Category: Release

Ian McDonald’s LUNA PIENA available now in Italy!

Posted on Wednesday, February 20th, 2019

The second novel in Ian McDonald‘s critically-acclaimed Luna series, WOLF MOON, is out now in Italy! Published by Urania as LUNA PIENA, here’s the synopsis…

Un Drago è morto. Corta Helio, una delle cinque corporazioni familiari che governano la Luna, è caduta. Le sue ricchezze sono state suddivise tra i molti nemici, e i pochi sopravvissuti sono dispersi. Dopo un anno e mezzo i figli di Helio, Lucasinho e Luna, sono sotto la protezione dei potenti Asamoah, mentre Robson, ancora sconvolto per la morte dei genitori, è praticamente un ostaggio della Mackenzie Metals. E l’ultimo erede legittimo, Lucas, è scomparso dalla superficie del satellite. In un difficile ambiente lunare, la mutevole lealtà e le macchinazioni politiche delle famiglie raggiungono il punto di rottura mentre scoppia la guerra vera e propria.

Luna: Wolf Moon continua la saga dei “Cinque Draghi” di Ian McDonald.

Urania has also publish the first in the series in Italy as LUNA NUOVA.

The Luna series — NEW MOON, WOLF MOON, and the upcoming MOON RISING — is published in the UK by Gollancz and in North America by Tor Books. It has also been published widely in translation. Here’s the English-language synopsis for WOLF MOON…

Corta Helio, one of the five family corporations that rule the Moon, has fallen. Its riches are divided up among its many enemies, its survivors scattered. Eighteen months have passed.

The remaining Helio children, Lucasinho and Luna, are under the protection of the powerful Asamoahs, while Robson, still reeling from witnessing his parent’s violent deaths, is now a ward — virtually a hostage — of Mackenzie Metals. And the last appointed heir, Lucas, has vanished from the surface of the moon.

Only Lady Sun, dowager of Taiyang, suspects that Lucas Corta is not dead, and — more to the point — that he is still a major player in the game. After all, Lucas always was a schemer, and even in death, he would go to any lengths to take back everything and build a new Corta Helio, more powerful than before. But Corta Helio needs allies, and to find them, the fleeing son undertakes an audacious, impossible journey — to Earth.

In an unstable lunar environment, the shifting loyalties and political machinations of each family reach the zenith of their most fertile plots as outright war between the families erupts.

The Luna series as a whole has been met with an outpouring of praise and critical acclaim. Here is just a small sample of the praise WOLF MOON has received…

‘… powerful sequel… compelling throughout. Each of McDonald’s viewpoint characters is made human in fascinating and occasionally disturbing detail, and the solar system of the 22nd century is wonderfully delineated. Fans of the first volume will love this one and eagerly look forward to the next.’ — Publishers Weekly

‘NEW MOON was one of the most interesting sci-fi novels of 2015, with smart ideas on humanity and economies matched by street smarts, political brawls and murder in the streets. LUNA: WOLF MOON turns that up to eleven – it’s a fascinating story, which is also a tense, enthralling read.’ — Sci-Fi & Fantasy Review

‘The fights and vengeance that follow are more vicious and intricate than anything in Game of Thrones, full of great acts of self-sacrifice and viciousness alike, brave cavalry charges and last stands, cowardice and avarice. McDonald’s great gift is to hold the micro- and macro-scale in his hand at once. Starting with his debut novel, 1988’s Desolation Road, McDonald has used his intense, finely crafted and small personal stories of his vast casts of characters as the pixels in an unimaginably vast display on which he projects some of the field’s most audacious worldbuilding — never worldbuilding for its own sake, either, but always in the service of slyly parodying, critiquing or lionizing elements of our present-day world.’ — Boing Boing

‘A Howling Good Read… No one builds a world like Ian McDonald does. Piece by piece and brick by brick. Spare, simple, elegant when he needs to be…, deep and meaty when he wants to be…, he does his work like an artisan pulling a sculpture from stone. There are no wasted moves, nothing that isn’t vital because, in the end, everything is vital. Everything matters… it is fascinating, all of it. Because McDonald has made a world that is ruthless in its consistency and living, breathing reality, and then made characters who are not just living in it, but wholly and fully of it… McDonald’s corporate war is a gorgeous thing, fought with every tool available… McDonald is able to wrap the biggest events in constellations of the smallest so that a cocktail party here, a discussion of ’80s retro fashion (all mall-hair and WHAM! T-shirts), a love story and a day at work for a guy who cleans solar panels all build and coalesce to form the background radiation of life in this unstable future. Every moment with his characters makes them precious, real and alive.’ — NPR

‘Luna: New Moon was a “magnificent bastard of a book,” as I put it in my review. Part two, it’s my pleasure to tell you, is just as awesome, and just as masterfully nasty.’ — Tor.com

What does HOMUNCULUS look like in Russia?

