New Russian Edition of Roger Zelazny’s THE COURTS OF CHAOS Out Now!


There’s a new Russian edition of Roger Zelazny‘s THE COURTS OF CHAOS! The fifth novel in the classic, beloved Chronicles of Amber series, it has been translated by Pchelintsev Mikhail Alekseevich. It’s published in Russia by Эксмо as Владения Хаоса. Here’s the synopsis…

Амбер вновь на краю гибели! Хаос наступает, и кажется, некому его остановить… Пускай король Оберон снова заполучил свой великий артефакт, Камень Правосудия, даже ему будет нелегко восстановить Лабиринт Амбера, а в случае его неудачи весь их мир погибнет. Перед мятежным принцем Корвином встает последний, нелегкий выбор… Заключительная книга Пятикнижия Корвина культового цикла “Хроники Амбера”!

Амбер вновь на краю гибели! Хаос наступает, и, кажется, некому его остановить… Пускай король Оберон снова заполучил свой великий артефакт, Камень Правосудия, даже ему будет нелегко восстановить Лабиринт Амбера, а в случае его неудачи весь их мир погибнет. Перед мятежным принцем Корвином встает последний, нелегкий выбор… Заключительная книга «Пятикнижия Корвина» культового цикла «Хроники Амбера»! Переиздание классического фэнтези в удобном формате и стильном оформлении! Заключительный роман культового цикла «Хроники Амбера» от признанного мастера американской фантастики Роджера Желязны, лауреата главных жанровых премий («Хьюго», «Небьюла» и др.). Продолжение приключений девяти принцев в борьбе за престол Амбера.

Эксмо has published all ten of the Chronicles of Amber novels, and the first four are also available in the Эксклюзивная фантастика (Exclusive Fantasy) series.

THE COURTS OF CHAOS was first published in 1978, and was nominated for the Locus Award for Best SF Novel. Here’s the English-language synopsis…

Amber, the one real world of which all others — including our own Earth — are but Shadows…

For untold millennia, the cosmic Pattern sustained order in Amber and all the known worlds. But now the forces of Chaos have succeeded in disrupting the Pattern, unleashing destructive forces beyond measure… forces meant to reshape the universe.

To save Amber, Corwin, prince of the blood, champion of the perfect realm, must undertake the most perilous journey of his life. A journey that will take him through all the terrors of Shadows to the enemy’s last stonghold. A journey beyond the very edge of existence… to the Courts of Chaos.

Zeno represents Roger Zelazny on behalf of the Zelazny Estate.

Russian Editions of James P. Blaylock’s THE ADVENTURES OF LANGDON ST. IVES and GOBBLIN’ SOCIETY Out Now!


We’re very happy to report that Аркадия has published two more of James P. Blaylock‘s books in Russia! First up, we have THE ADVENTURES OF LANGDON ST. IVES, a collection of the author’s acclaimed Langdon St. Ives short stories! Published in Russian as Глаз идола, here’s the synopsis…

Что может быть лучше, чем вечер, проведенный в уютном лондонском пабе, где можно выпить пинту хорошего эля и отведать зажаренного на вертеле фазана? Только необычайные приключения и полная опасностей дорога — так считают ученый-любитель Лэнгдон Сент-Ив и его верные друзья, готовые ринуться за ним в огонь и в воду в буквальном смысле этого слова. В поисках удивительных артефактов им предстоит то нырять вглубь гибельных зыбучих песков, то путешествовать по дну Темзы, то исследовать таинственные пещеры и подземелья. И хотя инфернальный профессор Нарбондо со своими жестокими подручными идет за ними по пятам, преодоление препятствий на нелегком пути к цели делают ее только желаннее.

The collection is published in North America by Subterranean Press, and by JABberwocky in the UK and eBook, as THE STEAMPUNK ADVENTURES OF LANGDON ST. IVES.

Here’s the English-language synopsis

Within this volume lie the complete Steampunk short stories of Professor Langdon St. Ives, Victorian adventurer, written by avowed Steampunk Legend, James P. Blaylock.

St. Ives, traveler through time and space and an often misunderstood member of the Explorers Club and the Royal Society, has trodden the foggy London streets and Thames-side alleyways for decades, caught up in near-death adventures in pursuit of nefarious villains and obscure knowledge.

In the pages of this chronicle, the intrepid Professor and his stalwart friends face down strange enemies and avert catastrophes that the world scarcely knows exist, finding themselves stalked through the idol-infested jungles of Borneo, set adrift in the starlit reaches of outer space, plunged into the infamous “barrel madness” that descended upon London in the late 18th century, and wandering in a past-and-future age when they stumble upon a time portal in the midst of ancient standing stones in the idyllic Kent countryside.

