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River of Gods Borderlands Bestseller

I was thrilled this morning to open up my newsletter from San Francisco independent genre bookstore, Borderlands Books, one of my favorite bookstores on the planet, to discover that the recently released paperback of Ian McDonald’s River of Gods tied for fourth place with Michael Swanwick’s new collection, The Dog Said Bow-Wow, on their Borderlands Best-Selling Titles for September, 2007 in the trade paperback category. Here’s the full list for the category:

1. Butcher Bird by Richard Kadrey
2. Grey by Jon Armstrong
3. Reaper’s Gale by Steven Erikson
4. The Dog Said Bow-Wow by Michael Swanwick tie with
River of Gods by Ian McDonald
5. Nova Swing by M. John Harrison

Here’s Borderlands’ contact information, if anyone wants to help boost the book in the rankings!

Update: Somehow I missed this in my first read of the Borderlands newsletter: The Blade Itself – The First Law, vol. 1 by Joe Abercrombie (Pyr, Trade Paperback, $15.00) – Ben and several customers are raving about this grim heroic fantasy debut. Ben says “A fantasy novel that combines a famous barbarian who is sick of ‘the lifestyle,’ an up-and-coming nobleman who is so selfish you just want to slap him, a state-sanctioned torturer who is trying to see every angle in a twisted political labyrinth, and a curmudgeonly ancient wizard whom no one belives. Throw them all together, have them embark on a tale only hinted at in this fist novel, and you have the beginning of a truly unusual and wonderfully captivating series. Buy this book — and this is from someone who doesn’t read fantasy!”

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Reader Response: Kenyon and Latner

My director of publicity received this very welcome email from an enthusiastic reader. I asked and we have received permission to repost it here:

Ms Maxick,

I don’t usually take the time to provide this type of feedback to publishers, and I haven’t read many SF novels written by women, most likely an unconscious (but not excusable) bias. Two of your authors are a worthy exception – Kay Kenyon and Alexis Glynn Latner.

I recently finished reading Kenyon’s Bright of the Skyand thoroughly enjoyed how she presented complex character development, surprising plot twists, and epic space opera. So much so in that I scrounged around, found, and bought two of her earlier novels to enjoy her writing style, creativity, and wit.

I’m currently reading Latner’s Hurricane Moonand am struck by how much detailed originality and humanity she’s packed into the classic SF plot of settling on a new world. I’d bet really ‘good’ money that I’ll be watching for new novels by her.

I’ve perused & bookmarked your website to learn more about your SF books, etc and will be returning to it regularly. Thank you for publishing these two authors and for putting Pyr science fiction on my entertainment radar screen.

Darryl

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Something Old, Something New

The Not Free SF Reader chimes in with some thoughts on my anthology, Fast Forward 1: Future Fiction from the Cutting Edge.They “definitely” recommend the book, and say “The stories are good, the average rating being 3.53, which is a bit over what you hope for from a book, and is rather well done in a new original project as opposed to some sort of reprint… it is a book that is well worth looking at.”

Meanwhile, Michael Swanwick reprints an essay he originally ran in the NYRSF called “A Nettlesome Term That Has Outlived its Welcome.” The essay is about the way the term “fix-up”, originally created to mean a novel assembled out of previously published material and which covers some of the greatest works in the field (as in Ray Bradbury’s Martian Chronicles, for example) is now perhaps a derogatory term that does more harm than good. Along the way, he discusses Jack Dann’s marvelous The Man Who Melted,a novel which “didn’t make it big, the way later Dann novels such as The Memory Cathedral and The Silent would. It was much too intensely personal for that. But it’s one of those neglected books that nevertheless contain a great deal to interest the intelligent reader.”

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John Picacio: Son of Man Sketch

This is a first. And probably a last. John Picacio has posted his preliminary sketch for our upcoming reissue of Robert Silverberg’s Son of Man (due out Spring, 08). Son of Man is one of my all time favorite science fiction works. In a field that ostensibly celebrates mind-expansion, alienation, estrangement, change, the impermanence of any social institution, the wonder and terror of the universe, the fundamental truth that today is not like yesterday and tomorrow will not be like today, Son of Man shines (even and especially today) as the vanguard of that perspective. John and I have been talking a lot about how to convey this in art, as well as how to convey certain other aspects of the book. In a totally unprecedented move, he’s put the work in progress up on his blog, so please – go, see, comment!

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Interview: Michael Moorcock on the Wire

John Joseph Adams interviews Michael Moorcock on SciFiWire today. They talk about the history of The Metatemporal Detective, and the book’s connection to Victorian detective Sexton Blake, New Worlds magazine, and the Pyat quartet. Speaking of Elric in his Count Zenith guise, itself modeled on Blade adversary Zenith the Albino, Mike says:

“Zenith was an influence on my character Elric, so in some ways these stories are homages. But there are many other homages in the stories, too. For instance in ‘The Affair of the Basin des Hivers,’ there are characters from French pulp fiction and movies, as well as a victim from a Balzac novel.”

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Moorcock Interview: The Making of a Metatemporal Detective

Jeremy at The Fantasy Review has posted an interview he conducted with Michael Moorcock, in which they discuss, among other things, the genesis of the Sir Seaton Begg character and The Metatemporal Detective’srelationship to the Elric saga.

