Half-vampire Darwin stumbles across a corpse on the streets of London, and in a pocket discovers a notebook in a mysterious language. Divided between human ethics and vampire blood lust, Darwin finds himself both condemner and saviour of a race who’ve never considered him one of their own. Now, he must try and lead the survivors to sanctuary in New Salisbury before Mr West completes his genocide of the vampires in his quest to obtain the book… Maureen Summerglass is eighty-two years old, a prisoner in her ramshackle home. She is afraid to let people enter in case they discover the oak door in her cellar. Threatened with homelessness and retirement from her job as a gatekeeper between worlds, Maureen breaks protocol when the death of a close friend is covered up… and enters the city of New Salisbury to search for his missing notebook. There, she discovers a world unlike the one of myth and fairy tale she imagined, and instead one of black market economies, brand names and tuk tuks. As she investigates, not only is she in extreme danger, but discovers she may be the first human female able to use magic… People who know me in…
Today, as an extra special just because it’s Thursday treat, please enjoy a guest post from Emma Newman ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ In 2013 the marvellous Angry Robot books will be publishing three Split Worlds novels, the first is out in March and is called “Between Two Thorns”. This story is part of a crazy thing I decided to do before I got the book deal and was forging ahead with the project on my own: releasing a new story every week for a year and a day, hosted on a different site every time, all set in the Split Worlds. I wanted to give readers a taste of my kind of urban fantasy and have the opportunity to build in secrets and extra tit-bits for those people who, like me, love the tiny details. It’s also been a major part of my world-building work alongside writing the novels. This is the thirty-seventh tale in the year and a day of weekly short stories set in The Split Worlds. If you would like me to read it to you instead, you can listen here. You can find links to all the other stories, and the new ones as they are released here. You can also sign…
Bilbo Baggins is a hobbit who enjoys a comfortable, unambitious life, rarely travelling further than the pantry of his hobbit-hole in Bag End. But his contentment is disturbed when the wizard, Gandalf, and a company of thirteen dwarves arrive on his doorstep one day to whisk him away on an unexpected journey ‘there and back again’. They have a plot to raid the treasure hoard of Smaug the Magnificent, a large and very dangerous dragon… With the forthcoming release of the first part of The Hobbit it seems only right and proper that I get around to finally reading the book for the first time. Yes, I know I’m thirty-eight and I should probably should have read it years ago but I’ll let you in on a secret. I’m more than a little intimidated by what you would probably term classic fiction. There I’ve said it. I’ve finally admitted my secret shame. Why am I so overwhelmed? Well, The Hobbit is the perfect example to help illustrate my problem. The book was first published way back in 1937. Since then, many people, the vast majority of whom (probably all) are far cleverer than I, have read it and produced an in-depth…
Ecko is an unlikely saviour: a savage, gleefully cynical rebel/assassin, he operates out of hi-tech London, making his own rules in a repressed and subdued society. When the biggest job of his life goes horribly wrong, Ecko awakes in a world he doesn’t recognise: a world without tech, weapons, cams, cables – anything that makes sense to him. Can this be his own creation, a virtual Rorschach designed just for him, or is it something much more? Ecko finds himself immersed in a world just as troubled as his own, striving to conquer his deepest fears and save it from extinction. If Ecko can win through, he might just learn to care – or break the program and get home. Imagine taking a character from a cyber-punk thriller and transplanting them wholesale into a fully fleshed out fantasy novel. Danie Ware’s debut novel, Ecko Rising, does just that. Ecko is terrifically smart, more than a little inquisitive and great at what he does. So good in fact, that he is a trifle cocky about it. Does this make him a bit irritating/smug at times? Perhaps, but that’s all part of his quirky charm. Ecko’s journey is the core of this novel and it’s a…
