Tag: Mondadori

Italian Edition of LEGENDS & LATTES Out Tomorrow!

Posted on Monday, September 25th, 2023

Travis Baldree‘s widely acclaimed, best-selling debut, LEGENDS & LATTES continues its conquest of the world tomorrow, when the Italian edition is due to hit shelves! To be published by Mondadori, here’s the synopsis…

Viv è un’Orchessa e fa quello che fanno le orchesse: per tutto il giorno spacca crani, sparge sangue, semina morte e distruzione. Giunta a una certa età, però, si è stufata della routine della guerriera e così – complici una leggenda dimenticata, un manufatto magico e un’irragionevole dose di belle speranze –, quando si ritrova per le strade di Thune, decide di aprire lì un caffè. Il primo caffè della città, per essere precisi. Ma il suo sogno di un nuovo inizio e di giornate passate a servire bevande aromatiche anziché a roteare lame deve attendere. Già: da un lato ci sono vecchi nemici che non hanno alcuna intenzione di abbandonare la lotta; dall’altro gli abitanti di Thune, che non hanno mai assaggiato un latte macchiato e quindi non sanno di averne bisogno.

Viv vuole a tutti i costi appendere la spada al chiodo, ma non può farcela da sola. Per fortuna incontrerà un gruppo di amici con i quali costruire una nuova famiglia e una nuova vita. Perché il bello dei viaggi su sentieri sconosciuti sono i compagni di strada che incontri lungo il cammino. Che ad attirarli siano antichi incantesimi, pasticcini fragranti o tazze fumanti, possono comunque diventare alleati, famiglia, o qualcosa che Viv non avrebbe mai nemmeno sognato.

Il volume include anche il racconto “Pagine da riempire” e un’intervista con l’autore.

LEGENDS & LATTES is out now in the UK and North America, published by Tor Books. Here’s the English-language synopsis…

After a lifetime of bounties and bloodshed, Viv is hanging up her sword for the last time.

The battle-weary orc aims to start fresh, opening the first ever coffee shop in the city of Thune. But old and new rivals stand in the way of success — not to mention the fact that no one has the faintest idea what coffee actually is.

If Viv wants to put the blade behind her and make her plans a reality, she won’t be able to go it alone.

But the true rewards of the uncharted path are the travelers you meet along the way. And whether drawn together by ancient magic, flaky pastry, or a freshly brewed cup, they may become partners, family, and something deeper than she ever could have dreamed.

The North American edition includes a new short story, “Pages to Fill”, which is also included in the Italian edition.

The next novel in the series, which is actually a prequel, is BOOKSHOPS & BONEDUST — due out in November, also published by Tor Books in the UK and North America.

Here are just a few examples of the great reviews LEGENDS & LATTES has received…

‘This is a story about following your dreams, even when they take you away from who you thought you had to be. It’s sweet, beautiful and, most of all, kind. I hugely recommend this book.’ — Seanan McGuire, New York Times bestselling author of Every Heart A Doorway

‘The most fun I’ve ever had in a coffee shop.’ — Ben Aaronovitch, bestselling author of Rivers of London

‘A gentle little cozy set against an epic fantasy backdrop… This charming outing will please anyone who’s ever wished to spend time in a fantasy world without all the quests and battles.’ — Publishers Weekly

‘This slice-of-life cozy fantasy novel has everything you’ve been searching for.’ — Buzzfeed

‘An orc retires from adventuring to start a fantasy city’s very first coffee shop. This setup combined with the positive messages of defying societal stereotypes, letting go of violence to build peace, and trusting in your friends feels like a premise from Terry Pratchett’s Discworld… LEGENDS & LATTES is a novel, and shop, that will delight anyone who enjoys coffee-shop alternate universes, slow-burn romances, and the vindication of friendship.’ — Booklist, starred review

‘A stunningly-well done story at every level’ — Fantasy Faction

‘If you like fantasy but you’re tired of reading about wars and general intensity, this is the book for you… Cozy fantasy at its best.’ — Literary Hub

‘LEGENDS & LATTES isn’t just a cosy, slice-of-life fantasy, it is a hug after a long day, it’s that first bite of chocolate you’ve been desperately craving or that first sip of coffee, it’s pyjamas and blankets and everything else which brings comfort and warmth. This is a tale so simple yet so wholesome and adorable, it has made me see just how versatile the fantasy genre can be… Believe the hype… this book deserves all the praise… Baldree delivers a tale to soothe the soul, a tale which had me smiling and crying with happiness from beginning to end.’ — Fantasy Hive

Ian McDonald and Roger Zelazny Get New Italian Editions

Posted on Friday, July 15th, 2022

Italian publisher Urania is celebrating their 70th anniversary publishing great science fiction. To celebrate, the publisher has paired up with Corriere della Sera and La Gazzetta dello Sport to release a selection of 25 notable titles. We’re very happy to report that included in this selection are Ian McDonald‘s THE BROKEN LAND and Roger Zelazny‘s TO DIE IN ITALBAR!

Both books have new covers by Franco Brambilla. Read on for some more details about each book.

Ian McDonald‘s THE BROKEN LAND is published in Italy as LA TERRA INFRANTA. Here’s the synopsis…

Siamo in un futuro lontano, sulla Terra. Il villaggio di Chepsenyt è un’enclave pacifica e autosufficiente i cui residenti vivono in armonia con la natura attraverso le loro conoscenze di ingegneria genetica. Ma quando le truppe dell’Impero scoprono che tra la popolazione si celano dei ribelli, il villaggio viene dato alle fiamme e gli abitanti si disperdono. Da qui parte il doloroso viaggio della giovane Mathembe Fileli verso l’età adulta, per sopravvivere e ritrovare la propria famiglia.

