Tuesday, April 30, 2013

Darkship Renegades, A Memory of Light, and Sunset of the Gods reviews

Darkship Renegades
Sarah A. Hoyt
Baen, $14.00
ISBN: 9781451638523

Kit the Jarl mule clone and the daughter of wealth Athena know they are fortunate to escape Earth and her past. They leave with a price on Thena’s head are going to Eden to live together in love and peace. Instead they face treasonous charges as a powerful individual uses the duo as fodder to manipulate his way into becoming Eden’s first dictator.

The couple accompanied by his sister mule Zen and another mule Doc Bartholomew team up with their mission to learn how to grow powertrees so that Eden no longer depends on harvesting earth tree powerpods, which as a byproduct will free the solar system. However, the quest starts badly when Kit is injured before they depart. Bartholomew tries a dangerous medical procedure to save his life. The method seemingly works, but as Kit recuperates, he increasingly does not behave like her beloved husband. Instead he has the memories of his “sire” Jarl reengineered to rule Earth. With their mission on the brink of failure, Thena knows she must prevent the transformation of her husband and will do whatever it takes including killing him; while she also understands her only out if they do not succeed on their original mission is her death.

The second Darkship space opera (see Darkship Thieves) is an entertaining science fiction thriller that continues the adventures of Thena. There are too many reflective treatises by Thena that slow down the pace of the overall exciting storyline. However, these interludes also provide insight into the historical, political, economic, science and technology. Fans will enjoy traveling on a Darkship piloted by Athena and her mates exploring the believable Hoyt galaxy. Harriet Klausner

A Memory Of Light
Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson
Tor, $34.99
ISBN: 9780765325952


The forces of the Light and the Darkness prepare for the final battle, which appears will occur north of the Mountains of Dhoom in Shayol Ghul. Meanwhile hostilities flare up elsewhere as Talmanes leads a depleted Band of the Red Hand in a fight against the Trollocs in Caemlyn; Elayne had taken much of their force especially the cavalry to the Field of Merrilor where the rulers will decide whether to support Rand al’Thor’s dangerous plan to free the Dark One or kill him before his insanity demoralizes the humans. Regardless of who stands victorious in the Last Battle, The Wheel of Time is moving to end this age.

This is an exciting finish to the two decade old Wheel of Time saga as Brandon Sanderson provides an action-packed final battle (and several precursor combats) in his third effort. The battle scenes are top rate while making up the brunt of the 900 plus page tome, but also have a déjà vu sense after several war scenes occur. Not surprisingly, some of the numerous long-running subplots receive short shrift as do key characters and races. Still, this is a well-done climax as several fronts explode while the adversarial forces prepare and meet for the final battle that will determine the fate of humanity as the Wheel of Time turns. Harriet Klausner

Sunset of the Gods
Steve White
Baen, $14.00
ISBN: 9781451638462


Temporal Regulatory Authority leader Kyle Rutherford asks his most experienced Ancient Greece time traveler Hesperian Colonial Rangers Commander Jason Thanou to lead an expedition to study the Battle of Marathon. The mission is to answer historical questions and to determine whether any alien Teloi survivors that escaped the Minoan entrapment were involved in the pivotal battle. Jason met the Teloi masquerading as gods like Zeus when he, geologist Dr. Deirdre Sadaka-Ramirez (who stayed behind with Perseus) and historian Dr. Sidney Nagel (who died heroically) traveled to three millennia ago (see Blood of the Heroes). Reluctantly, Jason agrees to lead the expedition consisting of historian Dr. Bryan Landry, soldier Alexandre Mondrago and xenologist Dr. Chantal Frey to 490 BC.

The quartet arrives in 490 BC weeks before the battle. They claim to be exiles from Macedon whose King Alexander I swore allegiance to the Persians. On the road top Athens, Jason and Alexandre see the mythological Pan. As they are given sanctuary by Themistocles, the budding Athenian democracy debates how to defend itself against the Persian military. They soon encounter Zeus and a stunning anomaly in which conspirators are using Pan and the Teloi to achieve their long term objective.

