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Posts Tagged ‘reviews’

five things are all the post my brain can manage right now

1) As a reminder, the book sale will be running until next Thursday morning. I should mention that my goal is to downsize my stock until it actually fits once more in the official Box of Author Copies. And, um. We’re not there yet. <gives stacks of books the side-eye>

2) Pati Nagle is donating $2 per sale from her book Dead Man’s Hand to the Food Bank of South Jersey for the remainder of this month.

3) On a different charitable front, the Strange Horizons fund drive is in its last few days. All donors get entered into a draw for these prizes, which include a full-color ARC of A Natural History of Dragons.

4) Speaking of ANHoD, mrissa has a lovely advance review of it up on her blog. (I think this is perhaps slightly less of a tailored-for-mrissas book than A Star Shall Fall was, but apparently not by much.) Also, a review of Lies and Prophecy, which I’ve been meaning to link to for a while.

5) Finally, I’m blogging at BVC again today, on what makes a folktale. Go there to guess what makes some fantasy seem fairy-tale-like, even when it isn’t actually retelling a fairy tale.

Elizabeth Bear’s RANGE OF GHOSTS

On a more cheerful note: today is the release date for Range of Ghosts, by Elizabeth Bear (matociquala).

She had me at “Central Asian epic fantasy.” I have been eagerly awaiting this book since I first saw her mentioning it on LJ, oh, more than a year ago — maybe two. THERE IS A SHORTAGE OF MONGOLIAN FANTASY IN THE WORLD, Y’ALL. Fortunately, this is the first book in a series, and so that means the lack is being addressed, at least in small part.

The most succinct thing I can say about this book is that it’s rich, to a degree I haven’t seen in . . . ever? Rich in culture, rich in fantasy, rich in politics. I don’t know enough about the Mongols to tell where Bear diverges from their real society into her own invention, but her Qersnyk tribesmen are not Standard Fantasy Nomads, and the care and detail devoted to the horses in the story is both beautiful and necessary. Without that, I wouldn’t believe in the culture. The political complexity laid out in this first book bears no resemblance to the “good guys vs. black-armored masses” dichotomy of older epic fantasy, and promises to bear interesting fruit as the story goes along. And then there are the touches that are just pure wonder: the sky above your head depends on who controls the territory you’re in, and in Qersnyk lands, there is a moon in the sky for each member of the ruling family. Temur, the Qersnyk protagonist, looks up each night to see which of his cousins are still alive.

This is very much the first book in a series. The necessity of setting things up means the story is less plotty than I was expecting; Bear can’t just wave vaguely in the direction of the usual epic fantasy tropes, but has to spend time developing her world and the societies Temur and Samarkar (a female wizard from Tsarepheth, and the other main protagonist) come from. There’s a lot of foundation-laying going on, and the climax of this book doesn’t particularly wrap anything up, even in the short term. (There is no blowing up of the Death Star 1.0 here.) But the richness is pretty entrancing all on its own, and I’m very eager to see what grows out of it in the later books.

(And I want to see more of Bansh. Because Temur’s horse is the best horse ever.)

As I said, this is the release date — yeah, I got an advance review copy; envy me! — so hie thee to a bookstore and see if they have it in. Between the familiarly Europeanish tone of most epic fantasy and the real-world setting of urban fantasy, the difference of Bear’s world is like a breath of fresh (and magical) air.

Three reviews and two anthologies

Three recent reviews of With Fate Conspire:

Chris at The King of Elfland’s Second Cousin has some very interesting things to say about the structure of the book.

Julia at All Things Urban Fantasy liked it enough to run out and buy the rest of the series, which is always encouraging. 🙂

And a snippet from Faren Miller at Locus: “For more tales of a London based on history as well as sheer invention, try With Fate Conspire and its predecessors. Instead of the old-style fantasy of quests through green fields and dark domains, Brennan makes the most of one extraordinary city.”

Also, BCS has released The Best of Beneath Ceaseless Skies, Year Two, which includes my Driftwood story “Remembering Light.” You can download it in your choice of ebook format, from a whole variety of sources.

And it isn’t available yet, but you can preorder the Intergalactic Awards Anthology, Vol. 1, which includes another Driftwood story, “A Heretic by Degrees.” That one’s print, and will ship in mid-December.

Review and giveaway

The Library Journal‘s opinion of With Fate Conspire:

Brennan’s characters breathe life into a landscape rich in detail and vibrant with imagination. This title should please fans of Mercedes Lackey’s “Elemental Masters” series and Elizabeth Bear’s “Promethean Age” series.