The novel is published in English by JABberwocky. Here’s the English-language synopsis…

Grandfather was a tree, Father grew trux, in fifteen colours. Mother could sing the double-helix song, sing it right into the hearts of living things and change them…

The Land is a living, breathing, sentient world, where careful skills and talent can manipulate its very substance into a myriad different shapes and forms.

This is the world in which Mathembe Fileli grows up, until the conflicts tearing her country apart shatter her village, her home and her family and scatter them to the four winds. Can Mathembe reunite her family in a world full of angels, talking trees, squalor and glory?

Urania have published a number of Ian’s other books in Italy: the Luna series, the India 2047 series, and the Everness trilogy. You can find out more about them here.

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Roger Zelazny‘s TO DIE IN ITALBAR is the second novel in the author’s Francis Sandow duology — the first is ISLE OF THE DEAD (1969). TO DIE IN ITALBAR is published in Italy as MORIRE A ITALBAR. Here’s the synopsis…

«Il sentiero era la sua vita. Le tombe, il simbolo delle centinaia, no, forse migliaia, di morti che si era lasciati indietro. Al suo tocco gli uomini morivano. Il suo alito appassiva intere città. Dove arrivava la sua ombra, talvolta non rimaneva nulla. Pure, era suo potere vincere le malattie. E proprio adesso arrancava faticosamente con questa intenzione. Era conosciuto per questo, anche se solo con il nome H.»

Questo romanzo è stato definito un’avventura assurda: personaggi vividi, un ritmo veloce ed emozioni forti sono scaturiti dalla fertile immaginazione di Roger Zelazny.

TO DIE IN ITALBAR was first published in 1971. Here’s the English-language synopsis…

The Walker in the Valley of the Shadow

H was the name he was known by. H was unique in the galaxy, for he had the healing touch. Where there was plague, sickness, pain, H was the universal cure.

But H also had the slaying touch. Where he went death and disaster often followed. Where there had been health there would be left desolation and desert.

The talent alternated. It reversed itself — and H always warned people of this. To live in Italbar or TO DIE IN ITALBAR, that was always the question.

Three other novels by Zelazny are published by Urania: THE DREAM MASTER, EYE OF CAT, DAMNATION ALLEY; and the publisher has also released DOPPIA DIMENSIONE, which is an anthology including HOME IS THE HANGMAN and HE WHO SHAPES.

Italian Edition of THE MENACE FROM FARSIDE Out Now!

Posted on Tuesday, May 10th, 2022

A new Italian edition of Ian McDonald‘s THE MENACE FROM FARSIDE is now available! Published by Urania/Mondadori as MINACCIA DA FARSIDE, it’s a prequel novella to the acclaimed Luna series. Here’s the synopsis…

Preparatevi a tornare nel mondo dei Dragoni, i signori della celeberrima trilogia Luna creata dalla penna di Ian McDonald.

A Regina Sud, città della famiglia Taiyang, la società è organizzata tramite “anelli”, ovvero famiglie poliamorose. E per Carid, figlia di un “matrimonio anulare”, l’arrivo di una nuova sorellastra in famiglia è una tragedia.

Sidibe non è solo bella d’aspetto e altera di carattere, ma possiede delle rarissime ali con cui incanta tutti, compresi Jair e Kobe, i fratellastri di Carid. La ragazza ha solo venti giorni di tempo prima che venga sancito ufficialmente il nuovo legame della sua famiglia allargata. E di certo non ha intenzione di restarsene con le mani in mano.

Con la scusa di un originale regalo di nozze, trascina la nuova arrivata e i due fratellastri in un’avventura… alla ricerca della prima impronta umana sulla Luna, lasciata cento anni prima nel Mare della Tranquillità dallo stivale di Neil Armstrong.

Cosa potrebbe andare storto?

Conoscendo Ian McDonald, il George R.R. Martin dello spazio, tutto…

In addition to THE MENACE FROM FARSIDE, the volume also includes translations of two short stories in the same setting: IL QUINTO DRAGONE (THE FIFTH DRAGON, originally published in 2014) and CADUTA (THE FALLS, 2015).

THE MENACE FROM FARSIDE is published in the UK and North America by Tor.com (cover above). Here’s the English-language synopsis…

Ian McDonald returns to his elegantly wound solar system of the twenty-second century, full of political intrigue and complicated families.

Remember: Lady Luna knows a thousand ways to kill you, but family is what you know. Family is what works.

Cariad Corcoran has a new sister who is everything she is not: tall, beautiful, confident. They’re unlikely allies and even unlikelier sisters, but they’re determined to find the moon’s first footprint, even if the lunar frontier is doing its best to kill them before they get there.

Urania also publishes the three Luna novels: LUNA NUOVA (NEW MOON), LUNA PIENA (WOLF MOON), and LUNA CRESCENTE (MOON RISING). An omnibus edition (or, ‘Titan Edition‘) is also available in Italy.

The Luna novels are published in the UK by Gollancz, in North America by Tor Books.

The series has also been published in Poland, Spain, Bulgaria, Germany, France, Romania, Hungary, Russia, Croatia, China, Taiwan, and Serbia. Here are the covers for NEW MOON…

Ian R. MacLeod’s SONG OF TIME Out Now in Italy!

Posted on Tuesday, April 19th, 2022

A new Italian edition of Ian R. MacLeod‘s multi-award-winning SONG OF TIME is out now! Published by Urania as LA CANZONE DEL TEMPO, here’s the synopsis…

Durante una passeggiata su una spiaggia della Cornovaglia, l’anziana Roushana Maitland, celebre violinista di fama mondiale, trova un uomo nudo, inerme, riverso sulla sabbia come se fosse stato trasportato lì dal mare.