Posted on Monday, February 18th, 2019

Above you can see the cover for a new Russian edition of James P. Blaylock‘s critically-acclaimed, Philip K. Dick Award-winning, classic steampunk novel HOMUNCULUS! The first novel in the author’s Langdon St. Ives series, it is published by Аркадия as Гомункул. Here’s the synopsis…

Викторианская эпоха, затянутые туманами улицы Лондона. В тусклом небе проплывает ведомый скелетом в истлевшем костюме загадочный аэростат. Ужасные тайны, скрытые на его борту, силятся раскрыть сбитые с толку члены Королевской академии наук, корыстный проповедник Армагеддона, изувер-вивисектор с обезумевшим подручным, лишенный совести миллионер и… пестрая компания поборников истины, ведомая ученым-изобретателем Лэнгдоном Сент-Ивом. Сумеет ли «существо из бутылки», в незапамятные времена прибывшее на Землю, уберечься от хищных лап злодеев?

HOMUNCULUS and the other novels in the series are published in the UK and US by Titan Books (covers at the end). Here’s the English-language synopsis…

It is the late 19th century and a mysterious airship orbits through the foggy skies. Its terrible secrets are sought by many, including the Royal Society, a fraudulent evangelist, a fiendish vivisectionist, an evil millionaire and an assorted group led by the scientist and explorer Professor Langdon St. Ives. Can St. Ives keep the alien homunculus out of the claws of the villainous Ignacio Narbondo?

 

Here’s some of the aforementioned critical acclaim that HOMUNCULUS has received…

‘… the fastest, funniest, and most colorful and grotesquely horrifying novel that could ever be written about Victorian London.’ — Tim Powers

‘… every page is crammed with evidence of Blaylock’s feverishly Gothic imagination. Think Charles Dickens by way of Mervyn Peake and M. John Harrison, and you’ll have some notion of what’s in store. The wheels of the plot spin manically fast, but at the same time the weight of description makes everything feel as if it’s happening in slow motion. That might sound like a criticism, but the effect is strangely impressive and nightmarish. A steampunk Titus Groan.’ — Starburst

‘I absolutely love this book. I picked it up and, although I was initially a little sceptical of the idea of a ghostly airship, I soon became completely absorbed into the deep and exciting story… easy to read as a stand alone novel and due to this fact, even though I haven’t read the prequel book I could easily keep up with the wide variety of characters and plot lines… Imagery is used once more, to blow any reader’s mind completely out of their perceived realms of possibility. I couldn’t help but fall in love with the portrait of London that Blaylock has once again moulded with terrific use of words. I am now used to zoning out of the real world and into the fantasy world of Professor St.Ives, as this seems to happen whenever I pick up one of Blaylock’s novels…  be prepared to be lost in the wonderful world of Langdon St.Ives.’ — Nerd Cabinet

‘I found HOMUNCULUS entertaining, with its cast of Victorian characters and ingenious contraptions making me smile. It’s a book that makes you cheer for the good guys and will give your imagination a great workout.’ — SF Crowsnest

APOCALYPSE out NOW NOW (again) in the UK!

Posted on Tuesday, February 12th, 2019

Charlie Human‘s critically-acclaimed debut novel, APOCALYPSE NOW NOW, is available again in the UK! Published in eBook by JABberwocky, here’s the synopsis…

Baxter Zevcenko is your average 16-year-old boy. If by average you mean kingpin of a porn-peddling schoolyard syndicate and a possible serial killer who suffers from weird historical dreams.

Baxter is the first to admit that he’s not a nice guy. After all, high school is a gaping, icy abyss and Baxter is not about to allow anybody to drag him down. That is until his girlfriend, Esme, is kidnapped and the clues point toward supernatural forces at work. Faced with navigating the increasingly bizarre landscape of Cape Town’s supernatural underworld, Baxter turns to the only person drunk enough to help: bearded, booze-soaked, supernatural bounty hunter, Jackson “Jackie” Ronin.

On a mission that takes them through the realms of impossibility, they face every conceivable nightmare to rescue Esmé, including the odd brush with the Apocalypse.

The sequel, KILL BAXTER, will be available again soon as well — we’ll share the cover, etc., as soon as we have it. Both Baxter Zevcenko novels are available in the US, published by Titan Books.

Here is just a small selection of the aforementioned critical-acclaim heaped on APOCALYPSE NOW NOW…

‘It’s mad, dark, irreverent and wonderfully twisted in all the right ways.’ — Lauren Beukes, author of The Shining Girls

‘I don’t even know how to describe reading this book, so just look at my wide eyes and my silently mumbling mouth and take my shell-shock as a good sign that you need to read this book right now.’ — Chuck Wendig, author of Blackbirds

‘With a wild imagination and savage glee, Charlie Human throws us into a school yard battle zone that’s part teenage wasteland, part Lovecraft fever dream. Rock and Roll High School meets the apocalypse.’ — Richard Kadrey, author of Sandman Slim

‘Brilliantly entertaining.’ — British Fantasy Society

‘… a riot — a firebomb of a novel, exploding with sick humour, violence and depravity… it’s never less than very funny, and the ongoing question of Baxter’s sanity adds a degree of mystery. There’s warmth here, too – you’ll likely feel sympathy for Bax by the end.’ — SFX Magazine

