Goodreads Choice Awards: Semifinal Round!
The second round of voting for the Goodreads Choice Awards is now live! Check it out and vote for your favorites. Below are the Orbit books we’re thrilled to see still on the list. (more…)
Posts Tagged ‘Terry Brooks’
WARDS OF FAERIE by Terry Brooks: 5 reasons to read it . . .
Hurrah! It’s released today! The new Terry Brooks novel, Wards of Faerie (UK | ANZ), book one in the brand new fantasy series The Dark Legacy of Shannara, has finally arrived.
It’s set in Terry’s core Shannara world (after all his fans begged him to return to it) and it’s delighting Brooks fans far and wide already. In the words of Aidan Moher at A Dribble of Ink:
WARDS OF FAERIE is the best novel Brooks has written in years . . . It’s full of hair-raising escapes . . . magic and monsters.
And if you’ve never tried Terry yet, this is your chance – and here are 5 very solid reasons to do so!
‘Terry Brooks is a master of the craft and a trailblazer . . . Required reading’ Brent Weeks, author of the Night Angel Trilogy
‘I can’t even begin to count how many of Terry Brooks’s books I’ve read (and re-read) over the years’ Patrick Rothfuss, author of THE NAME OF THE WIND
‘Terry Brooks has been my constant companion over a lifetime of exploring my beloved fantasy genre. I say with all honesty I would not be writing epic fantasy today if not for Shannara. If Tolkien is the grandfather of modern fantasy, Terry Brooks is its favorite uncle’ Peter V. Brett, author of THE PAINTED MAN
‘If you haven’t read Terry Brooks, you haven’t read fantasy’ Christopher Paolini, author of ERAGON and BRISINGR
‘Terry’s place is at the head of the fantasy world’ Philip Pulman, author of THE GOLDEN COMPASS
Cover launch! BLOODFIRE QUEST by Terry Brooks
This week, we’re supremely excited to be releasing the first book in a brand new series from the master of fantasy Terry Brooks. It’s The Dark Legacy of Shannara Book One: WARDS OF FAERIE (UK |ANZ).
It’s what all Terry’s fans have been crying out for: a series that returns to Terry’s core world of Shannara, and I can assure you this is what we’ve all been waiting for . . .
But before we release the book later this week, we wanted to unveil the stunning new cover for book 2 in that series: BLOODFIRE QUEST, released in March 2013. It’s from the highly talented illustrator Stephen Youll – thanks Steve for another great cover!
I hope you’ll all agree that with these two books, we’re establishing a stunning new look for Terry – something that really shows off the grandeur, the edge-of-your-seat excitement and, for this series in particular, the truly thrilling darkness of his writing. See both covers for the series below in their full-size splendour . . .
How to create a fantasy book cover: The making of the new-look Terry Brooks
Do you ever wonder what goes into producing the cover artwork for some of the biggest fantasy books out there?
We asked the highly talented illustrator Stephen Youll about how he created the cover artwork for WARDS OF FAERIE (UK |ANZ), the first book in Terry Brooks’s brand new Dark Legacy of Shannara series – out next week on 23rd August.
We wanted a fresh new look for this series – both to appeal to Terry’s die-hard fans and to show that it’s a great point for new readers to get on board with the Terry Brooks phenomenon.
We were delighted with this artwork Stephen produced, so here, in his words, is how it came together:
For Terry Brooks’s first book in the new Dark Legacy series I was asked to create a dragon skull, hanging in a stone alcove with interesting lighting that gave the cover a rich and bold look to it that was different to everything else that was out there. Not much of a challenge?
Step 1: This involves the creation of the alcove shape in the wall. I quickly established the arched alcove with light and shadows on top of a stone textured background.
Step 2: I added the detailed panels from texture cloned from an old door and colored it to match the stone. (more…)
Terry Brooks, Patrick Rothfuss and The Measure of the Magic
In case you’ve missed it, the fantasy legends Terry Brooks and Patrick Rothfuss have been interviewing each other on their websites throughout July, and it makes for some very compelling reading . . .
My personal highlights include Terry describing himself as being like the OCD-ridden TV detective Monk, and where Pat talks about skipping his writing teacher’s class to go on a date with that same teacher’s daughter. Very sneaky indeed.
Check out part one here on Terry’s site. Also, check out this awesome cartoon of the two of them.
Don’t forget also that Terry’s conclusion to the Legends of Shannara duology, The Measure of the Magic (UK | ANZ), is released tomorrow in paperback! Read an extract here. And here’s what fans have been saying on online retailer sites about the book:
”Terry Brooks is one of the best fantasy novelists of our time . . . He does not disappoint his many fans with this latest book’ Dee
‘Terry Brooks continues to be my longest standing favourite author’ S. Wilson
‘This is a really great series of books that have haunting and fleeting references to present worldwide problems. Long may he keep on writing these great books’ Colin L. Williams
There’s also not long to wait now until Terry’s brand new series begins with The Dark Legacy of Shannara: Wards of Faerie (UK | ANZ) – released 23rd August.
