Last Minute Gift Ideas

It's December 21st. You forgot about that nephew, or (really?) still don't have anything for mom. AND YOU WILL SEE THEM IN 3 or 4 DAYS. Here are several suggestions, in both fiction and nonfiction, for easy stop-and-grab-on-the-way gifts for every reader on your list:

Holiday Gift Guide #1

and

Holiday Gift Guide #2

We hope they help! Happy holidays.

Pyr: Best SFF Press for eBooks

Staffer's Musings have just released their Best SFF Press for eBooks (2011). They write:

"What I can judge, is who's making the effort to put out the best eBooks. And that's Pyr.

It shouldn't be new to anyone who reads this blog that I'm a dedicated eReader. The vast majority of books I purchase are eBooks and the vast majority of ARCs I read are electronic. Gone are the days of error ridden eBooks from major publishers (largely), but there's still a huge gap between the quality of hard copies and their eBook counterparts. Lou Anders, and Pyr, are changing that one eBook at a time.

Sure, their eBooks are almost never available on release day. And yes, they're not as affordable as those from Angry Robot or Night Shade (who both do a great job with their eBooks also). But for me Pyr has become the go to source for beautiful, professional eBooks"

Custom Action Figure Mod of George Mann's The Ghost

George Mann, author of Ghosts of Manhattanand Ghosts of War, was recently a Guest of Honor at TeslaCon II in Madison, WI. While there, a very cool fan named Robert McAlister presented him with "the most awesome thing." It was a 12" action figure of The Ghost, hand converted, and mounted on a specially decorated plinth.

Here are pictures!

IlluXcon

Cynthia Sheppard at IlluXcon. Above and to the right of her, a sneak peak at a wonderful cover she did for us.

Planesrunner: Some Reasons It Should Be On Your Radar

Illustration (c) John Picacio

“Smashing adventure fiction that spans the multiverse without ever losing its cool or its sense of style. Ian McDonald is one of the greats of science fiction, and his young adult debut is everything you could hope for: romantic, action packed, wildly imaginative, and full of heart.”
 —Cory Doctorow
 
"Planesrunner is chock-full of awesome. Ian McDonald's steampunk London blazes on a vast scale with eye-popping towers, gritty streets, and larger-than-life characters who aren't afraid to fight for each other. The kind of airship-dueling, guns-blazing fantasy that makes me wish I could pop through to the next reality over, join the Airish, and take to the skies"
—Paolo Bacigalupi, Michael J. Printz Award–winning author of Ship Breaker
 
‎"Athletic, brilliant, and always ahead of the game, Everett is too perfect, but it doesn't detract from the book's fun. McDonald writes with scientific and literary sophistication, as well as a wicked sense of humor. Add nonstop action, eccentric characters, and expert universe building, and this first volume of the Everness series is a winner."
—Publishers Weekly Starred Review
 
"What joy to find science fiction based on real scientific concepts... In his debut for teens, established science-fiction writer McDonald builds a world just different enough to charm readers into believing... Shining imagination, pulsing suspense and sparkling writing make this one stand out."
—Kirkus Reviews, Starred Review!

"[Planesrunner's] world is as sharply imagined and inventive as we've come to expect from [Ian] McDonald. And it also may be the first steam-free steampunk novel… first-rate adventure writing… by the cliffhanger ending we're ready to follow [Everett] into whatever new universes McDonald can concoct, and the next one already looks interesting. Planesrunner is not only excellent YA SF in terms of its likeable characters and well-executed setpieces, but is simply good SF in a way which almost reinvents, and possibly makes addictive, the old parallel universe trope. It's fun."
—Locus, November 2011

"Planesrunner is a first class teen science fiction novel, which I believe will appeal to the fans of such boy-oriented books as Paolo Bacigalupi's Ship Breaker and Scott Westerfeld's Leviathan… There is hardly anything about Planesrunner to complain about. Quite the opposite, a lot to complement this novel on: First of all, the science. The whole idea of parallel universes is endlessly exciting and Ian McDonald did a fantastic job coming up with alternate versions of Earth's future… Second, the main character with ethnic background… Third, the teen romance has a great dynamic. Both participants are strong and resourceful young people. Planesrunner is a fantastic beginning to a new teen adventure series that will leave you yearning for more. Score: 4.50 / 5 "
—Night Owl Reviews, Reviewer Top Pick

‎"Ian McDonald's Planesrunner is the first in what I hope is a very long series of young adult science fiction novels.... I can't wait for the next book in this series. Planesrunner, scheduled for release in December 2011, is an appealing alternative to the dystopian YA titles lining bookstore shelves these days."
—Portland Book Review

‎"This is science fiction adventure at its best, and at its core is Everett, the heroic little geekling that we all wanted to be as kids... With "Ten Known Worlds" as part of this book's lore…I want an interdimensional passport ASAP… The adventure simply never stops… Snappy dialogue…and fascinating details round out this marvelous series debut."
—The Examiner

Convinced? Now go check out the Infundibulum Facebook page.

Ay Caramba!

Just received a few copies of the Spanish version of Shadow's Son. With a nice quote from Charlaine Harris on the cover! Me gusto!

Shadow's Lure available on Kindle

Hey folks,

Shadow's Lure, book 2 of my Shadow Saga, is now available on Kindle. Yay!

