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Last Chance to Win a Copy of Watchmen: The Annotated Edition from DC Comics

Last Chance to Win a Copy of Watchmen: The Annotated Edition from DC Comics

The Annotated Watchmen Leslie S Klinger-small

Ack! Time is running out for you to win a copy of Watchmen: The Annotated Edition courtesy of DC Comics. And trust us, you really want this book.  It’s the definitive edition of the seminal graphic novel by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons, a retrospective edition of the story that landed on Time magazine’s 100 best English-language novels of the 20th century.

In Watchmen: The Annotated Edition, Leslie S. Klinger looks at each of the series’ twelve issues in detail, moving page by page and panel by panel, and drawing on critical and scholastic commentary, interviews with Dave Gibbons, and previously unseen original source material. Read Derek Kunsken’s review, and an interview with Leslie S. Klinger, here.

How do you enter? Simplicity itself. Just submit a one-sentence email explaining what you think is the most influential element of Moore and Gibbon’s Watchmen series. The most compelling entry — as selected by Derek Kunsken — will receive a free copy of Watchmen: The Annotated Edition, complements of DC Comics.

How hard is that? One submission per person, please. Winners will be contacted by e-mail, so use a real e-mail address maybe. All submissions must be sent to john@blackgate.com, with the subject line Watchmen: The Annotated Edition, or something obvious like that so I don’t randomly delete it.

All entries become the property of New Epoch Press. No purchase necessary. Must be 12 or older. The judge’s decision (capricious as it may be) is final. Sorry, US only. Not valid where prohibited by law. Eat your vegetables.

Vintage Treasures: Fire Watch by Connie Willis

Vintage Treasures: Fire Watch by Connie Willis

Fire Watch Connie Willis-small Fire Watch Connie Willis-back-small

Fire Watch was the first collection from Connie Willis, and it had a huge impact on the field. It came in second for the Locus Award for Best Collection in 1986 (beating out George R.R. Martin’s Nightflyers, Larry Niven’s Limits, and Viriconium Nights by M. John Harrison, and losing out only to Stephen King’s Skeleton Crew). Its publication announced the arrival of a major new talent.

Willis  published over half a dozen additional collections in the next 30+ years, including the Locus Award-winning Impossible Things (1994), the monumental 740-page The Winds of Marble Arch and Other Stories (2007), and the Locus Award-winning The Best of Connie Willis (2013), but I think it’s fair to say that this is probably still her most famous.

The copy above is the the one I found at Half Price Books last month, and not the first paperback edition. Fire Watch was published in hardcover by James Frenkel’s Bluejay Books in 1985; the first paperback edition appeared from Bantam a year later (see that one below).

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Future Treasures: The Traitor God by Cameron Johnston

Future Treasures: The Traitor God by Cameron Johnston

The Traitor God-smallCameron Johnston has published short fiction in The Lovecraft eZine, A Fistful of Horrors: Tales of Terror from the Old West (2012), Up and Coming: Stories by the 2016 Campbell-Eligible Authors (2016), and other fine places.

His debut novel is an epic fantasy featuring gods, daemons, and very dark sorcery. Gavin G Smith (Age of Scorpio) calls it “one part street-level procedural and two parts urban magic apocalypse,” and Neil Williamson (The Moon King) says, “The Traitor God grabs you and doesn’t let go. Facing Gods, monsters, and a magic elite that wants him dead, Edrin Walker’s return to Setharis is a noirish romp packed with action and laced with black humour.” It arrives in trade paperback from Angry Robot next month.

A city threatened by unimaginable horrors must trust their most hated outcast, or lose everything, in this crushing epic fantasy debut.

After ten years on the run, dodging daemons and debt, reviled magician Edrin Walker returns home to avenge the brutal murder of his friend. Lynas had uncovered a terrible secret, something that threatened to devour the entire city. He tried to warn the Arcanum, the sorcerers who rule the city.

