Black Gate – Page 605 – Adventures in Fantasy Literature

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

Friday, September 23, 2016 John ONeill Comments 13 comments

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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.”

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Peadar and The Call: Behind the Scenes

Friday, September 23, 2016 Managing Editor Howard Andrew Jones Comments 1 comment

A few weeks ago I read, nay, inhaled Peadar O’Guilin’s The Call. Peadar and I are friends and fans of each other’s work, but I went into this one not having a clue about what it was. I knew the manuscript was YA, and had elements of horror.

What I discovered was a novel absolutely deserving of the hype it has received — a dystopian YA story about a fractured society, with heroic teenaged protagonists who are realistic AND don’t whine. There are moments of chilling otherworldly horror owing to the frequent presence of the fae folk, the force behind the terrible situation facing these Irish children. And there’s excellent pacing and characterization, and growth…

But this isn’t a review, it’s an interview. After devouring the novel I naturally had questions about how it was composed, and since I knew Peadar I asked him if I could take those questions and his answers public. I did my best to avoid spoilers, although there might be mild ones ahead.

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September 2016 Asimov’s Science Fiction Now on Sale

Friday, September 23, 2016 John ONeill Comments 6 comments

The 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.”

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Goth Chick News: Midnight Syndicate Releases Zombies!!! Board Game Soundtrack

Thursday, September 22, 2016 Sue Granquist Comments 2 comments

Oh be still my little black heart…

Award-winning composers, dark music pioneers and my goth-boy-band crush, Midnight Syndicate has released the Zombies!!! Official Board Game Soundtrack. The new release features Midnight Syndicate’s signature, sultry blend of sound effects and instrumental music set in the modern day, post-zombie apocalypse world of the Zombies!!! board game.

Darkly brooding front man Edward Douglas explains;

We wanted to design a soundtrack that would not only heighten the Zombies!!! game play experience, but also appeal to all fans of zombies and our friends in the haunted attraction industry. I think we were able to achieve that.

Given the character and core elements of the game, I think we immediately felt this album should focus on having a more modern, aggressive sound. In order to achieve that, we brought in a lot of electronic and percussive instruments and kept the fundamental game scenarios firmly in mind, approaching it more as an actual soundtrack than as a collection of songs built around a particular theme or setting. While there are a few tracks that are more situation or location-specific, most are intended to evoke the general feel and atmosphere of the game world, allowing you to play along without interruption.

“The soundtrack is a perfect complement to the game,” added Twilight Creations co-founder, Kerry Breitenstein. “I couldn’t be more excited for the Zombies!!! fans to hear it, let alone the rest of the world!”

Picking up this album is a no-brainer… get it? Zombies? “No brainer”?

Never mind…

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

Thursday, September 22, 2016 John ONeill Comments 5 comments

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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.

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

Thursday, September 22, 2016 John ONeill Comments 2 comments

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.

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

Wednesday, September 21, 2016 John ONeill Comments 0 Comment

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.

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Exploring Historic Cádiz

Wednesday, September 21, 2016 Sean McLachlan Comments 0 Comment

The Santa Cueva Oratory in Cádiz was finished in 1796
and is one of the best examples of its kind. It features some
unusually bright and cheery paintings by Francisco de Goya

A couple of weeks ago, I wrote about Phoenician and Roman Cádiz, the early history of one of the oldest continually inhabited cities in Europe, on the southwestern coast of Spain near the Strait of Gibraltar. While Cádiz was important throughout its history, its sheltered harbor on the Atlantic made it a good spot for launching the many exploratory vessels that Spain sent out into the world starting in the late 15th century. Columbus made his second and fourth voyages to America from Cádiz, and some of the tropical plants growing in the city squares are said to be descendants of samples he brought home.

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

Wednesday, September 21, 2016 John ONeill Comments 0 Comment

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.

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New Treasures: The Dev Harmer Mission Series by James Lovegrove

Tuesday, September 20, 2016 John ONeill Comments 3 comments

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.

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