‘APOCALYPSE NOW NOW is the gloriously twisted novel from writer Charlie Human. Imaginative, slightly demented and wonderfully odd, it’s a striking debut that delivers a dark monster-filled tale at a frenetically enjoyable pace… the voice of the main protagonist prevents the madness from taking control. His intelligent quips and cocky smart-arse attitude provides an incredibly entertaining backbone to a story that slowly reveals his heart and his struggles to grasp the world around him… If you want the dark imaginative wonder of Gaiman injected with the reckless, carefree abandon of a Tarantino flick, you’d be a fool not to hitch a ride into the mysterious world of Charlie Human’s South Africa.’ — Starburst

‘Think Lauren Beukes meets Neil Gaiman, with bounty hunters.’ — Wired (UK)

‘… wonderfully detailed scenarios, it’s fantastic… APOCALYPSE NOW NOW is often hilarious and tremendous fun… its target audience will have a blast.’ — SciFi Now

‘… breakneck pace and mad imagination… APOCALYPSE NOW NOW [is] such an addictive experience. As one of an associate of Ronin’s remarks: “There’s no pause button, you understand? … Once it starts you have to see it through.” All too true!’ — Tor.com

Algis Burdys’s classic ROGUE MOON is available as a Special Edition!

Posted on Tuesday, February 5th, 2019

ROGUE MOON by Algis Budrys is a classic, beloved science fiction novel from one of the masters of the genre. Recently, Easton Press release the novel as part of a four-volume set of Moon-based fiction, “The Dark Side of the Moon”. Each of the books in the set is gorgeously produced, bound in genuine leather, and has sumptuous interior design. Here’s just one example from ROGUE MOON…

ROGUE MOON is also available as an eBook, published by Gollancz’s SF Gateway in the UK and Open Road Media in the US. Both publishers also publish a number of Budrys’s other classic novels. Here’s the novel’s synopsis…

A Hugo Award Finalist: Humanity struggles to understand a killing labyrinth discovered on the Moon in this science fiction adventure about death and rebirth

A monstrous apparatus has been found on the surface of the moon. It devours and destroys in ways so incomprehensible to humans that a new language has to be invented to describe it and a new kind of thinking to understand it. So far, the human guinea pigs sent there in hopes of unraveling the murderous maze have all died terrible deaths. The most recent volunteer survived but is now on suicide watch. The ideal candidate won’t go insane even as he feels the end approaching. Al Barker has already stared into the face of death; he can handle it again. But he won’t merely endure the trauma of dying. Barker will die over and over — even as his human qualities are preserved on Earth.

With its cast of fascinating characters — like brilliant scientist Edward Hawks, who is obsessed with rebirth — Rogue Moon is a rare thriller that doesn’t just make you sweat. It makes you think.

Zeno represents Algis Budrys on behalf of the Budrys Estate.

Anne Griffin’s WHEN ALL IS SAID is a #1 Bestseller!

Posted on Monday, February 4th, 2019

We’re very happy to report that, after a spectacular first week, Anne Griffin‘s superb debut novel, WHEN ALL IS SAID, is the #1 bestseller in Ireland! Congratulations Anne! Absolutely deserved success.

Specifics can be found here, but we wanted to share this bit from the article…

This week’s featured book is brand new out and has gone straight to the top of the chart in just two days. When All is Said by Anne Griffin (what a lovely cover!) is proving to be immensely popular and is storming miles ahead of The Tattooist of Auschwitz with almost 2000 sales since release and glowing reviews from big names like John Boyne, Donal Ryan and Graham Norton, to name just a few.

The novel is out now, published in the UK and Ireland by Sceptre. Here’s the synopsis…

Five toasts. Five people. One lifetime.

‘I’m here to remember — all that I have been and all that I will never be again.’

At the bar of a grand hotel in a small Irish town sits 84-year-old Maurice Hannigan. He’s alone, as usual — though tonight is anything but. Pull up a stool and charge your glass, because Maurice is finally ready to tell his story.

Over the course of this evening, he will raise five toasts to the five people who have meant the most to him. Through these stories — of unspoken joy and regret, a secret tragedy kept hidden, a fierce love that never found its voice — the life of one man will be powerfully and poignantly laid bare.

Heart-breaking and heart-warming all at once, the voice of Maurice Hannigan will stay with you long after all is said.

