The Kingdom Beyond the Waves
Professor Amelia Harsh has lost her tenure at the last university in Jackals that would hire her (after being fired by the other seven…). Why? Because instead of studying and writing papers like a normal university professor, she’s out hunting relics of Camlantis, which everyone knows is a myth.
Enter Abraham Quest, the richest man in Jackals, who has been doing his own archaeology on the sly, and found proof that Camlantis exists. Unfortunately, the clues point the way into the heart of darkness itself, the source of the Shedarkshe river in the wilds of a jungle from which no explorer has returned. Camlantis was a utopia, with untold engineering feats, a society of pacifists, and Amelia and Abraham are convinced that it holds the key to making their own war-torn society a better place. But it means risking lives in order to see that goal realized.
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Interview with Ed Greenwood
Really, if you don’t know who Ed Greenwood is, you’ve been living under a rock somewhere. In the Antarctic. Now you may or may not read his books. You may or may not like what you have read. It doesn’t matter in the end. Ed, as it turns out, is one of the nicest people we have ever interviewed. He is also one of the most honest about his own work. Check out the following interview with him and we triple-dog-dare you not to be impressed with this guy. Also check out the text after the interview to find out how to win a SIGNED copy of Ed’s new book ELMINSTER MUST DIE.
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Masked
We know Lou Anders, and we know his style and what he is capable of. So when we picked up MASKED (Amazon), a superhero story anthology, we already knew we were going to have to reevaluate our appreciation for the genre. Superheroes, to us, have only ever been as interesting as their villains. Villains, in actuality, are the driving force behind the superhero tale. The reasons for this can be boiled down to the fact that the Heroes are almost always reactionary, waiting around for something bad to happen, and the Villains are the ones who have the grand plan or scheme.
It’s because of this that neither of us are big comic book gurus, or even fans. Did the two of us, a couple of hard-sells in the genre, enjoy the anthology? You bet your Bat-Mobile!
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Under Heaven
A soldier-poet in a world where connections and subtly are everything, Shen Tai expects to lead an ordinary life. After the death of his father, he spends the required two year mourning period burying the bones of a twenty-year-old conflict in the mountains. His father was the former general of the Kitai army, and had spent many an evening lamenting that fruitless battle. No one else could be bothered to bury the dead because the angry ghosts of a hundred thousand men scared them away, but Tai is doing this to honor his dead father, despite the danger, and works those years easing the spirits of the former soldiers into their eternal rest.
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Leviathan Wept
Daniel Abraham is, quite possibly, my favorite author. It’s awfully difficult to pick one amongst the masses, but he regularly goes head to head with my other faves (yes, even Ms. Parker) and so I can’t help but place him amongst the elite. After reading his Long Price Quartet (Amazon), I’ve found it incredibly difficult to put my hands on another series of fantasy books I’ve enjoyed more. So naturally, when I heard that he was going to be releasing a short story anthology I was completely on board. Hook, line, and sinker. Does that mean that you should take this review with a grain of salt? Absolutely not. Please, if you will, follow me down this road of awesome, into the mind of a great. And though you need not swallow the gravy, it will certainly make the colors more magnificent.
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The Osiris Ritual
George Mann is awesome. That is all.
OK, that really isn’t all we are going to say, but it covers our opinions nicely. George Mann has given readers quite the year. If you were late to the party, you got THE AFFINITY BRIDGE (EBR Review). You also got GHOSTS OF MANHATTAN (EBR Review). In the UK you got THE IMMORALITY ENGINE. And now here in the US, THE OSIRIS RITUAL (Amazon) has finally been released. How great is that?
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Discord’s Apple
Carrie Vaughn writes books for the female demographic, no doubt about it. Her Kitty Norville series (review of her latest book in that series coming later) has scooped up quite a bit of popularity and recognition, so really it was only a matter of time before she started branching out more and more. DISCORD’S APPLE is her latest effort towards giving her readers something a little different from her normal releases.
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The Adamantine Palace
Okay, so let’s be up front. I’m completely jealous of Stephen Deas. Yes, it’s true, and no you can’t laugh at me because I’m not going to allow you to. So there. The largest portion of this jealousy stems from the fact that he lists K.J. Parker on his acknowledgments page. K.J. Parker. That nearly dropped me right where I was. At the bus stop. I’m also jealous of him though because Mr. Deas was one of those newbie authors with a humble number of publishing credits to his name, when one of the “Big Guys” over at Gollancz decided to ask him to write a book for them.
Palimpsest
I was first introduced to the work of Catherynne M. Valente a few years ago when my brother bought me THE ORPHAN TALES: IN THE NIGHT GARDEN (Amazon). Based entirely on that one present he is now my favorite brother. That book was amazing. I almost cried when it was over because there wasn’t any more of that fascinating story to read. I never wanted it to end. Needless to say when Valente’s PALIMPSEST (Amazon) was released I picked up a copy immediately hungry for another beautiful story.
PALIMPSEST is the tale of a sexually transmitted city.
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Dante’s Journey
Because we are the benevolent Book Gods that you have to know, love, and worship, we have a treat for you today. A review AND an interview. Without further ado, we present JC Marino, author of Dante’s Journey.
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