Browsed by
Author: John ONeill

The Print Version of the 7th Edition of Call of Cthulhu is Now Available

The Print Version of the 7th Edition of Call of Cthulhu is Now Available

Comments 13 comments
call-of-cthulhu-seventh-edition-small call-of-cthulhu-keepers-screen-small call-of-cthulhu-investigator-handbook-small

The Kickstarter for the long-awaited Seventh Edition of Call of Cthulhu, one of the greatest role playing games of all time, was one of the most successful crowdfunding campaigns in gaming history, pulling in over $560,000 on a $40,000 goal. The PDF versions were released back in 2014, but the promised print edition took a lot longer to arrive. But it is now here — officially announced on the website on August 26, and already offered for sale at various online outlets.

The 7th Edition, based on the original rules by Sandy Peterson and Lynn Willis, was significantly revised by Paul Fricker and Mike Mason. It weighs in at 448 pages in hardcover, with an eye-catching cover by Sam Lamont and some color interiors. A significant amount of supporting material is already available, including the Call of Cthulhu Keepers Screen, a hardcover Investigator Handbook, the S.Petersen’s Field Guide to Lovecraftian Horrors, and the first 7th Edition adventure collection, Nameless Horrors.

If you’re new to Call of Cthulhu, or just curious, great! CoC is one of the most innovative and creative role playing games ever made, and — almost uniquely in the industry — its supplements and adventures make great reading, even if you never have the chance to sit down at a table with fellow players. It was the first semi-contemporary RPG, and also the first to feature ordinary folks as protagonists. But don’t just take my word for it… here’s a dead-on quote from Ed Grabianowski’s io9 article, “Call Of Cthulhu Was The First Role-Playing Game To Drive People Insane.”

…

Read More Read More

September 2016 Asimov’s Science Fiction Now on Sale

September 2016 Asimov’s Science Fiction Now on Sale

Comments 6 comments

asimovs-science-fiction-september-2016-smallThe September issue of Asimov’s Science Fiction looks like a very solid issue, with fiction from Carrie Vaughn, Ian R. MacLeod, Robert Reed, Rich Larson, Jack Skillingstead, and others. Here’s the full description from the website:

Jack Skillingstead’s September 2016 novelette takes us on a terrifying journey across universes. Pursued by malevolent forces, a brilliant mathematician struggles to clean up “The Whole Mess.” Failure means destruction and subjugation. The penalty for success could be worse.

New York Times best selling author, Carrie Vaughn exposes the debilitating consequences space travel holds for some in “The Mind Is Its Own Place”; appearing in Asimov’s with her first professional sale, Tegan Moore shines a light on some dark and twisted relationships in “Epitome”; Human and Alien intelligence slowly learn to communicate in Rich Larson’spoignant excavation of “All that Robot…”; World Fantasy Award winner Ian R. MacLeod introduces us to the enigmatic “Visitor from Taured”; Peter Wood runs  us around in some vicious, yet funny and perhaps all too recognizable, “Academic Circles”; and Robert Reed tells the old tale of migration and the promised land — this time with aliens — in “Dome on the Prairie.”

Robert Silverberg’s hilarious Reflections column reveals why it’s not a good idea to exclaim, “‘Darn,’ He Smiled”; Peter Heck reviews works by Charlie Jane Anders, Laura Anne Gilman, Fred Chappell, and others; plus we’ll have an array of poetry and other features you’re sure to enjoy.

The cover is by the great Michael Whelan.

Over at Tangent Online Bob Blough raves about the issue, and especially Ian M. McLeod’s “A Visitor from Taured,” which he calls “a potential award nominee.”