WHEN ALL IS SAID is due to be published in the US by Thomas Dunne Books/St. Martin’s Press, in March (cover below). The novel has received an outpouring of love since review copies were sent out, and even more from readers and reviewers since its UK release. Here is just a small selection of praise…

‘A book to savour, and pass on. An absolute joy’ — Sunday Mirror

‘This is how you tell a story’ — Cecelia Ahern

‘Beautifully written, unhurried and thoughtful, and a character you love from the off’ — Kit de Waal

‘Anne Griffin has fashioned a rare jewel’ — John Banville

‘Masterful storytelling’ — Graham Norton

‘[An] impressively confident debut… Maurice Hannigan emerges as an engaging, compassionate creation’ — Guardian

‘Warning: it is impossible to read the last chapter of this book without weeping copious tears… an ingenious narrative… Maurice’s toast to his late wife that will leave you reeling though. Here is a man who deeply loved a woman but just didn’t know how to show it (often held back by his own parsimony), stifling her in the process until one day she rebels in the smallest but most moving of ways. When you read that page, you might want to get the tissues at the ready…’ — Stylist

‘Pitch-perfect prose… Moving and beautifully written, this is a wonderfully assured debut.’ — Mail on Sunday

‘It’s all beautifully done; a tale told in the plain but poetic prose of a man who recognises the tragic truths gleaned from a life of love and loss. A gem of a book.’ 5* — Sunday Express

‘A proper tear-jerker, but one that will ultimately leave you feeling hopeful.’ — Grazia

‘A beautifully written, perfectly paced, heartfelt novel.’ — Saga Magazine

If you’d like to hear Anne talk about the novel, she was interviewed for BBC Radio’s Front Row, which you can listen to here.

CHRONICLES OF AMBER Gold Edition eBook now available in Germany!

Posted on Friday, February 1st, 2019

Die Hobbit Presse, an imprint of Klett-Cotta, publishes today an omnibus eBook containing the first five books in Roger Zelazny‘s classic Chronicles of Amber fantasy series. Here’s the synopsis…

Die Hobbit Presse Gold Edition umfasst alle fünf Teile der »Chroniken von Amber« von Roger Zelazny und gibt einen Einblick in die Machenschaften und Intrigen des Königshauses von Amber. Die Limited Edition mit mehr als 1300 Seiten ist nur für begrenzte Zeit lieferbar.

Als Corwin nach einem Autounfall in einer Klinik in New York aufwacht, kann er sich an nichts erinnern. Schnell findet er heraus, dass er eigentlich Mitglied der großen Königsfamilie von Amber ist. Corwin setzt alles daran, nach Amber zurückzukehren. Dabei lernt er, dass die Erde Teil der Schattenwelten ist und nur Nachfahren der Königsfamilie zwischen den Welten der Erde und Amber hin und her reisen können. In Amber selbst bereitet sich alles auf einen Krieg vor, denn König Oberon, Corwins Vater, ist verschwunden und der Thron verwaist. Corwins Bruder Eric will um jeden Preis die Macht über Amber erlangen, doch auch seine anderen Geschwister haben dasselbe Ziel. Der fesselnde Kampf um die Thronfolge, voller Intrigen und Hass, wird über die Zukunft von Amber und der Geschwister entscheiden.

Dieses E-Book enthält:

– Die neun Prinzen von Amber
– Die Gewehre von Avalon
– Im Zeichen des Einhorns
– Die Hand Oberons
– Die Burgen des Chaos

Die Hobbit Presse has also published the first five novels in the series individually in print and eBook.

The first novel in the series, NINE PRINCES IN AMBER, was first published in 1970. Here’s the English-language synopsis…

Awakening in an Earth hospital unable to remember who he is or where he came from, Corwin is amazed to learn that he is one of the sons of Oberon, King of Amber, and is the rightful successor to the crown in a parallel world.

Amber, the one real world, wherein all others, including our own Earth, are but Shadows. Amber burns in Corwin’s blood. Exiled on Shadow Earth for centuries, the prince is about to return to Amber to make a mad and desperate rush upon the throne.

From Arden to the blood-slippery Stairway into the Sea, the air is electrified with the powers of Eric, Random, Bleys, Caine, and all the princes of Amber whom Corwin must overcome. Yet, his savage path is blocked and guarded by eerie structures beyond imagining; impossible realities forged by demonic assassins and staggering horrors to challenge the might of Corwin’s superhuman fury.

Zeno represents Roger Zelazny in Translation, on behalf of the Zelazny Estate.

黒き微睡みの囚人: Lavie Tidhar’s award-winning A MAN LIES DREAMING out now in Japan!

Posted on Thursday, January 31st, 2019

Lavie Tidhar‘s award-winning, critically-acclaimed novel A MAN LIES DREAMING is out today in Japan! Published by 竹書房 (Takeshobo) as 黒き微睡みの囚人, here’s the synopsis…

私立探偵ウルフ。ドイツで総統になるはずだった男。
作家ショーマー。アウシュヴィッツで総統の夢を見る男。

かつてウルフはドイツで有力な政治家だった。
しかし、“大転落”と呼ばれる政変が起こり、
権力を失った彼は、ロンドンに逃れ私立探偵をしていた。
ユダヤ人嫌いのウルフだが、金のためにユダヤ人女性の行方を探すことになり、
さらに娼婦連続殺人事件にも巻き込まれてしまう。
そして調査を進めるうちにウルフは
元同志たちが暗躍するイギリスの暗部へと足を踏み入れる。

時間と場所を隔てた別の世界。
アウシュヴィッツで、作家が夢を見ていた。
自分から、ユダヤ人から、すべてを奪ったあの男の夢を。
夢の中では男は私立探偵をしていた――。

