Posts Categorized: Art

The Emperor of Thorns by Mark Lawrence

Yay for consistency and impact. I love the progression over the course of the trilogy from the tired-and-overdone hooded figure to this figure, cockiness replaced by ambition and power. Great stuff, and perfect for Lawrence’s trilogy. I still don’t like the title font, but, hey, you can’t win ’em all, can you?

Emilie and the Hollow World by Martha Wells

While running away from home for reasons that are eminently defensible, Emilie’s plans to stow away on the steamship Merry Bell and reach her cousin in the big city go awry, landing her on the wrong ship and at the beginning of a fantastic adventure.

Taken under the protection of Lady Marlende, Emilie learns that the crew hopes to use the aether currents and an experimental engine, and with the assistance of Lord Engal, journey to the interior of the planet in search of Marlende’s missing father.

With the ship damaged on arrival, they attempt to traverse the strange lands on their quest. But when evidence points to sabotage and they encounter the treacherous Lord Ivers, along with the strange race of the sea-lands, Emilie has to make some challenging decisions and take daring action if they are ever to reach the surface world again.

Another in a string of great covers from Strange Chemistry, the YA spin-off of Angry Robot Books headed by Amanda Rutter, a former blogger and friend of this blog, and another great cover for Martha Wells, who seems blessed by the cover art Gods. I haven’t read any of Wells’ work, but with covers like these, I’m damn well tempted.

The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman

Gaiman’s The Ocean at the End of the Lane is one of my most anticipated novels coming in 2013, and I expect I’m not the only one who feels this way. I love the cover. Whimsical, and evocative, it says just enough about what I might expect to find between the pages. Good stuff. I posted a synopsis for the book a few weeks ago, if you’re curious.

The Ocean at the End of the Lane is scheduled for release on June 18th 2013.

The Tyrant's Law by Daniel Abraham

It’s… alright, I guess. I haven’t been blown away by any of the covers for the series, and the shift in tone and subject, if not style, is a little jarring, but, hey, swords and axes had little to do with Abraham’s series, anyways. Torches are cool, I guess. I’m neither here nor there on the cover. It’s okay. I have no doubt that what’s underneath will be rockin’. Abraham suggests there might still be minor changes coming, but the design is almost final.

Speaking of, here’s the synopsis, beware, of course, of spoilers for the first two volumes, for there are several:

The great war cannot be stopped.

The tyrant Geder Palliako begins a conquest aimed at bringing peace to the world, though his resources are stretched too thin. When things go poorly, he finds a convenient target among the thirteen races and sparks a genocide.

Clara Kalliam, freed by having fallen from grace, remakes herself as a “loyal traitor” and starts building an underground resistance movement that seeks to undermine Geder through those closest to him.

Cithrin bel Sarcour is apprenticing in a city that’s taken over by Antea, and uses her status as Geder’s one-time lover to cover up an underground railroad smuggling refugees to safety.

And Marcus Wester and Master Kit race against time and Geder Palliako’s soldiers in an attempt to awaken a force that could change the fate of the world.

The Tyrant’s Law is set for a May, 2013 release, and I’m already salivating.

Abaddon's Gate by James S.A. Corey

Another solid effort from Daniel Dociu, Kirk Benshoff and Orbit Books. I’m glad to see them keeping continuity between covers, ’cause man, this series will look mighty fine on my bookshelf. Too bad there wasn’t a hardcover release…

Abaddon’s Gate is set for a June 2013 release.