Pyr All Over Various Best of 2010 Lists

The annual Best of the Year roundups are starting to sprout up, and we are tickled pink at how many Pyr books are showing up on these lists.

Bookgasm has just posted their 5 Best SciFi Books of 2010 and we're thrilled to see Ian McDonald's The Dervish House at #1 and David Louis Edelman's Geosynchron at #5. Meanwhile, Stephan Martiniere is their choice for Best Cover Artist, with his covers for The Dervish House, Geosynchron, and Ares Express called out.

Meanwhile, four Pyr titles make Pat's Fantasy Hotlist's Top 10 Speculative Fiction Titles of 2010. Ian McDonald's The Dervish House ties with Guy Gavriel Kay's Under Heaven for the top spot, with David Louis Edelman's Geosynchron at # 4, Kay Kenyon's Prince of Storms at # 5, and Thirteen Years Later by Jasper Kent - which Bantam released in the UK in 2010 and we will release in February - at # 10.

Forbidden Planet International includes James Enge's The Wolf Age on a list chosen by writer/editor/blogger John Freeman that includes movies and graphic novels. He calls the book "a knockout" in his Best of the Year. 

Barnes and Noble's Explorations blog, run by Paul Goat Allen, has put out several Best of 2010 lists, broken up by subgenre. First up, they named Clay and Susan Griffith's The Greyfriar (Vampire Empire Book 1) as the #2 book in "The Best Vampire Releases of 2010" and Jasper Kent's Twelve as #10.

Explorations' next list, The Best Steampunk Releases of 2010, includes Tim Akers' The Horns of Ruin at #7, Mark Hodder's The Strange Affair of Spring Heeled Jack at #10, and Mike Resnick's The Buntline Special at #13 (in a list of 13).

Finally, Explorations' The Best Fantasy Releases of 2010 includes Adrian Tchaikovsky's Empire in Black and Gold at #10.

The Library Journal included James Barclay's Elfsorrow on their "LJ Best Books 2010: Genre Fiction." They write:

"The mercenaries of the Raven journey to the heart of the elven continent of Calaius to save the land from dying in a superbly visualized fantasy adventure reminiscent of Glen Cook's classic Black Company tales."

VampChix has chosen Clay and Susan Griffith's The Greyfriar (Vampire Empire Book 1) their "Best Vamp Novel of 2010." They write:

"Just the absolute best vampire novel VampChix has read all year. Simple enough? I've been touting the winner since October..."

 Reading on the Dark Side also included The Greyfriar in it's Top Ten-Paranormal Romance list.

LEC Book reviews have posted their "2010 in Review & Anticipation of 2011" list. It's chocked full of Pyr titles. Their top ten features Tome of the Undergates and The Strange Affair of Spring Heeled Jack, as well as the UK versions of books Pyr will be releasing in the States in 2011--Wolfsangel, The Scarab Path, Thirteen Years Later. (Also pleased to see my own co-edited Eos anthology, Swords & Dark Magic.) Meanwhile, the award their "Best SFF Publisher/Imprint" jointly to Pyr and Tor UK/Pan Macmillan. Speaking of Pyr, they say:

"If you haven’t given Pyr releases a look, you really should. Their output, under the editorial hand of Lou Anders, is nothing short of amazing. By this I mean the number of releases of theirs that are consistently good. I had the chance to read a large number of their releases, particularly in the back half of the year (in fact I’m devouring Mike Resnick’s The Buntline Special as we speak), and most were good while some were simply outstanding. For UK readers Pyr publications might be difficult to get you hands on (actually, they are the US outlet for a number of originally British releases such as Syke’s Tome of the Undergates, Tchaikovsky’ Shadows of the Apt and Kent’s Danilov Quintet, which are all mentioned in the lists above) but trust me, importing their books through a service like Bookdepository.co.uk is well worth it."

The Erudite Ogre has posted a Top Ten List for works read in 2010. These include the 2009 books Blood of Ambrose and This Crooked Way. The Ogre writes:

"I discovered James Enge through his story in the Swords & Dark Magic anthology, and I am so glad that I did. His work has rekindled my love for sword & sorcery through its combination of vigorous action, depth of character, and crisp prose. People who call his prose 'slick' are missing some of its deeper pleasures, such as his economy of description, his deft characterizations, and a cavalcade of fascinating ideas that are woven together unassumingly into a cultural fabric that makes his work both warm and visceral. He takes the basic heroic mode of sword & sorcery and expands upon it even as he plays with it. His books have a classical heft to them, but are neither stiff nor dated. He refreshes the genre by taking old roads and then suddenly going off into the misty woods beyond, making new paths that wind in and out of our expectations. Really top-notch stuff!"

