Zeno Literary Agency Ltd.

Matt Hughes‘ THE DAMNED BUSTERS, published by Angry Robot a couple of months ago has been getting some amazing reviews. Here’s a selection of gushing comments along with relevant links…

‘Hughes writing is both funny and clever, with some great descriptive passages.  he has a style that instantly hooks the reader, that manages  to balance the fine line between being a funny novel, and novel that is just full of jokes… I will be picking up the next instalment of this series without a doubt. A highly recommended read.‘ — Ginger Nuts of Horror

‘…a damn good book. Chesney Arnstruther is a uniquely charming protagonist; the plot is immensely entertaining, full of wit, humor and heart; the ideas presented are original and thought-provoking; and Matthew Hughes’ writing is skillful and engaging. Best of all, The Damned Busters is a blast to read and not quite like any book I’ve ever tried before, instantly making the sequel one of my most anticipated releases of 2012…‘ — Fantasy Book Critic

‘THE DAMNED BUSTERS is a supernatural adventure that blends a rich and unpredictable story, with a tone and wit that provides plenty of laughs along the way. A great balance of action and comedic situations with some romance thrown in for good measure, albeit an awkward romance, this is a great read. It will forever contain the most intense game of poker I have ever read. 5 *****‘ — Celebrity Cafe

‘Hughes continues to carve out a unique place for himself in the fantasy-mystery realm. A droll narrative voice, dry humor and an alternate universe that’s accessible without explicit exposition make this a winner.‘ — Publisher’s Weekly

‘What Matt achieves in this title is not only chock full of humour but a title that has an unlikely hero, a devilishly intriguing sidekick and above all else a plot that moves along at its own pace keeping the humour very much in the fore. It makes no bones about what it is, it has some novel solutions and it was a title that gave me a lot of fun with my reading time, so much so that I really couldn’t wait to get back to it. All in the prose is decent, the characters outstanding and the overall arc very pleasing to the reader. Great stuff.’ — Falcata Times

‘A little bit of Terry Pratchett, a little bit of Mystery Men, a whole lotta hilarious punny word-play alongside some meta bookishness and probably some misdirection, The Damned Busters is a damn good book.   As funny and light-hearted as it is thought provoking and belief challenging, I’ve never read anything quite like it.‘ — Little Red Reviewer

‘This is a funny and surprisingly endearing book with some interesting discussions about the role of sin and our reactions to it.‘ — The Guardian

‘…you’re missing out if you haven’t bought this book yet. Pure and simple. 9.75 / 10‘ — The Founding Fields

‘The Damned Busters is a very clever book (and fast read), exactly the type of work that Angry Robot Books is noted for: it is a smooth melange of genres–comic, noir, humor, fantasy, and metaphysical; ultimately entertaining and damned smart.‘ — Red Book Review

Further raves can be found at The Antick Musings of G.B.H Hornswoggler, Gent ;  Goodreads ; The Horror Review ; Drying Ink and I Will Read Books.

We delighted to announce the sale of French translation rights Aliette De Bodard’s Obsidian and Blood series to Mathieu Saintout at Bibliotheque Interdite in a deal done in association with our brilliant French agent Lora Fountain. We are very chuffed indeed for Aliette knowing that she’s to be published on her own turf! Not sure yet when they intend to publish but we’ll note it on here as soon as we know.

Meantime, here’s the fantastic cover for the forthcoming Angry Robot release of Book two in this series HARBINGER OF THE STORM, due early next year. Here too is the cover blurb…

The year is Two House and the Mexica Empire teeters on the brink of destruction, lying vulnerable to the flesh-eating star-demons – and to the return of their creator, a malevolent goddess only held in check by the Protector God’s power.

The council is convening to choose a new emperor, but when a councilman is found dead, only Acatl, High Priest of the Dead, can solve the mystery.

When he hears rumours of a sinister cabal of sorcerors he must face up to demons, not all of them his own.

And whilst I’m on, it’s worth noting the excellent reviews Aliette received from both Gardner Dozois and Rich Horton in the most recent edition of LOCUS for her story THE JAGUAR HOUSE, IN SHADOW which appeared in the July issue of Asimov’s.

… are starting to appear and they’re universally glowing.