He failed. Lynas was skinned alive and Walker felt every cut. Now nothing will stop him from finding the murderer. Magi, mortals, daemons, and even the gods – Walker will burn them all if he has to.

After all, it wouldn’t be the first time he’s killed a god…

The Traitor God will be published by Angry Robot on June 5, 2018. It is 432 pages, priced at $12.99 in trade paperback and $9.99 for the digital edition. The cover is by Jan Weßbecher.

See all our recent Future Treasures here.

New Treasures: Medusa Uploaded by Emily Devenport

New Treasures: Medusa Uploaded by Emily Devenport

Medusa Uploaded-smallEmily Devenport has written six novels under her own name, including Larissa (1993), Eggheads (1996), and The Kronos Condition (1997).

Under the name Maggy Thomas, she was a finalist for the Philip K. Dick Award for Best Novel, for Broken Time (2000). She’s also produced two novels set on the Belarus planet under the pseudonym Lee Hogan.

But it’s been fifteen years since she’s published a novel, so anticipation is high for her new book Medusa Uploaded. Most of the major genre sites — including io9, The Verge, and Kirkus — have selected it as one of the most interesting books of the month. It arrived in trade paperback from Tor last week.

My name is Oichi Angelis, and I am a worm.

They see me every day. They consider me harmless. And that’s the trick, isn’t it?

A generation starship can hide many secrets. When an Executive clan suspects Oichi of insurgency and discreetly shoves her out an airlock, one of those secrets finds and rescues her.

Officially dead, Oichi begins to rebalance power one assassination at a time and uncovers the shocking truth behind the generation starship and the Executive clans.

Medusa Uploaded was published by Tor Books on May 1, 2018. It is 317 pages, priced at $16.99 in trade paperback, and $9.99 for the digital edition. The cover is by Sam Weber.

See all of our recent New Treasures here.

A Tale of Three Covers: Nightflyers by George R.R. Martin

A Tale of Three Covers: Nightflyers by George R.R. Martin

Nightflyers 1987-small Nightflyers 1989-small Nightflyers and Other Stories-small

George R.R. Martin may be the most popular genre writer on the planet. In terms of global book sales his only living rivals are J.K. Rowling and Stephen King.

So it’s not surprising that much of his back catalog is returning to print, including his 1985 short story collection NightflyersNightflyers contains six stories, including the Hugo-award winning novella “A Song for Lya,” but by far the most famous tale within is the title story, a science fiction/horror classic which won the Analog and Locus Awards in 1981, and was nominated for a Hugo for Best Novella.

Nightflyers was originally published by Bluejay in 1985, and reprinted in mass market paperback in February 1987 by Tor with a cover by James Warhola (above left). It was reprinted two years later with a new cover to tie-in with the 1987 movie version (above middle; cover artist unknown). The new edition, with a vibrantly colorful cover from an uncredited artist (above right), is the first over over three decades. It will be published by Tor at the end of the month, in advance of the new series debuting on Syfy later this year.

“Nightflyers” was one of the first major adventures set in Martin’s “Thousand Worlds” universe, home to much of his early short fiction. Here’s my synopsis from my 2012 Vintage Treasures article.

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Vintage Treasures: The Shining Falcon by Josepha Sherman

Vintage Treasures: The Shining Falcon by Josepha Sherman

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Josepha Sherman’s first short story, “The Shrouded Sorceress,” was published in Space & Time in 1981; her first novel was the YA title The Secret of the Unicorn Queen in 1988. She passed away in 2012, leaving behind a rich legacy of written work: 10 anthologies, including In Celebration of Lammas Night (Baen, 1996) and Urban Nightmares (Baen, 1997; with Keith R. A. DeCandido), and over two dozen novels, including media tie-in books for Bard’s Tale, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Star Trek, Mage Knight, Highlander, and Xena: Warrior Princess.

