Yearly Archives: 2009

Review

Review | The Magicians by Lev Grossman

By Aidan Moher November 26th, 2009
The Magicians by Lev Grossman

The Magicians

Author – Lev Grossman

Hardcover
Pages: 416
Publisher: Viking Adult
Release Date: August 11th, 2009
ISBN-10: 0670020559
ISBN-13: 978-0670020553

Much fuss has been made about The Magicians, the first foray into the Fantasy genre by Lev Grossman, uber-geek, author of Codex and Senior Writer for Time magazine. The most ironic of all? The book is not being marketed as a genre novel, but rather being shelved in the Literature section at most bookstores, despite being a Fantasy novel (full of every cliché in the book) through and through.

The thing is, though, The Magicians is a good crossover novel, bridging the gap between Literature-with-a-capital-L and Fantasy, by taking the usual tropes (magic school, dysfunctional band of misfits, wizards, ‘You’re a wizard, Harry’-moments, fireballs, etc…) and throwing in all that stuff the literary folk like (sex, moral ambiguity, cocaine and whiskey, cancerous relationships, etc…). The Magicians is like Harry Potter meets The Graduate, with a little bit of Trainspotting thrown in for good measure.

Of course, general debauchery and acidic characters aren’t a magical fix-all, able to turn any Fantasy novel into a work of literary genius; but Grossman is aware of this and uses these uncomfortable literary devices as an avenue to tell a sometimes funny, sometimes painful story of young people growing up in a world they hardly understand. Like Trainspotting, The Magicians is all about Quentin’s inability to cope with the trials and travails of real life, and his constant search for Fillory, a magical world that Quentin knows will solve all his problems. As most of us know, though, finding that place rarely solves anything, rather it’s often a slippery slope, leading to bigger and more serious problems.
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Cover Art

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

By Aidan Moher November 25th, 2009
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.

News

An Aside | Synopsis for ‘Shadowrise’ by Tad Williams

By Aidan Moher November 25th, 2009
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 . . .

Source

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.

News

An Aside | Orbit signs Kim Stanley Robinson for three novels

By Aidan Moher November 24th, 2009

Though perhaps better known (at least in North America) for their Fantasy, Orbit Books made a splash in the Science Fiction scene this week by signing Kim Stanley Robinson, author of the Mars Trilogy to a three-book deal. Still, with authors like Charles Stross and Iain M. Banks already under their wing, Orbit Books consistently looks to make an impact on the Science Fiction genre as equally as the Fantasy genre.

The Years of Rice and Salt by Kim Stanley Robinson

From Orbit’s website:

We are very pleased to announce that Orbit has agreed to a three-book deal with internationally bestselling author Kim Stanley Robinson. The first novel, scheduled for publication in 2012, has the working title 2312.

Tim Holman, Orbit VP and Publisher, says: “Kim Stanley Robinson is a writer who can make the future credible, no matter how incredible it might seem. 2312 will be set in our solar system three hundred years from now; a solar system in which mankind has left Earth and found new habitats. This will be a novel for anyone curious to see what our future looks like – a grand science-fictional adventure in every sense – and I’m thrilled that Orbit will be publishing it in both the US and the UK.”

Robinson, best known for his critically acclaimed Mars Trilogy, is a winner of the Hugo, Nebula, Locus, Campbell, World Fantasy, and BSFA Awards, and in 2008 was named a Hero of the Environment by Time magazine. He says: “It’s a real pleasure to join Orbit and their ambitious program to extend the reach of science fiction to the entire reading public.”

Adding Kim Stanley Robinson (who’s awards resume includes multiple Hugos and Locus Awards, a Nebula Award and a World Fantasy Award) is certainly nothing to sneeze at. It’s just too bad fans will have to wait until 2012 to get their hands on the first book of the new trilogy. Still, great news for Orbit and Robinson.

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News

An Aside | Bearers of the Black Staff by Terry Brooks

By Aidan Moher November 23rd, 2009

The Sword of Shannara by Terry BrooksIt comes as no surprise, but the Official Terry Brooks website has officially anounced the title of Terry’s next Shannara book, Bearers of the Black Staff:

The next book will be called Bearers of the Black Staff, Book One of the Legends of Shannara duology.

Bearers of the Black Staff takes place 500 years after the events in The Gypsy Morph, where the descendants of the valley survivors are finally confronted with the outside world and its multitude of dangers. The book is written and edited and is as we speak with the production editing team at Del Rey. Artwork has just been commissioned and after several months hopefully we’ll have something to show you.

Terry is as we speak writing the second book in the duology. It has a tentative title I cannot yet reveal but I think it matches up nicely with the first one. Terry hopes to be finished with the second book by April or May 2010. More about this will be revealed in the 2009 Holiday Letter, to be released soon.

As you have probably surmised, the Genesis of Shannara series is complete at three books. Legends of Shannara will push the pre-First King of Shannara novels forward. There will be at least one or two more series after Legends that will bring the timeline up to Galaphile and the First Druid Council. We’ll have to wait and see how Terry does it.

After completing the Genesis of Shannara series last summer, Brooks took a year off to work on a new novel in his less popular Magic Kingdom of Landover series. Bearers of the Black Staff is a welcome return to the world of the Four Lands. What’s most interesting about this series, and the recently concluded Genesis of Shannara series, is that it takes place well before Brooks’ first novel, The Sword of Shannara (first published in 1977) and examines the transformation from post-apocalyptic Earth to Medieval Fantasy world complete with Elves, Trolls, Dwarfs and magic. It might not be for everyone, but Brooks continues to show growth as an author, even 30+ years later.