Author Spotlight: Justina Robson


‘A novelist of real vision.’ — Zadie Smith

At the end of last year, we had a detailed look at Justina Robson‘s most recent novel, a Transformers tie-in, THE COVENANT OF PRIMUS. Today, in the first of a new series of Author Spotlight features, we turn our attention to Justina’s backlist. Justina is a British Science Fiction author, whose novels have been lauded far and wide, and who has been nominated for major awards 17 times; including her debut, SILVER SCREEN, making the shortlist for the Arthur C. Clarke award in 2000.

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Continue reading “Author Spotlight: Justina Robson”

US Publication Day – BROKEN HOMES by Ben Aaronovitch


Aaronovitch-PG4-BrokenHomes-BlogThe wait is finally over! Peter Grant fans States-side can now pick up the fourth novel in Ben Aaronovitch‘s hugely successful and beloved Rivers of London/Peter Grant series! BROKEN HOMES is published in the US today by DAW Books. The novel was released in the UK by Gollancz in July 2013.

Just in case you missed it, here is the synopsis for the novel…

A unique blend of police procedural, loving detail about the greatest character of all, London, and a dash of the supernatural.

A mutilated body in Crawley. Another killer on the loose. The prime suspect is one Robert Weil; an associate of the twisted magician known as the Faceless Man? Or just a common or garden serial killer?

Before PC Peter Grant can get his head round the case a town planner going under a tube train and a stolen grimoire are adding to his case-load.

So far so London.

But then Peter gets word of something very odd happening in Elephant and Castle, on an housing estate designed by a nutter, built by charlatans and inhabited by the truly desperate.

Is there a connection?

And if there is, why oh why did it have to be South of the River?

Full of warmth, sly humour and a rich cornucopia of things you never knew about London, Aaronovitch’s series has swiftly added Grant’s magical London to Rebus’ Edinburgh and Morse’s Oxford as a destination of choice for those who love their crime with something a little extra.

Here’s some of what others have said in praise of BROKEN HOMES

‘PC Peter Grant and his co-worker Lesley, two of the few policemen in London who can practice magic, are still working under Nightingale, who must be the oldest police officer in England . . . not that he looks it. A low-income housing tower gone awry, an old enemy with a bone to pick . . . and a shocker of an ending – BROKEN HOMES is a delight.’  —  Charlaine Harris

‘Aaronovitch has involved his squad with the theatres of Covent Garden, the clubs of Soho and the Underground; now, he takes us south of the River. Here, it’s all about architecture. Those who are sceptical about the massive Modernist housing estates of the Fifties and Sixties as liveable environments will be made to think again – what if some of those architects had entirely other agendas? As always, Aaronovitch is intellectually witty and often delightful in his sparky dialogue. He knows that his characters have to be put in serious jeopardy: this book includes a particularly devastating twist whose emotional logic is overwhelming. Aaronovitch is never less than entertaining, and here he proves he can break our hearts as well.’  —  The Independent (Roz Kaveney)

BROKEN HOMES,continues in the same rich vein of his brilliant supernatural crime series. Writing about his native London, Aaronovitch has crafted a novel that renders the city in a very different light.’  —  BSFA

‘… opens with Aaronovitch’s trademark rapidity and subversive joy with the acronyms and minutiae of modern policing… an enormously fun, fast-paced, witty novel…’  —  Tor.com

BROKEN HOMES is also due to be published by J’ai Lu in France and DTV in Germany. Here are the three covers, side-by-side…

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Peter Grant Arrives in Brazil! (Cover Reveal)


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We’re delighted to share with you the two latest foreign edition covers for Ben Aaronovitch‘s Peter Grant/Rivers of London series. Brazilian publisher Casa da Palavra will be publishing the series, and both RIVERS OF LONDON and MOON OVER SOHO have great new book jackets!

When others are unveiled, we will of course share those on here, too.

‘Spring into Sci Fi’ with Zeno…


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During one of my (too) frequent trips to Waterstone’s, I came across a table displaying books that have been selected as ‘ideal’ starting points. And, lo and behold, among these gateway titles were four Zeno titles! ‘Quite right, too,’ I thought. Here they are, for your perusal…

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Now that we’re in a new year, why not make it a resolution (one you’ll keep, of course) to check out these series openers…?