The clever second Thanou time travel science fiction is an exciting thriller that provides a deep look at the Battle of Marathon. The storyline uses too many passive explanations re the rules of time travel and 490 BC Athens though these explicatory soliloquies add a sense of scientific and historical genuineness to the plot. Still fans will enjoy learning the secret of Pan as Jason and his team must thwart a diabolical plot to influence the outcome of the key Battle of Marathon.
Harriet Klausner

Sunday, April 28, 2013

Update

Too many doctors visits-three more in the next two weeks; way too many prescriptions; and not enough time to do what I need to do.

I'll try to get back to normal as soon as I can.

Wednesday, April 24, 2013

The End of an Era

This is the end of an era in paranormal romance! On April 30th, 2013, Karina Cooper’s Dark Mission series comes to an explosively epic conclusion in One for the Wicked. In short, there’s less than a month until Karina Cooper casts a spell on readers with her final novel about the badass witches, hunters, and scientists of New Seattle! Fans are beside themselves with excitement—and they should be: life, love, and death hang in the balance as our heroes Shawn Lowe and Kayleigh Lauderdale go head to head—and unintentionally end up heart-to-heart.



Romantic Times praises Karina’s concluding novel: “In the final entry of the Dark Mission series, Cooper does not disappoint. One for the Wicked’s setting is dark and gritty with sexy characters who further the story while tying things up to satisfy long-time readers…This is a satisfying end to an imaginative series.” One for the Wicked is a perfect addition to Karina’s imaginative and gritty PNR series, and the conclusion is every bit as satisfying to read as it bittersweet to say goodbye to.



Thursday, April 18, 2013

Abaddon Books Open Call Submission Ebooks Announced



Mark Clapham and E. E. Richardson were chosen from dozens of submissions submitted to Abaddon Books’ open call in autumn last year. The brief was to pitch ideas based either in the imprint’s existing shared worlds – such as Tomes of the Dead or The Afterblight Chronicles – or come up with potential new series.

Tomes of the Dead: Dead Stop, by Mark Clapham and Ritual Crimes Unit: Skinflux by E. E. Richardson will be published as e-novellas in mobi and epub formats. Ritual Crime Unit: Under the Skinflux is released in September this year, and Tomes of the Dead: Dead Stop is due out in November.

New Abaddon Books commissioning editor David Moore said: “The response to the open month last autumn was amazing, and more than a little daunting. So many brilliant pitches landed on my desk – both for our existing lines and for amazing new worlds – that I honestly struggled to pick out just a couple for publishing. After the months of reading, winnowing and agonising, I had to spend nearly two whole days rejecting some genuinely brilliant submissions and wishing I wasn’t. In the end, though, Elizabeth and Mark – two great up-and-coming young authors with great visions and palpable talent – blew me away with their ideas. I’m fantastically pleased to be welcoming them to the Abaddon stable.”

Tomes of the Dead: Dead Stop: a contemporary story about a natural medium (a young man who’s been able to see ghosts since a traumatic incident in his youth) who is recruited by the ghost of a woman killed in the first wave of the zombiepocalypse that’s just begun to kill her zombie body so that she can rest.

Ritual Crimes Unit: Skinflux: launching a new supernatural/police procedural world with a story about “skin-changers” (people who can change into animal shapes by using ritually-prepared animal skins); the scene of crime officer at a murder enquiry has found evidence suggesting that an unregistered and unlicensed skin-changer (itself a crime) may have done the impossible and learned to shapeshift using human skin...

Wednesday, April 17, 2013

West Palm released as serial ebooks



I am so pleased to introduce these four e-novellas which will be released by Pocket Star in 1-week intervals throughout June for just $.99 each!

The first installment introduces the tense, fast-paced thriller which revolves around the hunt for a psychopath who thinks his mission is to help his chosen victims cross over to the other side—by murdering them. In Miami, Florida, a young morgue associate is fired for the grisly after-hours decoration of the recently deceased. Mentally unwell, the man then assaults and nearly kills a young woman before escaping. A hard-boiled PI by the name of Smoker must track the psychopath down before he harms anyone else.