…

Read More Read More

A Sorceress Hiding From the Most Powerful Sorcerer in the World: Annie Bellet’s Level Grind: The Twenty-Sided Sorceress

A Sorceress Hiding From the Most Powerful Sorcerer in the World: Annie Bellet’s Level Grind: The Twenty-Sided Sorceress

Comments 5 comments
level-grind-the-twenty-sided-sorceress-back-small level-grind-the-twenty-sided-sorceress-small

Annie Bellet’s Twenty-Sided Sorceress books are a USA Today bestselling series… pretty impressive for a small press outing from a relatively unknown writer. Last year Bellet was (like Black Gate) nominated for a Hugo Award on the Rabid Puppy slate, for her short story “Goodnight Stars” from The End is Now anthology. And (also like Black Gate) she declined the nomination… that principled stand won her an Alfie Award at George R.R. Martin’s Hugo Losers party, a coveted award in its own right.

Now Saga Press is gathering the first four novels in the popular series into one handsome omnibus edition, Level Grind: The Twenty-Sided Sorceress, Volume One. The books follow the adventures of Jade Crow, a sorceress hiding from the most powerful sorcerer in the world: her ex-boyfriend, who wants to consume her heart. They are:

Justice Calling (152 pages, July 23, 2014)
Murder of Crows (162 pages, August 23, 2014)
Pack of Lies (226 pages, October 14, 2014)
Hunting Season (204 pages, Dec 2, 2014)

Here’s a look at the original covers, all from Domed Muse Press.

…

Read More Read More

John DeNardo on the Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Historical Fiction You Won’t Want to Miss in September

John DeNardo on the Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Historical Fiction You Won’t Want to Miss in September

Comments 2 comments
forsaken-skies-small necrotech-k-c-alexander-small the-gradual-christopher-priest-small

There aren’t many folks who pay more attention to publishing schedules than me, but John DeNardo is clearly one of them. (He also works harder than I do, which is doubly annoying.) Over at Kirkus Reviews, he’s assembled a list of the sixteen most intriguing SF, fantasy, and historical books arriving this month, including Kristine Kathryn Rusch’s new anthology Women of Futures Past, Summerlong by Peter S. Beagle, Ninth City Burning by J. Patrick Black, Everfair by Nisi Shawl, and Age of Heroes by James Lovegrove. Here’s his summary for Forsaken Skies by D. Nolan Clark (a pseudonym for David Wellington).

In the far future, a distant planet on the edge of the galaxy is attacked by alien machines, so its representatives enlist the aid of a ragtag team of would-be heroes to come to their defense.

And on Necrotech by K.C. Alexander

In an apathetic society devoid of ethics or regulation, a street thug named Riko has her memories wiped, her reputation destroyed, and a girlfriend who’s turned into a tech-fueled zombie. Her only salvation may be a group of mercenaries who unfortunately think she screwed them over… Mixing together high-tech imagination and conspiracy, this one is sure to satisfy the cyberpunk craving you didn’t know you had.

See John’s complete article here.

…

Read More Read More

Troublesome Magic and High-Stakes Adventure: Marc Turner’s Chronicles of the Exile Trilogy

Troublesome Magic and High-Stakes Adventure: Marc Turner’s Chronicles of the Exile Trilogy

Comments 0 Comment
when-the-heavens-fall-marc-turner-small dragon-hunters-marc-turner-small red-tide-marc-turner-small

In his article for Black Gate last December, Marc Turner described the opening novel in The Chronicles of the Exile series this way:

My epic fantasy debut, When the Heavens Fall, came out in May this year, and it can best be summed up as The Lord of the Rings meets World War Z. It’s not a zombie apocalypse novel, but that’s going to come as scant consolation to the characters who find themselves having to wade through an army of undead.

The second book in the series, Dragon Hunters, was published in February. Here’s what RT Book Reviews said about the first two volumes:

Wildly imaginative settings, wonderfully empathetic characters, troublesome magic and high-stakes adventures… [Turner] balances an enormous setting and legendary monsters with flashes of insight and humor that keep the story consistently captivating, all while crafting a battle of wits and determination that builds to a riveting climax.

The third book in the trilogy, Red Tide, arrived in hardcover from Tor Books yesterday.

…

Read More Read More

Check Out Postscripts, the Varied Genre Anthology Series from PS Publishing

Check Out Postscripts, the Varied Genre Anthology Series from PS Publishing

Comments 0 Comment

postscripts-36-37-the-dragons-of-the-night-small

Postscripts is something of an unusual beast.