Next up is Blaylock’s latest Langdon St. Ives novella, GOBBLIN’ SOCIETY! Published in Russia as Общество гурманов, here’s the synopsis…

Лэнгдону Сент-Иву, эксцентричному ученому-натуралисту, джентльмену и отменному семьянину, неведомы спокойствие и скука. Приключения обрушиваются на него и его близких ежедневно, если не ежеминутно. Невинная поездка в Лондонскую оперу оборачивается смертельно опасным сплавом на бочках по Темзе, а прогулка по пустошам к неолитическим постройкам — купанием в водопаде, падающем с безоблачного неба, и путешествием на воздушном шаре через дыру в пространстве-времени. Неудивительно, что любые события с участием Сент-Ива превращаются в фантасмагорию, даже если он пытается всего лишь понять причины загрязнения речки или помогает жене Элис разобраться с документами. Одно несомненно: любой враг рано или поздно будет разбит, и справедливость восторжествует.

Хотя без жертв не обойдется…

The novella is published in the UK by JABberwocky, and in North America by Subterranean Press. Here’s the English-language synopsis…

The story begins with an inheritance. Following a protracted legal battle, Alice St. Ives, Langdon’s wife, has come into full possession of Seaward, the house left to her by her late Uncle Godfrey, a man with a number of bizarre proclivities. Heartened by this good fortune, Alice, Langdon and their surrogate son Finn prepare to take possession of the house. From this point forward, events spin out of control, taking on a madcap logic of their own that is exhilarating and — in typical Blaylock fashion — often quite funny. 

What follows is, in a sense, a tale of two houses. The first, of course, is Seaward, a “rambling, eccentric old house” with it its history, its secrets, its priceless accumulation of volumes of arcane lore. The other is a neighboring house known, for good reasons, as “Gobblin’ Manor,” home base of The Gobblin’ Society, a “culinary establishment” with its own peculiar — and very dark — traditions. In the course of an event filled few days, St. Ives and his cohorts will encounter smuggling, mesmerism, kidnapping, cannibalism and murder. It is, in other words, a typical — and typically eccentric — Langdon St. Ives adventure.

Like its predecessors, this latest extravaganza is fast-paced, unpredictable, and a thorough delight to read. Few novelists evoke the essence of Victorian England as successfully as Blaylock. Fewer still bring such wit, style, and propulsive narrative talents to the task. In The Gobblin’ Society, Blaylock has given vibrant new life to one of his signature creations. The result is a gift both for Blaylock’s longtime fans, and for newcomers lucky enough to come along for this astonishing — and thoroughly enjoyable — ride.

WHEN ALL IS SAID out now in Russia!


WHEN ALL IS SAID, Anne Griffin‘s best-selling and critically-acclaimed debut novel continues its journey around the world — a new Russian edition of the novel is out now! Published by ACT as Когда все сказано, here’s the synopsis…

В баре провинциального отеля теплым летним вечером сидит старый фермер Морис Хэнниган. Пять раз он заказывает выпивку — и каждый раз поднимает тост за человека, сыгравшего важную роль в его долгой, трудной жизни.

За любимого старшего брата, которого еще подростком унесла болезнь.

За душевнобольную невестку, с первого взгляда к нему привязавшуюся.

За дочку, рожденную мертвой.

За талантливого сына-журналиста — каково ему там, в далекой Америке?

И — за нее. Любимую жену и верную подругу. За лучшую из женщин, после смерти которой из жизни его ушли и свет, и смысл.

Пять тостов. Пять историй. А в них — целая жизнь, с любовью и ненавистью, с удачами и катастрофами, днями веселья и скорби. Жизнь, рассказанная так, как это умеют делать только ирландцы!

The novel is published in the UK and Ireland by Sceptre, in North America by Picador, and in an ever-growing number of international and translated edition (check out some of the covers, below). Here’s the English-language synopsis…

Five toasts. Five people. One lifetime.

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

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

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

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

Griffin’s second novel, LISTENING STILL, is out now in the UK, published by Sceptre, and is due to be published in North America by St. Martin’s Press, in March 2022.

New Russian Edition of Roger Zelazny & Philip K. Dick’s DEUS IRAE!