Kick off summer with West Palm I: The Undertaker’s Apprentice, a riveting read that will leave you reeling for the next installment by Joss Cordero.

West Palm I: The Undertaker’s Apprentice

Publication Date: June 3, 2013

ISBN: 9781476732657


West Palm II: The Courteous Killer

Publication Date: June 10, 2013

ISBN: 9781476732688


West Palm III: Bloody Valentine

Publication Date: June 17, 2013

ISBN: 9781476732695


West Palm IV: Helping the Dead

Publication Date: June 24, 2013

ISBN: 9781476732701


West Palm: Complete Novel: Parts 1-4

Publication Date: January 1, 2014

ISBN: 9781476732718

Price: $3.99

Pocket Star EBooks

www.simonandschuster.com

Tuesday, April 16, 2013

Boston

Pray for Boston and everyone affected by the cowardly attack.

Thursday, April 11, 2013

Shivers VII

SHIVERS VII, edited by Richard Chizmar, Cemetery Dance, 512 pages, $20, ISBN: 9781587672253, reviewed by Barry Hunter.

Just reading the list of authors in this collection is enough reason to buy this volume of dark and chilling fiction.

Clive Barker’s “The Departed” opens the volume and Stephen King’s “Weeds” are both reprinted here for the first time since their original appearances many years ago.

Other authors appearing between the two reprints with new stories are: Graham Masterton, Scott Nicholson, Brian James Freeman, Ed Gorman, Bev Vincent and Del James.

“GPS” by the late Rick Hautala will make you think twice about obtaining one for yourself as the one in this story gives more than directions. Travis Heermann tells a tale of modern day Vietnam horror tale that takes place on “That Long Black Train”. “Echoes” by Don D’Ammassa is a story about a very unique type of echo that has a killer last line.

This is a very well put together volume that has the masters of the past and the masters of the future proving that horror is indeed alive and well without vampires and zombies. Don’t miss out on this one.

Wednesday, April 10, 2013

Gods and Monsters

Gods and Monsters: Unclean Spirits
by Chuck Wendig

The gods descend on May 9th

£7.99 (UK) ISBN 978-1-78108-095-5
$9.99/$12.99 (US & CAN) ISBN 978-1-78108-096-2


"If you’re looking for a sassy, hard-boiled thriller with a paranormal slant,
Wendig has established himself as the go-to man.”
– The Guardian

“Chuck Wendig has raised the bar of the urban fantasy genre” – New York Journal of Books on Blackbirds

The master of in-your-face visceral horror, Chuck Wendig, returns to Abaddon Books with a brand new title and a brand new world that is not to be missed – Gods and Monsters: Unclean Spirits!

The gods and goddesses are real. A many-headed pantheon—a tangle of divine hierarchies—once kept the world at arm’s length, warring with one another for mankind’s belief and devotion. It was a grim and bloody balance, but a balance just the same. When one god triumphed, driving all other gods out of Heaven, it was back to the bad old days: cults and sycophants, and the terrible retribution the gods visit on those who spite them.

Five years ago, it all went wrong for Cason Cole. He lost his wife and son, lost everything, and was bound into service to a man who chews up human lives and spits them out. Now, as the man he both loves and hates lies dying at his feet, Cason is finally free. And no gods, demi-gods, acolyte, or monstrous abomination is going to stop him from getting back what’s his...

Wendig is a massive talent with a huge online following and Gods and Monsters is a brand new world he has created for Abaddon Books. Pat Kelleher is to continue the series with the e-title Gods and Monsters: Drag Hunt, which will launch online on the same day as Unclean Spirits.

About the Author

Chuck Wendig is a novelist, screenwriter and self-described 'penmonkey'. He sold his first story when he was 18. After working in the computer and role-playing game industries he began scripting TV- and film-projects, including a horror film script which won him a place at the prestigous Sundance Screenwriter Lab 2010. He currently lives in the wilds of Pennsyltucky with a wonderful wife and two very stupid dogs.

