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Author: John ONeill

Interzone #258 Now on Sale

Interzone #258 Now on Sale

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Interzone 258-smallThe May–June issue of Britain’s longest running science fiction and fantasy magazine is now on sale.

The cover, by Martin Hanford, is titled “Dorian Gray,” and is a fine (and terrifically creepy) re-interpretation of the 1891 novel by Oscar Wildle… with space suits. I like it. Click the image at right for a bigger version.

Interzone #258 contains five stories:

“a shout is a prayer / for the waiting centuries” by T.R. Napper
“The Re’em Song” by Julie C. Day
“Doors” by Bonnie Jo Stufflebeam
“Angel Fire” by Christien Gholson
“Her First Harvest” by Malcolm Devlin

Non-fiction this issue includes “Freak Zone” by Christopher Fowler. Here’s the first paragraph:

My former agent once told me, “I accept any kind of fiction except science fiction.” When I asked her why, she explained, “I just don’t think I could do it justice,” which was a polite way of saying that she didn’t understand it. But to me, not understanding everything was the point and purpose of reading.

There’s also “Future Interrupted,” by Jonathan McCalmont, and Nina Allan’s “Time Pieces” column, this month titled: “Election Special: the Hugos, the Puppies, and the Big Pile of Poo.”

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Vintage Treasures: Dragonflight and Dragonquest by Anne McCaffrey

Vintage Treasures: Dragonflight and Dragonquest by Anne McCaffrey

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Dragonflight McCaffrey-small Dragonquest McCaffrey-small

Anne McCaffrey’s Dragonriders of Pern is one of the most famous and bestselling science fantasy series of all time. All told there are sixteen novels, written between 1968 and 2006, the last two in collaboration with her son Todd.

The artist most closely associated with it is probably Michael Whelan, who was hired to paint the cover for the third novel, The White Dragon, published in June 1978. The White Dragon became the first bestseller in the series, and Whelan was hired by Ballantine to create new covers for the first two novels, Dragonflight and Dragonquest, late in 1978. He did a fine job, and was subsequently hired for the next four volumes in the series.

But I still admit a great fondness for the early 70s covers of the first two books (above), both painted by Gino D’Achille. Both books were Ballantine paperback originals. The covers are more whimsical and fairy-tale like, and speak to me of 1970s fantasy.

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Neil Gaiman and Kazuo Ishiguro on Sword & Sorcery

Neil Gaiman and Kazuo Ishiguro on Sword & Sorcery

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Neil Gaiman in The New Republic-small

The New Republic has posted a lengthy conversation on fantasy, titled Breaking the Boundaries Between Fantasy and Literary Fiction, between Neil Gaiman (The Graveyard Book, American Gods) and Kazuo Ishiguro (The Remains of the Day, The Buried Giant). Among other fascinating topics, the two discuss sword & sorcery, and the different cultural approaches to swordfights.

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New Treasures: Hannu Rajaniemi: Collected Fiction

New Treasures: Hannu Rajaniemi: Collected Fiction

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Hannu Rajaniemi Collected Fiction-smallOne of the more enjoyable parts of the Nebula Awards weekend was the autograph session late Saturday night — when folks like Greg Bear, Larry Niven, Connie Willis, Nancy Kress, Joe Haldeman, Jack McDevitt, Aliette de Bodard, Tobias Buckell, and dozens more sat down to sign autographs for fans. The author with the biggest line was unquestionably Cixin Liu, author of Nebula-nominated The Three-Body Problem, who’d flown all the way from China, but there was plenty of love to go around. Greg Ketter from Dreamhaven was doing a brisk business in the middle of the room, selling books to eager autograph hounds. I decided to limit myself to one book and, oddly enough, despite the rare opportunities to get autographs from some of my favorite authors, the title I couldn’t resist was Hannu Rajaniemi: Collected Fiction, from an author who wasn’t even in attendance. It’s a beautiful limited edition hardcover from Tacyhon Publications. I’d heard rumors it was almost sold out, and when I saw Greg had a single copy, I snatched it up.

Inside the firewall, the city is alive. Buildings breathe, cars attack, angels patrol, hyperintelligent pets rebel.

Hannu Rajaniemi (The Quantum Thief) is always on the cutting edge. His postapocalyptic, postcyberpunk, and posthuman tales are full of extraordinary beings and unpredictable optimism. With his remarkable agility at merging science with storytelling, Rajaniemi makes the impossible possible — or even probable.

Rajaniemi’s much-anticipated first collection contains seventeen stories, with two original tales, a neurofiction experiment, and his Twitter micro-fiction. Journeying deep into inner and outer space, he asks us, how will human nature evolve when the only limit to desire is creativity? What happens when the distinction between humans and gods is as small as nanomachines — or as large as the universe? So whether you think the next big leap in technology might be genetic engineering, unlimited energy, or space travel, know this: Hannu Rajaniemi the arbiter of what happens after.

Hannu Rajaniemi: Collected Fiction was published by Tachyon Publications on May 19, 2015. It is $25.95 for the limited edition hardcover; there is no digital edition. The cover art is by Lius Lasahido.