Aaronovitch-PG1-RiversOfLondonUK-BlogBen Aaronovitch‘s RIVERS OF LONDON

My name is Peter Grant and until January I was just probationary constable in that mighty army for justice known to all right-thinking people as the Metropolitan Police Service (as the Filth to everybody else). My only concerns in life were how to avoid a transfer to the Case Progression Unit – we do paperwork so real coppers don’t have to – and finding a way to climb into the panties of the outrageously perky WPC Leslie May. Then one night, in pursuance of a murder inquiry, I tried to take a witness statement from someone who was dead but disturbingly voluable, and that brought me to the attention of Inspector Nightingale, the last wizard in England.

Now I’m a Detective Constable and a trainee wizard, the first apprentice in fifty years, and my world has become somewhat more complicated: nests of vampires in Purley, negotiating a truce between the warring god and goddess of the Thames, and digging up graves in Covent Garden… and there’s something festering at the heart of the city I love, a malicious vengeful spirit that takes ordinary Londoners and twists them into grotesque mannequins to act out its drama of violence and despair.

The spirit of riot and rebellion has awakened in the city, and it’s falling to me to bring order out of chaos – or die trying.

Ben’s novels hardly need an introduction, but this is the first in his best-selling urban fantasy series starring Peter Grant. The fourth book in the series, BROKEN HOMES, was published by Gollancz in the summer of 2013. The fifth book in the series, FOXGLOVE SUMMER, is due later this year. The series is published by Gollancz in the UK, and Del Rey (RIVERS OF LONDON, MOON OVER SOHO and WHISPERS UNDER GROUND) and DAW Books (BROKEN HOMES onwards) in the US.

Campbell-LF1-DauntlessUK-BlogJack Campbell‘s DAUNTLESS, first in his Lost Fleet series (published in the UK by Titan Books)…

After a hundred years of brutal war against the Syndics, the Alliance fleet is marooned deep in enemy territory, weakened and demoralised and desperate to make it home.

Their fate rests in the hands of Captain “Black Jack” Geary, a man who had been presumed dead but then emerged from a century of survival hibernation to find his name had become legend. Forced by a cruel twist of fate into taking command of the fleet, Geary must find a way to inspire the battle-hardened and exhausted men and women of the fleet or face certain annihilation by their enemies.

Campbell’s Lost Fleet series has been a bestseller in the UK, and now comprises six novels and two spin-off series (Beyond the Frontier and The Lost Stars). All of his novels are published in the UK by Titan Books, including his next – STEADFAST (part of the Beyond the Frontier series) – which is due out in the UK in May 2014.

Sanderson-M1-FinalEmpireUK-BlogBrandon Sanderson‘s THE FINAL EMPIRE, first in his bestselling Mistborn series…

What if the Dark Lord won? The start of an epic fantasy trilogy that overturns the expectations of readers and then goes on to tell the epic story of evil overturned in a richly imagined world.

A thousand years ago evil came to the land and has ruled with an iron hand ever since. The sun shines fitfully under clouds of ash that float down endlessly from the constant eruption of volcanoes. A dark lord rules through the aristocratic families and ordinary folk are condemned to lives in servitude, sold as goods, labouring in the ash fields.

But now a troublemaker has arrived and there is rumour of revolt. A revolt that depends on criminal that no-one can trust and a young girl who must master Allomancy – the magic that lies in all metals.

Brandon’s Mistborn series is published in the UK by Gollancz, and also includes THE WELL OF ASCENSION, THE HERO OF AGES and THE ALLOY OF LAW. His next novel is WORDS OF RADIANCE, due to be published in March 2014, also by Gollancz.

Hodder-BS1-StrangeAffairOfSpringHeeledJackUK-BlogMark Hodder‘s first Burton & Swinburn novel, THE STRANGE AFFAIR OF SPRING-HEELED JACK (published by Snowbooks)

It is 1861, and Albertian Britain is in the grip of conflicting forces. Engineers transform the landscape with bigger, faster, noisier and dirtier technological wonders; Eugenicists develop specialist animals to provide unpaid labour; Libertines oppose restrictive and unjust laws and flood the country with propaganda demanding a society based on beauty and creativity; while The Rakes push the boundaries of human behaviour to the limits with magic, sexuality, drugs and anarchy.