We are very happy to report that there is a new Russian edition of Roger Zelazny & Philip K. Dick‘s classic novel DEUS IRAE! Published by Эксмо as Господь гнева, here’s the synopsis…

После Третьей мировой войны служители культа Господа Гнева обожествили таинственного Карлтона Люфтойфеля, создателя оружия Судного дня, уничтожившего большую часть человечества. Но для поклонения нужен божественный образ, а Люфтойфеля никто и никогда не видел. И тогда первосвященники отправляют художника Тибора Макмастерса в пустыню, чтобы найти Карлтона и запечатлеть на полотне. К несчастью для Тибора, оставшиеся в стране христиане не хотят, чтобы он преуспел в своей миссии, и готовы убивать, лишь бы лик так называемого Deus Irae по-прежнему оставался сокрытым. Галлюцинаторный квест в мире постъядерных пустошей поднимает вопрос о том, какую цену художник должен заплатить за искусство, и как именно создаются боги.

First published in 1976, here’s the English-language synopsis…

After World War III, the Servants of Wrath cult deified the mysterious Carlton Lufteufel, creator of the doomsday weapon that wiped out much of humanity. But to worship the man, they need an image of him as a god, and no one has ever seen him. So the high priests send a limbless master painter named Tibor McMasters into the wilderness on a mission to find Lufteufel and capture his likeness. Unfortunately for Tibor, the nation’s remaining Christians do not want him to succeed and are willing to kill to ensure that the so-called Deus Irae remains hidden.

This hallucinatory tale through a nuclear wasteland asks what price the artist must pay for art and tries to figure out just what makes a god.

New Russian Edition of Zelanzy’s HAND OF OBERON Out Now!


There is a new edition of Roger Zelazny‘s fourth Chronicles of Amber novel, THE HAND OF OBERON! Published as part of Эксмо‘s Эксклюзивная фантастика series, here’s the synopsis for Рука Оберона

Древний Хаос пробуждается. Тьма поглощает души отпрысков короля Оберона. Лабиринт Амбера поврежден, и лишь великий артефакт, Камень Правосудия, может восстановить его. Но чтобы заполучить Камень, принцу Корвину предстоит узнать многое о своем отце и о самом себе… Четвертая книга культового цикла “Хроники Амбера”!

The first three novels are also available as part of the Эксклюзивная фантастика series: NINE PRINCES IN AMBER (Девять принцев Амбера), THE GUNS OF AVALON (Ружья Авалона) and SIGN OF THE UNICORN (Знак Единорога).

First published in 1976, here’s the English-language synopsis for THE HAND OF OBERON

Across the mysterious Black Road, demons swarm into Shadow. The ancient, secret source of the royal family’s power is revealed, & an unholy pact between a prince of the realm & the forces of Chaos threaten all the known worlds with absolute obliteration. The hour of battle is at hand. Now Corwin and the remaining princes of Amber must call upon all their superhuman powers to defeat their brother-turned-traitor before he can walk the magical Pattern that created Amber and remake the universe in his own image.

Audio Spotlight: Roger Zelazny’s Chronicles of Amber in Russia


Today, we wanted to draw your attention to the Russian audiobook editions of Roger Zelazny‘s classic, beloved Chronicles of Amber series. Published by Студия озвучания «Глагол», all ten of the novels are out now!

  1. NINE PRINCES IN AMBERДевять принцев Амбера
  2. THE GUNS OF AVALONРужья Авалона
  3. SIGN OF THE UNICORNЗнак Единорога
  4. THE HAND OF OBERONРука Оберона
  5. THE COURTS OF CHAOSВладения Хаоса
  6. TRUMPS OF DOOMКарты Судьбы
  7. BLOOD OF AMBERКровь Амбера
  8. SIGN OF CHAOSЗнак Хаоса
  9. KNIGHT OF SHADOWРыцарь Теней
  10. PRINCE OF CHAOSПринц Хаоса

Here’s the synopsis for the first book…

Первый законный сын Оберона Корвин вспоминает свое прошлое с помощью карт таро. С братом Рэндомом он отправляется в вечный город Амбер через Арденский лес. В лабиринте подводного города Рембы открывает правду: все миры — отражения Амбера, а он, Корвин, должен унаследовать престол внезапно исчезнувшего отца. Но за трон Янтарного королевства предстоит побороться…

The Russian print and eBook editions of the novels are published by Эксмо.

First published in English between 1970-91, here’s the English-language synopsis for NINE PRINCES IN AMBER

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

Amber, the one real world, wherein all others, including our own Earth, are but Shadows. Amber burns in Corwin’s blood. Exiled on Shadow Earth for centuries, the prince is about to return to Amber to make a mad and desperate rush upon the throne. From Arden to the blood-slippery Stairway into the Sea, the air is electrified with the powers of Eric, Random, Bleys, Caine, and all the princes of Amber whom Corwin must overcome. Yet, his savage path is blocked and guarded by eerie structures beyond imagining; impossible realities forged by demonic assassins and staggering horrors to challenge the might of Corwin’s superhuman fury.