Presenting the 2015 Nebula Awards

Presenting the 2015 Nebula Awards

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Presenting the 2015 Nebula Award for Best Novelette
Presenting the 2015 Nebula Award for Best Novelette. Photo by Keith Stokes

I don’t mean that title metaphorically. Like, “Here are the 2015 Nebula winners, so awesome!” I mean it literally. As in, presenting a Nebula Award on stage, in front of God and everybody, while wearing a suit and desperately hoping I pronounced all the names correctly. How’s that for awesome?

The 2015 Nebulas were presented by the Science Fiction Writers of America at the 50th Annual Nebula Awards Weekend on Saturday, June 4th, at the Palmer House in downtown Chicago. The event was attended by the brightest and most dazzling talents in the industry (plus, I was there too). I was invited to present the Nebula for Best Novelette, which was a fabulous honor that made me all giddy. If at any point on Saturday I shook your hand and tried to give you a Nebula Award, I hope you can understand — when I’m nervous, rehearsing make me feel better.

Please forgive me. Unless your name is Alaya Dawn Johnson, in which case, congratulations again on winning, and I’m very sorry I added three extra vowels to your first name. Ha ha ha, Alaya. It looked so damn easy on paper.

Anyways, the Nebulas. Super-big deal. The biggest names in the industry, gathered together to celebrate the very best writing of the year. And also to see and be seen, to socialize, discuss the big issues of the day, renew friendships, make new friends, gossip, catch up on all the news. Plus, to give out some Nebula Awards.

Derek Kunsken posted a fine summary of the weekend earlier today. After working with him for so many years, I was delighted to finally meet Derek for the first time, and he turned out to be just as articulate and entertaining in person. He wasn’t the only Black Gate writer to attend — I also caught up with Steven Silver, Jeremiah Tolbert, Tina Jens, and Beth Dawkins.

The highlight, of course, was the awards ceremony. And without any further ado, here’s a complete rundown on the winners.

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Future Treasures: Fool’s Quest by Robin Hobb

Future Treasures: Fool’s Quest by Robin Hobb

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Fool's Quest-smallAuthor Megan Lindholm began a new career, under the name Robin Hobb, with the publication of Assassin’s Apprentice (1995), the first book in The Farseer trilogy. Robin Hobb quickly became a bestselling writer, and she continued the tale of FitzChivalry Farseer and his enigmatic friend the Fool in The Tawny Man trilogy (2001-2003). 

Last year she launched a new trilogy, Fitz and the Fool, with Fool’s Assassin, and in August the tale continues with the next installment, Fool’s Quest, in which Fitz discovers devastating secrets and dark conspiracies that cast a dark shadow over the history of Fitz and his world.

Long ago, Fitz and the Fool changed the world, bringing back the magic of dragons and securing both the Farseer succession and the stability of the kingdom. Or so they thought. But now the Fool is near death, maimed by mysterious pale-skinned figures whose plans for world domination hinge upon the powers the Fool may share with Fitz’s own daughter.

Distracted by the Fool’s perilous health, and swept up against his will in the intrigues of the royal court, Fitz lets down his guard… and in a horrible instant, his world is undone and his beloved daughter stolen away by those who would use her as they had once sought to use the Fool — as a weapon.

But FitzChivalry Farseer is not without weapons of his own. An ancient magic still lives in his veins. And though he may have let his skills as royal assassin diminish over the years, such things, once learned, are not so easily forgotten. Now enemies and friends alike are about to learn that nothing is more dangerous than a man who has nothing left to lose.

Fool’s Quest will be published by Del Rey on August 11, 2015. It is 768 pages, priced at $28 in hardcover and $13.99 for the digital edition.

May/June Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction now on Sale

May/June Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction now on Sale

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Fantasy-and-Science-Fiction-May-June-2015-smallYesterday, during the Nebula Awards banquet here in Chicago, I had the opportunity to talk with Gordon van Gelder, long-time publisher and editor of The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction, and get his take on how well the transition to new editor C. C. Finlay has been proceeding. It was great to hear that he sees the same things I do — that F&SF has a new level of energy, and that the transition has generated some long overdue attention and interest for the magazine.

Jerard Bretts’s review at Tangent Online is fairly typical of the comments I’m seeing.

Charles Finlay’s second issue as editor is a strong one. The powerful stories by Grossbach, Gerrold and Sarafin are alone worth the price of entry.

Robert Grossbach’s “Entrepreneurs” is the longest and best story in this issue. Stretching from 1952 into the near future, it tells of the efforts of enterprising engineer Morty Rushman to make it big in business ─ with the help of some equally enterprising aliens from the Eep planet, Narusto. Grossbach uses the theme of alien contact to make some very amusing points about modern American capitalism in the second half of the twentieth century and beyond. The humour reminded me of Kurt Vonnegut and Robert Sheckley, and there can’t be much higher praise than that.