Returning from his failed expedition to find the source of the Nile, explorer, linguist, scholar and swordsman Sir Richard Francis Burton finds himself sucked into the perilous depths of this moral and ethical vacuum when the Prime Minister, Lord Palmerston, employs him as “King’s Spy.” His first mission: to investigate the sexual assaults committed by a weird apparition known as Spring Heeled Jack; to find out why chimney sweeps are being kidnapped by half-man, half-dog creatures; and to discover the whereabouts of his badly injured former friend, John Hanning Speke.

Accompanied by the diminutive and pain-loving poet, Algernon Swinburne, Burton’s investigations lead him back to one of the defining events of the age: the brutal assassination of Queen Victoria in 1840; and the terrifying possibility that the world he inhabits shouldn’t exist at all.

Mark Hodder’s most recent novels – THE SECRET OF ABDU EL YEZDI and A RED SUN ALSO RISES – have been published in the UK by Del Rey.

Zeno represents Jack Campbell, Brandon Sanderson and Mark Hodder in the UK and Commonwealth on behalf of the JABberwocky Literary Agency in New York.

A Major New Deal for Ben Aaronovitch


BenAaronovitchWe are delighted to announce that Gollancz, in a major deal, has purchased publishing rights for the seventh and eighth books in Ben Aaronovitch‘s hugely successful Peter Grant/Rivers of London series!

John Berlyne of the Zeno Agency had this to say about the deal: ‘This is a very exciting move by Orion.  Ben’s books have been a monster hit and it’s  great news for Ben’s many fans that the future of this brilliant series is assured.’

There will thus be at least four more titles in the series following on from the fourth novel, BROKEN HOMES, which was released last July. The fifth book in the series, FOXGLOVE SUMMER, is due out in the UK this summer. The provisional title for book six is THE HANGING TREE. We’ll announce titles for the newly contracted books six and seven in due course. In the unlikely event that you have missed this critically-acclaimed series, here is the synopsis for the first book, RIVERS OF LONDON

My name is Peter Grant and until January I was just probationary constable in that mighty army for justice known to all right-thinking people as the Metropolitan Police Service (as the Filth to everybody else). My only concerns in life were how to avoid a transfer to the Case Progression Unit – we do paperwork so real coppers don’t have to – and finding a way to climb into the panties of the outrageously perky WPC Leslie May. Then one night, in pursuance of a murder inquiry, I tried to take a witness statement from someone who was dead but disturbingly voluable, and that brought me to the attention of Inspector Nightingale, the last wizard in England.

Now I’m a Detective Constable and a trainee wizard, the first apprentice in fifty years, and my world has become somewhat more complicated: nests of vampires in Purley, negotiating a truce between the warring god and goddess of the Thames, and digging up graves in Covent Garden… and there’s something festering at the heart of the city I love, a malicious vengeful spirit that takes ordinary Londoners and twists them into grotesque mannequins to act out its drama of violence and despair.

The spirit of riot and rebellion has awakened in the city, and it’s falling to me to bring order out of chaos – or die trying.

The audiobooks, read by Kobna Holdbrook-Smith, have also been a smash hit. And, just to remind fans, RIVERS OF LONDON has also been optioned for television, and a comic book adaptation is also in the works – to be published by Titan Comics! (More details on both of these adaptations as soon as they come in.) These are exciting times indeed for Ben and his fans.

Ben’s Rivers of London/Peter Grant series is published by Gollancz in the UK, Del Rey (#1-3) and DAW Books (#4-6) in the US, DTV in Germany, and J’ai Lu in France. RIVERS OF LONDON has also been published in 10 other markets, including China (Cite Publishing), Czech Republic (Laser Books), Hungary (Agave/GABO), Italy (Fanucci), Japan (Hayakawa), Korea (Hyundaemunhak), Poland (MAG), Portugal (Casa de Palavra), Russia (Fantastika) and Spain (Editorial Planeta).