ひとから想像力を奪うことはできない。
だが、すべてを奪われ想像力だけが残されたとき、それはひとに何をもたらすのか。
ホロコーストを新たな視点で描いた、歴史改変奇想ノワール。

A MAN LIES DREAMING, which won the Jerwood Fiction Uncovered Award, is published in the UK by Hodder (where it is currently on sale in eBook), and in the US by Melville House. The novel has also been published in a number of translated editions. Here’s the English-language synopsis…

Deep in the heart of history’s most infamous concentration camp, a man lies dreaming. His name is Shomer, and before the war he was a pulp fiction author. Now, to escape the brutal reality of life in Auschwitz, Shomer spends his nights imagining another world – a world where a disgraced former dictator now known only as Wolf ekes out a miserable existence as a low-rent PI in London’s grimiest streets.

Here, too, is just a small selection of the critical acclaim the novel has received since it was first published in 2014…

‘Wild, noir-infused alternative history from genre-bender Tidhar… A wholly original Holocaust story: as outlandish as it is poignant.’ — Kirkus (Starred Review)

‘Set during the election of a demagogue who battens on the fears of an underemployed populace threatened by thousands of foreign-born refugees, A MAN LIES DREAMING feels disturbingly prescient. Tidhar holds up a mirror not just to Wolf, but to ourselves. In doing so, he reminds us that even — especially — under the most terrible of circumstances, stories are all we have. And in the right hands, they can be a formidable weapon.’ — Washington Post

‘This is a shocking book as well as a rather brilliant one… Tidhar’s novel treats its grim theme not as a comedy, although there is plenty of caustic humour, but instead as a pulp-noir tale of seamy city streets, gumshoes and lowlifes… Tidhar gets the outre tone just right… Tidhar, who cut his teeth in the world of genre SF, understands how eloquent pulp can be… Like Tarantino, Tidhar may find that some people don’t take him seriously. But the joke’s on them. Seriousness is the least of it: A MAN LIES DREAMING is a twisted masterpiece.’ — Guardian

‘Everything in this genre-bender works; intriguing historical characters are worked into expertly managed plots, and the visceral noir atmosphere is juxtaposed nicely against the drawing-room world of London’s political scene.’ — Booklist (Starred Review)

‘A Chandler-esque mystery… a jarring tale of a grim, gray alternative world… Seldom will readers come across fantasy as well conceived and well written as this exceptional novel.’ — Library Journal (Starred Review)

‘…savagely funny… A MAN LIES DREAMING, by the Israeli-born novelist Lavie Tidhar, has not been published with the fanfare bestowed on Martin Amis’s The Zone of Interest or Howard Jacobson’s J, but it is their equal for savage humour… Those who enjoy laughter in the dark will relish Tidhar’s parade of mordant ironies… This novel is weird, upsetting, unmissable.’ 5* — Telegraph

‘When Tidhar writes of the Holocaust it is with brutal accuracy and a deep sensitivity… it’s poetic and terrible… Many will find elements of this story deeply disturbing, not the least of which is a possible sympathy to Wolf… To top it all of course is Tidhar’s voice itself — at times humorous, at times grim but never frivolous and always taught and controlled… As with his previous novels, Tidhar knows how to say a great deal in very little. There is eloquence and gravitas in the sparseness and brevity of noir fiction when it is good, and Tidhar’s is quite incredible.’ — Tor.com

‘No one can accuse Lavie Tidhar of being risk-averse… Tidhar reveals – as he did earlier in OSAMA and to some extent in THE VIOLENT CENTURY – that he’s really less interested in the mechanistic ‘‘what-ifs’’ of conventional alternate history than he is in the interpenetration of real and in­vented histories, or perhaps more grandiosely in the interpenetration of art and life – even the often-demeaned art of sensational fiction or (as in the case of THE VIOLENT CENTURY) comic books. This is what makes him such an interesting writer, and what makes A MAN LIES DREAMING quite a bit more complex than it at first appears… the novel is not without a fair amount of humor, and that might well be the boldest risk Tidhar is taking here…’ — Locus

Lavie’s latest novels are UNHOLY LAND and CENTRAL STATION (published by Tachyon Publications) and his first book for younger readers, CANDY (published by Scholastic).

Read the latest RIVERS OF LONDON Action in digital…

Posted on Wednesday, January 30th, 2019

The fourth (and final) issue in Ben Aaronovitch and Andrew Cartmel‘s latest Rivers of London series, ACTION AT A DISTANCE, is now available in a digital edition! Here’s the series synopsis…

Uncover the secret World War II history of Peter Grant’s mentor, the mysterious Nightingale!

October, 1957. A serial killer terrorising the women of Cumbria has moved to the streets of London, with Constable Angus Strallen hot on his heels. But this murderer has special abilities, and Strallen soon realises he needs the help of an old friend from the front lines who can match this madman’s power – London’s own wizarding police officer, Thomas Nightingale. As the pair move in closer, it quickly becomes clear that murder is not this man’s only intent.