It started off as a quarterly British magazine of science fiction, fantasy, horror, and crime. The first issue, edited by Peter Crowther and published by PS Publishing,  appeared in June 2004 to considerable acclaim. It won the International Horror Guild award for best periodical in 2006 and 2008, and the British Fantasy Award for Best Magazine in 2009. I snatched up the early issues as they appeared… they were a little expensive on this side of the pond, but I never regretted it.

Postscripts has undergone some changes over the years. Early issues were essentially trade paperbacks (at least in the newsstand edition; there was also a signed, numbered, limited edition hardcover for the hardcore collectors.) Starting with issue 18 the magazine transitioned to a quarterly anthology; more recently (starting with issue 20/21) it has settled into a biannual schedule, producing two fat double-sized issues every year. The trade paperbacks are also a thing of the past, the “newsstand” edition, such as it is, is a beautiful thick hardcover with a wraparound cover. The capable Nick Gevers became co-editor with issue 18, and sole editor starting with issue 32/33. Under Nick’s stewardship the magazine has published brand new stories by Brian Aldiss, Scott Edelman, Paul Di Filippo, Darrell Schweitzer, Paul Tremblay, Simon Strantzas, Robert Reed, Michael Swanwick, Paul Park, John Langan, Richard Calder, and many others.

…

Read More Read More

New Treasures: The Dev Harmer Mission Series by James Lovegrove

New Treasures: The Dev Harmer Mission Series by James Lovegrove

Comments 3 comments
world-of-fire-small world-of-water-small

I’m very intrigued by James Longrove’s Dev Harmer Mission series, and I may add it to my Fall Reading Program. (I’m also intrigued by his 8-volume Pantheon series, but let’s remain realistic, shall we?) Dev Harmer is a reluctant agent of mega-corporation Interstellar Security Solutions, dispatched to various hotspots around the galaxy. He wakes up in a brand new cloned body every time. His original body, back on Earth, reportedly no longer exists, so Hammer has to earn enough to afford a new one… and that means doing the dirty jobs no one else wants.

Each of these jobs takes him to a very different locale — starting with Alighieri, a planet perpetually in flames, and the setting for the opening novel in the series, World of Fire.

Dev Harmer, reluctant agent of Interstellar Security Solutions, wakes up in a newly cloned host body on the planet Alighieri, ready for action. It’s an infernal world, so close to its sun that it surface is regularly baked to 1,000°C, hot enough to turn rock to lava. But deep underground there are networks of tunnels connecting colonies of miners who dig for the precious helium-3 regolith deposits in Alighieri’s crust.

Polis+, the AI race who are humankind’s great galactic rivals, want to claim the fiery planet’s mineral wealth for their own. All that stands between them and this goal is Dev. But as well as Polis+’s agents, there are giant moleworms to contend with, and a spate of mysterious earthquakes, and the perils of the surface where a man can be burned to cinders if he gets caught unprotected on the day side…

Giant worms, hostile AIs, hell planet… that’s all the essentials for a rousing space adventure, right there.

…

Read More Read More

io9 on All the New Scifi and Fantasy Books You Absolutely Must Read This Fall

io9 on All the New Scifi and Fantasy Books You Absolutely Must Read This Fall

Comments 0 Comment
a-city-dreaming-daniel-polansky-small a-night-without-stars-hamilton-small certain-dark-things-small

Fall officially begins on Thursday (here in the Northern Hemisphere, at least). Which means I can officially give up on the wreckage of my Summer Reading Plan, and start all over again with a brand new, crazy ambitious and supernaturally awesome Fall Reading Plan. Yeah!

I love the planning stages of my quarterly reading plans, ’cause they’re filled with crazy optimism. Shall we throw the 10-volume Malazan Book of the Fallen in there? Why the hell not! It’s only September!