Sotto le alghe, i graffi e i lividi bluastri, c’è un giovane bello come un dio greco. Ben presto appare chiaro che il ragazzo non è annegato ma è vivo, anche se privo della memoria. Da dove sia arrivato è un mistero; potrebbe essere uno schiavo sfuggito a qualche destino infame, o un criminale evaso.

Roushana soccorre “Adam”, come decide di chiamarlo, e mentre se ne prende cura, gli racconta della sua lunga e incredibile vita, ricca di grandi successi e cadute devastanti: dall’infanzia a Birmingham tra gli incubi del terrorismo biologico, passando per i viaggi in India all’epoca di un grande disastro nucleare, fino alla sfavillante carriera musicale a Parigi e alla sua vita bohemien.

Nel frattempo là fuori, oltre le mura protettive della casa, c’è un mondo morente: un futuro malinconicamente distopico, tra vulcani in eruzione e tempeste di polvere.

Tuttavia la morte non è più una barriera: è possibile caricare la propria memoria in un “cristallo” all’interno del proprio cervello, e raggiungere così l’immortalità digitale.

Un passo che Roushana, in fin di vita, si accinge a fare a breve per raggiungere coloro che ha amato, gli amici che già l’attendono oltre il velo.

Ma un oscuro segreto la trattiene dal compiere il passaggio…

First published in 2009, SONG OF TIME won the Arthur C. Clarke Award and the John W. Campbell Memorial Award. It is available in the UK and North America, published by JABberwocky (alongside a number of other MacLeod titles).

‘MacLeod’s quiet, meditative novels and stories have been winning critical acclaim for years, and Song of Time sees him at the height of his powers. At the end of a long and eventful life, celebrated violinist Roushana Maitland orders her memories before she passes from the world of the flesh to a virtual afterlife. When she finds a mysterious stranger washed up on the beach of her Cornish retreat, he facilitates the process of remembrance. In flashback chapters we follow Roushana’s turbulent life through the cataclysmic events of the 21st century, taking in the deaths of loved ones, marriage to a conductor-entrepreneur, and a final heartbreaking revelation, SONG OF TIME is a slow, sensitive first-person account of what it means to be human and vulnerable, and confirms MacLeod as one of the country’s very best literary SF writers.’ — Guardian

Roger Zelazny’s DOPPIA DIMENSIONE out now!

Posted on Thursday, August 19th, 2021

Urania has published a new omnibus containing two of Roger Zelazny‘s novellas! DOPPIA DIMENSIONE includes translated editions of HOME IS THE HANGMAN (1976) and HE WHO SHAPES (1965). Here’s the synopsis…

Due romanzi brevi vincitori del premio Nebula, per attraversare le dimensioni visionarie di uno dei maestri della science fiction internazionale.

IL BOIA TORNA A CASA (HOME IS THE HANGMAN, 1976) Zelazny indaga ciò che è buono e ciò che è cattivo: in un mondo in cui gli archivi informatici sono unificati, un programmatore ha l’occasione di far completamente sparire la propria esistenza. Per poi assumere gli incarichi che nessun altro vuole…

IL CREATORE DI SOGNI (HE WHO SHAPES, 1965) Il dottor Charles Render usa una macchina per entrare nei sogni dei pazienti, alterandoli e modellandoli per curare traumi, abbattere barriere e migliorare lo stato mentale. Ma come sta davvero il dottor Render, che ha in mano la salute mentale di altre persone? Zelazny gioca con Jung e Freud per un’esemplare rappresentazione del carattere umano.

Here are the English-language synopses for the Hugo and Nebula Award-winning HOME IS THE HANGMAN…

HOME IS THE HANGMAN shows Zelazny at his very best grappling with questions of what is good and evil, what makes something truly alive. HOME IS THE HANGMAN is part of a series of novellas where the premise is that when the world databases are unified, a programmer takes the opportunity to completely erase his existence. He pursues a career as a trouble-shooter, taking on those assignments no one else will do.

The Nebula Award-winning HE WHO SHAPES was later expanded into the novel, THE DREAM MASTER.

Roger Zelazny’s DAMNATION ALLEY out now in Italy!

Posted on Friday, November 20th, 2020

We’re very happy to report that there is a new Italian edition of Roger Zelazny‘s DAMNATION ALLEY available now! Published by Urania as LA PISTA DELL’ORRORE, here’s the synopsis…

Preparatevi al ritorno di un classico della fantascienza… al cardiopalma.

In una California post apocalittica, Dannazione Turner, rozzo centauro e criminale pluriricercato, si ritrova a essere l’ultima speranza per la povera gente di Boston. O almeno, per quei pochi che sono sopravvissuti ai terribili disastri naturali che stanno devastando il mondo.

Venti forti come uragani impediscono il volo aereo, allora Turner, antieroico guerriero della strada, precursore di Mad Max, si mette ad attraversare in auto un’America devastata da esplosioni nucleari, bestie mutanti, governi totalitari e tempeste di insetti giganti, per portare medicinali e vaccini alla popolazione decimata da un terribile morbo.

The story began life as a 1967 novella (which was a Hugo Award finalist), before it was expanded into a novel and published in 1969. In 1977, it was adapted into a film, directed by Jack Smight.

Here’s the English-language synopsis for DAMNATION ALLEY…

Hell Tanner isn’t the sort of guy you’d mistake for a hero: he’s a fast-driving car thief, a smuggler, and a stone-cold killer.

Facing life in prison for his various crimes, he’s given a choice: Rot away his remaining years in a tiny jail cell, or drive cross-country & deliver a case of antiserum to the plague-ridden people of Boston, Mass.

The chance of a full pardon does wonders for getting his attention. And don’t mistake this mission of mercy for any kind of normal road trip — not when there are radioactive storms, hordes of carnivorous beasts, and giant, mutated scorpions to be found along every deadly mile between LA and the East Coast. But then, this is no normal part of America, you see.