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

New Russian Edition of Roger Zelazny’s SIGN OF THE UNICORN out now!


A new Russian edition of SIGN OF THE UNICORN, Roger Zelazny’s third Chronicles of Amber novel is out now! Published by Эксмо as Знак Единорога, here’s the synopsis…

Говорят, бывшие друзья — худшие враги. Время для возвращения в Амбер принц Корвин выбрал самое удачное. Но как заявить свои права на престол и стать победителем в игре на выживание? Не погибнуть от руки неведомого врага и объединиться перед лицом надвигающейся на королевство угрозы? И какую дорогу выбрать, чтобы объяснить Знак Единорога?

This new edition is published as part of Эксмо’s Эксклюзивная фантастика series, which also includes the first two novels in the series — NINE PRINCES IN AMBER and THE GUNS OF AVALON — and Zelazny’s A NIGHT IN THE LONESOME OCTOBER and THIS IMMORTAL. Эксмо also published another edition of the series, which is available in its entirety.

The novel was first published in 1975. Here’s the English-language synopsis…

He who rules Amber rules the one true world. He who thwarts Amber invites the wrath of Amber betrayed.

An unseen enemy of immense strength has seized a Prince of the Blood, and now threatens the perfect kingdom by striking at the very core of its power — the secret knowledge of Shadow.

When Corwin summons forces to defend the throne, he finds himself challenged by royal conspirators, hideous demons, supernatural patterns and the ominous unknown that suddenly transcends all he ever suspected about the true nature of Amber.

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

James P. Blaylock’s Подземелья Лондона out now!


Some more James P. Blaylock news! Following on from Monday’s announcement that two of the author’s Langdon St. Ives novellas have been published as eBooks, we are happy to also report that BENEATH LONDON, the fourth novel in the series, is out now in Russia! Published by Аркадия as Подземелья Лондона, here’s the synopsis…

Внезапное обрушение набережной Темзы открывает проход в таинственный подземный мир Лондона. Аристократ-изобретатель Лэнгдон Сент-Ив и его друзья решают исследовать неизвестные просторы, не зная, что им противостоит хладнокровный гений зла, перед которым демонический доктор Нарбондо покажется сущим ребенком! На стороне психопата-душегуба весь преступный мир британской столицы, смертоносные изобретения вивисектора Пиви и даже грибы-вампиры. Убийства и похищения ни в чем не повинных людей следуют одно за другим… Сумеет ли Сент-Ив избежать уготованной ему печальной участи и восстановить мир и покой на улицах Лондона…?

Аркадия has also published the first three novels in the series: Гомункул (HOMUNCULUS), Машина лорда Кельвина (LORD KELVIN’S MACHINE) and Айлсфордский череп (THE AYLESFORD SKULL).

The novels are published in the UK and North America by Titan Books. Here’s the English-language synopsis for BENEATH LONDON

The collapse of the Victoria Embankment uncovers a passage to an unknown realm beneath the city. Langdon St. Ives sets out to explore it, not knowing that a brilliant and wealthy psychopathic murderer is working to keep the underworld’s secrets hidden for reasons of his own.

St. Ives and his stalwart friends investigate a string of ghastly crimes: the gruesome death of a witch, the kidnapping of a blind, psychic girl, and the grim horrors of a secret hospital where experiments in medical electricity and the development of human, vampiric fungi, serve the strange, murderous ends of perhaps St. Ives’s most dangerous nemesis yet.

Here are just a few of the many great reviews the Langdon St. Ives series has received…

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

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

‘St. Ives’s journey through time is very well handled, at once playful and thoughtful’ Publishers Weekly on LORD KELVIN’S MACHINE

‘Blaylock allows us to see the mundane world through new eyes, to perceive the familiar as strange, and therefore exciting.’ Charles de Lint on LORD KELVIN’S MACHINE

‘Nerve-wrenching, deeply moving, and sparked with comic touches… brilliantly achieved.’ Locus on LORD KELVIN’S MACHINE

‘James P Blaylock has been underpublished on this side of the Atlantic, a state of affairs Titan are addressing with THE AYLESFORD SKULL (£7.99), the first of three titles by one of the founders of the steampunk genre… Blaylock throws in all the furniture of the genre: derring-do and cliffhangers, a vivid portrayal of Victorian London, a gallery of grotesque characters and the obligatory airship, but the strength of the novel is his rendering of St Ives caught between his love of the chase and his commitment to family.’ Guardian