The artwork for the ACTION AT A DISTANCE comics are by Brian Williamson (art) and Stefani Renne (colours).

All of the Rivers of London comics to date have been published by Titan Comics. ACTION AT A DISTANCE is the seventh story arc, following BODY WORK, NIGHT WITCH, BLACK MOULD, DETECTIVE STORIES, CRY FOX and WATER WEED (all of which are now available as collected print and digital editions).

Tomorrow, Italian readers can enter — *horrified gasp* — the City Without Chocolate!

Posted on Monday, January 28th, 2019

Tomorrow, Mondadori publishes the Italian edition of Lavie Tidhar‘s first novel for young readers, CANDY! Published in Italy as LA CITTÀ SENZA CIOCCOLATO, here’s the synopsis…

Come si può vivere in una città in cui i dolci sono proibiti? Questo è il mistero che aleggia sulla vita di Nelle Faulkner, abile investigatrice privata dodicenne costretta a rispettare la legge del rampante sindaco Thornton, amico delle carote e nemico delle carie. Ma ci sono segreti ben più oscuri di cui Nelle deve occuparsi: un pomeriggio nel suo sgangherato ufficio arriva Eddie De Menthe, dodici anni e mezzo e fama da trafficante di dolci, per chiederle di indagare su un furto. Dopo poco però anche Eddie scompare nel nulla, proprio mentre i suoi rivali, Frittella Ratchet e Wafer McKenzie, si contendono il controllo del contrabbando di dolci. Intanto un nemico ben più pericoloso e potente incombe sulla città, pronto a addentare Nelle e i suoi amici come la più squisita tavoletta di cioccolato. Quanta astuzia servirà per non farsi inghiottire in un solo boccone?

CANDY is published in the UK by Scholastic, and is also available in France, Germany and Czechia (there are more translated editions on the way, and we’ll share covers and other details as soon as we have them).

Here are just a few of the reviews CANDY has received so far…

‘A perfectly pitched noir take on Charlie and the Chocolate Factory… delightful premise… as with Tidhar’s earlier work, his playful approach to genre is in service to the story’s hidden depths. He uses the trappings of noir detective tales to tell a subversive children’s story about corruption, the exploitation of vulnerable communities, and the limits of justice. The end result is a novel that for all its joyous sense of fun still packs a surprising emotional and philosophical punch…’ — Fantasy Faction

‘Due to the wonderfully fluent writing style, the pleasantly short chapters and the rousing plot, I devoured the book in record time. For girls and boys from the age of 10, who like to read exciting, funny, imaginative detective stories, “Secret Agent Candy” is just perfect. I really hope that this is a start of a series and we will soon be able to solve their second, tricky case together with Nelle… Exciting, funny, bizarre and just awesome!’ — Die Bücherwelt von CorniHolmes (Germany)

‘Delicious pastiche of “noir” fiction from SF author Lavie Tidhar, set in a city where everything sweet and sugary is banned. Private eye Nelle searches for a lost teddy bear and uncovers a Chinatown-style conspiracy. You could think of it as The Malteser Falcon, or perhaps Double Inde-mint-y.’ — Financial Times (Summer Books of 2018)

‘Candy is one of those books that do not take children and teenagers for fools. The story is able to change shifts, thanks to lot of humour, to more serious subjects. Of course, we can enjoy it at any age. If possible, the book should be served in place of dessert.’ — Geektest (France)

‘… original, highly-enjoyable and tempting twist on what happens when the town suffers from the symptoms of sugar withdrawal… Mark Beech’s joyful illustrations add tastes of humour, quirk and life to complement Lavie’s brilliant and charismatic characters; infused with an infectious influence of the collaboration between Dahl and Blake. Like a mini Miss Marple meets Maynards… this mouthful of mystery will leave every reader feeling like a child in a sweetshop; just craving to read more from Lavie!’ — The Reader Teacher

‘CANDY is the case when a children’s book can actually be interesting at any age. Children will appreciate the plot and humour, adults – a lot of references scattered throughout the text and how unexpectedly and funny elements of the classic “cool” and noir detective story are refracted, if you put them in the context of a children’s literature. Fun, playful and exciting.’ — Fantalab (Russia)

‘Written in the style of the hard-boiled American detective fiction of the 1940s, this is a juggernaut of a tale with plenty of twists and turns. A challenging read for ages 10+ who enjoy suspense coupled with a dry sense of humour.’ — West Sussex Schools Library Service

Anne Griffin’s highly-anticipated debut, WHEN ALL IS SAID is out now in the UK!

Posted on Thursday, January 24th, 2019

The wait is finally over: Anne Griffin‘s highly-anticipated, already critically-acclaimed debut WHEN ALL IS SAID is out today in the UK! Published by Sceptre, here’s the synopsis…

Five toasts. Five people. One lifetime.

‘I’m here to remember — all that I have been and all that I will never be again.’

At the bar of a grand hotel in a small Irish town sits 84-year-old Maurice Hannigan. He’s alone, as usual — though tonight is anything but. Pull up a stool and charge your glass, because Maurice is finally ready to tell his story.