• The Wertzone calls it ‘…a fascinating, thought-provoking, challenging and engrossing novel‘
• SFrevu draws our attention to ‘…the pure luxurious enjoyment of the prose, the setting, the characters. And let’s not forget about the lavish descriptions of Istanbul itself. We see all of Istanbul’s faces – the once grand city at the crossroads between East and West, the still grand city that is now part of Europe. But we also see the poverty, we can feel the oppressive heat baking down on us, the dust of too many feet on old streets caught in our throats. The city is alive, vibrant, dangerous, beautiful and mysterious with many faces for its inhabitants.‘
• Pat’s Fantasy Hotlist says ‘The Dervish House is without a doubt [McDonald's] best and most accessible science fiction novel to date. And to put it simply, it just blew my mind. Believe me, I did try to find some shortcomings and facets that left a little to be desired. All to no avail, of course. The Dervish House is about as good as it gets, folks. McDonald’s past novels had already set the bar rather high, no question. But this one, at least for me, is as close to perfection as a book can get.‘
• And what about this one over at Astro Guyz? ‘…MacDonald is an expert wordsmith and raises the bar in the Sci-Fi genre to a whole new plateau.’
• And over on the Pyr Blog, a fine quote from Booklist, ‘…McDonald takes the history of Istanbul, both real and imagined, and forges a multi-faceted and fascinating character out of the city itself; then he adds in the experiences of six people whose lives are about to intersect in the most unexpected ways. …McDonald creates a magnificent knot of intrigue, thrills, and daring adventures, with the flair for character and setting that make his tales so satisfying to indulge in.’

And THE DERVISH HOUSE hasn’t even been released yet! Fingers crossed for more rave reviews to come. Watch this space!

Over at The Guardian Online, author Eric Brown has reviewed the new Corvus edition of DECLARE by Tim Powers.

Brown calls the book ‘… big in every sense: vast in scope, philosophically deep and satisfying in terms of characterisation.’ And ‘… an immense hybrid of classic spy novel and supernatural thriller, impeccably wrought cold war period detail combining with the brooding sense of evil that Powers does so well. ‘

Read the full piece here… or better still, read the book!

Wow!! THE DESERT SPEAR, Peter V. Brett‘s brilliant follow up to his acclaimed début THE PAINTED MAN was only released yesterday, but the enormous interest in the book and the volume of pre-orders have resulted in  deservedly high bookscan figures and we’re all thrilled and delighted to see THE DESERT SPEAR in at #9 on the Sunday Times Bestseller List.  Here are a few relevant links…

• Peat’s ‘Peephole In My Skull‘ has a wonderful pictorial blog entry detailing his joy at hitting the Sunday Times list.
• Peat’s primary agent Joshua Bilmes at the JABberwocky Literary Agency considers the differences between the US and the UK markets in light of THE DESERT SPEAR‘s figures.
• Peat will be in London during the London Book Fair and will be signing at London’s Forbidden Planet flagship store on Friday April 16th at 18.00. Details here.
• He’s also lined up to sign at Goldsboro Books earlier that same day. Check out their website.
• And here are a few links to rave reviews of THE DESERT SPEAR…
  • Sacramento Book Review
  • SFF Chat
  • Superfast Reader

I’ll post further reviews in due course. Meantime, well deserved congratulations to Peat, Joshua, Emma and all the Voyager team.

… for our Angry Robot authors!

Thomas Blackthorne‘s EDGE gets five stars over at the Science Fiction and Fantasy blog, which the reviewers calling the book ‘…an intelligent, slick and brilliantly executed novel with a quite unexpected but superbly scripted ending.’ Full review here.

THE BOOKMAN has received yet another glowing review, this time on the Only The Best SciFi/Fantasy blog. ‘[THE BOOKMAN is] a boisterous mix of steampunk, Victorianna, mystery, travel story, thriller, adventure, partly coming of age story…Lavie Tidhar knows how to keep you in suspense… a shining steampunk bijou, brims over with allusions and cameos, vibrant, gorgeous depicted, clever constructed, compelling …  steampunk in 3D! Highly recommended from the bottom of my heart.’ Full review here.

And finally the Lateral Books blog loudly hails Aliette De Bodard‘s SERVANT OF THE UNDERWORLD as ‘…a book I was very excited by… It is a book which is like a fresh breeze of crisp air….I fully expect Ms De Bodard’s name to be huge‘. Full review here.

Terrific crits from Eric Brown, writing in last Saturday’s Guardian - see this link – for two of our Angry Robot authors.

On Lavie Tidhar‘s THE BOOKMAN, Brown writes ‘THE BOOKMAN is a delight, crammed with gorgeous period detail, seat-of-the-pants adventure and fabulous set-pieces. And there’s more to come from this Israeli writer…‘ Indeed there is! For Lavie has just delivered the sequel CAMERA OBSCURA to his rather chuffed editor Marc Gascoigne.

Of Thomas Blackthorn‘s EDGE, Brown says ‘…What lifts the novel far above the norm is that Blackthorne is such a fine writer. [Protagonist] Cumberland leaps off the page, a trained killer whose anger and grief at his daughter’s condition is brilliantly portrayed; the depiction of his simmering rage, barely held in check, and how he channels it, provides a masterclass in characterisation.’

That link again, for the full reviews is right here!