‘St. Ives has to be one of the most fleshed out Victorian characters ever written, and I’m sincerely hoping that Blaylock isn’t finished with this scientist adventurer. THE AYLESFORD SKULL can easily stand alone without any knowledge of Blaylock’s previous steampunk stories, but you’ll want to hunt down additional St. Ives tales, I’m for certain.’ Wired.com

Ian McDonald’s Восставшая Луна out now! (Luna: Moon Rising)


The third novel in Ian McDonald‘s acclaimed Luna series, MOON RISING is out now in Russia! Published by ACT as Восставшая Луна, here’s the synopsis…

Финал грандиозной научно-фантастической саги

Пять Драконов – пять семейных кланов, контролирующих ведущие промышленные компании Луны,– ведут между собой настоящую войну. Соперники не гнушаются ничем, чтобы проложить себе путь на самый верх пищевой цепочки – ни браками по расчету, ни корпоративным шпионажем, ни похищениями людей, ни массовыми убийствами. Теперь эта битва подошла к концу, и тот, кто, казалось, потерял все, кто поднялся из руин корпоративного разгрома, захватил контроль над Луной благодаря изощренным манипуляциям и невероятной силе воли. Но война никогда не заканчивается, и теперь против победителя выступает его родная сестра. Вот только мир вокруг не стои т на месте, Луна и Земля никогда не будут прежними, неумолимые силы истории придадут бесконечной борьбе за власть совершенно иной масштаб, а человечество уже готово двигаться дальше – за пределы Солнечной системы.

ACT has also published the first two novels in the series, NEW MOON and WOLF MOON — as Новая Луна and Волчья Луна, respectively. They have also published a handful of Ian’s other acclaimed novels.

The Luna series is published in the UK by Gollancz, in North America by Tor Books, and in a growing number of translated editions around the world. 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.

If you haven’t yet had the chance to try the series, and are daunted by the prospect of a full-length novel, Ian has also written a prequel novella, which is out now via Tor.com, THE MENACE FROM FARSIDE.

Here are just a few examples of the praise the 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

‘McDonald’s richly imagined Lunar culture and interplanetary poleconomy make for a superb backdrop for literally dozens of richly realized human dramas, and it’s hard to say which is more fascinating. McDonald’s wildly imaginative worldbuilding (present since his debut novel, the utterly wonderful standout OUT ON BLUE SIX) and his ability to spin out intrigues are both in full flight in this final volume.’ — Boing Boing 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)

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

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

Lavie Tidhar’s World Fantasy Award-winning OSAMA now available in Russia!


Lavie Tidhar‘s novel OSAMA, which won the World Fantasy Award in 2012, is now available in Russia! Published by Эксмо’s Fanzon SF imprint as Усама, here’s the synopsis…

Частного детектива Джо нанимает таинственная незнакомка для розыска исчезнувшего писателя Майкла Лонгшотта, автора культовой серии триллеров “Мститель”, повествующих о приключениях супергероя по имени Усама бен Ладен. Джо предстоят поиски в Лаосе, Франции, Америке, Афганистане, Марокко и Анг- лии — странах мира, столь похожего и столь отличающегося от нашего. Мира, в котором Вторая мировая война закончилась иначе, нет глобального терроризма, а реальность призрачна.

This Russian edition joins a growing number of translated editions of this excellent, thought-provoking novel. Here’s the novel’s English-language synopsis…

In an alternate world without global terrorism Joe, a private detective, is hired by a mysterious woman to find a man: the obscure author of pulp fiction novels featuring one Osama Bin Laden: Vigilante…

Joe’s quest to find the man takes him across the world, from the backwaters of Asia to the European Capitals of Paris and London, and as the mystery deepens around him there is one question he is trying hard not to ask: who is he, really, and how much of the books are fiction? Chased by unknown assailants, Joe s identity slowly fragments as he discovers the shadowy world of the refugees, ghostly entities haunting the world in which he lives.