His other titles for Abaddon Books include Double Dead and the e-book follow-up, Bad Blood.

www.terribleminds.com

Tuesday, April 9, 2013

Private Parts by Ian Ayres

PRIVATE PARTS, The Early Works of Ian Ayres, Ian Ayres, Revised Second Edition, 2012, French Connection Press, 330 Pages, ISBN: 9781914853101, reviewed by Barry Hunter.

I expected this to be an autobiography of Ian Ayres, but it turned out to be so much more. It is more of the quest of Ian Ayres to become the person he is today and the people that he met along the way.

Ian always knew what he wanted to be, what he wasn’t sure of was if he could make it happen without compromising the feelings he had and be the person that he knew was inside his soul.

Ian has an interesting story of his life from being a JP (junior pimp) for his mother’s massage parlors, his search for his true sexual nature, his unique creativity (music, poetry and prose), and the personal interaction with some of the notable personalities of our time.

A chance encounter with Tennessee Williams, a long relationship with Allen Ginsberg, friendships with Edmund White and Quentin Crisp, and Yoko Ono enhance his journey in life and in finding himself.

Also included is a selection of his poetry that contains a hint of Ginsberg and the Beat Generation, but firmly shows his individual style and usage of words that is seldom seen.

Ian Ayres has had an interesting journey filled with adventure and self discovery. Anyone who reads this will share in his journey and will hopefully learn…

Friday, April 5, 2013

A Novel Gift Idea!

Hi! - just wanted to suggest TARGETS OF REVENGE as a gift for Father’s Day, Sunday, June 16th or for summer reading “like a big summer action movie” (Suspense Magazine)! And also to celebrate Armed Forces Day on Saturday, May 18th and Memorial Day on Monday, May 24th!


Targets of Revenge Book Trailer



For readers who are seeking a book that will deliver the thrill of a James Bond movie, the suspense of a Jack Ryan scene, and the action of a Jason Bourne flick, look no more—Jeffrey S. Stephens’s Jordan Sandor delivers with TARGETS OF REVENGE (Gallery Books; February 2013; $26.00)! Compared to New York Times bestselling authors Vince Flynn, Brad Thor, Tom Clancy and Robert Ludlum, Jeffrey S. Stephens is one thriller author not to be missed!

Thursday, April 4, 2013

The Fictional Man Press Release

The Fictional Man
By Al Ewing

Reality is not what it seems on
May 7th (US & Can) and May 9th (UK)

£7.99 (UK) ISBN 978-1-78108-093-1
$9.99/$12.99 (US & CAN) ISBN 978-1-78108-094-8

Available in paperback and ebook


How does it feel, not being real?

“A disturbing, self-reflective type of brilliance … cross Joe Lansdale with Grant Morrison, and you start to get close to Ewing” – Pornokitsch on Death Got No Mercy

Al Ewing is a writer of extraordinary talent and with his first novel for Solaris, The Fictional Man, his incredible imagination has created a work of disturbing, fascinating insight and power.

In Hollywood, where last year’s stars are this year’s busboys, Fictionals are everywhere. Niles Golan’s therapist is a Fictional. So is his best friend. Fictionals – characters ‘translated’ into living beings for movies and TV using cloning technology – are a part of daily life in LA now. Sometimes the problem is knowing who’s real and who’s not.

Divorced, alcoholic and hanging on by a thread, Niles – author of The Saladin Imperative: A Kurt Power Novel and many others – has been hired to write a big-budget reboot of a classic movie. If he does this right, the studio might bring one of Niles’ own characters to life. But somewhere beneath the movie – beneath the TV show it was inspired by, the children’s book behind that and the story behind that – is the kernel of something important. If he can just hold it together long enough to figure it out...

Having already produced some of the most celebrated work in the shared-worlds fiction of Abaddon Books, this much-anticipated book is being tipped for cross-over success as Ewing lays claim to the legacy of Philip K. Dick while also stamping his own unique vision on the genre.