And if you’re a Goodreads user, you can enter a giveaway there to win one of ten copies of A Star Shall Fall. It ends on the 22nd, so don’t forget!

more Conspiring

Two more reviews came in recently:

Sophie Playle at Doctor Fantastique’s Show of Wonders says, “It captures the dualistic spirit of Victorian London and creates an alternative fantastical history that the reader grows to care about just as much, if not more, than the real world it shadows. The rounded characters and intricate plot create an absorbing story.”

Steve at Elitist Book Reviews says, “I love how believable her characters are. Everything in this setting is bleak, yet the characters never truly give up hope. They will go to any length to meet their diverse goals.”

And I also did an interview on Rachel Ann Hanley’s blog, about a whole variety of topics.

Enjoy your weekend!

Labor Day updates

I’ve basically been having an extended birthday weekend, Thursday through today. Yesterday my brother and sister-in-law had a lovely cookout; the night before I went with many friends to see an entertaining production of Cymbeline (albeit in the Presidio, which — ye gods and little fishes, freezing fog is freezing); the day before that, a whole chunk of goodies showed up in the mail: present from my parents, presents from my husband, signing check for A Natural History of Dragons, and <drumroll> my author copies for With Fate Conspire.

(I did not behave like Gollum over them. But only because kniedzw was watching.)

Updates:

Jim Hines has reviewed the book (WordPress mirror here), and hints at a little nifty something in store for you guys later on.

Joshua Palmatier has a guest post from me about the range of constraints history can impose on fiction.

And I totally forgot to mention before that Mindy Klasky’s Inside Track feature includes a chance to win a copy of the book! Comment either there or at the WordPress mirror to enter.

Bookday plus one

I neglected to mention before that With Fate Conspire will be a Main Selection for the Science Fiction Book Club’s holiday catalogue. That means all four books of the series have been picked up by the SFBC, which makes me really happy.

Woke up this morning to an e-mail containing my Booklist review; I can’t link to it, but I can quote Frieda Murray:

Brennan’s research is impeccable, and her pictures of a London not too well known on this side of the pond are first-class, as is the weaving of the human and fae settings. Her characters, both major and minor, are well drawn and memorable. Brennan’s own fans, historical-fantasy fans, and lovers of classic fantasy will find this a must-read.

Also, I’m featured over at Mindy Klasky’s blog, as part of the “Inside Track” feature, wherein authors go “behind the scenes” of their books. If you’d like to see me talk about the waltz I did with dates in this book, head on over there.

Let’s get Conspiring!

Thaaaaaaat’s right, folks . . . it’s the street date for With Fate Conspire.

I don’t mind admitting that I’m a little nervous about this one. I have a lot of reasons to be: it’s the end of the series (at least for now), which always raises the questions of “did I stick the landing?” Also, it’s my first hardcover release, which brings extra hopes and expectations. Also also, well, let’s face it: this is a rough time for the publishing industry, what with Borders going belly-up. Nobody really knows what that’s going to do to sales figures, but it’s going to be rocky, that’s for sure.

Which is by way of introducing a small plea: if you intend to buy this book, then sooner is better than later and in a store is better than online (unless you’re buying the ebook, of course). And if you like the series, tell people about it. (Heck, tell people about it even if you don’t like it! My ego will survive.)

Onward to the reviews!

Liz Bourke at Tor.com approves of the working-class and Irish bent of the book.

Cat Barson at Steampunk Chronicle reviews the book for fans of steampunk, and mostly likes it.

Sarah at Bookworm Blues hasn’t read the previous books in the series, and also isn’t a fan of faerie fantasy, but still enjoyed this one.

Also, I have the Big Idea slot today at John Scalzi’s blog Whatever (which previously hosted a Big Idea for Midnight Never Come). And finally, SF Signal has included With Fate Conspire as one of the three contenders in their most recent Book Cover Smackdown.

Now I need to decide whether my professional duty to go see my book in the store is strong enough to overcome the incredible soreness of my quads . . . ah, the downsides of biking for such errands.

yes, I do mean to use that icon

Looks like Tor is doing a giveaway for A Star Shall Fall on their site. All you have to do is leave a comment on that post there. So if you’re looking to pick up the book, go forth and comment! (They’re actually giving away three copies, it looks like.)

Also, in Fate-related news, this in from the Romantic Time review: “Appealing characters, a fully realized historical setting and more than a touch of steampunk flavoring collide to create a book that is difficult to put down.” So that’s pretty good.

And now I go back to preparing for my trip.

one step closer

Here’s a stage I’ve never had before, in the book-publication process: I just received a stack of covers for With Fate Conspire. Like, the paper wrap for the hardcover. It’s like a real book, just without the book! And that will be coming soon. (I am so excited, y’all.)

