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Category: New Treasures

A Healthy Dose of Old-fashioned Adventure: Kristen Britain’s Green Rider Series

A Healthy Dose of Old-fashioned Adventure: Kristen Britain’s Green Rider Series

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Kristen Britain Green Rider series

Successful fantasy novels evolve towards a series. That’s like the fourth law of Thermodynamics. An expression of the natural order of the universe. Readers demand it; publishers are more than happy to accommodate, and authors…. well, what author can refuse her public?

Kristen Britain’s debut novel Green Rider was very successful. It was only the second hardcover fantasy debut DAW ever published (the first was Tad Williams’s Tailchaser’s Song), and the extra effort paid off. I received a review copy while I was the editor at SF Site in 1998, and when I gave it to my niece Sabrina to get her opinion, her mother called to complain that she spent all her time in her room reading, and wouldn’t come down for dinner. I wasn’t at all surprised to see it become a New York Times bestseller, and kick off one of the first major fantasy series of the 21st Century.

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New Treasures: Myth of the Maker, Bruce R. Cordell’s Novel of The Strange

New Treasures: Myth of the Maker, Bruce R. Cordell’s Novel of The Strange

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The Strange RPG-small The Strange RPG-back-small Myth of the Maker Bruce R Cordell-small

The Strange, the RPG of dimension-hopping weirdness by Bruce R. Cordell and Monte Cook, was published by Monte Cook Games in 2014. We all know that all the coolest role playing games eventually spawn a fiction line, and thus it wasn’t too much of a surprise to see Bruce R. Cordell’s Myth of the Maker: A Novel of The Strange arrive from Angry Robot last month. It seems a fine intro to the powerful and mythic worldbuilding that’s gone into the vast cosmic canvas of The Strange. Check it out.

Carter Morrison didn’t want to kill his friends, or himself, but he had a good reason. It was them, or the end of all life on the planet.

Their sacrifice saved the world. Not that anyone knew it. Until Katherine Manners stumbled over a melting man in a computer room clutching a message of doom from another world.

Follow Carter Morrison, Catherine Manners, Elandine the Queen of Hazurrium, and Jason Cole — also known as the Betrayer — as they try to understand, survive, save, and in Jason’s case, break free of the fictional worlds that insulate Earth from the dangers of the Strange, where world-eating monstrosities called planetovores lurk.

This is by no means Cordell’s first foray into fiction… he’s authored at least half a dozen Forgotten Realms novels, including The Abolethic Sovereignty trilogy (2008-2010). Myth of the Maker was published by Angry Robot on April 4, 2017. It is 384 pages, priced at $9.99 in paperback and $6.99 for the digital edition. The cover is by Matt Stawicki.

Keep Up With the Latest Releases from Black Gate Authors

Keep Up With the Latest Releases from Black Gate Authors

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Soverign Silk ElizaBeth Gilligan-small Black Mask Spring 2017-small All Systems Red The Murderbot Diaries-small

One of the things readers frequently ask me for is updates on their favorite Black Gate authors. We published hundreds of writers in the decade-plus the magazine was alive, and at least as many in the 10 years that we’ve been running the blog… that’s a lot of talented authors to keep tabs on!

Nevertheless, we do our best. Here’s a quick snapshot of the current and upcoming releases from some of your favorite Black Gate writers.

ElizaBeth Gilligan (“Iron Joan,” BG 3) releases Sovereign Silk, the long-awaited third novel in her Silken Magic series, from DAW on June 6
Bob Byrne, our Monday morning blogger (and resident Sherlock expert), has a story in the Spring 2017 issue of the revived Black Mask magazine
Martha Wells (the Giliead and Ilias tales in BG) published All Systems Red, the first book in The Murderbot Diaries, through Tor.com on May 2
Ellen Klages (“A Taste of Summer,” BG3) had her second collection Wicked Wonders come out from Tachyon Publications on May 9
James Enge (the Morlock stories) released his latest Kindle volume Iris Descends on January 15.
Derek Kunsken’s debut SF novel The Quantum Magician (“Ocean’s Eleven meets Guardians of the Galaxy“) will be published by Solaris Books in October 2018
Howard Andrew Jones has a brand new Dabir & Asim tale, “The Black Lion,” in the latest issue of Skelos magazine

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Sound the Horns! Swords of Steel III Arrives Next Week

Sound the Horns! Swords of Steel III Arrives Next Week

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Swords-of-Steel-small Swords-of-Steel-II-small Swords-of-Steel III-small

In his review of Swords of Steel II, the second volume in D.M. Ritzlin’s ambitious Sword & Sorcery anthology series, Fletcher Vredenburgh expressed his enthusiastic support for the project.

Metal and S&S have been fist in glove for many a year now. They have the same penchant for extremes — the big gestures not the subtle, small ones. The idea that heavy metal musicians could turn their love for S&S into prose makes perfect sense.