Update 12/30/10: The Mad Hatter's Bookshelf and Book Review has just posted the "Best Books of 2010 (That I've Read)" list.  Mark Hodder's The Strange Affair of Spring Heeled Jack wins for Best Steampunk novel, while Clay and Susan Griffith's The Greyfriar (Vampire Empire Book 1) is the runner-up for Best Vampire novel. Also worth noting, my own aforementioned anthology, Swords & Dark Magic, done for Eos and co-edited with Jonathan Strahan, makes Best Anthology. While not a Pyr book, several Pyr-related authors appear inside, including the James Enge story "The Singing Spear," which is scoring well with reviewers and turning many readers on to his novel length work.

Also, Stainless Steel Droppings The Best: 2010 in Review includes Kristine Kathryn Rusch's Diving into the Wreck and Ian McDonald's Cyberabad Days as among the best works they read this past year.  They write of Diving into the Wreck:

“Diving into the Wreck is an intense, introspective, character-driven adventure that has moved to the top of my list of books to recommend to those who either have never tried science fiction, or are of the belief that science fiction isn’t for them.
Boss is a fully realized character. The reader sees Rusch’s created future unfold through the multi-dimensional person that springs to life on the page. Boss is flawed, she makes mistakes, her errors exact a price and that price affects her decision-making and the course she chooses for her life. She has old wounds and unforgiveness that surface. But she is also a bright, adventurous, caring and dedicated individual. She has a deep and abiding love of history and a respect for the historical value of the ships she dives. She is not a scavenger, she is an historian first and foremost. You cannot help but get to know Boss in a deep and personal way which makes for a very satisfying reading experience.”

And of Cyberabad Days:

“Cyberabad Days is a return to the world of Ian McDonald’s BSFA-winning novel River of Gods. Like an exotic dish, this collection of seven stories (6 previously published, 1 new), is flavored with spices from the old world and the new. I savored hints of Isaac Asimov and Philip K. Dick amidst what I might have initially thought was an incongruous mixture: a Britain born son of Irish and Scottish parents writing stories set in a future India, steeped in that nation’s rich cultural heritage. Cyberabad Days was a new and exciting literary experience, blending familiar science fiction ideas of future tech and artificial intelligence with a language and heritage that is far removed from my everyday experience. Ian McDonald brings the history of the Indian people, albeit a 'history' viewed from a time three plus decades in the future, in a way that sparks an interest in this diverse and storied nation.”

Update 12/30/10 number two: Fantasy Literature has just posted their FanLit's Favorite Books of 2010 list. Joel Shepherd's Tracato and Jasper Kent's Thirteen Years Later (UK editor, ours forthcoming) make the list. Ian McDonald's The Dervish House makes the separate Science Fiction list. (And, though not a Pyr book, my Swords & Dark Magic anthology again makes the anthology list, yay!)

Update 1/3/2011: Pat's Fantasy Hotlist has issued their "The Hotties: 2010 Year End Awards." We're honored that Pyr has been named "Publisher of the Year." Pat writes, "With three Pyr titles in the Top 5 and four in the Top 10, it couldn't be any other publisher! The folks at Pyr celebrated their 5th anniversary this year. Keep up the great work! And long live!" Meanwhile, Stephan Martiniere's cover for Kay Kenyon's Prince of Storms gets the Best Cover Art Award. And I'm thrilled to receive the "MVP Award" for the second year in a row. Pat writes, "Yes, two years in a row! Last year I said that as the heart and soul behind the Pyr imprint, this man is pretty damn close to being a genius. Scratch that! He is a genius! Though he doesn't have the means of the genre powerhouses at his disposal, Lou Anders nevertheless manages to work wonders year in and year out. To the powers that be at Prometheus Books: Give this man a raise! God knows he deserves it!"

Update 1/4/11:  RobWillReview has just posted his year in round up. "Counting Down My 11 Favorite Books of 2010" has a whopping five titles. Matthew Sturges places at #11 with The Office of Shadow, Sam Sykes' Tome of the Undergates at #9, The Greyfriar (Vampire Empire Book One) by Clay and Susan Griffith at # 7, The Silver Skull by Mark Chadbourn at #6, and Mark Hodder's The Strange Affair of Spring Heeled Jack at #3. Given how much Rob reads, I'd say 5 out of 11 is pretty impressive!