Over the course of this evening, he will raise five toasts to the five people who have meant the most to him. Through these stories — of unspoken joy and regret, a secret tragedy kept hidden, a fierce love that never found its voice — the life of one man will be powerfully and poignantly laid bare.

Heart-breaking and heart-warming all at once, the voice of Maurice Hannigan will stay with you long after all is said.

As we mentioned at the top, the novel has already received an incredible amount of praise from far and wide: reviewers, bloggers and celebrated authors have taken to their websites, Twitter and interviews to mention how much they loved WHEN ALL IS SAID. Here is just a small selection from the reviews…

‘Anne Griffin’s debut novel is a must read. Beautifully observed, masterful story telling – stunning!’ — Graham Norton

‘An extraordinary novel, a poetic writer, and a story that moved me to tears… There is something special here.’ — John Boyne

‘Poetic and touching without being sentimental… something special.’ — Good Housekeeping

‘Warning: it is impossible to read the last chapter of this book without weeping copious tears… an ingenious narrative… Maurice’s toast to his late wife that will leave you reeling though. Here is a man who deeply loved a woman but just didn’t know how to show it (often held back by his own parsimony), stifling her in the process until one day she rebels in the smallest but most moving of ways. When you read that page, you might want to get the tissues at the ready…’ — Stylist

‘Beautifully written, unhurried and thoughtful, a lonely man truthfully wrought and a character you love from the off, in spite of his flaws or maybe because of them… a terrific debut.’ — Kit de Waal, award-winning author of My Name is Leon

‘A hugely enjoyable, engrossing novel, a genuine page-turner. Maurice is a fabulous character, wonderfully flawed and completely engaging; his voice is familiar and real, full of sadness and regret and defiance, and unexpected tenderness.’ — Donal Ryan, award-winning author of The Spinning Heart

‘Anne Griffin is a writer with a bright, bright future.’ — Janet Peery (National Book Award finalist)

WHEN ALL IS SAID is due to be published in North America by St. Martin’s Press, in March. The novel has also been sold in a number of other territories, and we’ll share details and covers as soon as we have them.

THE TEA MASTER AND THE DETECTIVE now available in print for European readers!

Posted on Monday, January 21st, 2019

We’re very happy to report that Aliette de Bodard‘s superb, critically-acclaimed THE TEA MASTER AND THE DETECTIVE is now available in Europe in print! Published by JABberwocky, the book is available in the UK, France and Spain, here’s the synopsis…

Once, the mindship known as The Shadow’s Child was a military transport. Once, she leapt effortlessly between stars and planets, carrying troops and crew for a war that tore the Empire apart. Until an ambush killed her crew and left her wounded and broken.

Now the war is over, and The Shadow’s Child, surviving against all odds, has run away. Discharged and struggling to make a living, she has no plans to go back into space. Until the abrasive and arrogant scholar Long Chau comes to see her. Long Chau wants to retrieve a corpse for her scientific studies: a simple enough, well-paid assignment.

But when the corpse they find turns out to have been murdered, the simple assignment becomes a vast and tangled investigation, inexorably leading back to the past — and, once again, to that unbearable void where The Shadow’s Child almost lost both sanity and life…

The novel is available in the US as an eBook via Subterranean Press (cover at end).

Here is some of the aforementioned critical-acclaim that THE TEA MASTER AND THE DETECTIVE has received…

‘[The Tea Master and the Detective] is a window onto a beautifully developed world that widens the meaning of space opera, one that centers on Chinese and Vietnamese cultures and customs instead of Western military conventions, and is all the more welcome for it.’ — Amal El-Mohtar, New York Times

‘The Tea Master and the Detective is the Sherlock Holmes retelling I always wanted and now I have it. And I want so much more of it.’ — Kirkus

‘The Tea Master is an astonishing Holmesian mystery, in which Holmes is a woman and Watson is a spaceship. It is everything I wanted it to be. Tea, space, and mysteries within mysteries.’ — Mary Robinette Kowal

‘Ingenious… As a classical blend of far-future SF and traditional murder mystery, The Tea Master and the Detective should satisfy readers unfamiliar with the Xuya universe, but at the same time it’s an intriguing introduction to that universe, much of which seems to lie just outside the borders of this entertaining tale.’ — Gary K. Wolfe, Locus

‘De Bodard constructs a convincingly gritty setting and a pair of unique characters with provocative histories and compelling motivations. The story works as well as both science fiction and murder mystery, exploring a future where pride, guilt, and mercy are not solely the province of humans.’ — Publishers Weekly

A couple of new RIVERS OF LONDON comics out today…

Posted on Wednesday, January 16th, 2019

Today, Titan Comics releases two new additions to Ben Aaronovitch and Andrew Cartmel‘s Rivers of London comic series. First up, the print, comic-store edition of the fourth issue in the latest story-arc, ACTION AT A DISTANCE. Here’s the (very brief) synopsis…

Occult secrets of World War II revealed as Peter digs into fan-favorite Nightingale’s past!