A high water mark in contemporary fantasy

Adventures Fantastic has this to say about MD Lachlan's Fenrir, and the Pyr brand of fantasy:

"The characters have more depth than most fantasy characters, and Lachlan does a marvelous job juggling a number of major and minor characters, some of whom have multiple names, and making them individuals with their own characteristics, strengths, and weaknesses.  These aren't just static characters, either.  They grow and change, to the point that one or two switch allegiance.... As good as Wolfsangel was, and it was good, Fenrir is better.  If this series continues to improve, it will be a high water mark in contemporary fantasy.  It pretty much is already. Series like this one, the Danilov Quintet by Jasper Kent, the First Law Trilogy by Joe Abercrombie, and the Shadow books by Jon Sprunk, just to name a few fantasy series (and that's not even getting into the science fiction), have made Pyr books my favorite publisher.  With quality like this, it's no wonder Pyr seems to have a permanent place on the shortlists of all the major awards."

For Your Viewing Pleasure: The Full Jacket of Planesrunner

Planesrunner © Ian McDonald

Cover Illustration and Front Cover Design © John Picacio

Spine and Back Cover Design by Grace M. Conti-Zilsberger

  Coming in December 2011

There is not one you. There are many yous. There is not one world. There are many worlds. Ours is one among billions of parallel earths.

When Everett Singh’s scientist father is kidnapped from the streets of London, he leaves young Everett a mysterious app on his computer. Suddenly, this teenager has become the owner of the most valuable object in the multiverse—the Infundibulum—the map of all the parallel earths, and there are dark forces in the Ten Known Worlds who will stop at nothing to get it. They’ve got power, authority, the might of ten planets—some of them more technologically advanced than our Earth—at their fingertips. He’s got wits, intelligence, a knack for Indian cooking.

To keep the Infundibulum safe, Everett must trick his way through the Heisenberg Gate that his dad helped build and go on the run in a parallel Earth. But to rescue his dad from Charlotte Villiers and the sinister Order, this Planesrunner’s going to need friends. Friends like Captain Anastasia Sixsmyth, her adopted daughter, Sen, and the crew of the airship Everness. 

Can they rescue Everett’s father and get the Infundibulum to safety? The game is afoot!

“Planesrunner is chock-full of awesome. Ian McDonald’s steampunk London blazes on a vast scale with eye-popping towers, gritty streets, and larger-than-life characters who aren’t afraid to fight for each other. The kind of airship-dueling, guns-blazing fantasy that makes me wish I could pop through to the next reality over, join the Airish, and take to the skies”

—Paolo Bacigalupi, Michael J. Printz Award–winning author of Ship Breaker

“Smashing adventure fiction that spans the multiverse without ever losing its cool or its sense of style. Ian McDonald is one of the greats of science fiction and his young adult debut is everything you could hope for: romantic, action-packed, wildly imaginative, and full of heart.”

—Cory Doctorow, author of For the Win

Give Yourself to the Rift

What people are saying about Clay and Susan Griffith's The Rift Walker (Vampire Empire, Book 2):

“I've said it before and I’ll say it again: The future of genre fiction is now – and it’s Clay and Susan Griffith’s Vampire Empire trilogy.”

-Explorations: The BN SciFi and Fantasy Blog, September 9, 2011

“The Vampire Empire series stands out because of its unabashed steampunk leanings and that is both great fun and a refreshing direction for the genre. It creates a world where science (albeit steampunk science) and magic clash head on and this is a major theme of this volume as Adele taps into her powers… I really enjoyed the first book, however I loved the second. The story built apace and left me eagerly anticipating the final part. 8 out of 10.”

-Taliesin Meets the Vampires, September 8, 2011

“The Vampire Empire series is becoming one of my favorite all time series. If you haven't read these books yet, I strongly recommend them. I know there are a lot of vampire books out there but this series sets itself apart from the rest. I can not say enough about this book. The first book blew me away and the second did it again. I absolutely love this series and I can't wait for the third book to come out.”

-2 Read or Not 2 Read blog, September 8, 2011

“I loved The Rift Walker. Clay and Susan Griffith can tell a good story that includes an exciting, fast paced battle, political intrigue, tender romance with believable technology and paranormal aspects. The only thing I didn’t like about this story is that I have to wait for the next book to come out!”

-Literary Escapism, August 28, 2011

“The sequel has hundred extra pages to tell it’s story over first book in the Vampire Empire series and they are packed with more locations, more political intrigue, more vampire mythology, more romance, and the same rich characters who captivated me in The Greyfriar…there is still plenty of action and intrigue that evokes the old pulp novels of the past, dashing and daring adventure though exotic locations, and sweeping romance between these star crossed lovers.”

-All Things Urban Fantasy, September 2, 2011

“The Griffiths…offer us what we came looking for: unrelenting action, adventure, romance and a fair bit of magic. There really is something for everyone here, and this, I think, really is the what makes the Griffiths’ writing so endearing…At the end of the day though, what I keep reading ‘Vampire Empire’, and what I imagine a lot of other readers keep reading these books for, is the all out epic entertainment they provide. In this respect, The Rift Walker really outdoes the first book, providing us with devilish conspiracies, all-out war on a reclusive vampire clan, airship chases, betrayals, heroics and complicated affairs of the heart, all told from a massive, epic scope…[The Griffth’s] continued mixing of tropes from steampunk, epic fantasy, urban fantasy and adventure is still refreshing and proof of how a bit of innovation - even in a purely gratuitous entertainment sense - can bolster a novel’s quality. If you haven’t yet gotten in on the Griffiths’ highly enjoyable, highly diverting ‘Vampire Empire’ trilogy I suggest you do so now. No matter what genre background you have, I can almost guarantee you’ll find something to your liking here.”

-LEC Book Reviews, September 2011