This issue also features a Lovecraftian horror story by Albert E. Cowdrey, James Sarafin’s tale of hunting the wild creatures of the Pleistocene, a semi-autobiographical story by David Gerrold, and fiction from Lisa Mason, Sarah Pinsker, Caroline M. Yoachim, Amy Sterling Casil, and Rob Chilson.

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New Treasures: Probably Monsters by Ray Cluley

New Treasures: Probably Monsters by Ray Cluley

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Probably Monsters-smallToronto press Chizine Publications is one of the hottest publishers in the business. I was so impressed with their recent output that, after returning from the World Fantasy Convention in November of last year, I sat down to compose a survey of their catalog.

But it wasn’t just their 2014 releases that grabbed me. I was also highly intrigued by Probably Monsters, the debut collection from British Fantasy Award-winning author Ray Cluley, author of Water for Drowning (August 22, 2014). It was released in April, and I finally had a chance to get my hands on a copy yesterday, at the Nebula Awards weekend here in Chicago. I love a good monster story, and these look very promising indeed.

From British Fantasy Award-winning author Ray Cluley comes Probably Monsters — a collection of dark, weird, literary horror stories. Sometimes the monsters are bloodsucking fiends with fleshy wings. Sometimes they’re shambling dead things that won’t rest, or simply creatures red in tooth and claw. But often they’re worse than any of these. They’re the things that make us howl in the darkness, hoping no one hears. These are the monsters we make ourselves, and they can find us anywhere…

Probably Monsters was published by ChiZine Publications on April 14, 2015. It is 352 pages, priced at $16.99 in trade paperback, and $7.99 for the digital version. The cover art is by Erik Mohr, with design by Samantha Beiko.

See all of our recent New Treasures articles here.

Vintage Treasures: Jamie the Red by Gordon R. Dickson with Roland Green

Vintage Treasures: Jamie the Red by Gordon R. Dickson with Roland Green

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Jamie the Red-smallThieves World is one of the most endlessly creative concepts in the history of fantasy. Nearly four decades after it was first conceived, it’s still surprising me.

This time the surprise came in the shape of Jamie the Red, a 1984 fantasy novel written by Gordon R. Dickson and Roland Green and published by Ace Books, with a cover by Thieves World artist Walter Velez. It’s a surprise because, up until last week, I never knew it existed, despite the fact that I’ve been collecting Thieves World books for 37 years. And also because a little investigation revealed that it’s one of the most important books in the storied history of Thieves World — and for a fascinating reason.

But let’s back up. Who the heck is Jamie the Red, and just what does he have to do with Thieves World?

For our first clue, let’s turn to Paul Shackley’s Poul Anderson Appreciation blog. In August 2013, Paul wrote an entry titled Jamie the Red, where he said, in part:

Maybe everyone else out there already knew this but I certainly did not. When, in “The Gate of the Flying Knives” (Poul Anderson, Fantasy, New York, 1981), Anderson’s character, Cappen Varra, receives help from his friend, Jamie the Red, that friend is a Thieves’ World character in his own right and is even the title character of a novel by two other authors.

Paul was the first to tip me off about Jamie the Red. Yes, Jamie is a Thieves World character, and he does appear rather prominently in a Poul Anderson’s TW story. But Gordon R. Dickson was not even a Thieves World writer… so how the heck did he end up writing a Jamie the Red novel? And why isn’t there a Thieves World banner on the cover?

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Future Treasures: Queen of Fire by Anthony Ryan

Future Treasures: Queen of Fire by Anthony Ryan

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Queen of Fire Anthony Ryan-smallI first took notice of Anthony Ryan with the publication of Tower Lord (2014), the second volume in the New York Times bestselling Raven’s Shadow trilogy (why do I always discover series with the second volume?) The series began with Blood Song (2013); by the second book, Ryan was being called “David Gemmell’s natural successor.” In the final volume, Vaelin Al Sorna must help his Queen reclaim her Realm — despite the fact that his enemy has found a dangerous new collaborator, one with powers darker than Vaelin has ever encountered…

“The Ally is there, but only ever as a shadow, unexplained catastrophe or murder committed at the behest of a dark vengeful spirit. Sorting truth from myth is often a fruitless task.”

After fighting back from the brink of death, Queen Lyrna is determined to repel the invading Volarian army and regain the independence of the Unified Realm. Except, to accomplish her goals, she must do more than rally her loyal supporters. She must align herself with forces she once found repugnant — those who possess the strange and varied gifts of the Dark — and take the war to her enemy’s doorstep.

Victory rests on the shoulders of Vaelin Al Sorna, now named Battle Lord of the Realm. However, his path is riddled with difficulties. For the Volarian enemy has a new weapon on their side, one that Vaelin must destroy if the Realm is to prevail — a mysterious Ally with the ability to grant unnaturally long life to her servants. And defeating one who cannot be killed is a nearly impossible feat, especially when Vaelin’s blood-song, the mystical power which has made him the epic fighter he is, has gone ominously silent…

Queen of Fire will be published by Ace Books on July 7, 2015. It is 642 pages, priced at $28.95 in hardcover, and $14.99 for the digital edition.