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New Book Deal with Leading Australian Author Ian Irvine

Hello and Greetings from Australia. This is my first contribution to the Orbit blog and I’m delighted to start with news of an exciting acquisition. We have bought the rights to Ian Irvine‘s new trilogy, which we’ll be publishing around the Orbit world, beginning in 2010.

Ian is an outstanding and well-loved author of bestselling fantasy novels and futuristic eco-thrillers, including the Three Worlds Cycle and the Runcible Jones Quintet. He is also a highly regarded marine scientist who has developed some of Australia’s national guidelines for the protection of the oceanic environment. You can check out his website at www.ian-irvine.com.

We’ll tell you more about the trilogy over the next few months, and let you know when the first book will be available.

In Their Own Words: Jennifer Rardin on ONE MORE BITE

Jennifer says:

One More BiteI guess this time the title really does say it all. Like chips and salsa or squeezy cheese on Ritz crackers, this story should fire up a hunger in you that keeps you plowing through the pages like a fourth-day dieter at an all-you-can-eat buffet. The ghosts. The witches. The repeated assassination attempts. The fact that Jaz’s dad has brought his cigars and his room-clearing farts to the show. It all kinda makes you go, “Oh, no! I can’t! I shouldn’t! GIMME!”

And you thought Scotland was all just cute dudes in kilts and wee bonnie lasses. Ha!

One More Bite [UK | US] is out this month and you can find it at all good booksellers.

Orbit UK schedule update: March 2009

The Orbit UK Schedule page has been updated with details of another five great new Orbit UK titles that we’ll be publishing in March 2009. The following Orbit books will be available from all good bookstores – high street and online alike – round about March 5th:

  • This is Not a Game by Walter Jon Williams – In this near-future thriller, Alternate Reality Games take centre-stage as the coolest ARG of all becomes deadly serious for some and just plain deadly for others.
  • Seeds of Earth by Michael Cobley – The first part of a brand new space opera series, in which the scattered remnants of humanity are forced to flee into space after Earth is devastated by a brutal alien invasion.
  • Hand of Isis by Jo Graham – The new novel from the author of Black Ships explores the life of Charmian, handmaiden to Cleopatra of Egpyt at a time of great upheaval and change in the ancient world.
  • Every Last Drop by Charlie Huston – In this, the latest Joe Pitt story, our anti-hero moves closer to the answers to some of the questions that have driven his vampyre existence, including the origin of the vyrus itself.
  • Thicker Than Water by Mike Carey – The new Felix Castor book finds the London exorcist haunted by the ghosts of his Liverpudlian past as old, buried memories come calling, along with a visit from Fix’s holier-than-thou brother…

You can also see a preview of Orbit UK’s February 2009 titles, or you can check out our UK publishing schedule for January to March 2009.

A Card

As we wind down for the holidays in the New York office we wanted to wish all the readers, reviewers, booksellers and authors who are part of our Orbit a very happy holiday. We’ll see you in the new year!

Iain M. Banks and Mike Carey: GoH at Eastercon 2010

Odyssey 2010 – the next-but-one reincarnation of the annual Eastercon British National Science Fiction Convention – have announced that two of their Guests of Honour will be Orbit authors Iain M. Banks and Mike Carey.

It’s far too early for detailed programming, but as well as the traditional GoH interviews, Iain and Mike are bound to be involved in a number of panels, discussions and general bar-talk during the four-day convention, which in 2010 will return to the London Heathrow Radisson Edwardian; scene of this year’s Orbital 2008 event.

Other Guests of Honour announced for Eastercon 2010 include British SF authors Alastair Reynolds and Liz Williams, along with Artist Guest of Honour Carlos Ezquerra, and Fan Guests of Honour Jon and Fran Dowd (all Guest of Honour appearances are subject to work and other commitments).

For more information, see www.Odyssey2010.org.

David Gemmell Legend Award update

David Gemmell Legend Award

Just a quick reminder that the public ballot to decide the finalists of the inaugural David Gemmell Legend Award for Fantasy opens on December 26th.

Following a recently announced change to the voting system, the five most popular fantasy titles of 2008 – as decided by the voters – will then be put forward to a second round of public voting in April 2009 (as opposed to the original panel of judges) for final consideration, with the winner announced on Friday 19th June 2009.

The final long-list of eligible nominated titles – including entries from Orbit authors Brian Ruckley, K.J. Parker, Brent Weeks, Kate Elliott, Jennifer Fallon, Karen Miller and Russell Kirkpatrick – has been made available via the DGLA website as a pdf download and an online voting form will be available from Thursday, with an additional incentive to participate early: the fist 100 voters will receive a limited edition DGLA wristband.

Visit www.gemmellaward.com for more information on the award, or to discuss the nominated titles. And don’t forget to vote, from December 26th onwards!

Orbit Links for December 19th 2008

Hello and welcome to the last Orbit Links round-up of 2008. Lots to tell you about this week, so – with but a brief segue to wish all our readers a happy, healthy and utterly book-filled holiday season – here we go:

See you in 2009!

Complete Orbit UK 2008 Publication List

If you point your browser towards the publishing schedules section of the site, you’ll find we’ve posted a complete list of Orbit UK’s 2008 publications.

2008 has been another fantastic year for Orbit UK. In the past 12 months we’ve published a total of 80 books by no fewer than 43 different authors, including: Brent Weeks, Brian Ruckley, Celia Friedman, Charles Stross, Charlie Huston, Christopher Moore, David Farland, Drew Karpyshyn, Elizabeth Moon, Fiona MacIntosh, Glenda Larke, Iain M. Banks, Ian Irvine, J. V. Jones, Jacqueline Carey, Jeff Somers, Jennifer Fallon, Jennifer Rardin, Jim Butcher, Jo Graham, K. J. Parker, Karen Miller, Karen Traviss, Kate Elliott, Kelley Armstrong, Ken MacLeod, Laurell K Hamilton, Lilith Saintcrow, Marianne de Pierres, Marie Brennan, Pamela Freeman, Patricia Briggs, Philip Palmer, Raymond Benson, Robert Buettner, Russell Kirkpatrick, Sean Williams, Shaun Hutson, Tad Williams, Terry Brooks, Tom Holt and Trudi Canavan.

By our reckoning we’ve published 23 science fiction titles (including 4 sf tie-in novelisations), 35 fantasy or comic fantasy titles and 22 horror or urban fantasy titles. We also published 7 UK debuts, by Brent Weeks, Jo Graham, Marie Brennan, Pamela Freeman, Patricia Briggs, Philip Palmer and Robert Buettner.

So, head on over to that full 2008 publication list and double-check to see if there are any gaps in your to-be-read list that need filling! It’s not too late to add a few titles to your Christmas wish-list, or to buy a few last-minute presents for friends and loved ones. Or why not just treat yourself to some holiday reading matter (go on… you know you want to!)

Deals and Deliveries – Pamela Freeman

I’m delighted to say that we’ve bought ASH AND EMBER by the talented (and lovely!) Pamela Freeman. This atmospheric stand-alone adventure will feature ancient gods of lake, fire and river, and their clash with newer spirits. The people of the Twelve Domains will be caught in an escalating conflict governed by blood, belief and family loyalties shaped over ages past.

The new novel will be set in the same beautifully-crafted world of Pamela’s previous trilogy, which started with BLOOD TIES, but we will follow new protagonists. Plus the action will be set some time in the future of the Castings books. ASH AND EMBER is currently scheduled for publication in October 2010, so don’t forget – but we will remind you!