This is Damnation Alley.

Urania/Mondadori have also published Italian editions of IL SIGNORE DEI SOGNI (THE DREAM MASTER), MORIRE A ITALBAR (TO DIE IN ITALBAR) and OCCHIO DI GATTO (EYE OF CAT)…

DAMNATION ALLEY is also available in Germany (Heyne), France (Hélios), Poland (Rebis) and Croatia (Zagrebačka naklada).

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

Roger Zelazny’s EYE OF CAT out now in Italy!

Posted on Thursday, August 20th, 2020

Roger Zelazny‘s EYE OF CAT is now available in Italy! Published by Urania as OCCHIO DI GATTO, here’s the synopsis…

Flessuoso, indipendente, dai “sentimenti alieni” e in grado di leggere la mente.

Chiunque abbia un micio in casa si troverà d’accordo con questa definizione, eppure quello del titolo di questo inedito di Roger Zelazny non è un felino qualsiasi: “Gatto” è il nomignolo di un inquietante alieno mutaforma dalle abilità telepatiche, il cui aspetto ricorda vagamente quello di un felino con un occhio solo.

Con l’aiuto di questa strana creatura, Billy Cavallo Nero Cantante, protagonista del romanzo, affronterà la difficile sfida messagli davanti dal governo mondiale: proteggere un diplomatico Strageano dagli estremisti religiosi della sua stessa specie.

Billy Cantante, anche detto “Segugio Stellare”, ultimo guerriero Navajo, aveva catturato Gatto cinquant’anni prima, rinchiudendolo nell’Istituto, una sorta di zoo galattico.

Gatto accetta di aiutare il suo vecchio nemico, ma a un patto… alla fine della missione il cacciatore si farà preda, restituendo all’alieno la sua dignità di predatore.

In questo inedito di uno dei grandi maestri della fantascienza, le leggende dei nativi americani si mescolano senza soluzione di continuità alla politica galattica, dando al romanzo un tocco onirico, in un incalzante confronto fra preda e cacciatore, uomo e bestia, vecchio e nuovo mondo, mito e tecnologia.

First published in 1982, here’s the English-language synopsis for EYE OF CAT…

A retired hunter of alien zoo specimens, William Blackhorse Singer, the last Navajo on a future Earth, has come to what he sees as the end of his life. The World Government calls upon him for aid in protecting an alien diplomat from a powerful and hostile member of his own species. Knowing both the importance of the task and his inability to handle it on his own, Singer goes to confront his greatest conquest with a strange bargain. A shape-shifting alien, the last of his species, sits in a special cage at an institute dedicated to the study of extraterrestrial beings. Most frequently he projects the aspect of a one-eyed catlike creature, but he can appear as almost anything.

One of Singer’s secrets, and his greatest guilt, is his suspicion that the creature is intelligent. He confronts him and offers his own life for Cat’s cooperation in saving the alien. Cat accepts, and later, their mission fulfilled, demands a refinement on the original bargain. Rather than a simple death he wants a return bout — a chase with Singer as the hunted rather than the hunter.

The gods, powers and monsters of Navajo legend provide the backdrop for the working out of Singer’s fate — for the chase is as much for his soul as for his body. As he uses matter transmitters to flit from Paris to London to the Middle East to the American Southwest, he must search back into his own early life as well as the root beliefs of his vanished people and come to terms with a world that has adopted him, made use of his skills, and left him feeling that he has no place to call his own.

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

Ian McDonald’s THE BROKEN LAND out now in Italy!

Posted on Thursday, May 14th, 2020

Ian McDonald‘s acclaimed, classic novel THE BROKEN LAND is now available in Italy! Published by Urania/Mondadori as LA TERRA INFRANTA, here’s the synopsis…

Suo nonno era un albero.
Suo padre allevava boveicoli, in quindici colori diversi.
Sua madre conosceva il canto della doppia elica, lo cantava dritto nel cuore degli esseri viventi e li trasformava.

Fin dal suo incipit, “La Terra infranta”, romanzo stand alone dalla penna straordinaria di Ian McDonald, ci fa assaporare la visione del mondo della protagonista, Mathembe Fileli.

Nata e cresciuta nel villaggio di Chepsenyt, sulla Terra di un futuro lontano, Mathembe è circondata da persone che hanno imparato a vivere in armonia con la natura, grazie ad avanzatissime conoscenze di ingegneria genetica, e in un perfetto equilibrio fra le differenti religioni, credenze e culture dell’umanità.

Purtroppo, questa enclave armoniosa si trova ai bordi dell’Impero Oltre il Fiume, che di pacifico ha ben poco, e quando le truppe dell’Impero scopriranno che i suoi abitanti nascondono dei ribelli, il villaggio verrà dato alle fiamme.

Mathembe, vittima di una violenta oppressione politica e religiosa, si ritroverà suo malgrado ad allungare le file dei profughi, e dovrà imparare a lottare per sopravvivere e per ritrovare la sua famiglia.

First published in 1992, the novel is now available in the UK and US as an eBook, published by JABberwocky. Here’s the English-language synopsis…

Grandfather was a tree, Father grew trux, in fifteen colours. Mother could sing the double-helix song, sing it right into the hearts of living things and change them…

The Land is a living, breathing, sentient world, where careful skills and talent can manipulate its very substance into a myriad different shapes and forms.

This is the world in which Mathembe Fileli grows up, until the conflicts tearing her country apart shatter her village, her home and her family and scatter them to the four winds. Can Mathembe reunite her family in a world full of angels, talking trees, squalor and glory?