Where do they come from? And what do they want? Joe knows how the story should end, but even he is not ready for the truths he ll find in New York and, finally, on top a quiet hill above Kabul nor for the choice he will at last have to make…

Here are a few of the great reviews the novel has received…

‘He is a political writer, an iconoclast and sometimes a provocateur … OSAMA is a remarkable and ambitious work.’ — China Mieville

Bears comparison with the best of Philip K Dick’s paranoid, alternate-history fantasies. It’s beautifully written and undeniably powerful.’ — Financial Times

OSAMA has ushered Tidhar into the limelight… OSAMA is the narrative symphony Philip K. Dick wished he could have composed. Not only is it beautifully written, it is expertly crafted… OSAMA is a work of art. And Tidhar is a word-painter, constructing vibrant and poetic landscapes of narrative in spite of the novel’s dark and brooding subject matter. Too often, I am surprised by works that win the World Fantasy Award, among others in the speculative genres (none more so than the Bram Stoker Award). Sometimes the quality of winners doesn’t hold up and their nominations seem to be a matter of sheer star power or nepotism. In this case, I’m happy to say, the judges got it dead right.’ — Los Angeles Review of Books

‘… fascinating and hypnotic … the writing is beautiful.’ — Jeff VanderMeer

‘A novel about the power of fantasy, about the proximity of dreams and reality, about ghost people and ghost realities. Lavie Tidhar has written a fine, striking, memorable piece of fiction here, one that deserves to be widely read.’ — Adam Roberts

‘A provocative and fast moving tale that raises good questions not only about the heritage of Al Qaeda, but about the slippage between reality and sensational fiction that sometimes seems to define our own confused and contorted experience of the last couple of decades.’ — Gary K. Wolfe, Locus

‘A roller-coaster ride… [a] fabulous opium-soaked political thriller… pulls out all the stops.’ — Rolling Stone (Germany)

Out Now: two new editions of Roger Zelazny’s JACK OF SHADOWS!


There are two new editions of Roger Zelazny‘s classic JACK OF SHADOWS available! The novel, which was first published in 1971, is now available in Estonia and Russia (audio). Read on for more details…

The Estonian edition (cover above) is published by Faataasia as VARJUDE JACK. Here’s the synopsis…

Selle romaani peategelane elab maailmas, kus hiiglaslik masin on peatanud planeedi pöörlemise, nii et see on jagunenud päevavalguse käes asuvaks teadusmaailmaks ja ööpimedusse mattunud maagiaühiskonnaks. Peategelane Jack on ainus, kes suudab liikuda nii pimeduse- kui valgusetsoonis. Ta peab lahendama dilemma, mida selle maailma südames asuva masinaga peale hakata. See Hugo auhinnale nomineeritud romaan on mõeldud austusavaldusena ka ulmekirjanduse suurmeistri Jack Vance’i kaubamärgiks kujunenud eksootilisi ja fantastilisi maailmu kujutavale loomingule.

In Russia, the novel is now available as an audiobook, published by Студия озвучания “Глагол” as Джек из Тени

Кому Джек из Тени, кому просто вор,
кому Господин, кому Джек из Зла,
кому даже Джеки, но ни одному
не друг
не герой
и не дай бог
чтоб враг.

В мире, разделенном на Светлую и Темную стороны, одна из которых живет Наукой, а другая Магией, был один, кто слышит свое имя, когда оно произносится в тени. Аутсайдер, темная лошадка, выдающийся мошенник, обреченный на одиночество, главная угроза мироустройству… Джек, встретившийся с самим собой.

Here’s the English-language synopsis for the novel…

The Earth no longer rotates. Science rules the dayside of the globe. Magic rules the World of Night, and Jack of Shadows, Shadowjack the Thief, who broke the Compact and duped the Lord of High Dudgeon, walks in silence and in shadows to seek vengeance upon his enemies.

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

Roger Zelazny’s classic THIS IMMORTAL available in a new Russian Edition


There is a new Russian edition of THIS IMMORTAL! The classic novel by Roger Zelazny, originally published in 19??, has been added to Эксмо‘s Эксклюзивная фантастика (Exclusive Fiction) series. Published in Russia as Этот бессмертный, here’s the synopsis…

Отравленная радиацией, истерзанная жестокими войнами, Земля покинута людьми ради новых миров. Немногие оставшиеся попали в античную эпоху — время богов и героев, жутких чудовищ и волшебных артефактов. Человечество, восставшее из Тьмы, возвратилось туда, где когда-то разгорались первые искры цивилизации. Вернуть историю на круги своя способен теперь только Конрад Номикос — этот бессмертный…

Here, too, is the English-language synopsis…

Conrad Nomikos has a long, rich personal history that he’s rather not talk about. And, as Arts Commissioner, he’s been giving a job he’d rather not do. Escorting an alien grandee on a guided tour of the shattered remains of Earth is not something he relishes- especially when it is apparent that this places him at the center high-level intrigue that has some bearing on the future of Earth itself.

