out in a print/eBook edition from Subterranean Press or some other publishers at some point in the next year or two.

I do think it's funny that they are doing a double novella (Buckell references those old Ace PB doubles to which we need to return) in an audio format. The two books bound together works but these are just going to be two audio files sold together and packaged in the same download (I think). Maybe I will record them on a two-side cassette tape just for fun.

Paolobias Buckelligalupi should be pure awesomeness incarnate. Keep your eyes ears open for this one.

John Scalzi's Secret Project Revealed!

If you've been reading John Scalzi's blog, Whatever, (hint: you should be!) you would know that Mr. Scalzi has been dropping hints about a Super Secret Project That [He] Cannot Tell You About for some time.

And if you read Whatever, you probably also enjoy Scalzi's fiction and know that Scalzi hasn't published a full length novel since 2008's Zoe's Tale and after the release of The God Engines in late 2009 (Hugo nominated novella) he doesn't have any work on the publishing calendar in the near future

So what has Scalzi been up to beside his creative consultant gig on Stargate Universe?

Fan-fiction.

Yes. Fan. Fiction.

Fanfiction in H. Beam Piper's "Little Fuzzy" universe to be exact. Scalzi is rebooting the original Hugo nominated story. You can read the absurdly unexpected details on Scalzi's blog here.

The difference between Scalzi's fan-fiction and yours is that he is a professional writer who has professional writing connections. After writing this Fuzzy Nation novel without a publishing contract and without permission from the Piper estate, Scalzi gained permission to write in the Fuzzy universe and is currently shopping the novel to publishers. I bet he will sell it too.

Cover (unofficial) Artist: Jeff Zugale

To be honest, I typically don't like when authors do this. But unlike Eoin Colfer's And Another Thing... and Frank Herbert's veritable plethora of Dune sequels, I've never read the source material. I don't have any warm fuzzy feelings for the original so I won't feel like my childhood has been raped if Scalzi takes a liberty or two with the original characters or plot.

Whether its fiction or just a polemic about the latest government woes, Scalzi is one of my favorite writers so this is a book I will probably end up reading (if it gets published, that is), even if it doesn't make me feel "fuzzy" at first glance.

On a side note, the original Little Fuzzy is in the public domain so Wooooooo! - Free Kindle Edition!