Here are just a few reviews the novel has received…

‘Inventive and often effective drama, but dense and oppressive, with the dark and anguished backdrop looming above the characters; and the ending bleakly acknowledges that, in terms of today’s troubles, nothing much can be done.’ — Kirkus

‘[The] world is a captivating one with its rampant biotechnology and passionate characters. But McDonald…, a lifelong resident of Belfast, also succeeds in presenting the religious and national conflict of an Ireland that still knows no respite from bloodshed.’ — Publishers Weekly

‘Ian McDonald takes on all the atrocity and strife of the 20th Century, radically displaces it, and dares to envision a means of change. It’s a brilliant achievement.’ — Locus

‘At once disturbing and beautiful . . . superbly realized.’ — The Times

Zelazny’s CHRONICLES OF AMBER available in Italian Audio!

Posted on Tuesday, April 7th, 2020

We are very happy to report that all ten of Roger Zelazny‘s Chronicles of Amber novels are available as audiobooks in Italy! Published by Audible, here’s the synopsis for the first book, NOVE PRINCIPI IN AMBRA…

Ambra è il mondo perfetto, l’universo dal quale tutti gli altri sono stati generati. Luogo celestiale e al contempo demoniaco, Ambra si trova adesso nel mezzo dello scontro tra le forze del bene e del male. Pur coesistendo con tutti gli altri mondi, Ambra può divenire una mèta irraggiungibile, niente più che il ricordo di un sogno per chi ne è stato allontanato: Corwin, Signore d’Ambra, si risveglia in un ospedale della Terra, confuso e privo di certezze sulle proprie origini e sulla propria identità. Chi lo ha separato dalla sua casa, relegandolo in quel lontano esilio? Qual è la vera natura di Ambra? A cosa ambiscono i principi e le principesse che lottano per raggiungere il trono più desiderato tra quelli su cui si possa sedere negli universi conosciuti?

Mentre oscure forze del male avanzano, terribili armate al comando dei Principi delle Tenebre, Corwin inizierà un viaggio fantastico ed eroico, verso la riconquista del proprio mondo e della propria eredità. Le sorti di Ambra non sono mai state così incerte e da esse può dipendere il destino di tutti gli universi.

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.

Here’s the series list…

  1. NINE PRINCES IN AMBER — NOVE PRINCIPI IN AMBRA
  2. THE GUNS OF AVALON — LE ARMI DI AVALON
  3. SIGN OF THE UNICORN — IL SEGNO DELL’UNICORNO
  4. THE HAND OF OBERON — LA MANO DI OBERON
  5. THE COURTS OF CHAOS — LE CORTI DEL CAOS
  6. TRUMPS OF DOOM — RITORNO AD AMBRA
  7. BLOOD OF AMBER — IL SANGUE DI AMBRA
  8. SIGN OF CHAOS — IL SEGNO DEL CAOS
  9. KNIGHT OF SHADOWS — IL CAVALIERE DELLE OMBRA
  10. PRINCE OF CHAOS — IL PRINCIPE DEL CAOS

The novels are published in print and eBook in Italy by Mondadori.

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

Roger Zelazny’s TO DIE IN ITALBAR Avaiable Now in Italy

Posted on Tuesday, October 29th, 2019

Roger Zelazny‘s TO DIE IN ITALBAR is now available in Italy! The second novel in the Francis Sandow series, it is published in Italian by Urania/Mondadori as MORIRE A ITALBAR, here’s the synopsis…

Vita e morte sono due facce della stessa medaglia per “H”, soprannome di Heidel vonHymack, un uomo in grado di curare qualsiasi malattia, oppure… di trasformarsi in una potente arma batteriologia in grado di portare morte e distruzione attorno a sé.

Ma H non è che uno degli ingredienti di questo romanzo, che vede riuniti insieme costruttori di mondi, artisti telecinetici, medici ibernati (che non per questo smettono di fare ricerche…), terroristi spaziali e una misteriosa quanto inquietante “Signora Azzurra”.

First published in 1973, here’s the English-language synopsis for TO DIE IN ITALBAR…

The Walker in the Valley of the Shadow

H was the name he was known by. H was unique in the galaxy, for he had the healing touch. Where there was plague, sickness, pain, H was the universal cure.

But H also had the slaying touch. Where he went death and disaster often followed. Where there had been health there would be left desolation and desert.

The talent alternated. It reversed itself — and H always warned people of this.

To live in Italbar or TO DIE IN ITALBAR, that was always the question.

‘Zelazny has regained his stride as a first rate writer of SF adventure.’ — Locus

‘A slender but nicely balanced tale of the efforts of Malacar, a single guerrilla against the forces of empire, to find and turn into a weapon the mysterious H, carrier of cures as well as diseases, who started as a healer but is now ravaging entire planets… [Zelazny is] still better than most.’ — Kirkus

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

Ian McDonald’s LUNA series available now as an Italian Omnibus!

Posted on Tuesday, July 16th, 2019

Ian McDonald‘s critically-acclaimed Luna series is now available in a brand new omnibus edition in Italy! Published by Mondadori’s Oscar Fantastica imprint as LUNA: LA TRILOGIA, here’s the synopsis…

NEL XXII SECOLO LA LUNA è stata ormai colonizzata dall’uomo e industrializzata. Le sue preziose risorse – l’elio-3, il carbonio, il ghiaccio e i metalli rari – vengono estratte ed esportate sulla Terra. A controllare il proficuo commercio sono i “Cinque Draghi”, cinque famiglie tanto potenti quanto spietate e pronte a tutto pur di difendere la propria posizione e i propri privilegi. La società spaziale è tornata alle lotte e ai valori feudali, come sa bene Adriana Corta, a capo di una delle corporazioni, che è riuscita a sottrarre il controllo dell’elio-3 alla Mackenzie Metals. Ormai anziana, deve difendere la florida azienda di famiglia dai moltissimi nemici che si è fatta negli anni. Ma basta un niente, nel difficile ambiente lunare, perché le mutevoli lealtà e le macchinazioni politiche dei cinque clan raggiungano il punto di rottura e si scateni una guerra dagli imprevedibili risultati…

Una saga grandiosa, ricca e stratificata di echi letterari, da Martin al García Márquez di Cent’anni di solitudine. Un’acclamata trilogia, piena di avventura, che ci spingerà a guardare con occhi nuovi al nostro solo apparentemente innocuo e pacifico satellite.