This is the third Russian edition of THIS IMMORTAL that Эксмо has published. Here are the covers for the other two…

The Эксклюзивная фантастика series of novels also includes Zelazny’s first two Chronicles of Amber novels (NINE PRINCES IN AMBER and THE GUNS OF AVALON) and also A NIGHT IN THE LONESOME OCTOBER

Finally, THIS IMMORTAL is also available in Germany, France, and Turkey.

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

Ian McDonald’s DESOLATION ROAD is out now in Russia!


Ian McDonald‘s acclaimed sci-fi novel DESOLATION ROAD is out now in Russia! Published by ACT as Дорога запустения, it is the first in his Mars Duology. Here’s the synopsis…

Это история города, находящегося на терраформированном Марсе. Это история скандалов и кошмаров, путешествий во времени и религиозных движений, террора и всепроникающей войны всех против всех. Это история плененных механических ангелов, музыкантов, вызывающих дождь, зеркального тахионного лабиринта, который показывает все мыслимые варианты будущего, поездов, одержимых сознанием, марсианских треножников и киберсвятых. Это история того, насколько необычной, неожиданной и всеобъемлющей может быть научная фантастика. Это самая необычная история освоения Марса из всех, что когда-либо были написаны. Это история Дороги Запустения.

The novel is available in English as an eBook, published by JABberwocky (who also publish the sequel, ARES EXPRESS).

It all began thirty years ago on Mars, with a greenperson. But by the time it all finished, the town of Desolation Road had experienced every conceivable abnormality from Adam Black’s Wonderful Travelling Chautauqua and Educational ‘Stravaganza (complete with its very own captive angel) to the Astounding Tatterdemalion Air Bazaar. Its inhabitants ranged from Dr. Alimantando, the town’s founder and resident genius, to the Babooshka, a barren grandmother who just wants her own child — grown in a fruit jar; from Rajendra Das, mechanical hobo who has a mystical way with machines to the Gallacelli brothers, identical triplets who fell in love with — and married — the same woman.

Here are just a few reviews for Ian’s Mars novels…

‘Ian McDonald’s DESOLATION ROAD is one of my most personally influential novels. It’s an epic tale of the terraforming of Mars, whose sweep captures the birth and death of mythologies, economics, art, revolution, politics… Desolation Road pays homage to David Byrne’s Catherine Wheel, to Ray Bradbury’s entire canon and to Jack Vance, blending all these disparate creators in a way that surprises, delights, then surprises and delights again… Pyr Books has done us all the service of bringing this remarkable volume back into print after too long a hiatus.’ — Cory Doctorow (Boing Boing)

‘There’s a fair bit of science fiction that feels like fantasy, and vice versa, but DESOLATION ROAD is the only book I know that holds this particular balance… It was McDonald’s first novel, it absolutely bowled me over when it came out, and while I have read everything he’s published since, and admire all of it and like most of it, this remains my favourite of his books because it’s so unusual. It’s also some of the most beautiful prose imaginable… If you ever want to demonstrate how different science fiction can be, what an incredible range and sweep of things are published with a little spaceship on the spine, DESOLATION ROAD is a shining datapoint, because it isn’t like anything else and yet it is coming from a knowledge of what the genre can do and can be and making something new out of it.’ — Jo Walton (Tor.com)

‘McDonald’s fantastic Mars is vividly detailed and owes much to Bradbury’s Martian stories… entirely worthy of its rightly lauded predecessor.’ Publishers Weekly on ARES EXPRESS

‘A phantasmagoria of nuclear locomotives and wild Martian awesomeness. It’s a definite must-read… McDonald is furthermore an extraordinary stylist. His prose is clear and lucid, and at once both beautiful and playful. There is an inescapable sense that McDonald enjoys playing with words, building prose like intricate clocks, which can persist wholly on their beauty, regardless of their subject.’ — io9 on ARES EXPRESS

ARES EXPRESS is a long, adventure-filled, extravagantly colourful, often funny, quite moving, highly imaginative, excellently written, story, set on a glorious Mars… might be the most fun [novel of the year]. I loved it wholeheartedly.’ SF Site

ACT also publish the first two novels in Ian’s Luna trilogy (NEW MOON and WOLF MOON), as well as his stand-alone novels BRAZIL and THE DERVISH HOUSE.

THE AYLESFORD SKULL now available in Russia!