R.H. Ragona’s Circus of Magic is the greatest circus of Ellada. Nestled among the glowing blue Penglass – remnants of a mysterious civilisation long gone – are wonders beyond the wildest imagination. It’s a place where anything seems possible, where if you close your eyes you can believe that the magic and knowledge of the vanished Chimeras is still there. It’s a place where anyone can hide. Iphigenia Laurus, or Gene, the daughter of a noble family, is uncomfortable in corsets and crinoline, and prefers climbing trees to debutante balls. Micah Grey, a runaway living on the streets, joins the circus as an aerialist’s apprentice and soon becomes the circus’s rising star. But Gene and Micah have balancing acts of their own to perform, and a secret in their blood that could unlock the mysteries of Ellada. I’ve spent some time thinking about the best way to describe this novel. The best I can come up with is that Pantomime is the literary equivalent of a matryoshka doll. There is a secret waiting to be discovered at it’s heart and the reader gets to unlock each new layer of the story in order to uncover it. Dont’ panic, I wouldn’t even dream of…
Deep within the wildwood lies a place of myth and mystery, from which few return, and none remain unchanged. Ryhope Wood may look like a three-mile-square fenced-in wood in rural Herefordshire on the outside, but inside, it is a primeval, intricate labyrinth of trees, impossibly huge, unforgettable and stronger than time itself. Stephen Huxley has already lost his father to the mysteries of Ryhope Wood. On his return from the Second World War, he finds his brother, Christopher, is also in thrall to the mysterious wood, wherein lies a realm where mythic archetypes grow flesh and blood, where love and beauty haunt your dreams, and in promises of freedom lies the sanctuary of insanity. Some times the Book Gods smile on me, and the opportunity to revisit a favourite novel from my dim and distant past arises. The release of Mythago Wood by Robert Holdstock as an ebook was the perfect opportunity to reconnect with a novel I read a long time ago. The thing that still manages to impress is how the novel effortlessly captures the mood of post-war Britain, in the form of Stephen Huxley, but in the same moment also conveys a timeless quality. The relationship between…
Twenty eight florins a month is a huge price to pay, for a man to stand between you and the Wild. Twenty eight florins a month is nowhere near enough when a wyvern’s jaws snap shut on your helmet in the hot stink of battle, and the beast starts to rip the head from your shoulders. But if standing and fighting is hard, leading a company of men – or worse, a company of mercenaries – against the smart, deadly creatures of the Wild is even harder. It takes all the advantages of birth, training, and the luck of the devil to do it. The Red Knight has all three, he has youth on his side, and he’s determined to turn a profit. So when he hires his company out to protect an Abbess and her nunnery it’s just another job. The abbey is rich, the nuns are pretty and the monster preying on them is nothing he can’t deal with. Only it’s not just a job. It’s going to be a war . . . I suspect there are going to be the almost inevitable comparisons between Miles Cameron and the likes of George R. R. Martin and Joe…
A man cannot live on apocalyptic fiction alone so for a bit of a change of pace here is some young adult fiction of a more adventurous nature… Ananna of the Tanarau abandons ship when her parents try to marry her off to another pirate clan. But that only prompts the scorned clan to send an assassin after her. When Ananna faces him down one night, armed with magic she doesn’t really know how to use, she accidentally activates a curse binding them together. To break the curse, Ananna and the assassin must complete three impossible tasks – all the while grappling with evil wizards, floating islands, haughty manticores, runaway nobility, strange magic… and the growing romantic tension. I have a bit of a soft spot when it comes to all things piratical. The Crimson Pirate starring Burt Lancaster is one of my all-time favourite films. (Seriously, if you’ve never seen it you really need to check it out, it’s a classic). When I discovered that The Assassin’s Curse featured not only assassins but also magic, wizards and boat loads of pirates I was sold. Ananna is everything a good pirate should be. Courageous, strong willed and fiercely independent. As…
Come, rest your weary bones, draw a flagon and hark to the tales of Nuns & Dragons, of bravery and steadfastness in the face of mighty and implacable foes. Settle down and indulge yourself in wild flights of fancy brought to life by your fellow travellers.” The Nun & Dragon is a local like no other – share in the wild and wonderful tellings of a gifted panoply of authors, tales replete with wonder, a liberal coating of mysticism, the odd splash of darkness and a sprinkling of grim humour. Over the last couple of years my passion for short stories has been re-ignited by some great small publishers and the anthologies that they are producing. Anthologies are a great way to discover the work of writers you have never read before so when I was offered the opportunity to take a look at the latest from Fox Spirit I jumped at the chance. C’mon dragons, nuns the coming together of the two. That’s never going to be a bad thing is it? The Ballad of Gilrain by Sarah Cawkwell – Gilrain the knight and his trusty manservant, Therin, meet a troublesome dragon. This first story features a nice blend of humor and action to start things off. In addition you can download the…