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Ben Aaronovitch’s WHISPERS UNDER GROUND Wins Award in Germany!


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We’re delighted to report that the German edition of Ben Aaronovitch‘s WHISPERS UNDER GROUNDEIN WISPERN UNTER BAKER STREET – has won second place in the fantasy category of Der Leserpreis, which is a prize voted for by readers (a German Readers’ Choice, if you will). Here’s the German synopsis…

Aaronovitch-PG3-WhispersUndergroundDE-BlogEs ist ja nicht so, dass Peter Grant, Zauberer in Ausbildung und Police Constable in London, nichts für das Üben von Zaubersprüchen und das Pauken von Lateinvokabeln übrig hätte – bestimmt nicht! Aber es ist doch immer wieder schön, wenn zur Abwechslung auch mal reelle Polizeiarbeit gefragt ist. Eine unbekannte Person wird im U-Bahn-Tunnel nahe der Station Baker Street tot aufgefunden – erstochen, und es deuten unübersehbare Anzeichen auf die Anwesenheit von Magie hin. Ein Fall für Peter, keine Frage. Der unbekannte Tote stellt sich als amerikanischer Kunststudent und Sohn eines US-Senators heraus, und ehe man noch “internationale Verwicklungen” sagen kann, hat Peter bereits die FBI-Agentin Kimberley Reynolds mitsamt ihren felsenfesten religiösen Überzeugungen am Hals. Dabei gestalten sich seine Ermittlungen auch so schon gruselig genug, denn tief in Londons Untergrund, in vergessenen Flüssen und viktorianischen Abwasserkanälen, hört er ein Wispern von alten Künsten und gequälten Geistern …

EIN WISPERN UNTER BAKER STREET is published in Germany by DTV. WHISPERS UNDER GROUND, the third in Ben’s Rivers of London/Peter Grant series, is published by Gollancz in the UK, Del Rey in the US, and J’ai Lu in France (as MURMURES SOUTERRAINS).

Here is the English synopsis (in case you don’t speak German)…

Peter Grant is learning magic fast. And its just as well – he’s already had run ins with the deadly supernatural children of the Thames and a terrifying killer in Soho. Progression in the Police Force is less easy. Especially when you work in a department of two. A department that doesn’t even officially exist. A department that if you did describe it to most people would get you laughed at. And then there’s his love life. The last person he fell for ended up seriously dead. It wasn’t his fault, but still.

Now something horrible is happening in the labyrinth of tunnels that make up the tube system that honeycombs the ancient foundations of London. And delays on the Northern line is the very least of it. Time to call in the Met’s Economic and Specialist Crime Unit 9, aka ‘The Folly’. Time to call in PC Peter Grant, Britains Last Wizard.

A Musical Rendition of Ben Aaronovitch’s RIVERS OF LONDON…


Aaronovitch-PG1-RiversOfLondonUK-BlogThere is almost no better sign of the strength of an author’s fanbase, than some form of adaptation of their work – be it a graphic novel, a television series, a feature-length movie, or, as can sometimes happen, something more musical. Ben Aaronovitch‘s fan-favourite urban fantasy novel RIVERS OF LONDON will soon be receiving a graphic novel/comics adaptation, and the television rights have been optioned by Feel Films. The novel has also become the subject of a song.

Ben’s nephew, Mikis Michaelides is a composer and musician of some note, who works with Doc Brown on their hugely successful 4 O’Clock Club for the BBC. After reading RIVERS OF LONDON, which both Doc and Mikis loved, they (in concert with Ben) decided that a rap based on the book would be a very fine thing. You can now listen to the result here. [We at Zeno, and a handful of Gollancz and publishing peeps were lucky enough to hear a live rendition in London late last year. Not that we’re bragging. Much…]

The first four books in Ben’s Rivers of London/Peter Grant series have been published in the UK, by Gollancz: RIVERS OF LONDON, MOON OVER SOHO, WHISPERS UNDER GROUND and BROKEN HOMES.