Mondadori’s Urania imprint has also published the three novels individually in Italy: LUNA NUOVA, LUNA PIENA, and LUNA CRESCENTE.

The Luna series is published in the UK by Gollancz, in North America by Tor Books: NEW MOON, WOLF MOON, and MOON RISING. The series is also available in a growing number of international, translated editions. Here’s the English-language synopsis for the first novel…

In Ian McDonald’s Luna: New Moon, the scions of a falling house must navigate a world of corporate warfare to maintain their family’s status in the Moon’s vicious political atmosphere.

The Moon wants to kill you.

Maybe it will kill you when the per diem for your allotted food, water, and air runs out, just before you hit paydirt. Maybe it will kill you when you are trapped between the reigning corporations-the Five Dragons-in a foolish gamble against a futuristic feudal society. On the Moon, you must fight for every inch you want to gain. And that is just what Adriana Corta did.

As the leader of the Moon’s newest “dragon,” Adriana has wrested control of the Moon’s Helium-3 industry from the Mackenzie Metal corporation and fought to earn her family’s new status. Now, in the twilight of her life, Adriana finds her corporation-Corta Helio-confronted by the many enemies she made during her meteoric rise. If the Corta family is to survive, Adriana’s five children must defend their mother’s empire from her many enemies… and each other.

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

‘McDonald… begins his superb near-future series… scintillating, violent, and decadent world. McDonald creates a complex and fascinating civilization featuring believable technology, and the characters are fully developed, with individually gripping stories. Watch for this brilliantly constructed family saga on next year’s award ballots.’ — Publishers Weekly (Starred Review) on NEW MOON

‘Mafia-style mining families clash in a compelling fantasy that offers up all the pleasures of a cut-throat soap opera in space…That McDonald is able to spin a compelling story from this unforgiving set-up is testament to his skill as a writer… One thing Luna does exceptionally well is to puncture Old Heinlein’s assumption that a frontier society based on the primacy of the family and a disregard of conventional laws would end up like idealised smalltown America. Luna argues that any realistic future colonisation of the moon will be much more The Sopranos than The Waltons. LUNA is as gripping as it is colourful, and as colourful as it is nasty.’ — Guardian on NEW MOON

‘No one writes like Ian McDonald, and no one’s Moon is nearly so beautiful and terrible… Ian McDonald’s never written a bad novel, but this is a great Ian McDonald novel… McDonald has ten details for every detail proffered by other sf writers. Not gratuitous details, either: gracious ones. The fashion sense of William Gibson, the design sense of Bruce Sterling, the eye for family drama of Connie Willis, the poesie of Bradbury, and the dirty sex of Kathe Koja and Samuel Delany… McDonald’s moon is omnisexual, kinky, violent, passionate, beautiful, awful, vibrant and crushing. As the family saga of the Cortas unravels, we meet a self-sexual ninja lawyer, a werewolf who loses his mind in the Full Earth, a family tyrant whose ruthlessness is matched only by his crepulance, and a panoply of great passions and low desires. LUNA: NEW MOON is the first book of a two-book cycle. Now I’m all a-quiver for the next one.‘ — BoingBoing

‘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

‘… 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 on WOLF MOON

‘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

‘McDonald concludes his Luna space opera trilogy in triumphant style… The political intrigue never feels too abstract or removed from 21st-century Earth. Readers will appreciate the care McDonald takes with both worldbuilding and characterization, and will enjoy little touches such as giving an assassin the job title of Corporate Conflict Resolution Officer… fans of the prior books will find this wrap-up rewarding.’ — Publishers Weekly on MOON RISING

‘The Luna trilogy is a masterpiece of worldbuilding. Ian McDonald has created an incredibly developed, complex and astonishingly plausible future for the Moon… What stands out, though, are its threads of gorgeous storytelling… as a whole, this is an extraordinary trilogy. Ian McDonald always writes beautifully. I love what he has to say. I’ll always remember his vision of the Moon, which at times is horrifying and violent and yet at others is so heartwarming and wondrous.’ — For Winter Nights on MOON RISING

‘… cinematic set-pieces… so much fun to read… these entertaining, and intelligent novels, capped off by the very satisfying Luna: MOON RISING, have been about establishing a society, a community, a family that looks to the future, that lives and prospers in an environment that must always be treated with respect.’ — Locus (Ian Mond)

Ian McDonald’s MOON RISING out now in Italy!

Posted on Thursday, May 9th, 2019

MOON RISING, the third novel in Ian McDonald‘s critically-acclaimed Luna series, is out now in Italy! Published by Urania/Mondadori as LUNA CRESENTE, here’s the synopsis…

Alla fine del penultimo capitolo di questa appassionante space opera, abbiamo lasciato Lucas Corta, dato per morto ma ritornato sulla Luna dopo aver stretto alleanze sulla Terra, deciso più che mai a reclamare la propria vendetta e il controllo del satellite.

L’unica persona in grado di fermarlo non sarà uno degli altri “dragoni”, i clan che si contendono il dominio lunare, ma sua sorella Ariel…

I recensori internazionali hanno plaudito anche a questo ultimo capitolo della saga, non risparmiandosi lodi per l’abilità di “creatore di mondi” di McDonald, e facendogli un unico appunto: il libro fa fatica a stare in piedi da solo e può essere apprezzato pienamente solo da chi si è goduto i precedenti volumi della serie.

