For Your Viewing Pleasure: Gardens of the Sun

Gardens of the Sun© Paul McAuley

Cover Illustration © Sparth
Design by Jacqueline Cooke

The Quiet War is over. The city states of the moons of Jupiter and Saturn have fallen to the Three Powers Alliance of Greater Brazil, the European Union and the Pacific Community. A century of enlightenment, rational utopianism and exploration of new ways of being human has fallen dark. Outers are herded into prison camps and forced to collaborate in the systematic plundering of their great archives of scientific and technical knowledge, while Earth's forces loot their cities, settlements and ships, and plan a final solution to the 'Outer problem'. But Earth's victory is fragile, and riven by vicious internal politics. While seeking out and trying to anatomise the strange gardens abandoned in place by Avernus, the Outers' greatest genius, the gene wizard Sri Hong-Owen is embroiled in the plots and counterplots of the family that employs her. The diplomat Loc Ifrahim soon discovers that profiting from victory isn't as easy as he thought. And in Greater Brazil, the Outers' democratic traditions have infected a population eager to escape the tyranny of the great families who rule them. After a conflict fought to contain the expansionist, posthuman ambitions of the Outers, the future is as uncertain as ever. Only one thing is clear. No one can escape the consequences of war - especially the victors. 

Kristine Kathryn Rusch signing at North by Northwest Books and Antiques

COME MEET  KRISTINE KATHRYN RUSCH

LINCOLN CITY’S

BEST KNOWN AUTHOR OF SCIENCE FICTION & MYSTERY

SATURDAY NOV. 21TH

AT 12.00 PM.
KRISTINE
WILL BE READING AND SIGNING
DIVING INTO THE WRECK

THE FIRST BOOK IN A WONDERFUL NEW SCIENCE FICTION SERIES.

STANDS UP TO THE BEST OF ASIMOV AND HEINLEIN

MEET “BOSS”, ONE OF THE BEST SCIENCE FICTION CHARACTERS SINCE LAZARUS LONG

Tense and gripping.... The endlessly enjoyable terror of dark, alien, empty spaces brimming with unknowable danger and impenetrable mystery should keep fans of the genre hooked

North by Northwest Books and Antiques

6334 S.HWY 101 #9
STREET CAR VILLAGE
LINCOLN CITY, OR 97367
541-994-6809
mcarthurca@earthlink.net


REFRESHMENTS WILL BE SERVED
SINK YOUR TEETH INTO SHIPWRECK COOKIES

Publishing 2.0: What Would Apple Do?

Publishing 2.0. What Would Apple Do?

View more documents from Freek Bijl.

Sasha: Are We Seeing a Common Theme Here?

"...quite engrossing... this heroic fantasy should please fans of, say, George R. R. Martin’s Song of Ice and Fire novels." Booklist

"Shepherd has created a court fantasy similar to George R. R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire....a good epic fantasy that focuses more on the epic than the fantasy. Sashais excellent reading for fans of character driven stories. I recommend it." Grasping for the Wind

"Sasha was excellent, especially given that this is Joel Shepherd’s first fantasy novel. It offers a huge fantasy world, a fascinating heroine, heart-pounding descriptions of both small-scale sword fights and full-on warfare, several characters that genuinely grow and change, and — maybe most importantly — the hint that this is just the start of what could become a great series. While I wouldn't rank it quite as high as George R.R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire, I think Sasha will go down very well with fans of that series because it shares some of its characteristics, including its huge scope and cast, its focus on politics and noble intrigue, and (at least in the early novels of ASoIaF) the almost complete absence of magic and mystical creatures. " Fantasy Literature

A Brief History of Lenayin

I've written a post on my blog about the world building that went into the land of Lenayin, from my novel 'Sasha'. Rather than posting the whole thing here, I've put in a link, and an excerpt.

'I can’t think of many fantasy novels where the people live beneath the rule of a king, but are ambivalent toward him and his authority. Because fantasy novels tend to be in love with the power of kings, and in love with the feudal system that sustains it... and sure, there is a lot of romance surrounding a position of such extreme authority. But the reality of such systems, of course, is that much of what we perceive as romance from that period of European history (picture glamorous king in crimson cloak on prancing white steed), was in fact propaganda by those kings who wanted to make themselves look good, and semi-divine, for obvious reasons.

Though power itself can be glamorous, much of the romance surrounding that power was in reality bullshit, and much of the manner in which kings actually ruled was cruel, arbitrary and unenlightened, to put it mildly. A good king could certainly be better than a bad king, but the system itself doesn’t allow much of what we would consider today ‘liberal open mindedness’ -- you’re either loyal, or you’re dead, and that applies to those living beneath good kings and bad kings alike. George RR Martin is one fantasy author who grasps this extremely well in ‘A Song of Ice and Fire’. But a lot of fantasy, sadly I think, tends to swallow the propaganda whole, because the propaganda is pretty. Perhaps this just goes to illustrate that there is a statue of limitations on the offense caused by nasty political systems. Fantasy writers glorifying Nazism would get into trouble. Feudalism, not so much.

And yes, I am just stirring.

Tom Lloyd and James Enge Podcasts

Tom Lloyd, author of The Grave Thief,is the latest guest on the Dragon Page Cover to Cover podcast, episode #379A. Tom talks about the politics and religion of his fantasy quintet, as well as what it's like to begin your writing career with such a mammoth undertaking. The pocast is on iTunes and also has a direct link.

Meanwhile, This Crooked Wayauthor James Enge is interviewed on The Sci-Fi Guys Book Review. Enge talks about Morlock's origins in Tolkien and HG Wells, and his dislike of elves. This one isn't on iTunes that I can find, but has a direct link.

PRESS RELEASE –TWO-BOOK US RIGHTS DEAL FOR BRITISH NOVELIST

From the press release:

Helen Edwards, Rights Director at Transworld UK, has sold US rights in two historical vampire novels by UK novelist Jasper Kent for a good five-figure sum in US dollars.

World rights in the novels, which open with Jasper’s debut TWELVE, published very successfully in the UK by Transworld in January 2009 (it is the second-highest-selling trade paperback debut novel right across UK publishing in 2009), were acquired by Simon Taylor from John Jarrold in 2008. The sequel, THIRTEEN YEARS LATER, will appear in the UK in March 2010.

‘I'm thrilled to be welcoming Jasper Kent into the Pyr fold,’ says editorial director Lou Anders. ‘TWELVE is a magnificent blend of a historical novel and a dark fantasy novel, that could appeal equally to readers both in and out of genre. Jasper is a skilled storyteller, whose compelling prose had me hooked from his opening chapter. The book is "un-put-downable," and I love that he has brought back a real sense of threat and danger to the classic monsters, something that has been lacking with too many vampires lately. I cannot wait to spring this on US readers.’

‘Jasper and I are delighted with this deal, and looking forward to working with Lou and his colleagues,’ said John Jarrold. ‘Pyr is a terrific company, who publish many of my favourite authors, and Lou’s enthusiasm has to be seen to be believed!’

Contact Helen Edwards or John Jarrold for further information:

Helen Edwards: e-mail: H.Edwards@transworld-publishers.co.uk phone: 020 8579 3652

John Jarrold: e-mail: j.jarrold@btinternet.com phone: 01522 510544.

29th October 2009