We’re hoping to have some very good news to announce in the near future regarding what’s coming next for Peter Grant…

Publication Day – Algis Budrys Gateway Omnibus!


BudrysA-GatewayOmnibus2014-BlogToday marks the publication of the first omnibus of the late, great Algis Budrys re-issues from Gollancz‘s SF Gateway project. The omnibus collects three of Budrys’s novels: THE IRON THORN, MICHAELMAS, and HARD LANDING.

Algis Budrys (1931-2008) is one of the golden age Grand Masters of Science Fiction. Between 1954 and 1993, he published eight novels, and multiple collections of short stories and essays. For a short period in the middle of his writing career, he stepped back to focus on a career in advertising and also mentoring – he developed an excellent reputation as one of the best manuscript doctors of the time. His work ranged from science fiction of all stripes – from hard science-fiction, to dystopian future novels. Perhaps his best-known novels are ROGUE MOON (1960) and MICHAELMAS (1977). His writing is widely available as eBooks, and ROGUE MOON is available in print as part of Gollancz’s SF Masterworks series.

Here are the synopses for the novels contained within the omnibus. First, THE IRON THORN (sometimes also known as THE AMSIRS AND THE IRON THORN)…

Honor White Jackson was a human being. But his planet was not Earth, nor his time Now. His world was dominated by a giant Iron Thorn. Beyond the reach of this tower there was supposedly nothing – except a frozen, airless desert where huge winged beasts called Amsirs roamed.

MICHAELMAS

Michaelmas and Domino, man and computer, were linked to each other, and to the complete database of Earth. There they virtually ruled the world. For by making the right subtle manipulations, they had the power to change the course of human destiny.

And last, but by no means least, HARD LANDING

The body was found dead on the tracks, electrocuted. The autopsy confirmed what some had always feared, that we are not alone in the universe – and that even now, some visitors are still at large.

Here’s what critics have said about MICHAELMAS in the past (reviews of his other novels are a little hard to come by online)…

‘Budrys is incapable of writing anything less than a deeply thoughtful book. This one is sometimes a bit aridly written, sometimes fiercely charged, always full of fine invention. One of the season’s more important offerings.’  —  Kirkus on MICHAELMAS (Starred Review)

‘… his three major novels [including] MICHAELMAS — are an achievement of central importance to the SF field, all the more because each tries to do something different, with an approach and structure reshaped each time.’  —  Locus

‘… a tight, taught thriller packed full with wonderful ideas and it’s beautifully written… a great plot and a sense of wonder…’  —  SF Reviews on MICHAELMAS

Some Early Buzz for Edward Cox’s Upcoming RELIC GUILD


Edward-coxBack in April 2013, Gollancz announced that they had acquired the debut trilogy by Zeno client Edward Cox. The first book in the series, THE RELIC GUILD is scheduled for an September 2014 publication. That’s still a while away, of course, but this past week saw a pair of articles that featured the book. The first was on Gollancz’s own blog, which saw Ed’s novel described thus: ‘With its split time-line, superb characters and bewitching setting of a vast city cut off from the realms around it where magic is ruthlessly suppressed this is a dark and exciting fantasy set in a city which itself becomes a living, breathing character. It’s a remarkably original tale for any writer to have come up with, that it is Ed’s first novel is even more remarkable.’

The second piece was on Fantasy Faction, which included THE RELIC GUILD in a post outlining some hotly tipped novels and debuts coming in 2014. They also featured a synopsis, which we think will certainly whet your appetite:

It was said the Labyrinth had once been the great meeting place, a sprawling city at the heart of an endless maze where a million humans hosted the Houses of the Aelfir. The Aelfir who had brought trade and riches, and a future full of promise. But when the Thaumaturgists, overlords of human and Aelfir alike, went to war, everything was ruined and the Labyrinth became an abandoned forbidden zone, where humans were trapped behind boundary walls a hundred feet high. There is no escape, no way in, and magic in all its forms is banned. But the Relic Guild still exist, hunting down powerful artefacts and people born with magic in their souls. And they’re about to discover that the war may not be entirely over…

Expect more news about Ed and his novels over the course of the coming few months – we’ll be sure to share with you artwork when it is unveiled, and no doubt more interesting news and tidbits.