Eamonn Murphy has posted a glowing review of Michael Cobley‘s SEEDS OF EARTH over at the SFCrownest web site. He saysof the novel…

“This is really a fine piece of work and could, when it’s all finished, be up there with the aforementioned Tolkien or Asimov’s ‘Foundation’ series as one of the all-time greats.”

• Read the full review here

• Zeno clients Aliette De Bodard and John Meaney (also known as Thomas Blackthorn) will be signing, respectively, SERVANTS OF THE UNDERWORLD and EDGE - their novels published (soon to be published in the case of Mister Meaney / Blackthorn) by Angry Robot. You’ll be able to meet both authors on Friday February 12th at 6pm at the flagship Forbidden Planet megastore on Shaftesbury Avenue.

• And be sure to check out this 5 Star review of Aliette’s novel, posted recently at www.sciencefictionandfantasy.co.uk.

• Prior to the above, John will be one of the participating authors at the SFX Weekender – a two day Sciffy fest taking place on the 5th and 6th of February at Camber Sands – see their web site (link above)  for details. Note that fellow Zeno client Justina Robson will also be in attendance.

• Still with John Meaney, those of you hungrily awaiting the arrival of his brand new space opera ABSORPTION, will, alas, no have to wait a little while long, as publisher Gollancz has had to reschedule the release date – you’ll be able to get hold of it from May 20th.

• And still with John M, he will be attending this year’s Eastercon (over Easter weekend of course) along with other Zeno clients, Susan Boulton, Aliette De Bodard, Michael Cobley, Freda Warrington, Ian R. Macleod and Colin Harvey.  John B will also be there and John P will be there for at least one day. Other clients are still to confirm.

Reviews are starting to come in for Lavie Tidhar’s steampunk adventure, The Bookman, which will be published in a week or two by Angry Robot, and as expected they’re pretty much ‘raves’ across the board.

Fantasy Book Critic “…loved the style and the inventiveness…” and went on to say the it was… “Just big time fun, The Bookman is highly, highly recommended.”

The Mad Hatter’s Bookshelf and Book Review lists The Bookman as one of the top Steampunk titles to look out for in the coming year.

The Traveller’s Steampunk Blog states “…it has managed to claim the throne as my favorite steampunk novel from Moorcock’s A Nomad of the Time Streams … I can wholeheartedly recommend The Bookman … it is one captivating read, set in a beautiful, strange world.”

And if these superlatives don’t persuade you to get hold of a copy, here’s what James P. Blaylock, one of the founding fathers of the entire Steampunk genre has to say.. “Lavie Tidhar’s The Bookman is simply the best book I’ve read in a long time, and I read a lot of books. If you’re worried that Steampunk has turned into a mere fashion aesthetic, then you’d better read this one. It’s a stunningly imaginative remix of history, technology, literature, and Victorian adventure that’s impossible to put down. The book is immensely smart and readable at the same time. I very much hope that it’s the first of many such books. Buy it.“

Hackney: That Rose-Red Empire, Iain Sinclair’s extraordinary exploration of the area of London in which he has lived for decades has been applauded and recommended on a number of “Best of 2009″ lists. The paperback edition is due for publication in February 2010 from Hamish Hamilton.

• ‘My award for the most beautifully published volume of the year goes to Hackney: That Rose-Red Empire by Iain Sinclair. Sinclair’s provocative blend of documentary and fantasy have made him the focus of a literary cult and devotees will be delighted by his latest production‘  — Erica Wagner, Literary Editor of The Times

• ‘Iain Sinclair is now a national treasure. Hackney: That Rose-Red Empire might just turn out to be the lasting legacy of London 2012‘ — Jonathan Bate, London Review Of Books

• ‘My favourite piece of non-fiction  [of 2009] was Iain Sinclair’s Hackney: That Rose-Red Empire, which sprawled and meandered as much as the borough’s streets do, but with rather more beauty‘ — Alex Clark, New Statesman

There’s a very nice Publishers Weekly crit for Freda Warrington‘s wonderful new fantasy novel, ELFLAND - a Tor hardcover to be published this coming August. It’s only a short piece, and so worth quoting in full…

“Prolific British author Warrington (the Jewelfire Trilogy), mostly unknown in the U.S., puts a distinctive spin on human/nonhuman relations in this sensuous, relationship-driven story, the first of the Books of the Silver Wheel. The feylike Vaethyr regularly travel between the Spiral and our world until the gates are summarily and permanently closed by Lawrence Wilder, the Gatekeeper. He warns of danger, but the Vaethyr on Earth need to return to the Spiral to survive. Much of the book is devoted to describing the turbulent life of Rosie, daughter of Vaethyr king Auberon, and her love triangle with Sam and Jon, Wilder’s troubled sons, as long years without reconnecting to their aetherial selves slowly drive the Vaethyr mad. Solid wordplay, great pacing and a thrilling conclusion will definitely earn Warrington some new American fans.”