Daniel Abraham Speaks

“The characters and world in THE DRAGON’S PATH, for instance, are supposed to remind you of other characters you already know, so that by the time you meet them, you already have a little bit of a relationship with them. I want this to be a book you can fall into effortlessly.”

Daniel Abraham’s forthcoming novel is just one of many topics touched upon in a fascinating interview with Aidan Moher of A Dribble of Ink. He discusses, among much else, the value of pseudonyms, why fantasy is a safe place to explore exoticism, gender roles and writing from a woman’s perspective, and what makes a good story — any story — good.

“There is something at the base of genre – and it’s commercial and accessible and low-class and embarrassing – that brings people to what we do, and I think writers turn away from that at our peril.”

THE DRAGON’S PATH will be published by Orbit April 7, 2011.

THE HAMMER has hit the mark

It’s great to see that others share our extremely high opinion of K. J. Parker’s The Hammer (UK I US I ANZ) which has been getting some fantastic reviews below. K. J. tells a mean tale of justice, betrayal and how far a man will go for his cause. Gritty, tense, fabulously written and you can see for yourselves in our free extract.

Or take a look at what these people of good taste have to say …

This fantasy is less about wizards (of which there are none) and more about morality, family and notions of justice and duty … the small size of the stage makes the enormity of Gignomai’s actions all the more powerful’ SFX

“As a big fan of the author’s work, I had the highest expectations for The Hammer … it was as good as I expected and it’s an early candidate for my best of 2011″ SFFWorld.com

“The dark humor and superb style of the author are on display continually through the novel, while the twists, turns, jaw dropping moments characteristic of a K. J. Parker novel materialize often” FantasyBookCritic blog

“A story with guts, glory and above all else a principle character facing not only personal dilemmas but also overcoming the odds to succeed …  definitely beautifully written” The Falcata Times blog

“The Hammer is vintage Parker – a fascination with, and a central role for, made objects like swords and guns, a revenge plot carried out with clear-eyed viciousness … in a book steeped in moral ambiguity and the complex thought processes of realistic, not fantastical, characters” Bookgeeks.co.uk

Orbit acquires self-published ebook bestseller

Orbit is pleased to announce that it has acquired rights to publish the Riyria Revelations series by self-published author Michael J. Sullivan.  Orbit will be publishing the complete series in three volumes in consecutive months in Fall/Winter 2011-2012. The first volume, Theft of Swords, will be published in November 2011; the second volume, Rise of Empire, in December 2011, and the final volume, Heir of Novron, in January 2012.

Michael J. Sullivan has already self-published the series in ebook and print-on-demand editions, and each volume has been prominent on the ebook fantasy bestseller charts. (more…)

Introducing the Orbit Books Podcast

We’re thrilled to launch the Orbit podcast, hosted by Jack Womack. The first episode features a wide-ranging conversation with Joe Abercrombie, whose new book, THE HEROES, is out now. Subjects covered include: hand-to-hand combat, warfare and film, gallows humor, death metal, the American Civil War, and more. You can listen to the full episode below, or subscribe on itunes or the RSS feed.

UPDATE: It looks like some people are having problems downloading via itunes. It should be resolved shortly, but if you can’t download directly, try subscribing to the podcast in itunes.

The Orbit Podcast: Episode 1, with Joe Abercrombie

This week we’re thrilled to launch the Orbit podcast, hosted by Jack Womack. The first episode features a wide-ranging conversation with Joe Abercrombie, whose new book, THE HEROES, is out now. Subjects covered include: hand-to-hand combat,  warfare and film, gallows humor, death metal, the American Civil War,  and more. You can listen to the full episode below, or subscribe on itunes or the RSS feed.

UPDATE: It looks like some people are having problems downloading via itunes. It should be resolved shortly, but if you can’t download directly, try subscribing to the podcast in itunes.

BLONDE BOMBSHELL – landing near you now

There is a fizzingly funny, cosmically comic new Tom Holt book available now! This is the UK paperback edition of Blonde Bombshell (UK | US), a heart-warming tale of Armageddon, and you can get a free extract. Looks like reviewers prefer blondes too, as we’ve had a huge amount of praise for this bombshell:

A pacy romp with some beautifully executed set pieces’ Guardian
‘A comic SF caper reminiscent of Terry Pratchett’ Independent on Sunday
‘One of the most ludicrously funny intergalactic shaggy dog stories ever told’
Daily Express
‘From a very clever author, with some genuinely laugh-out-loud moments’
News of the World
‘A nifty comic read, fizzing with one-liners … enjoyably deranged’ SFX
‘Exceptionally well-written’ SciFi Now

You can also play our highly addictive ‘Blondesweeper’ game. A little healthy competition on the scoreboard would be good for our in-house champions  … make them work for their glory!

Joe Abercrombie, Non-Nihilist

Recently, on Andrew Breitbart’s Big Hollywood, an intriguing essay by Leo Grin entitled “The Bankrupt Nihilism of Our Fallen Fantasists” appeared, finding Joe Abercrombie’s latest novel, THE HEROES,(as well as the work of a number of other contemporary fantasy writers) to be a bit lacking — allusions to “Abercrombie’s jaded literary sewer” and a “small, pathetic chapter in the decades-long slide of Western civilization into suicidal self-loathing” rather clearly convey the author’s position.

Joe has written a very effective response on his website, among other things noting that he simply hadn’t realized he was recognized as such a threat to fantasy in general, and Western civilization in particular. Especially, as observed in both sites’ comment threads, by those who haven’t gone so far as actually reading Joe Abercrombie’s more recent work in order to comprehend its dangers.

Lilith Saintcrow’s Bannon and Clare

I’m excited to announce that we’ll be publishing a whole new series with Lilith Saintcrow. Lili is one of the first urban fantasy authors I acquired and I’m over the moon to tell you about her new series, a combination of historical urban fantasy and steampunk.  We’ll be publishing the first book in Summer 2012. (more…)

Free discussion event at the LSE with Jon Courtenay Grimwood and Ken MacLeod

 

Jon Courtenay Grimwood and Ken MacLeod will be taking part in a panel discussion on ‘Science Fiction and International Orders’ at the London School of Economics on Thursday 17th February.  The event will look at what scholars in the social sciences can learn from the imagined worlds of science fiction and fantasy.  Tickets are free but must be registered for here and the event is from1.15-2.45pm.

Full details can be found here.

An Apology for Jane True

Poor Jane True! Her latest book, Tempest’s Legacy, came out last month but because her editor AND her author were traveling, she didn’t get a blog post!

Jane is very cross with us, and we feel terrible for the oversight. So we’re offering a gift in consolation.

The gift of DANCE!