Review

Review of King of Thorns by Mark Lawrence

By Justin Landon September 6th, 2012
KING OF THORNS by Mark Lawrence

King of Thorns

By Mark Lawrence
Hardcover
Pages: 464 pages
Publisher: Ace Hardcover
Release Date: 08/02/12
ISBN: 1937007472

Excerpt

Prince of Thorns, Mark Lawrence’s 2011 debut novel, was not well received in all corners, occasionally offending reader sensibilities. Jorg, the protagonist and narrator throughout the series, is a self interested often bloodthirsty teenager who’s ruled equally by his emotions and lack thereof. Those hoping for a redemptive tale, or an ultimately apologetic tone from the author, found themselves woefully bereft. Deeply disturbing, and written with a haunting elegance, I called it the best fantasy debut of 2011.

Jorg, no longer a wandering prince in search of revenge, has taken a throne. Not his father’s or the Empire’s, but it’s a start. The path he carved has made him visible to those who share his lust for power, and now a six nation army marches toward his gates, led by a man far more suited to rule than he. An honorable man would lay down his sword and join the fledgling Empire in peace, leaving his kingdom whole and his people alive. That doesn’t sound like Jorg, does it?
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News

Free Readin’, Red Country by Joe Abercrombie

By Aidan Moher September 5th, 2012
Red Country by Joe Abercrombie

‘Some men just like to burn,’ said Lamb.

Red Country by Joe Abercrombie

Thanks to Joe himself, we have an early look at his sixth novel, a standalone called Red Country, that mixes traditional Fantasy with a Western motif. Early word is that Red Country is one of Abercrombie’s best novels, though after being lukewarm on Best Served Cold and hearing conflicting opinions on The Heroes, I’m still not sure what to think of that. Either way, the excerpt looks good.

You can read the excerpt from Red Country on Joe Abercrombie’s website.

News

The 2012 Hugo Award Winners, my thoughts

By Aidan Moher September 4th, 2012

Hugo Awards LogoBy now, you’ve probably seen the results of the 2012 Hugo Awards, which are littered across the ‘net. Instead of sounding like a broken record and posting the unabridged list, I thought I’d toss around a few of my thoughts on the results that most interest me, specifically ‘Best Novel,’ ‘Best Fanzine,’ and ‘Best Fan Writer.’ Overall, I’m quite happy with the results, and found many overlaps between my original nominating ballot and the votes I cast.

For the full list, visit Tor.com.

Best Novel

  • Winner: Among Others by Jo Walton (Tor)
  • A Dance With Dragons by George R. R. Martin (Bantam Spectra)
  • Deadline by Mira Grant (Orbit)
  • Embassytown by China Miéville (Macmillan UK / Del Rey)
  • Leviathan Wakes by James S. A. Corey (Orbit)

Very surprised, and delighted, to see Among Others sitting atop this list. I nominated it, and gave it my top vote earlier in the year, but I expected it to get trampled by A Dance with Dragons, or Mieville. Some consider the novel to be too pandering towards the older generation of fandom, who has a huge impact on Hugo voting, and many they’re right, but as someone who was born after Among Others ended, rose-tinted glasses didn’t have any effect on my perception and enjoyment of the novel; The dreamy Welsh setting did, the starkly drawn protagonist and the tender relationships she built around herself did, but nostalgia didn’t. Good choice, voters.
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Cover Art

Cover Art & Synopsis for “Gods of Risk” by James S.A. Corey

By Aidan Moher August 30th, 2012
"Gods of Risk" by James S.A. Corey

Cover Art for “Gods of Risk” by James S.A. Corey

As tension between Mars and Earth mounts, and terrorism plagues the Martian city of Londres Nova, sixteen-year-old David Draper is fighting his own lonely war. A gifted chemist vying for a place at the university, David leads a secret life as a manufacturer for a ruthless drug dealer. When his friend Leelee goes missing, leaving signs of the dealer’s involvement, David takes it upon himself to save her. But first he must shake his aunt Bobbie Draper, an ex-marine who has been set adrift in her own life after a mysterious series of events nobody is talking about. Set in the hard-scrabble solar system of Leviathan Wakes and Caliban’s War, Chemistry deepens James S. A. Corey’s acclaimed Expanse series.

Let’s just cut to the chase here: it’s a new James S.A. Corey novella; it’s probably gonna be awesome. Seems like a no brainer, to me.

News

Ann VanderMeer joins Tor.com as Consulting Fiction Editor

By Aidan Moher August 29th, 2012

Ann VanderMeer joins Tor.com as Consulting Fiction EditorAnn VanderMeer has been hired by Tor.com as a ‘consulting fiction editor,’ joining Patrick Nielsen Hayden and Liz Gorinsky in acquiring short fiction for the website. Tor.com says:

Since the beginning, much of our fiction has been acquired and edited by Patrick Nielsen Hayden; additionally, Liz Gorinsky began buying and editing for the site in 2010. Now we’re pleased to add Ann VanderMeer as a consulting fiction editor for Tor.com. […] She brings a sharp eye for adventurous fiction to all of her projects, and we look forward to the stories and authors she’ll bring to Tor.com.

Ann VanderMeer is one of the best in the business, and, after a public departure from the legendary genre magazine Weird Tales, it’s great to see her snapped up by another of the leading publishers of high-quality genre short fiction.

This is good news for any and all (like me) who are discouraged by the excessive turn-around times for Tor.com short fiction submissions, which, according to Duotrope, are currently sitting at a median of 299 days, well above the average wait time for SF/F/H short fiction venues. In comparison, Clarkesworld turns stories around in three days, and Lightspeed turns stories around in two days. Adding another acquiring editor, especially one with VanderMeer’s experience and expertise, should ease this period. Hopefully.

Equally, this is good news for anyone who likes good SF/F/H short fiction, as VanderMeer has a strong track record of acquiring and publishing quality stories from some of the genre’s best and brightest names.

Congratulations to both Tor.com and Ann VanderMeer.