Update 1/6/11: Barnes and Noble's Explorations blog has posted another Best of, "The Best Science Fiction Releases of 2010," and David Louis Edelman's Geosynchron comes in at #9.

Update 1/11/11: io9 has posted their list of The 15 Best Speculative Fiction Books of 2010, and Ian McDonald's The Dervish House is on it.

Update 1/12/11: According to Locus Online, Ian McDonald's The Dervish House has been selected as the science fiction recommendation in the 2011 Reading List from the Reference and User Services Association, as announElfsorrow (Legends of the Raven 1)ced January 10, 2011 at the American Library Association.

Update 1/13/11: the steampunk page on Facebook has just announced "The Best of 2010 Steampunk Facebook Awards" and have named Lou Anders as "Best Editor." And Concatenation has published their Best SF Books of 2010, and The Dervish House makes the list. Elsewhere, they call it "science fiction at its best."

Update 1/17/11: Joe of The Forbidden Planet International blog selects Pierre Pevel's The Cardinal's Blades among the best of 2010.

Update 1/31/11: Elitist Book Reviews have just published their Best of 2010 list, and we're thrilled to see books by David Louis Edelman (Geosynchron), James Barclay (Elfsorrow, Shadowheart), Tom Lloyd (The Ragged Man), Adrian Tchaikovsky (Empire in Black and Gold, Dragonfly Falling, Blood of the Mantis, Salute the Dark), Sam Sykes (Tome of the Undergates), and Jasper Kent (Twelve) on the list. That's six out of thirteen authors, or ten out of seventeen books! The Eos anthology I edited with Jonathan Strahan, Swords & Dark Magic, also makes the list.

Meanwhile, Locus Online has posted  Adam Roberts’ 10 Best SF Novels of 2010 and it's no surpise that Ian McDonald's The Dervish House makes the list.

Update 3/22/11: Mihir of Fantasy Book Critic has posted his Top Ten list. Mark Chadbourn's The Silver Skull makes #7 in his list of Top Ten Novels 2010. Mihir says:

The Silver Skull was Mark Chadbourn’s opening Salvo in the Will Swyfte Alternate Hist-Fantasy series. It was a much darker re-imagining of Victorian England and its battle with the Fey court who are as devious as legends foretell and deadlier than the human imagination. Bringing together a cast of characters and a quick paced plot MC fascinatingly showcases bits and pieces of history mingled with a fast paced storyline to give jaded readers a new series to follow and cheer for.

Meanwhile Jon Sprunk's Shadow's Son placed # 2 in his Top 10 Debut Novels list. He writes:

This book was another winner from Pyr who are fast becoming a stable for new fascinating authors. Jon Sprunk debuted with his tale of an assassin with a semblance of a conscience and a unique-ish partner. This tale was very fast paced and in spite of utilizing tropes it managed to give the readers a fresh feel. This book was my nomination for The David Gemmell Legend Award as I feel it best encapsulates DG’s book themes

Update 3/23/11: SF Site has posted their Readers' Choice: Best Read of the Year: 2010 and Ian McDonald's The Dervish House tops the list at # 1! They say:

"This is a novel of near-future Istanbul. It begins with a suicide bomber on a crowded tram, and follows the lives of 6 very different people whose lives are all affected by this incident, and whose paths intersect. One witness to the bombing thereafter begins to see djinni and saints; a young invalid witnesses the event through the eyes of a BitBot monkey, and witnesses someone else also spying remotely; this boy shares his concerns with a disgruntled professor who has been forced into retirement; another woman is delayed by the blast in her effort to get to a job interview and consequently takes a job that involves her in a nanoware company; an antique dealer is set on a quest to find a man mummified in honey -- something that may exist or may be mere legend -- while her boyfriend is planning a stock-market scheme of unprecedented proportions. The tightly plotted story takes place over a brief period of time in a confined setting, the sprawling metropolis of Istanbul. But it is McDonald's writing and his handling of character that led SF Site readers to choose The Dervish House as the best book of 2010."

Update 4/12/11: Jasper Kent's Thirteen Years Later made the Booklist Editor’s Top 10 Best SFF Books for 2010.