Please note Mockingbird is a direct sequel to Blackbirds and due to that fact it’s entirely possible this review may contain minor spoilers. Consider yourself warned, people. Miriam Black has a terrible talent. The first time she touches someone, she will see the moment of their death. Still in her early twenties, she’s foreseen hundreds of car crashes, heart attacks, strokes, suicides, and slow deaths by cancer. It is all she can do to keep her talent – her curse – in check. But when Miriam touches a woman while standing in line at the supermarket, she foresees that the woman will be violently killed – right here, right now. Earlier this year I read and reviewed Blackbirds by Chuck Wendig and if I’m being honest I have to admit that it did blow my tiny little mind just a bit. Like a David Lynch directed version of The Littlest Hobo (if the Hobo was a young women with supernatural powers rather than a dog) I really enjoyed this dark, nightmarish tale. When I heard there was another novel featuring the same character, I was keen to give it a whirl. Once again I found myself amazed at how quickly I was hooked….
Charged with gross incompetence, Satan is fired from his job as Prince of Hell and exiled to that most terrible of places: English suburbia. Forced to live as a human under the name of Jeremy Clovenhoof, the dark lord not only has to contend with the fact that no one recognises him or gives him the credit he deserves but also has to put up with the bookish wargamer next door and the voracious man-eater upstairs. Heaven, Hell and the city of Birmingham collide in a story that features murder, heavy metal, cannibalism, armed robbers, devious old ladies, Satanists who live with their mums, gentlemen of limited stature, dead vicars, petty archangels, flamethrowers, sex dolls, a blood-soaked school assembly and way too much alcohol. Jeremy Clovenhoof is new in town. He has a fondness for copious amounts of Lambrini and, excuse the pun, a devil-may-care attitude when it comes to other people’s money and possessions. Ok, so technically he’s the Angel of the Abyss but that doesn’t make him a bad guy does it? His various attempts to blend in and lead a quiet life in suburbia all tend to end in a spectacular fashion. He throws himself into every situation…
Alice isn’t having the best of days – late for work, missed the bus, and now she’s getting rained on – but it’s about to get worse. The war between the angels and the Fallen is escalating and innocent civilians are getting caught in the cross-fire. If the balance is to be restored, the angels must act – or risk the Fallen taking control. Forever. That’s where Alice comes in. Hunted by the Fallen and guided by Mallory – a disgraced angel with a drinking problem he doesn’t want to fix – Alice will learn the truth about her own history… and why the angels want to send her to hell. What do the Fallen want from her? How does Mallory know so much about her past? What is it the angels are hiding – and can she trust either side? It probably won’t come as much of a surprise when I reveal that I have been looking forward to Blood and Feathers for quite a while; pretty much since I heard about it, to be honest (eagle eyed readers of the site will have spotted it being mentioned on the preview of 2012 post way back in January). There…
Hidden under the surface of everyday London is a city of monsters and miracles, where wild train spirits stampede over the tracks and glass-skinned dancers with glowing veins light the streets. When a devastating betrayal drives her from her home, graffiti artist Beth Bradley stumbles into the secret city, where she finds Filius Viae, London’s ragged crown prince, just when he needs someone most. An ancient enemy has returned to the darkness under St Paul’s Cathedral, bent on reigniting a centuries-old war, and Beth and Fil find themselves in a desperate race through a bizarre urban wonderland, searching for a way to save the city they both love. The City’s Son is the first book of The Skyscraper Throne trilogy: a story about family, friends and monsters, and how you can’t always tell which is which. I remember reading somewhere, years ago, that a city has many faces. I couldn’t tell now where I read the phrase, but I liked the idea and it has always stayed with me. I’ve since come to the conclusion that when I’m reading well written urban fantasy the author is sharing tantalizing glimpses of these faces. The City’s Son, the debut novel by Tom Pollock, is a great…