If you like what you hear above, this will a great place for any new readers to jump in and experience the Terry phenomenon!
Cover launch: The new-look Terry Brooks
Today we’re very excited to unveil a brand new cover look for one of the biggest and best-selling names in epic fantasy. In the words of Christopher Paolini:
‘If you haven’t read Terry Brooks, you haven’t read fantasy.’
And if you haven’t read Terry Brooks yet – this is the perfect place to start! He’s writing at the top of his game, and I was just bowled over by this manuscript when it came in.
Set in Terry’s original and most popular core Shannara world (the one which fans have been begging him to return to for years) the new Dark Legacy of Shannara series is perfect both for steadfast Terry Brooks readers, and those discovering the world of Shannara for the first time.
Book 1, Wards of Faerie is released in just a few months’ time on 23rd August.
We hope you’ll agree that the fantasy illustrator Stephen Youll has done an awesome job on this dragon skull (who wants one on their wall? I do!!).
Don’t forget that you can also get hold of the paperback edition of Terry’s previous novel, The Measure of the Magic (UK / ANZ), on 2nd Aug 2012.
Check out a cover close-up and more information on Wards of Faerie below. (more…)
Epic fantasy fans rejoice – more Terry Brooks ebooks now available!
Great news for all Terry Brooks and fantasy fans! We had previously already released a whole host of Terry Brooks titles as ebooks . . . but this week Orbit UK has released even more, meaning that all of the books listed below are now available to download for your digital pleasure.
And we’re sure that many people will be interested to hear that featuring among their ranks is Terry’s classic The Sword of Shannara (UK | ANZ) – this year celebrating its 35th anniversary of publication.
Devices at the ready! Feast your eyes on the list of digital delights that are available below . . .
The Measure of the Magic & A Very Special Auction
This week Terry Brooks’ The Measure of the Magic (UK /ANZ) is released. It’s the striking conclusion to his Legends of Shannara duology, which began with Bearers of the Black Staff (UK / ANZ) and explores the pre-history of Terry’s beloved Shannara world. You can read a sample chapter here.
To mark the occasion, we’d like to draw your attention to a special auction that is happening for a very good cause.
Stuart Finnie, who lives in Scotland and is undoubtedly one of Terry Brooks’ biggest ever fans, has been collecting Terry Brooks books and memorabilia of all kinds since age 11. From manuscripts, proof copies and first editions, to a spectacular sword and stunning maps, the collection is extremely extensive and wide-ranging, with almost all of the items included signed by Terry or the artists involved. The estimated value of Stuart’s entire collection, which he calls his “whole life”, is £30,000.
And Stuart has now decided to auction this whole collection off, with proceeds going to the cancer charity Macmillan. Having suffered from cancer himself, Stuart now wants to give back to the people who have helped him. We and Terry think this is a fantastically generous idea and wish Stuart all the best with the auction. You can read more about it in this article from the Evening Times.
Anyone who is interested in buying the collection or would like further information please contact April Andrews at Macmillan on 0141 952 0085 or e-mail westofscotland@macmillan.org.uk
WIN! An exclusive advance copy of THE MEASURE OF THE MAGIC
To celebrate today’s release of Terry Brooks’ Bearers of the Black Staff in paperback, we’re giving a few lucky UK readers the chance to be extremely smug and read its sequel The Measure of the Magic weeks before anyone else!
The official UK release date of The Measure of the Magic, the second book in the Legends of Shannara duology, is 1st September 2011. But at the start of August, we’ll be giving away 5 exclusive advance copies, allowing 5 people the chance to get their hands on it weeks before publication.
All you have to do to enter is be based in the UK and enter your details in the form below. The closing date is 22nd July, and winners will be announced on 1st August 2011 via the Orbit Twitter and Facebook accounts.
Good luck everyone! (more…)
On writing Bearers of the Black Staff
Bearers of the Black Staff begins a new chapter in the pre-history of the Shannara world – now revealed to be our own at a time in the distant future. I got started on this with the Genesis of Shannara trilogy which chronicled the destruction of civilization in the Old World and the efforts of a handful of survivors to escape what would prove to be an even greater cataclysm. Having gotten past that, we now pick up on their descendants some five hundred years later and find – I am sure, to no one’s great surprise – that things haven’t yet been resolved and that survival of those who remain is not yet assured.
What’s both interesting and difficult is that having written the Shannara books early on, I now have to find ways to make this current series dovetail into all the stories we already know while at the same time making everything seem new and interesting and revealing secrets that to this point I haven’t. For example, how did the various Races come to be? How did the magic evolve? We have Knights of the Word in the pre-history, so what happened to them? Did they end up becoming the Druids in the Shannara world of the future? (more…)