Nov 25

Cover Art & Synopsis | Tome of the Undergates by Sam Sykes

Cover Art
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Tome of the Undergates by Sam Sykes

Lenk can barely keep control of his mismatched adventurer band at the best of times (Gariath the dragon man sees humans as little more than prey, Kataria the Shict despises most humans, and the humans in the band are little better). When they’re not insulting each other’s religions they’re arguing about pay and conditions.

So when the ship they are travelling on is attacked by pirates things don’t go very well. They go a whole lot worse when an invincible demon joins the fray. The demon steals the Tome of the Undergates – a manuscript that contains all you need to open the undergates. And whichever god you believe in you don’t want the undergates open. On the other side are countless more invincible demons, the manifestation of all the evil of the gods, and they want out.

Full of razor-sharp wit, characters who leap off the page (and into trouble) and plunging the reader into a vivid world of adventure this is a fantasy that kicks off a series that could dominate the second decade of the century.

Those in the know (i.e. his publisher, who wants him to succeed at any cost), claim Sykes, a 25-year-old, is going to be the debut author of 2010. You know, the next Patrick Rothfuss. I’m sure Blake Charlton and Tor Books, with the 2010 release of Spellwright, have something to say about that, along with Penguin Books and Paul Hoffman, who release The Left Hand of God in 2010. Still, if you ask me, you can’t have too many authors vying to debut novel of the year.

What really gets my attention about Tome of the Undergates, beyond the hype, is that Sykes is so young (same age as myself, as a matter of fact), and that’s almost reason enough to give it a go when I get my hands on a copy.

As for the cover, I won’t bellyache. I do like the water, though, and the general tone of the colours. I’m excited to see what Pyr Books, who is publishing the novel in North America, pulls together for their version of the cover.

Sykes himself is an amusing guy, and you can find him on his WEBSITE and on TWITTER.

Nov 25

An Aside | Synopsis for ‘Shadowrise’ by Tad Williams

Asides
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Shadowrise by Tad Williams

As shadows threaten to consume the kingdom of Southmarch, Barrick Eddon, heir to March throne, battles his way across the sinister Shadowlands. He must journey through this dangerous, inhuman realm to fulfil a pact – as this may be all that can prevent the atrocities of a full-scale war with the Twilight people of Qul-na-Qar.

Princess Briony, Barrick’s twin sister, finds herself in no less danger at the court of Tessis in Syan. When those close to her fall dead from poisoning, she is to learn the true extent of the betrayal surrounding her. Her only option is to flee, as all those in Tessis turn against her – all, that is, except for one important ally.

Meanwhile, the assault upon Southmarch has truly begun. Yasammez, the formidable head of the Qar army, has ordered the attack, believing that the pact between humans and Qar has been broken. Unless Ferras Vansen, Captain of the Southmarch Royal Guard, can convince her otherwise, the humans are sure to meet the dark end that has been promised to them . . .

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I’m an odd Tad Williams fan in the fact that Shadowmarch finally convinced me to give Memory, Sorrow and Thorn another (fourth) shot, at which point I firmly (and finally) became a huge fan of Williams. My experience with Memory, Sorrow and Thorn went on to surpass that with Shadowmarch, but I’ve been looking forward to new Williams books ever since (despite not being enamoured with the sequel, Shadowplay). It’d be better if Shadowrise were the concluding volume to the series, as was planned, but I’ll take what I can get at this point.

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