But her most acclaimed novel was also her first book for adults, The Shining Falcon. It won the Compton Crook Award for Best First Novel of the Year, and was widely praised when it was first released. Esther Friesner called it “A gloriously rich tapestry of pageant, adventure and magic,” and Morgan Llywelyn said, “A world based on Slavic history and mythology, a world both exotc and darkly familiar… darkly brilliant and shimmering with magic.” Library Journal said:

A shape-changing prince, a magic-fearing noblewoman, a jealous princess, and an unscrupulous courtier find their destinies inextricably linked by the forces of love, hate, and magic. Drawing heavily on Slavic mythology for her first adult fantasy, Sherman creates a richly detailed novel with all the charm and readability of a fairy tale. Highly recommended.

Sherman’s other standalone novels include A Strange and Ancient Name (1993), King’s Son, Magic’s Son (1994), and Son of Darkness (1998). The Shining Falcon was published by Avon Books in November 1989. It is 343 pages, priced at $3.95. The cover was by Kinuko Craft. It has never been reprinted in the US. Copies generally aren’t hard to find; I paid $2 for mine at Half Price Books last month.

DMR Books Brings Pulp Sword & Sorcery Back Into Print

DMR Books Brings Pulp Sword & Sorcery Back Into Print

The Sapphire Goddess The Fantasies of Nictzin Dyalhis-small The Thief of Forthe and Other Stories by Clifford Ball-small

Last month I rented a booth at the Windy City Pulp and Paper show here in Chicago — my favorite local convention — and piled it high with brand new hardcovers and trade paperbacks I was giving away. I had 31 boxes of leftover review copies, duplicates from my collection, and hundreds of rare advance proofs to get out of my basement, and this seemed like the perfect opportunity. Bob Byrne and Steven Silver made long drives to the con to help staff the booth, and we were looking forward to handing out books to grateful attendees.

Reality was a little bit different. Most folks passed by our booth with barely a glance. If Bob and Steve and I hadn’t been tirelessly peddling books, handing out free copies as people passed by, and carting books by the dozens to the freebie pile at registration every few hours, we’d probably still be there. This was an audience more interested in pulps and vintage paperbacks than brand new science fiction and fantasy, apparently.

It’s not true that there was no interest in our booth. After eight long hours unsuccessfully giving away books on Friday, Dave Ritzlin from DMR Books joined us on Saturday, and we gladly made space for him in the booth. Once we did interest picked up immediately, as folks zeroed in on his attractive selection — and especially his new releases, The Sapphire Goddess: The Fantasies of Nictzin Dyalhis and The Thief of Forthe and Other Stories by Clifford Ball.

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Future Treasures: The Outsider by Stephen King

Future Treasures: The Outsider by Stephen King

Stephen King The Outsider-small Stephen King The Outsider-back-small

Sometimes it seems I need a whole team just to keep up with new books from Stephen King. The man has produced 54 novels over the past 40 years, and more short stories and scripts than I can count. But for all of that, he remains a potent force in the genre, refusing to sit still or repeat himself. His latest is a supernatural thriller that sounds like a police procedural. It arrives from in hardcover from Scribner this month.

An unspeakable crime. A confounding investigation. At a time when the King brand has never been stronger, he has delivered one of his most unsettling and compulsively readable stories.

An eleven-year-old boy’s violated corpse is found in a town park. Eyewitnesses and fingerprints point unmistakably to one of Flint City’s most popular citizens. He is Terry Maitland, Little League coach, English teacher, husband, and father of two girls. Detective Ralph Anderson, whose son Maitland once coached, orders a quick and very public arrest. Maitland has an alibi, but Anderson and the district attorney soon add DNA evidence to go with the fingerprints and witnesses. Their case seems ironclad.

As the investigation expands and horrifying answers begin to emerge, King’s propulsive story kicks into high gear, generating strong tension and almost unbearable suspense. Terry Maitland seems like a nice guy, but is he wearing another face? When the answer comes, it will shock you as only Stephen King can.

