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THE FALCON THRONE – “Blood, dirt and backstabbing”

The Falcon Throne by Karen Miller
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We recently released THE FALCON THRONE – the  new offering from the million-copy bestselling fantasy author Karen Miller.  It’s been a real honour working with Karen on this novel – it’s epic, exciting, tragic and genuinely made me gasp out loud at certain points . . . And it’s now a joy to see the fabulous reviews which have been coming in for it, showing how much other people have been enjoying it too. Check out what people are saying below.

Blood, dirt and backstabbing . . . impressively elaborate and detailed . . . this dark world will draw you in – SCIFINOW

‘A truly epic read full of intrigue and betrayal anchored in wonderful characters – some I loved and some I loathed, but all I wanted to know more about. Whether it’s combat, politics or human interaction Karen Miller is on the money. Loved it‘ – John Gwynne

‘Complex and engrossing; fans of George R.R. Martin and Joe Abercrombie should particularly take note’ – PUBLISHERS WEEKLY

It will entrap you and hold you captive, you will look up from its pages to discover you have lost hours – APN NETWORK

‘The sheer scope and genius of this series dazzles . . . stylistically brilliant’ – SPECULATING ON SPECFIC

Excellent writing, amazing characters, intricate woven plotlines, and lots and lots of blood, most of that unfortunately spurting from the wrong people. No elves or dragons, but some of the most in-depth world-building I’ve ever read, and the heroes (and anti-heroes) could shake themselves off the page. This book drew me in with the opening sentence and held me until the end . . . I remain breathless from the read. – LIBRARY THING

Fans of George R.R. Martin, Robert Jordan and other such writers of epic fantasy will find much to like here . . . a compelling read – READING LARK

Why We Should All Be Speaking Latin: AGE OF IRON Author Angus Watson on Historical Near-Misses

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Angus Watson, author of debut epic fantasy AGE OF IRON – the first book in a rip-roaring trilogy of Iron Age warriors fighting off the Roman invasion of Britain, outlines five moments in history which could have gone very differently . . .

We should all be speaking Latin.

Julius Caesar’s first British invasion force in 55BC was the same size as William the Conqueror’s in 1066 – around 10,000 men. It stayed in Britain for just a few weeks. The second one in 54BC was two and a half times the size, but it returned to France after a few months. No Roman legionary set foot in Britain after that for a hundred years.

The accepted historical take of Caesar’s invasions is that the Romans won every battle and returned across the Channel victorious, twice. This version comes entirely from Caesar’s own diary and is clearly absolute bollocks. He didn’t come to Britain with 25,000 soldiers for a summer holiday and he didn’t leave because he was winning too much. He intended to conquer. He should have been able to. His army had overthrown all of France in two years. Something big happened to stop him.

My Orbit trilogy AGE OF IRON is a fictional, fantastical account of how an unlikely gang of Brits united to hand Caesar’s invincible arse to him. Had Caesar’s invasions succeeded, then the Romans would have had Britain for a hundred years longer. The extra resources might have enabled Rome to conquer all of Germany, Arabia and then the rest of the world, and the Roman Empire might never have fallen . . .

This blog post looks at four other events in history that really should have gone the other way, resulting in a completely different world today. (more…)

Age of Iron: What They’re Saying (the Twitter Edition)

Not only have you been filling your blogs with praise for AGE OF IRON, but twitter has been full of love for this action-packed and darkly humorous fantasy debut! Here’s just a sample of your tweets:

What They’re Saying: Age of Iron

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This month we released AGE OF IRON, a mega epic fantasy debut by stunning new British talent Angus Watson, and it seems bloggers are loving this one just as much as we do!

‘This debut is a whole heap of frenetic chaos, and is thoroughly entertaining from the get go … ferocious, unashamedly adult, fun with some fantastic characters and some great action packed moments.’ The Eloquent Page

‘A very down and dirty, gripping, enjoyable read. It is dark, twisted, funny and exciting.’ Tenacious Reader

‘AGE OF IRON brilliantly weaves the elements of history, fantasy, action and humor in this gripping novel. This is a solid must read for epic fantasy fans. I simply cannot wait to meet Dug, Lowa and Spring in the next installment.‘ Say It With Books

‘The acid test is would I read the next one? Yes, absolutely. Bring me my hammer, bring my beer, bring it on.’ SF Crowsnest

‘Lots of action and adventure with some dark humour thrown in.  I found myself throughout the story often sitting with a grin on my face, or even chuckling to myself.’ Opinionated Cupcakes

‘AGE OF IRON packs quite a punch. If you like your fantasy action-packed, drenched in gore, dressed up with some black gallows humor – and revealing quite a bit about an age we know nothing about, then AGE OF IRON is right up your alley.’ Smorgasbord Fantasia

‘I absolutely loved AGE OF IRON. I raced through the novel and didn’t want to put it down. Each of the characters had something endearing which means that there’s not a chapter that feels like a waste. I would recommend this to history fans and readers who are looking for a read with strong female characters.’ A Universe in Words

‘Watson brings the setting to life vividly and his writing is entertaining and gripping. It really is a fantastic debut.’ Chicks That Read

Huge congratulations to Angus Watson on his absolutely stellar debut novel! You can follow Angus on Twitter for all the latest news about the Iron Age series, and pick up your copy of AGE OF IRON from all good bookshops and online retailers.