It’s at this stage of the quarter that I find articles like Cheryl Eddy’s “All the New Scifi and Fantasy Books You Absolutely Must Read This Fall,” published at io9 at the end of August, so very helpful. Eddy lists over two dozen major books launching this fall, including A Night Without Stars by Peter F. Hamilton, Certain Dark Things by Silvia Moreno-Garcia, and new books by Connie Willis, Cixin Liu, Christopher Pries, Ken Liu, Margaret Atwood, Mel Brooks, Mark Frost, Bruce Sterling, and many others. Here’s her take on A City Dreaming by Daniel Polansky.

An ageless magician fond of drinking beer and sleeping late visits New York City to visit old friends, only to find the city has changed in unexpected ways — and a supernatural war is brewing on its fringes.

See the complete article here.

October 2016 Analog Now on Sale

October 2016 Analog Now on Sale

Comments 0 Comment

analog-science-fiction-october-smallPeople have been watching Trevor Qachari’s rein as the new editor of Analog pretty closely. It’s been four years exactly since he took over from Stanley Schmidt in September of 2012, plenty of time to get a sense of his editorial taste.

One thing I’ve noticed is that Trevor is a bit more experimental than Stan, especially in his willingness to blend genres a little. The October issue features a pair of stories that playfully mix SF and pulp thrillers, including perhaps the last thing I would have expected to see in Analog: a Shadow homage by Robert R. Chase, “Revenge of the Invisible Man.” Here’s a snippet from Jason McGregor’s review at Tangent Online.

The Shadow gets on the trail of the Invisible Man. Sort of. In the near future, a company has been working on human invisibility and has succeeded in making a human invisible — but not in getting rich off it, which means the guinea pig gets no reward either and, worse, it turns out not to be reversible. So the heads of the company start falling down stairs and having their throats cut. This prompts a call to a mysterious Power who sends his agent, our protagonist, in to discover how the invisible man has been committing these crimes from the locked room in which the company holds him. The agent adopts the name Kent Allard (one of the Shadow’s real names) for this mission (which… seems likely to be one of a series) and proceeds to investigate. The strongest feature of this story is probably the direct, sinewy prose… a good read.

While we’re at it, he’s a sample from Jason’s review of the other SF thriller, Adam-Troy Castro’s novella “The Soul Behind the Face.”

…

Read More Read More

Future Treasures: The Fall of the House of Cabal by Jonathan L. Howard

Future Treasures: The Fall of the House of Cabal by Jonathan L. Howard

Comments 0 Comment

the-fall-of-the-house-of-cabal-smallJonathan is a marvelously talented fantasy author. We published two of his stories featuring Kyth the Taker, the cunning and resourceful thief whose commissions somehow always involve her in sorcerous intrigue: “The Beautiful Corridor,” (Black Gate 13) and its sequel, “The Shuttered Temple” (BG 15).

His most recent novel was Carter & Lovecraft (October 2015). He published his first novel, Johannes Cabal the Necromancer, in 2009; his newest novel The Fall of the House of Cabal is the fifth to feature gentleman necromancer Johannes Cabal and his comrades, including his vampiric brother, Horst. It arrives in hardcover from Thomas Dunne Books at the end of the month.

Johannes Cabal, a necromancer of some little infamy, has come into possession of a vital clue that may lead him to his ultimate goal: a cure for death. The path is vague, however, and certainly treacherous as it takes him into strange territories that, quite literally, no one has ever seen before. The task is too dangerous to venture upon alone, so he must seek assistance, comrades for the coming travails.

So assisted ― ably and otherwise ― by his vampiric brother, Horst, and by the kindly accompaniment of a criminologist and a devil, he will encounter ruins and diableries, mystery and murder, the depths of the lowest pit and a city of horrors. London, to be exact.

Yet even though Cabal has risked such peril believing he understands the dangers he faces, he is still underestimating them. He is walking into a trap of such arcane complexity that even the one who drew him there has no idea of its true terrors. As the snare closes slowly and subtly around them, it may be that there will be no survivors at all.

We’ve covered most of Jonathan’s recent releases here at Black Gate — including his article on writing the Johannes Cabal series, “Some Little Infamy.”

…

Read More Read More