THE AYLESFORD SKULL by James P. Blaylock is available now in Russia! Published by Аркадия as Джеймс Блэйлок: Айлсфордский череп, here’s the synopsis…

Профессор Лэнгдон Сент-Ив, блестящий, хотя и немного эксцентричный ученый и изобретатель, наслаждается семейной жизнью в роскошном поместье: играет с сыном и дочкой, ходит с женой на рыбалку, планирует вволю полетать на собственном дирижабле и мечтает завести слона. Но его злейший враг, доктор Игнасио Нарбондо, не дремлет. Он уже задумал новое злодейство. И если некроманту-вивисектору удастся осуществить задуманное, улицы разрушенного Лондона заполнят духи умерших людей! Пока же Нарбондо занимается разграблением могил, устраивает взрывы, а заодно похищает сынишку Сент-Ива, Эдди. И профессор бросается в погоню…

Аркадия has also published the first two novels in the series in Russia: Гомункул and Машина лорда Келвина.

The third novel in Blaylock’s fan-favourite Langdon St. Ives steampunk series, it is published in the UK and US by Titan Books. Here’s the English-language synopsis…

It is the summer of 1883 and Professor Langdon St. Ives brilliant but eccentric scientist and explorer is at home in Aylesford with his family. However a few miles to the north a steam launch has been taken by pirates above Egypt Bay, the crew murdered and pitched overboard. In Aylesford itself a grave is opened and possibly robbed of the skull. The suspected grave robber, the infamous Dr. Ignacio Narbondo, is an old nemesis of Langdon St. Ives. When Dr. Narbondo returns to kidnap his four-year-old son Eddie and then vanishes into the night, St. Ives and his factotum Hasbro race into London in pursuit…

Titan has also published the other novels in the series: HOMUNCULUS, LORD KELVIN’S MACHINE and BENEATH LONDON.

‘James P Blaylock has been underpublished on this side of the Atlantic, a state of affairs Titan are addressing with THE AYLESFORD SKULL… Blaylock throws in all the furniture of the genre: derring-do and cliffhangers, a vivid portrayal of Victorian London, a gallery of grotesque characters and the obligatory airship, but the strength of the novel is his rendering of St Ives caught between his love of the chase and his commitment to family.’ — Guardian

‘St. Ives has to be one of the most fleshed out Victorian characters ever written, and I’m sincerely hoping that Blaylock isn’t finished with this scientist adventurer. THE AYLESFORD SKULL can easily stand alone without any knowledge of Blaylock’s previous steampunk stories, but you’ll want to hunt down additional St. Ives tales, I’m for certain.’ — Wired.com

‘I never found it less than gripping. In fact I sped through it in just two sittings. I especially enjoyed the way Blaylock split his heroes up and had them all working vaguely towards the same end, while having no clear idea where the others were, or what they were up to. Even so, he managed to keep a tight control on who was where and when, so that the action ties up properly in the end… Narbondo is deranged, as all such villains should be. His plot to overthrow the throne and government would leave even the likes of Fu Manchu speechless. Off-the wall doesn’t cover it… The climactic scenes are spectacular to say the least, and I found it hard not to visualise it in terms of a Hollywood Blockbuster.’ — British Fantasy Society

‘This is steampunk at full power and it’s a heady, thrilling read as a result. Packed with high adventure, mad science and derring do, THE AYLESFORD SKULL is a perfect place to start the Langdon St Ives books and, with Titan re-releasing the other books in the series, there’s plenty to keep you and St Ives busy. Which is, I suspect, just how he likes it.’ — SFX

New Russian edition of Roger Zelazny’s GUNS OF AVALON out now!


There’s a new Russian edition of GUNS OF AVALON! The second novel in Roger Zelazny‘s classic Chronicles of Amber fantasy series! Published by Эксмо as Ружья Авалона, here’s the synopsis…

Он отправился в путь к Авалону. Но набрел по пути на раненого рыцаря. Первый законный сын Оберона принц Корвин вырвался из заточения и готов на все, чтобы отомстить и получить вожделенную корону — даже прибегнуть к помощи темных сил. Но плата слишком высока — хаос и смерть во всем Амбере…

Эксмо has published all ten of the Chronicles of Amber novels (in addition to other novels), and is in the process of re-issuing them with this new style of cover. Here’s the new edition of the first novel, NINE PRINCES IN AMBER

THE GUNS OF AVALON was first published in 1972. Here’s the English-language synopsis…

Across the worlds of Shadow, Corwin, prince of blood royal, heir to the throne of Amber, gathers his forces for an assault that will yield up to him the crown that is rightfully his. But, a growing darkness of his own doing threatens his plans, an evil that stretches to the heart of the perfect kingdom itself where the demonic forces of Chaos mass to annihilate Amber and all who would rule there.

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