ACTION AT A DISTANCE series artwork is by Brian Williamson (art) and Stefani Renne (colours). The digital edition of the issue is due to be published on January 30th.

Also out now is the digital edition of WATER WEED collected edition (the print edition was released late last year). Here’s the synopsis…

Two rogue river goddesses tangle wizarding cop Peter Grant in a sordid drug-smuggling operation in a new story from Ben Aaronovitch, set in his best-selling Rivers of London novel series!

Spring Breakers meets Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels on the banks of the Thames! Collects Rivers of London: Water Weed #1-4.

Wizarding cop Peter and river spirit Beverley are drawn into a sordid cannabis-smuggling operation, controlled by London’s new queenpin of crime – the brutal and beautiful Hoodette! Can they overcome corruption, or will they be fatally entangled in the weed?

WATER WEED series artwork is by Lee Sullivan, with colours by Luis Guerrero.

The Rivers of London comic series is based on characters created by Ben for his best-selling, critically-acclaimed Peter Grant series of novels. The seventh book in that series, LIES SLEEPING, was published recently by Gollancz (UK) and DAW Books (US).

Andrew Cartmel is also the author of the critically-acclaimed Vinyl Detective series, published by Titan Books.

Roger Zelazny’s THE DOORS OF HIS FACE, THE LAMPS OF HIS MOUTH available now in Russia

Posted on Tuesday, January 15th, 2019

A new edition of Roger Zelazny‘s THE DOORS OF HIS FACE, THE LAMPS OF HIS MOUTH is now available in Russia! Published by Эксмо as Двери лица его, пламенники пасти его, here’s the synopsis…

Странные и прекрасные рассказы охватывают весь спектр таланта Роджера Желязны. Он смешивает сновидческие образы фэнтези с реализмом и научной фантастики. Яркое воображение и идеальная проза превращают Желязны в одного из самых заметных писателей-фантастов. Охота на венерианского Левиафана. Футуристическая коррида с людьми и машинами. Поэзия вымирающей цивилизации Марса. Альпинисты, покоряющие вершину иной планеты. Преследование разумного автомобиля-убийцы… Трижды он выигрывал премию “Небьюла” и шесть — премию “Хьюго” за великолепные романы и рассказы. Желязны обладал уникальным талантом, его видения будущего, иных миров и иных реальностей были полны магии и всегда запоминались.

Originally published in 1965, here’s the English-language synopsis for THE DOORS OF HIS FACE, THE LAMPS OF HIS MOUTH…

Here are strange, beautiful stories covering the full spectrum of the late Roger Zelazny’s remarkable talents. In Doors of His Face, The Lamps of His Mouth, Zelazny’s rare ability to mix the dream-like, disturbing imagery of fantasy with the real-life hardware of science fiction is on full display. His vivid imagination and fine prose made him one of the most highly acclaimed writers in his field.

Zeno represents Roger Zelazny in Translation, on behalf of the Zelazny Estate.

Short Fiction Watch: THE GREAT TRAIN ROBBERY and NEOM by Lavie Tidhar

Posted on Friday, January 11th, 2019

January is quite the busy short story month for Lavie Tidhar. In addition to the author’s VENUS IN BLOOM appearing in the latest issue of Clarkesworld, he also has two other stories out this month…

Lavie’s latest novels are the critically-acclaimed UNHOLY LAND, the equally acclaimed and also award-winning CENTRAL STATION (both published by Tachyon Publications); and CANDY, his first for younger readers (published by Scholastic in the UK).

Debut 2019: Jenni Keer’s THE HOPES OF LUCY BAKER is out now!

Posted on Thursday, January 10th, 2019

Today, we would like you to join us in congratulating Jenni Keer whose debut novel is now available as an eBook! Published by Avon, here’s the synopsis for THE HOPES AND DREAMS OF LUCY BAKER…

Meet Lucy, aged 25, and Brenda, aged 79. Neighbours, and unlikely friends.

Lucy Baker is not your usual 25-year-old. She is more at home reading and knitting in her cluttered little flat than going out partying and socialising.

79-year-old Brenda is full of wise and wonderful advice, but when she’s diagnosed with dementia her life begins to change. Before her memories slip away for ever, Brenda is desperate to fulfil one last wish to see Lucy happy.

Gifting Lucy the locket that helped Brenda find her own true love, she hopes to push her reticent neighbour in the right direction. But is Lucy Baker ready for the opportunities and heartbreaks of the real world? It’s about time she put her knitting needles aside and found out.

The Hopes and Dreams of Lucy Baker will be the most charming, heart-warming and feel-good novel you will read this year, perfect for fans of Ruth Hogan and Gail Honeyman.

The novel has already been racking up multiple glowing reviews via NetGalley. The print edition of the novel is due to be published in March 2019.

‘A charming read!’ — Heidi Swain

‘A wonderful antidote to a harsh world’ — Bella Osborne

‘A magical story about love and friendship, full of fun and sparkle. You won’t be able to resist the cast of quirky characters!’ — Fiona Harper