When asked about the direct connection between Elric and the book’s villain, Count Zenith, Moorcock says, “through it I could add a dimension to the Elric stories, as I’ve tried to do in the most recent trilogy beginning with The Dreamthief’s Daughter(which of course also dealt with the Nazis). I’ve always been wary of what I consider to be the fascistic elements in certain sword and sorcery stories. I feel that I want to make those elements manifest and use Elric/Zenith to question and oppose those elements.”

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This Man Knows How to Write

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Neth Space has just posted a review of Michael Moorcock’s forthcoming work, The Metatemporal Detective.I’m really glad to see he likes the book, especially since Neth confesses to being a Moorcock virgin. Those already initiated will know that pretty much everything in Mike’s extensive canon takes place across the various quantum realities of his “multiverse,” wherein the majority of his protagonists (and a few of his antagonists as well) are all various permutations of the same reincarnated soul. What’s more, this particular book not only collects and unifies all of Mike’s Seaton Begg stories, but also ties in directly with his recent Elric trilogy as well, so for Neth to declare that the book is “one of the more enjoyable books that I’ve read in a while” really makes me smile. He further says that “My immediate impression of Moorcock’s writing was one of awe and appreciation for someone who clearly is a master of language. The writing was an absolute joy to read while never becoming flippant. In mere moments, the mood was set and characters brought to life. This man knows how to write.”

Update: Just noticed that The Fantasy Review posted their thoughts on The Metatemporal Detective as well, which I’m pleased to say are equally as positive: “…an entertaining collection of short stories that are highlighted by controversial figures, engagings dialogues, vivid landscapes and enigmatic characters. Moorcock does an excellent job of creating engaging mysteries that kept me guessing until the very end. If you are a fan of mystery and intrigue I would recommend checking out this book. If are a fan of Michael Moorcock’s Elric saga then this book is an absolute must read and if you don’t pick it up you should be ashamed of yourself!

Update Two: And the Library Journal says, “Moorcock’s storytelling is impeccable, his humor both arch and to the point. Most libraries should consider adding this themed short story collection to their holdings.”

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Resnick’s Ivory is Solid Speculation

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Ryun Patterson takes a look at Mike Resnick’s classic Ivory: A Legend of Past and Future,a tale set 6,000 years in the future and which traces the path across the galaxy of the very real and enormous tusks of the legendary Kilimanjaro elephant. In his review on Bookgasm, Ryun states that Resnick writes about Africa “as if he grasps some of the subtleties of the hugely diverse and multifaceted continent. Ivory, which was first published in 1988, demonstrates this, along withResnick’s flair for solid speculation.”

Ryun also takes the time to praise the cover, which always makes me really glad to see, as art and prose are closely linked in our genre, and I applaud those reviewers who take the artwork into account. In this instance, the cover illustration is by Bob Eggleton, and the layout is by our own Grace M. Conti-Zilsberger. Bob turned in what may be my favorite piece he’s ever done, while the bronze band solution Grace came up with for displaying the author’s name has a classical feel that I’m considering adopting for future reissues as well. As Ryun says, “It’s also got the best cover it has ever had and a great, solid feel – which many classic reissues deserve but don’t receive – thanks to Pyr.” Very glad someone noticed!

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Conventions: Chris Roberson at Fencon IV

This weekend, Here, There & Everywhereand Paragaea: A Planetary Romanceauthor Chris Roberson will be attending Fencon IV in Addison, Texas. Catch him at the following panels:

Friday 8:00 PM Programming 1
All Things Joss
Description: A discussion of Joss Whedon and his creations.

Saturday 10:00 AM Programming 3
20th Anniversary of Star Trek: The Next Generation
Description: After a bit of a shaky start, TNG ran for seven years on television and spawned two other hit Trek series before moving on to the big screen. Fans discuss why this show is still special after all this time.

Saturday 11:00 AM Programming 3
Who’s Your Doctor?
Description: Everyone has their own favorite incarnation of the Time Lord. Conversation may get a bit spirited, and we ask you to turn off your Sonic Screwdrivers.

Saturday 2:00 PM Main Stage
Book Business Basics
Description: What are the steps from manuscript acceptance to publication? How are royalities paid? How is promotion of a book determined? These questions and more are answered.

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Ivory: A Lament for the Disintegration of Distinctive Cultures

Lee Clarke Zumpe praises Mike Resnick’s Ivory: A Legend of Past and Futurein the Tampa Bay Newspapers Online Edition. Lee begins by proclaiming that “The name Mike Resnick may not be as familiar as, say, Arthur C. Clarke, Robert Silverberg, Ursula K. Le Guin or Harlan Ellison, but it should be,” and then goes on to justify this claim.

Lee goes on to talk about the stories-within-the-story, and then nails what I personally love about the book by saying, “ While the individual accounts of the warlord, the thief, the curator and the others who play a role in the history of the tusks display the appealing escapism of classic science fiction, the novel has an overriding melancholy about it that underscores the tragedy of post-colonialism and vanishing heritage. Resnick’s subtle theme of conservationism encompasses not only the flora and fauna of this planet, but the distinctive cultures of its varied ethnic groups – particularly those of Africa.”

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