Urania has also published the first two novels in the series: LUNA NUOVA (NEW MOON) and LUNA PIENA (WOLF MOON).

The series is published in the UK by Gollancz, in the US by Tor Books, and widely in translation. Here’s the English-language synopsis for MOON RISING…

A hundred years in the future, a war wages between the Five Dragons — five families that control the Moon’s leading industrial companies. Each clan does everything in their power to claw their way to the top of the food chain — marriages of convenience, corporate espionage, kidnapping, and mass assassinations.

Through ingenious political manipulation and sheer force of will, Lucas Cortas rises from the ashes of corporate defeat and seizes control of the Moon. The only person who can stop him is a brilliant lunar lawyer, his sister, Ariel.

Witness the Dragons’ final battle for absolute sovereignty in Ian McDonald’s heart-stopping finale to the Luna trilogy.

Here are just a few of the great reviews the Luna series has received so far…

‘McDonald concludes his Luna space opera trilogy in triumphant style… The political intrigue never feels too abstract or removed from 21st-century Earth. Readers will appreciate the care McDonald takes with both worldbuilding and characterization, and will enjoy little touches such as giving an assassin the job title of Corporate Conflict Resolution Officer… fans of the prior books will find this wrap-up rewarding.’ — Publishers Weekly on MOON RISING

‘The Luna trilogy is a masterpiece of worldbuilding. Ian McDonald has created an incredibly developed, complex and astonishingly plausible future for the Moon… What stands out, though, are its threads of gorgeous storytelling… as a whole, this is an extraordinary trilogy. Ian McDonald always writes beautifully. I love what he has to say. I’ll always remember his vision of the Moon, which at times is horrifying and violent and yet at others is so heartwarming and wondrous.’ — For Winter Nights on MOON RISING

‘… 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 on WOLF MOON

‘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 on WOLF MOON

‘No one builds a world like Ian McDonald does… 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… Every moment with his characters makes them precious, real and alive.’ — NPR on WOLF MOON

‘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 on WOLF MOON

‘Smart, funny, passionate and at times quite dark, McDonald brings the touch we’ve seen in RIVER OF GODS and DERVISH HOUSE to an entirely new culture as it evolves in a distant hostile place where business or family rules all… it’s terrific. My only complaint: it leaves you wanting the second book right now!’ — Jonathan Strahan on NEW MOON

‘McDonald… begins his superb near-future series… scintillating, violent, and decadent world. McDonald creates a complex and fascinating civilization featuring believable technology, and the characters are fully developed, with individually gripping stories. Watch for this brilliantly constructed family saga on next year’s award ballots.’ — Publishers Weekly (Starred Review) on NEW MOON

‘Mafia-style mining families clash in a compelling fantasy that offers up all the pleasures of a cut-throat soap opera in space…That McDonald is able to spin a compelling story from this unforgiving set-up is testament to his skill as a writer… One thing Luna does exceptionally well is to puncture Old Heinlein’s assumption that a frontier society based on the primacy of the family and a disregard of conventional laws would end up like idealised smalltown America. Luna argues that any realistic future colonisation of the moon will be much more The Sopranos than The Waltons. LUNA is as gripping as it is colourful, and as colourful as it is nasty.’ — Guardian on NEW MOON

‘Fans of cerebral, high-concept science fiction will love this exploration of society on the moon many decades after it has been colonized. The focus is more on concept and plot than on character, but the former are compelling enough to make this an addictive page-turner. Including the stories of many characters gives the reader important insights into different facets of society, and although the book starts at a slow pace, it accelerates into a mesmerizing political thriller.’ — RT Book Reviews on NEW MOON

Ian is also the author of the Philip K. Dick Award-nominated novella TIME WAS, published by Tor.com.

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

Mondadori unveils new Italian edition of Lavie Tidhar’s CANDY!

Posted on Monday, January 14th, 2019

Above you can see the rather fantastic cover for the Italian edition of Lavie Tidhar‘s first novel for young readers, CANDY! Due to be published in Italy by Mondadori on January 29th, here’s the synopsis for LA CITTÀ SENZA CIOCCOLATO…

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 (with more translated editions on the way!).

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

‘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)

‘… 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

‘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

‘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)

‘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)

‘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)

Ian McDonald’s EMPRESS OF THE SUN now available in Italian!

Posted on Thursday, December 13th, 2018

Urania/Mondadori has published the Italian edition of EMPRESS OF THE SUN, the concluding novel in Ian McDonald‘s Everness series! Published as L’IMPERATRICE DEL SOLE, here’s the synopsis…

Il salto di Heisenberg ha portato la Everness su una Terra alternativa, diversa da qualsiasi luogo l’equipaggio dell’astronave abbia mai visto. Everett Singh, Sen e gli altri si trovano su una pianura sconfinata, in un mondo in cui i dinosauri non si sono estinti ma si sono evoluti acquisendo un vantaggio tecnologico di venticinque milioni di anni sull’umanità, e nel bel mezzo dello scontro tra nazioni rivali. L’equipaggio della Everness deve affrontare un mondo che sta andando rapidamente verso l’apocalisse. Per sopravvivere, e per capire quali nuovi scenari si aprono per l’umanità…

Urania has now published all three novels in the series, the other two being TERRA INCOGNITA (PLANESRUNNER) and PIANETA PARALLELO (BE MY ENEMY). Urania has also published the first novel in Ian’s latest series, Luna: LUNA NUOVA (NEW MOON).

