Posts Tagged ‘Glenda Larke’

Cover Preview UK: Spring – Summer 2014

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As Summer comes to an end, here at Orbit we’re already looking forward to the amazing selection of books that next Spring brings. We’re very  pleased to present a selection of covers for some of our exciting releases in the first half of 2014. It promises to be a very good year.

Click on each of the covers to see a larger version, and let us know your favourites.

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Book cover for the First Fifteen Lives of Harry August by Claire North

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The Lascar's Dagger

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The Ripper Affair

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Cursed Moon

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Art Credits: Reign of Ash: Illustration by Larry Rostant; Heaven’s Queen: Design by Kirk Benshoff; Dance of Shadows: Photo Illustration by Gene Mollica & Michael Frost, Design by Kirk Benshoff; The Girl With All The Gifts: Design by Duncan Spilling; Cibola Burn: Illustration by Daniel Dociu, Design by Kirk Benshoff; Path to Power: Illustration by Raphael Lacoste, Design by Kirk Benshoff; Justice: Design by Wendy Chan; Broken Eye: Photo by Shirley Green, Illustration by Silas Manhood, Design by Lauren Panepinto; The Ripper Affair: Photo by Shirley Green, Illustration by Craig White, Design by Lauren Panepinto; Cursed Moon: Photo by Shirley Green, Illustration by Don Sipley, Design by Lauren Panepinto; The Fifth Season: Design by Lauren Panepinto; The Widow’s House: Design by Kirk Benshoff

Launching the cover: THE LASCAR’S DAGGER

Coming March 2014, from the author of the Stormlord trilogy . . .

cover for fantasy novel The Lascar's Dagger by Glenda Larke - shows hooded figure holding dagger

FAITH WILL NOT SAVE HIM.

Saker looks like a simple priest, but in truth he’s a spy for the head of his faith. It’s a dangerous job, and more lives than merely his own depend on his secrecy.

When Saker is wounded by a Lascar sailor’s blade, the weapon seems to follow him home. Unable to discard it, nor the sense of responsibility that comes with it, Saker can only follow its lead.

It will put him on a journey to strange shores, on a path that will reveal terrible secrets about the empire, about the people he serves, and likely lead to his own destruction. The Lascar’s dagger demands a price, and that price will be paid in blood. 

THE LASCAR’S DAGGER is the first book in The Forsaken Lands – a brand new epic fantasy trilogy from Glenda Larke, full of scheming, spying, action and adventure.

See what Glenda has to say about the inspiration behind this exciting new series here:

        “One of the wedding presents given to my husband and me was a hand-crafted Malay dagger, and it was on my wedding day that I was first told that a mystical spirit inhabits the blade of a kris

         I lived in Southeast Asia for thirty years, and during that time I stayed and worked in places as diverse as sprawling Asian cities, coral atolls, logging camps, mangroves, peat swamps and tropical forests. In the field, as part of my ornithological work, I saw the intricate dance and heard the glorious songs of some of the most beautiful birds on Earth. Meanwhile, in my mother-in-law’s kitchen, I learned about Asian spices.

         Perhaps it was inevitable, then, that I should one day turn to birds of paradise, and to the real magic of spices, and to the spirit of the Malay kris to inspire a book. Yet, always, there was also a reluctance to use material that was not mine by birth.

         In the end, I have woven the European origins of my family with the Indonesian origins of my husband’s ancestry to create a place of my imagination, a place evocative of the 18th century and the spice trade that led Europeans to Indonesia. Along the way, I have paid homage to another family connection of mine, the Master’s Mate who strode the decks of Captain Cook’s Endeavour when it sailed through the Indonesian archipelago in the 1770s.

         But that’s all background. THE LASCAR’S DAGGER is really a story of honour, love and courage; a tale about men and women who like power too much, and those who would challenge them. It’s about ordinary people struggling to make sense of the world when they are thrown out of their comfort zone. And in this world of theirs, when cultures clash, so does their magic!”

~ Glenda Larke

Glenda Larke on Aurealis Awards Shortlist

The cover for Glenda Larke's fantasy novel Stormlord's ExileCongratulations to Glenda Larke, whose STORMLORD’S EXILE has been shortlisted for Best Fantasy Novel by the Aurealis Awards – the awards for excellence in Australian speculative fiction.

This is the third novel in Glenda’s Stormlord trilogy to make the list!

Trent Jamieson’s THE BUSINESS OF DEATH also receives an ‘honourable mention’ for Best Horror Novel, although as yet there’s no shortlist for this category.

The awards will be announced on the 12th of May . . .

A different kind of fantasy heroine: the pregnant, short-sighted scholar…

Firstly, so far so good. Stormlord Rising has been selling well in US, an indication that readers of The Last Stormlord want to know what happens next. I have my first Amazon reviews, and — as I am totally into watching Amazon ratings because I’m ridiculously pathetic — I am delighted that they are 5 stars; as are the ratings over at Barnes&Noble. (Yeah, I look at those too. Didn’t I just say I’m pathetic?)

So, for those of you haven’t read it yet, what’s Stormlord Rising all about?

It continues the story of Terelle and Shale/Jasper, as Terelle is caught up in the coercion of waterpainter magic and Shale is trapped by his nemesis, Taquar. Book 1 ended with a siege and a war, you may remember. Stormlord Rising also ends with a war and a battle — although a very different sort of battle employing a great deal more water magic.

But in many ways, this is Ryka Feldspar’s story. In many ways it is also (I hope) a touching love story, although not a romance…

Imagine this: you are a privileged woman aged about 29 or so, newly married and expecting your first child, when your entire world is turned upside down. You see your husband fall in a battle, and have good reason to think he is dead. Your side loses the battle, your home and family are destroyed, your whole life has vanished into the maws of your enemies. You see and experience unspeakable things. (more…)

Ditmar Shortlist

More award news, with the shortlist for the 2008 Ditmars being announced over the weekend, and we’re delighted to see Sean Williams’ Saturn Returns and Marianne de Pierres’ Dark Space on the shortlist for best novel. Sean and Marianne were also both shortlisted for the Aurealis Award, and we’ve got our fingers crossed that one of them will win this time. Or perhaps both – is a tie too much to ask for?

Awarded since 1969 in recognition of outstanding achievement in Australian science fiction, fantasy and horror, the Ditmar is one of the premier awards for Australian speculative fiction. Previous winners of the Ditmar for Best Novel include Garth Nix, Peter Carey, George Turner, Victor Kelleher, Greg Egan and – on no fewer than five occasions – Sean Williams.

The Ditmars will be presented at Swancon, the 47th Australian National Science Fiction Convention, to be held over the Easter weekend.  Guests of Honour include Orbit’s very own Ken MacLeod and Glenda Larke. Ken’s The Execution Channel is, of course, on the shortlist for this year’s BSFA Award for Best Novel (also to be presented over Easter), and Glenda’s Song of the Shiver Barrens was shortlisted for last year’s Aurealis Award for Best Fantasy Novel.

On the whole, we’re rather pleased with the way 2008’s shortlists are developing.