And that’s exactly what D. M. Ritzlin has encouraged, starting with last year’s Swords of Steel, an anthology of heroic fantasy written by members of heavy metal bands. While I gave it a mixed review, I was utterly sold on the idea. The authors’ ardor was undeniable, even overwhelming weaknesses in some of the stories. Each story was illustrated with a work of hand-drawn lo-fi art that harks back to sketches on the backs of D&D character sheets and murals painted on the sides of vans. Flaws be damned, I enjoyed the book and was happy to learn that a second volume was being planned.

Needless to say, we were very pleased to hear that a third volume had been announced. Swords of Steel III, with brand new tales of Sword & Sorcery from eight musicians, new illustrations, and an epic intro from the legendary Mark Shelton (Manilla Road), arrives next week from DMR Books.

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A Nostalgic Space Opera: The Psi-Tech Novels by Jacey Bedford

A Nostalgic Space Opera: The Psi-Tech Novels by Jacey Bedford

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Empire of Dust-small Crossways-small Jacey Bedford Nimbus-small

God bless DAW for being willing to experiment. They published Jacey Bedford’s debut space opera novel Empire of Dust in paperback in 2014, and it has done well enough to spawn two additional volumes: Crossways (2015) and the upcoming Nimbus. [Bedford has also launched the Rowankind fantasy series that currently stands at two novels: Winterwood (2016) and Silverwolf (2017).] I hope all their experiments work out so well for them.

Empire of Dust seems tailor-made to appeal to old-school SF fans. Liz Bourke at Tor.com called it Nostalgic Space Opera, saying:

When I consider how to describe it, the first word that comes to mind is “old-fashioned”: there is little to say this space opera novel could not have been published two decades ago, or even three… Bedford is not writing innovative space opera, but rather the space opera of nostalgia. There is, here, something that reminds me vaguely of James H. Schmitz: not just the psionics but a certain briskness of writing style and the appeal of the protagonists, and the way in which Bedford’s vision of the societies of a human future feels at least two steps behind where we are today. This is a vision of a very Western future, and one where it’s unremarkable for a married woman to bear her husband’s name; where the ecological ethics of colonising “empty” planets don’t rate a paragraph, and religious separatists can set out to found a colony on the tools of 19th century settlers: oxen and wagons, historic crafts and manly men whose wives will follow them on the next boat.

Read Liz’s complete review here.

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io9 on 20 Amazing New SF and Fantasy Books in May

io9 on 20 Amazing New SF and Fantasy Books in May

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Wicked Wonders Ellen Klages-small Thick as Thieves Megan Whalen Turner-small River of Teeth-small

Over at io9, Cheryl Eddy takes a look at 20 of the most intriguing titles arriving this month, including a whole bunch of novels, collections and anthologies we haven’t gotten around to yet. Her list features titles from Robin Hobb, Haruki Murakami, Timothy Zahn, M.R. Carey, Foz Meadows, Martha Wells, Robert Jackson Bennett, Marie Brennan, Kit Reed, and others.

The list includes the latest collection from Black Gate author Ellen Klages, Wicked Wonders.

The author of The Green Glass Sea presents her second short-story collection of “lyrical stories with vintage flair” (topics include: life on Mars, gambling with fairies), with an introduction by Karen Joy Fowler.

Wicked Wonders was published by Tachyon Publications on May 9. It is 240 pages, priced at $15.95 in trade paperback and $9.99 for the digital edition.

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New Treasures: Mars One by Jonathan Maberry

New Treasures: Mars One by Jonathan Maberry

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Mars One Jonathan Maberry-smallWait a minute — didn’t I just write about a new Jonathan Maberry novel last month? As a matter of fact I did — his new Joe Ledger novel, Dogs of War. And here he is again with Mars One, a brand new SF novel about a teen and his family colonizing Mars. You can say one thing about Maberry… the guy clearly doesn’t waste his time resting.

Go on the adventure of a lifetime with a teen and his family after they are selected to colonize Mars in this thrilling new novel from multiple Bram Stoker Award–winning author Jonathan Maberry.

Tristan has known that he and his family were going to be on the first mission to colonize Mars since he was twelve years old, and he has been training ever since. However, knowing that he would be leaving for Mars with no plan to return didn’t stop him from falling in love with Izzy.

But now, at sixteen, it’s time to leave Earth, and he’s forced to face what he must leave behind in exchange for an uncertain future. When the news hits that another ship is already headed to colonize Mars, and the NeoLuddite terrorist group begins threatening the Mars One project, the mission’s purpose is called into question. Is this all worth it?

Our previous coverage of Jonathan Maberry includes:

Deadlands: Ghostwalkers
Dogs of War
Aliens: Bug Hunt edited by Jonathan Maberry
The Top Ten Books I Read in 2016 by Brandon Crilly

Mars One was published by Simon & Schuster on April 4th. It is 435 pages, priced at $17.99 in trade paperback and $10.99 for the digital edition. The cover was designed by Laurent Linn.
See all of our coverage of the best in new fantasy here.

