Orbit is thrilled to announce that we have pre-empted a three-book urban fantasy series by debut author Jaye Wells in a six-figure deal with agent Jonathan Lyons of Lyons Literary LLC. The first volume, RED-HEADED STEPCHILD will be published in 2009. (more…)
Iain M. Banks’ new Culture novel, Matter, is getting lots of well-deserved praise from reviewers! Lisa Tuttle reviews Matter in The Times and calls it ‘Unexpectedly savage, emotionally powerful and impossible to forget’.
The latest issue of SFX gives it a 5-star review:
Throughout the book, people are observed covertly or even have concealed weapons trained on them – sound like any place you know? But as always with Banks, this is not preachy, and the author’s trademark wit is everywhere. His wry character observations are a joy to read, and the book has a rich seam of humour. . .this long-awaited return for both a writing legend and his finest creation is a delight.
And Starburst’s February issue says:
Banks can bring across the essence of a character with one sentence where others might hammer things home over the course of a chapter. . .Matter is as engrossing as you’d expect a Banks book to be.
Iain M. Banks has also been recently interviewed in The Times and The Guardian Unlimited. You can get details of his England tour here and read an extract of Matter here.
Debatable Space is on Facebook! Give us a poke here and become a fan of the sci-fi debut of the year, which the Guardian is calling:
So crammed with startling ideas, scintillating prose, incredible aliens and plot twists that it evokes wonder and admiration . . . Palmer has achieved the very difficult feat of presenting big ideas that don’t overshadow the human element. It’s a debut of rare accomplishment.
Don’t have a Facebook account? You can still get all the latest news at Philip Palmer’s website and read an extract here.
We recently offered copies of Jo Graham’s Black Ships as part of the Librarything early reviewer program, and the reviews are starting to come in!
“I was pleased with the first chapter, but by the end of the fourth chapter, I had to call up my sister (a fellow fan of Mary Renault) and share my excitement over this new author to follow. This book never let me down.” ( reviewed by selkins )
“… I wasn’t sure if it could compare to old favorites like Megan Whalen Turner’s Attolia series or Marion Zimmer Bradley’s The Mists of Avalon. Surprisingly, it does—not by slavishly emulating them, but by telling its own story.” (reviewed by Trismegistus)
You can see all the current reviews at Librarything, or visit the Orbit US Catalog.
Black Ships will be in bookstores in March. Read the first chapter here.
Philip Palmer (who is not as malevolent in person as this photo suggests) stopped in at the Book Swede’s blog to talk about Arthur C. Clarke’s famed observation on magic and technology.
Philip’s debut novel just got a great review at Science Fiction Weekly, which observed:
“Debatable Space is clearly one of the best first novels to appear in the science-fiction field in recent years, and it marks Philip Palmer as a writer to watch for SF readers seeking innovative, cutting-edge space opera…”
You may have noticed the color difference between the US and UK editions. Is it because American readers respond well to orange? Is it because UK readers like their type to match the glow of their spaceship engines? Honestly, we’re not sure – but the inside is excellent whichever version you get.
We’ve been getting some great advance reviews for Iain M. Banks’ Matter. In this weekend’s Scotland on Sunday, Stuart Kelly says:
If I said this novel was a searing inquiry into justified warfare and the dangers of imposing your ideas of civilisation, told at a rattling pace with breathtaking set pieces and oodles of wit and charm, I’d hope that you’d continue reading and decide, in a few hundred words’ time, to buy the book…
…It’s exhilarating to see what he can do when he goes full-throttle into the form: to my mind, he’s simply the finest and most consistently challenging writer in that genre.
And over at SFFWorld, Mark Yon is saying:
As with any of Iain’s books to date, in Matter he deals with the material with wit and intelligence, as well as his trademark complexity and violence. It does manage to mix genres with aplomb, and there are some pleasingly jarring cultural moments when aliens intermix…I suspect that, despite its release early in the year, this one will be high on many best-of lists by the end of 2008.
We couldn’t agree more! You can read an excerpt of Matter here.
Congratulations to Sue Guttridge from Dorset and Rob Davies from Massachusetts, our winners in the competition for a free advance copy of Matter (UK | US ) by Iain M. Banks.
Thanks to everyone who entered!
It’s only a …er… matter of weeks before Matter arrives in bookstores. The first Culture novel since Look to Windward, Matter is one of the most anticipated science fiction novels coming out this year. We’re thrilled to be publishing it, and thrilled to offer a first look at the stunning prologue.
Click here to read the prologue of Matter, out this February from Orbit in the UK and the US.
Over at Scifi Wire, Kevin J. Anderson talks about the Saga of Seven Suns (along with some of our favorite things):
“The Saga of Seven Suns pulls together everything I love about the genre: alien races, galactic empires, mysterious ruins, incredible creatures, exotic landscapes, giant black robots …”
The penultimate book, Metal Swarm, is out now — and watch for The Ashes of Worlds this spring.
Brian Ruckley’s fantastic debut novel, Winterbirth, is now on Facebook. Visit the page here to become a fan, read extracts and find out all the latest news about The Godless World series!
Don’t have a Facebook account? You can still get all the latest news and extracts by visiting Brian Ruckley website.