The Outsider will be published by Scribner on May 22, 2018. It is 576 pages, priced at $30 in hardcover and $14.99 for the digital edition. Read a brief excerpt at Stephen King’s website.

New Treasures: Star Destroyers, edited by Christopher Ruocchio and‎ Tony Daniel

New Treasures: Star Destroyers, edited by Christopher Ruocchio and‎ Tony Daniel

Star Destroyers-smallWell, this is something of a guilty pleasure: an anthology with the subtitle Bigs Ships. Blowing Things Up. It’s the kind of thing you didn’t even know was missing from your life until you see it.

IN SPACE, SIZE MATTERS!

Boomers. Ships of the Line. Star Destroyers. The bigger the ship, the better the bang. From the dawn of history onward, commanding the most powerful ship around has been a dream of admirals, sultans, emperors, kings, generalissimos, and sea captains everywhere. For what the intimidation factor alone doesn’t achieve, a massive barrage from super-weapons probably will.

Thus it was, and ever shall be, even into the distant future. From the oceans of Earth, to beneath the ice of Europa, to the distant reaches of galactic empires, it is the great warships and their crews that sometimes keep civilization safe for the rest of us—but sometimes become an extinction-level event in and of themselves.

In “Superweapon” by David Drake, a fight for possession of an ancient alien warship will determine the fate of two vast interstellar powers. Then in “Hate in the Darkness” by Michael Z. Williamson, a team of libertarian Freeholders must think outside the box to do battle with the might of the United Nations and its powerful navy. And in “A Helping Hand,” Jody Lynn Nye posits an interstellar submarine on a rescue mission behind enemy lines — with the fate of an entire species hanging in the balance.

Big, bold, and edge-of-your-seat space opera and military science fiction from David Drake, Sharon Lee & Steve Miller, Michael Z. Williamson, Steve White, Robert Buettner, Susan R. Matthews, Dave Bara, and many more!

If you like modern space opera — and really, who doesn’t? — this book is Bean’s gift to you. It contains stories from 15 top-notch writers, most of whom have ongoing space opera series from a wide range of publishers, including Dave Bara (DAW), Christopher Ruocchio (DAW), Robert Buettner (Orbit), Mark L. Van Name (Baen), and many others. Here’s your chance to try a rich smorgasboard of writers under one cover, and maybe find yourself a few new favorites.

Here’s the complete Table of Contents.

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Tor.com Celebrates 50 Years of Locus Magazine

Tor.com Celebrates 50 Years of Locus Magazine

Locus 1987-small

Over at Tor.com, Paul Weimer (who comments occasionally at Black Gate and elsewhere as PrinceJvstin) has written a fine tribute to one of my favorite magazines — Locus, the news magazine of the science fiction and fantasy field. He captures exactly what the magazine has meant to readers over the years, especially in the 80s and 90s when it was the trusted news source that tied together the entire genre.

In 1968, the legendary anthologist and editor Charles N. Brown created a one-sheet fanzine about news of the science fiction field. Brown’s intent was to use it to help the Boston Science Fiction group win its Worldcon bid. Brown enjoyed the experience so much that he continued the magazine through Noreascon I, the 29th Worldcon held in Boston in 1971 (where Locus won its first Hugo award). Brown continued to be the steward of Locus until his death in 2009. In that run, Locus won thirty Hugo awards, and for good reason…

Before the internet transformed how we get news and information, Locus, under Brown’s stewardship, and the assemblage of his team of columnists, grew and expanded its reach year after year until it became what I call the semiprozine of record. Locus became the go-to place for SFF news and information, backed up with a strong stable of reviews and interviews. Every issue of Locus was a window into the ever shifting and changing world of SFF.

The magazine was so important that, when we launched Black Gate in fall of 2000 with a very limited advertising budget, there was never any question about where we should spend it — on a full page ad in Locus. It paid us back handsomely.

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