This is a major new author whose career should be watched and whose writing must be read.

About the Author

Al Ewing is a major new writer whose work in US and UK comics has seen him hailed as the most exciting new voice in the field. His work for Abaddon Books has been equally lauded and his unique visions of pulp fantasy have found their home in five different novels for Abaddon Books. This is his first novel for Solaris and is one of the list’s most keenly awaited books.


Wednesday, April 3, 2013

Jocelynn Drake ebooks on sale

Just wanted to pop a quick note to alert you that we have a ton of Jocelynn Drake e-books on sale right now. Catch up on the Asylum series before the latest book comes out (DEAD MAN’S DEAL, out May 7, 2013) and read the whole Dark Days series at just $.99 a book! Check them out for yourself, and if you have a sec, share with your friends on your social media networks!



Find the deals here: http://harpervoyagerbooks.com/2013/04/02/99-jocelynn-drake-e-book-sale/

Tuesday, April 2, 2013

Baryon 125

Baryon 125 is up at .

Everyone check it out. I'm sure you will find something of interest. Sorry for the lateness.

Monday, April 1, 2013

Suspect Zero


SUSPECT ZERO

New Standalone e-Short Story from New York Times Bestselling Author Richard Kadrey is a killer good read!


On-Sale 4/16/13 * e-ISBN 9780062230676 * $0.99

Every young tradesman needs a mentor—even serial killers. Maybe especially serial killers.

But young Gabriel—an aspiring assassin—thinks he’s beyond tutelage…until he meets “Suspect Zero,” a living legend who gives new meaning to the phrase “kill or be killed.”

On the blood-spattered stretch of highway, with a man who may or may not be an ancient god of murder as his only company, Gabe begins to truly understand that he might not be meant to do what Suspect Zero calls “the work” of an ultimate killer. Between one bloody thrust of his knife and the next, Gabe realizes that the Suspect Zero is much greater—and much worse—than he ever could have imagined.

Between the pages of SUSPECT ZERO (Harper Voyager; on-sale April 16, 2013; $0.99 e-book; e-ISBN 9780062230676), a new digital original by New York Times best-selling author Richard Kadrey, readers may hope for cameos from Sandman Slim or Mustang Sally, but this story is a complete original that showcases Kadrey’s flair for writing terrifying urban fantasy fare. Blending Norse mythology and classic horror with modern aesthetics, SUSPECT ZERO will leave you chilled, terrified, and wanting more. Kadrey’s critically acclaimed writing, described by the Austin American Statesman as “raw and gutter-tough, Raymond Chandler meets Lux Interior at the Whisky a Go Go at the end of days,” is a perfect foil for the eponymous enigmatic super-serial killer legend. Popular author Cory Doctorow (Little Brother) is an ardent supporter of Kadrey’s work, saying, “This bad-ass supernatural horror stuff is clearly the material he was born to write.”

SUSPECT ZERO
features an advance excerpt of KILL CITY BLUES, a new, full-length Sandman Slim novel by Richard Kadrey (on-sale July 30, 2013, from Harper Voyager; ISBN: 9780062094599 ; e-ISBN 9780062094605). The book continues the exploits of Stark as he wreaks havoc from Heaven to Hell and everything in between—and pisses off some very ancient gods in the process.

About the author: New York Times bestselling author Richard Kadrey has published eight novels, including Devil Said Bang, Aloha from Hell, Kill the Dead, Sandman Slim, Metrophage and Butcher Bird, and more than fifty stories. He has been immortalized as an action figure, his short story “Goodbye Houston Street, Goodbye,” was nominated for a British Science Fiction Association Award, and his novel Butcher Bird was nominated for the Prix Elkaban in France. A freelance writer and photographer, he lives in San Francisco, CA. He is also a fetish photographer and digital artist. His work can be seen at KaosBeautyKlinik.com (Warning: Adult Content; 18+ only!).

More information available online at www.richardkadrey.com.