New Short Fiction: PACK by Lilith Saintcrow

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If you’ve been waiting on the edge of your seat for the latest from urban fantasy star, Lilith Saintcrow, wait no more! PACK, a brand new e-only standalone, is now available.

When the world falls apart, Lydia knows all you need is a gun and a dog. Unfortunately, she’s going to find out that’s not quite enough…

If you’re a fan of the Dante Valentine and Jill Kismet books, this urban fantasy should be on your must-read list. It’s also a great entry point work if you haven’t had the chance to sink your teeth into one of Lilith Saintcrow’s book’s yet.

And just in case you need another reason to check out this latest from Lilith Saintcrow, see what others have had to say about this master of urban fantasy!

“No one does gritty and paranormal better than Saintcrow.” — RT Book Reviews (Top Pick)

“She’s fabulous. ”  — Christine Feehan

“What’s not to love? Fans of Laurel K. Hamilton should warm to Saintcrow’s dark evocative debut.”
—Publishers Weekly

If the Victorian era is more your style, check out Lilith Saintcrow’s THE IRON WYRM AFFAIR and the rest of the Bannon & Clare series – available in print and e-book.

Pre-order ANCILLARY SWORD to receive a free signed bookplate!

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ANCILLARY SWORD (US | UK | AUS), the sequel to ANCILLARY JUSTICE (US | UK | AUS) and winner of the Hugo, Nebula, British Science Fiction, Locus and Arthur C. Clarke Awards, releases on October 7th!  If you pre-order the new novel now, you could be eligible to receive a free signed bookplate!

This offer is open to residents of the fifty United States and D.C., Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom.

Submit your information at www.annleckie.com, and read the first chapter now!

Praise for ANCILLARY SWORD:

“Breq’s struggle for meaningful justice in a society designed to favor the strong is as engaging as ever. Readers new to the author will be enthralled, and those familiar with the first book will find that the faith it inspired has not been misplaced.” — Publishers Weekly (starred review)

“Excellently building on the themes of the series while still functioning as a solid stand-alone novel in its own right, Ancillary Sword is a book every serious reader of science fiction should pick up.” — RT Book Reviews

 

Spring-Summer 2015 US Cover Launches

SS15-Covers-US

The end of summer is nigh, but here at Orbit we’re already looking forward to the next year! Enjoy this early look at some of our exciting Spring/Summer titles coming a bookshelf near you in 2015! There will be more to come in the next few months so stay tuned!

Click on the images below to see a larger version and appreciate each cover in its full glory. Pin, tweet, and comment away with reckless abandon. Let us know which books have already piqued your interest! (more…)

Spring – Summer 2015 UK Cover Launches

Spring15UKCovers_All

There’s definitely a chill in the air again as we head toward the darker half of the year, but we’re already looking forward to the spring in 2015 and the absolutely incredible selection of books we’ll be publishing here at Orbit UK!

Below is a selection of the covers coming to bookshelves near you in 2015. We’ll be releasing more closer to the time, so stay tuned.

Click on the covers for a larger version, and feel free to share your favourites.
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Five Excellent Reasons to Set a Fantasy Novel in the Iron Age

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My Orbit-published epic fantasy trilogy AGE OF IRON is set in Britain during the . . . you guessed it . . . Iron Age. After looking around for about twenty years, I learnt about Britain in the Iron Age and I’d knew I’d found the perfect place and time to set a novel. Here’s why.

An Almost Blank Canvas

The Iron Age ran from roughly 800BC to 43AD, so was relatively recent. Your great times ninety grandparents might have been running around then. The Age of Iron trilogy is set near the end of the period, between 61BC and 54BC.

This period of history was much busier than most would think. There were roads, towns and massive hillforts all over the country. However, we know almost nothing about it because the ancient Brits didn’t write and in 43AD – a hundred years after my book is set – the Romans invaded successfully, stayed for 400 years and wiped out any oral histories. The pre-Roman population was pretty big, the estimates range from one to three million, so there were loads of people, and they weren’t cavemen who sat around saying ‘ug’. They were men and women like us – full of wit, passion, inquisitiveness, jealousy, anger, love and so on. So, throughout the long Iron Age, there must have been epic love affairs, huge wars, intrigues, trysts, adventures, disasters and more, all of which we know absolutely nothing about, which, for me, screams out an invitation for us to create stories to fill the void.

It was a massive joy to learn as much as I could about the period and then make up a world and people to fill it. Anyone else can walk up a hillfort and do the same (see point five for the best hillfort to do this on). (more…)