Zeno Clients Getting Love in Best Of & Anticipated Posts


We’re delighted to report that many Zeno clients and their novels have been popping up in Best Of and Anticipated Books lists all over the internet! Naturally, we are in total agreement with these nods. We’ll share some of them on here, when possible.

Over on the Book Plank, James P. Blaylock‘s THE AYLESFORD SKULL (Titan Books) was selected as one of the best five steampunk novels of the year. In the same year-end post, Brandon Sanderson‘s THE RITHMATIST (Orion Children’s) and Ian McDonald‘s PLANESRUNNER (Jo Fletcher Books) were selected as two of the top five YA novels of the year.

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As well as recognition in 2013 lists, upcoming Zeno titles have been flagged as highly anticipated books of 2014. For example, A Fantastical Librarian selected Myke Cole‘s BREACH ZONE (Headline) and Tanya Huff‘s THE ENCHANTMENT EMPORIUM and THE WILD WAYS (Titan Books) as among their Most Anticipated 2014 fantasy novels.

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Zeno represents Brandon Sanderson and Tanya Huff in the UK and Commonwealth on behalf of the JABberwocky Literary Agency in New York.

Zeno Well-Represented in Amazon UK’s Best 2013 SFF on Kindle!


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We’re delighted to share the news (and draw your attention to these titles) that Amazon UK has selected five titles by Zeno clients for their Best SFF 2013 on Kindle! Here are the selectees…

     Ben Aaronovitch‘s BROKEN HOMES (Gollancz)

     Peter V. Brett‘s THE DAYLIGHT WAR (Voyager)

     Charlaine Harris‘s DEAD EVER AFTER (Gollancz)

     Brandon Sanderson‘s STEELHEART (Gollancz) and A MEMORY OF LIGHT (Orbit)

All of these are, of course, excellent selections – perfect, you might say, for Christmas and the holidays…

Zeno represents Peter V. Brett, Charlaine Harris and Brandon Sanderson in the UK and Commonwealth, on behalf of JABberwocky Literary Agency in New York.

Publication Day – John Meaney’s RESONANCE


Meaney-R3-Resonance-BlogThe third novel in John Meaney‘s Ragnarok sci-fi series is finally here! RESONANCE, which follows ABSORPTION and TRANSMISSION, is published by Gollancz in the UK.

Here’s the synopsis…

From the leader of a Norse raiding party in 7th-century England to a young symbiotically bonded Pilot-and-Ship in the far future. From a female German scientist during the Second World War to a member of an alien race who communicates by smell. From the past to the future, war is coming. And only a few can see the darkness.

Hidden at the centre of the Universe, the darkness spreads its tendrils throughout space and time. Those it touches become puppets, dedicated to slowing down the improvement of the human race and preventing it from reaching its true potential. For the darkness knows that when it makes its final invasion of our space, humanity will stand against it.

And in the far far future, knowing that they are the last hope for the galaxy, the Ragnarok council is forming…

Here’s what critics have said about the first two novels in the series…

ABSORPTION is the best hard science fiction I’ve read this year, well written, exciting, mysterious, full of interesting characters and ideas…’  —  The Times

‘… an ambitious start to what promises to be a fabulous space opera. Fans of Peter F. Hamilton among others should enjoy these novels. I only wish the book had been longer…’  —  SF Site

‘This is a great volume of space opera and the plot builds up to such an extent that by the end I was thoroughly engrossed in the world that John Meaney has created. I look forward to the rest of the trilogy.’  —  SF Crowsnest

‘John Meaney is a clever and complex writer weaving seemingly unrelated stories together to make a greater whole.’  —  British Fantasy Society

‘… a lot of action, but that’s not all there is to this book. TRANSMISSION is brimming with ideas on topics as diverse as trance states, the psychology of word use, martial arts, how aliens might communicate with each other, and Norse myth. The historical sections are full of satisfying nuggets of detail that enrich the story. It’s thoroughly well researched.’  —  Warpcore SF

‘I love [Meaney’s] writing, the hard combat, the speed of thought and the idea’s that seem to keep flying around and hitting you like neutrino’s. It’s cleverly plotted and of course it has a pace that few authors can manage to keep up with let alone emulate… All in this is a cracking piece of fiction and a pure joy to read…’  —  Falcata Times

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The full Ragnarok set, on our shelves.