The Everness series was first published in the UK by Jo Fletcher Books and in North America by Pyr Books. The series is now available in eBook via the JAbberwocky eBook Program, and in many other territories. Here’s the English-language synopsis for EMPRESS OF THE SUN…

World-hopping, high-action adventure starring a smart boy with computer skills and a tough girl who pilots a blimp

The airship Everness makes a Heisenberg Jump to an alternate Earth unlike any her crew has ever seen. Everett, Sen, and the crew find themselves above a plain that goes on forever in every direction without any horizon. There they find an Alderson Disc, an astronomical megastructure of incredibly strong material reaching from the orbit of Mercury to the orbit of Jupiter. 

Then they meet the Jiju, the dominant species on a plane where the dinosaurs didn’t die out. They evolved, diversified, and have a twenty-five million year technology head-start on humanity. War between their kingdoms is inevitable, total and terrible. 

Everness has jumped right into the midst of a faction fight between rival nations, the Fabreen and Dityu empires. The airship is attacked, but then defended by the forces of the Fabreen, who offers theEvernesscrew protection. But what is the true motive behind Empress Aswiu’s aid? What is her price?

The crew of the Everness is divided in a very alien world, a world fast approaching the point of apocalypse.

Here’s what reviewers have said about the Everness series…

‘The marvelous Everness series takes readers to a world with highly evolved dinosaurs in this third voyage through parallel universes… McDonald lets his imagination run rampant without abandoning credibility, tackling real scientific concepts such as confirmation bias, a feature lacking in far too much science fiction. Fans might wish for more focus on the original Everett, but eventually, the three storylines weave themselves together nicely, setting up another sequel with hints of forthcoming romance. Endlessly fascinating and fun.’ — Kirkus (Starred Review) on EMPRESS OF THE SUN

‘I’ve rarely had as much fun with a Young Adult SF series as I have with Ian McDonald’s Everness — now up to three books with the brand new, shiny addition of EMPRESS OF THE SUN, possibly the best book of the bunch so far… this latest installment, with its sentient space dinosaurs, will delight folks who occasionally yearn for a good old-fashioned pulp adventure… through all of it, the characters continue to shine… I confess that I initially wasn’t too crazy about the whole Doppelgänger plot, but in this novel, it turns into a wonderful part of the overall picture… It was simply a treat to get back into the crazy palari and strange fashions of the Everness books. It may sound bizarre, but this is the first time I’ve read a novel that actually made me feel like writing fan-fic about its characters, just because they’re so utterly fresh and surprising. The Everness series is technically Young Adult, but I believe any science fiction fan, young or old, would get sucked into these adventures.’ — Tor.com on EMPRESS OF THE SUN

‘EMPRESS OF THE SUN revels in its pulp adventure milieu… McDonald has created an incredibly “storyable” universe for his characters to have their adventures in, and he keeps those adventures coming fast and furious… Between the adventures, the pacing, the characters, and the narrative arcs, there’s a lot to enjoy about this book and the overall series.’ — Strange Horizons on EMPRESS OF THE SUN

‘McDonald proves the concept of his world of the Infundibulum has legs, and provides some intriguing new ideas amid an entertaining adventure… Lots of ideas thrown out and explored; good development of main characters… Malevolent Nanotech. More world hopping. A solidly entertaining second volume to the series… With all of these ideas, concepts and worldbuilding, McDonald, in terms of his core characters, provides us with meaty development and growth… I was more than satisfied with the book and anyone, young adult or otherwise, who has read the first book will find much to love here, and will likely be as eager as I for the next volume in the series.’ — SF Signal on BE MY ENEMY

‘… absolutely triumphant sequel to Ian McDonald’s pulse-pounding young-adult science fiction novel PLANESRUNNER. PLANESRUNNER — a rollicking, multidimensional tale of a young boy who holds the key to infinite universes, seeking to rescue his physicist father from sinister powers — finished on a brutal cliffhanger, leaving its readers gasping and cursing for more. Now we have it. In BE MY ENEMY, there’s a lot more of what made PLANESRUNNER great — tremendous action scenes, cunning escapes, genius attacks on the ways that multidimensional travel might be weaponized, horrific glimpses of shadowy powers and sinister technologies. But BE MY ENEMY also has more of what makes McDonald’s adult fiction some of the best work I’ve ever read: a gifted ear for poesie that makes the English language sing, the unapologetic presumption of the reader’s ability to understand what’s going on without a lot of hand-holding, and a technological mysticism that never explicitly says when the literal stops and the fantasy starts… If you held off on reading PLANESRUNNER because you didn’t want to commit to a series without knowing if the author could keep up the quality, have no fear. McDonald has proven himself handily.’ — BoingBoing

‘Also appropriating airships, larger‑than-life characters and breakneck action is Ian McDonald’s PLANESRUNNER…, the opening volume in the Everness series and his first foray into Young Adult fiction. This is vintage McDonald, with beautifully drawn settings, complex characters and deft plotting. When Everett Singh’s scientist father is kidnapped, Everett’s investigations lead him to discover that his father was working to open portals between multiple worlds. Everett finds a map linking the worlds, which various sinister organisations desire – and the thrilling chase is on.’ — Guardian on PLANESRUNNER

‘The book begins with its young and likeably geeky protagonist, Everett Singh (named for physicist Hugh Everett, who came up with the many-worlds interpretation of quantum mechanics back in the ‘50s) witnessing the kidnapping of his scientist father. But why would anyone want to drag an apparently unimportant academic off the street in London? Because, it turns out, Singh Sr has created the Infundibulum, a map of all known parallel Earths. Soon, Everett heads through a gateway and into a steampunk-tinged adventure. And yes, an airship is involved. But don’t hold that against McDonald, because this is a novel that’s knowing in the way it uses SF tropes without ever coming close to being condescending towards its intended audience. Science nerds of all ages may balk at the amount of exposition in the early chapters (arguably necessary, considering we’re talking quantum here), but most will be too busy getting lost in a cracking adventure story.’ — SFX on PLANESRUNNER