A Tale of Two Covers: Neal Asher’s Infinity Engine

A Tale of Two Covers: Neal Asher’s Infinity Engine

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Neal Asher Infinity Engine-small Neal Asher Infinity Engine UK-small

Last year we talked about War Factory, the second novel in Neal Asher’s Transformation series. So I kept my eye out for the third volume, Infinity Engine, which arrived in hardcover in March.

Infinity Engine was simultaneously published in the US by Night Shade (above left; cover by Adam Burn) and in the UK by Tor (above right, cover by Steve Stone). Over at Worlds in Ink, KJ Mulder expresses his enthusiasm for the US version.

I’m a huge fan of Neal Asher’s work and the covers for his novels are always something special. The covers for Infinity Engine, the conclusion to the Transformation trilogy, [are] no exception. This time round the folks at Night Shade Books have pulled out all the stops for the US edition that simply blows their UK counterpart out of the water. The artwork by Adam Burn is absolutely stunning. I think he might have just dethroned Jon Sullivan as my favourite cover artist.

With all due respect to my South African colleague Mulder, I think he’s way off base here. The Adam Burn’s cover, with its cataclysmic energy and vibrant yellows, is certainly eye-catching. But if these two books were side by side in Barnes & Noble, it would be Steve Stone’s cover, depicting a starship plunging at full speed into the churning, cold blue maelstrom of deep space, that I would reach for.

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2017 Locus Awards Finalists Announced

2017 Locus Awards Finalists Announced

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Babylon’s Ashes James S.A. Corey-small Fellside-by-M-R-Carey-small Vigil Angela Slatter-small

The Locus Awards, voted on by readers in an open online poll, have been presented every year since 1971. (A quarter century before there was such a thing as an online poll. Back in the day, we used to send ballots through the mail. Ask your parents what that means.) The final ballot lists ten finalists in each category, including Science Fiction Novel, Fantasy Novel, Horror Novel, Young Adult Book, First Novel, Novella, Novelette, Short Story, Anthology, Collection, Magazine, Publisher, Editor, Artist, Non-Fiction, and Art Book. The winners will be announced at the Locus Awards Weekend on June 23-25, 2017.

Even if you didn’t vote in the awards, the list of Finalists makes a terrific Recommended Reading list. Jonathan Strahan posted the following on his Facebook feed this morning, and I agree completely.

Here’s a thought, fellow SF readers. Locus has just announced its long list for the Locus Awards. Forget that it’s an awards list for a moment, though. It’s a reading list.

So why not look down the list below for Best First Novel. and try something new? Pick a book from the list below. Buy a copy, borrow a copy, go to the library and grab a copy. Track one down, and try something new…. I can recommend the Lee, Shawl and Slatter books very highly. Some of the others look really interesting.

You can find the complete list of finalists at Locus Online, and last year’s winners here.

New Treasures: The Black Witch by Laurie Forest

New Treasures: The Black Witch by Laurie Forest

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The Black Witch-small The Black Witch-back-small

Is there anything as delightful as a debut fantasy novel that comes out of nowhere and gets rave reviews? (Never mind, it’s a rhetorical question). The latest example to cross my desk is The Black Witch by Laurie Forest, a 600-page fat fantasy that Kirkus calls “A massive page-turner that leaves readers longing for more,” and that Publishers Weekly praises with “Exquisite character work, an elaborate mythology, and a spectacularly rendered universe make this a noteworthy debut.” It arrived in hardcover and digital formats on May 1st.

A new Black Witch will rise… her powers vast beyond imagining.

Elloren Gardner is the granddaughter of the last prophesied Black Witch, Carnissa Gardner, who drove back the enemy forces and saved the Gardnerian people during the Realm War. But while she is the absolute spitting image of her famous grandmother, Elloren is utterly devoid of power in a society that prizes magical ability above all else.

When she is granted the opportunity to pursue her lifelong dream of becoming an apothecary, Elloren joins her brothers at the prestigious Verpax University to embrace a destiny of her own, free from the shadow of her grandmother’s legacy. But she soon realizes that the university, which admits all manner of people — including the fire-wielding, winged Icarals, the sworn enemies of all Gardnerians — is a treacherous place for the granddaughter of the Black Witch.

As evil looms on the horizon and the pressure to live up to her heritage builds, everything Elloren thought she knew will be challenged and torn away. Her best hope of survival may be among the most unlikely band of misfits… if only she can find the courage to trust those she’s been taught to hate and fear.

The Black Witch was published by Harlequin Teen on May 1, 2017. It is 601 pages, priced at $19.99 in hardcover and $9.99 for the digital edition. The cover was designed by Mary Luna. Read an excerpt at Entertainment Weekly.