Two International Cover Reveals for Ben Aaronovitch’s BROKEN HOMES!


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We’re delighted to be able to share with you two great new covers for Ben Aaronovitch‘s BROKEN HOMES. The fourth in Ben’s Peter Grant/Rivers of London urban fantasy series, BROKEN HOMES now has covers for the French and German editions!

Published already by Gollancz in the UK, BROKEN HOMES is due to be published by DAW in the US (Feb.2014), J’ai Lu in France (Feb.2014) and DTV in Germany (May 2014). Here’s the synopsis…

A unique blend of police procedural, loving detail about the greatest character of all, London, and a dash of the supernatural.

A mutilated body in Crawley. Another killer on the loose. The prime suspect is one Robert Weil; an associate of the twisted magician known as the Faceless Man? Or just a common or garden serial killer?

Before PC Peter Grant can get his head round the case a town planner going under a tube train and a stolen grimoire are adding to his case-load. 

So far so London.

But then Peter gets word of something very odd happening in Elephant and Castle, on an housing estate designed by a nutter, built by charlatans and inhabited by the truly desperate. 

Is there a connection?

And if there is, why oh why did it have to be South of the River?

Full of warmth, sly humour and a rich cornucopia of things you never knew about London, Aaronovitch’s series has swiftly added Grant’s magical London to Rebus’ Edinburgh and Morse’s Oxford as a destination of choice for those who love their crime with something a little extra.

Cover Reveal: Brandon Sanderson’s WORDS OF RADIANCE…


Sanderson-SA2-WordsOfRadiance-BlogWe’re very happy to share with you the UK cover art for Brandon Sanderson‘s WORDS OF RADIANCE! The second volume of the internationally bestselling Stormlight Archive fantasy series, WORDS OF RADIANCE is due to be published in 2014 by Gollancz. Here is the early, rather brief synopsis from the publisher’s page…

Return to a planet swept by apocalyptic storms, a world tipping into war as aristocratic families move to control the shard blades and shard plates, ancient artifacts from a past civilisation that can win wars.

As the world tips into a war for control of the mythical artifacts of power made from Shard, characters are swept up into new dangers which will threaten their integrity and their lives.

The first book in the Stormlight Archive, THE WAY OF KINGS is available now in eBook and in paperback (split into two volumes – it’s an immense, engrossing tome of a novel!).

Here is a little more information about the second Stormlight novel, from an introduction to WORDS OF RADIANCE on Brandon’s website

In [THE WAY OF KINGS], we were introduced to the remarkable world of Roshar, a world both alien and magical, where gigantic hurricane-like storms scour the surface every few days and life has adapted accordingly. Roshar is shared by humans and the enigmatic, humanoid Parshendi, with whom they are at war. Among those caught up in the conflict are Highprince Dalinar Kholin, who leads the human armies; his neice Jasnah, a renowned scholar; her student Shallan, a brilliant but troubled young woman; and Kaladin, a military slave who, by the book’s end, was beginning to become the first magically endowed Knight Radiant in centuries.

In WORDS OF RADIANCE, their intertwined stories will continue and, as Sanderson fans have come to expect, develop in unexpected, wonderfully surprising directions. The war with the Parshendi will move into a new, dangerous phase, as Dalinar leads the human armies deep into the heart of the Shattered Plains in a bold attempt to finally end it. Shallan will come along, hoping to find the legendary, perhaps mythical, city of Urithuru, which Jasnah believes holds a secret vital to mankind’s survival on Roshar. The Parshendi take a dangerous step to strengthen themselves for the human challenge, risking the return of the fearsome Voidbringers of old. To deal with it all, Kaladin must learn to how to fulfill his new role, while mastering the powers of a Windrunner.

Brandon Sanderson is represented by Zeno in the UK and Commonwealth, on behalf of the JABberwocky Literary Agency in New York.