And speaking of excited, here’s what Publishers Weekly had to say:

Gifted storyteller and world-builder Brennan returns to the Onyx Court, a faery city that coexists with London, in her fourth historical fantasy (after 2010’s A Star Shall Fall). As the Onyx Court is threatened by 19th-century advances in technology, the faeries and humans increasingly come into conflict. Eliza O’Malley is caught between the two worlds, both of which are often cruel and indifferent to her desperate search for her childhood friend, Owen, who was captured by the faeries seven years before. Unless Eliza can find Dead Rick, the dog-man who betrayed them, Owen will be lost to the faery kingdom forever. Series readers and fans of the Tam Lin myth will be captivated by this complex and vibrant depiction of a magical Victorian era.

The funny thing is, I honestly didn’t think of the Tam Lin overtones until I read this, though obviously they’re there.

Onward to the shelves . . . .

holy cow, they liked it

You have to be a subscriber to Kirkus Reviews to see the whole thing (or, y’know, have a publicist who shares it with you) — but here is a quote from the (ahem) STARRED REVIEW I just received:

Brennan’s grasp of period detail is sure, as the Dickensian squalor of most mortal sections of the city has its mirror in the teeming desperation of the Goblin Market. Despite the cast of thousands, many of the characters have real presence, and after a slow start the plot coheres and swirls forward into a series of tense and surprising conclusions. An absorbing finale to a series that has grown richer with every installment.

There’s been a general pattern of reviews of the series echoing that last phrase, and I have to say, I’ll take that graph, thankyouverymuch. I guess maybe from a sales perspective it would be better to have an amazingly awesome first book, and then tail off afterward (presuming your readership doesn’t all vanish), but artistically? Hearing that I’ve done better with each attempt is very satisfying.

Sixty days!

I will send everyone off into the weekend, and the month of July, with a nice big chunk of With Fate Conspire, in which we meet Eliza and Dead Rick both.

New material begins here, or you can start back at the prologue if you prefer. Be sure to keep clicking through; I’ve posted several scenes!

Now also seems a suitable time to mention that Marissa Lingen has beaten Harriet Klausner to the punch, posting the first review of With Fate Conspire. No spoilers, so you can read it without fear!

Results of the icon contest for A Natural History of Dragons will go in a separate post, because you’ll be getting a little treat there, too . . . .

oof.

Went to bed early last night, slept gloriously, woke feeling more like a human being. Which is good, because I’ve got a book that needs revising.

To entertain you while I do that: Alyx Dellamonica’s got an interview with me posted on her blog, wherein I ramble on about a whole bunch of things, including the grade-school evolution of me as a writer, and the perfectly legal tax scam I’ve got going. 🙂

Also, a review of A Star Shall Fall, from a place entertainingly named “Elitist Book Reviews.” Their opinion? “This is how Alternate Historical Fantasy should be done.” Awww, yay! And they hadn’t read the first two books of the series — in fact, they didn’t know it was a series when they started reading — so I now have a clear data point in favor of having pulled off what I was trying to do, namely, making the book work acceptably as a stand-alone.

Now I’m off to print the miniscript of this thing. Ta!

rounding up the week

More collated linky, and then maybe next week I’ll get around to posting about Ada Lovelace and her wings.

Another guest-blog: me at Tiffany Trent’s LJ, talking about researching in order to get things wrong.

More “And Blow Them at the Moon”: the giveaway is ended (Scott will be picking a winner soon), but if you’d like to listen to the story, the podcast version is now available. I enjoyed this recording immensely — like, meant to just check it out, but ended up listening to the whole thing — because Scott arranged for a British reader, who does a marvelous job with the accents. He even does a Cornish accent for the knockers! Or something I presume is a Cornish accent, anyway! (I have no idea what they sound like. Which is Reason #17 why he’s a better reader for the story than I am.)

Further reviews of A Star Shall Fall: Mark Yon at SFF World, which he sums up as “An ambitious tale and a pleasing triumph. Wonderful.” His comments make me very happy. Watch out for borderline spoilers near the end of the review, though. Locus also had a very good review, though it isn’t online, but this bit is pretty quotable:

There’s a sly brilliance to Brennan’s ongoing tales where the city of London moves through history . . . A Star Shall Fall has room enough for intellect and emotion, great issues as well as an array of individuals and personalities: self-mocking wit, bluntness, and ardor among others. As fear of the Dragon mounts, humans and fae come together in powerful scenes that both reflect and find ways to transcend the gap between beings with such very different experiences of Life and Time.

Finally, another public appearance for me: I’ll be down in SoCal on October 23rd for the SCIBA Author Feast and Trade Show (yes, it’s really called that). SCIBA is an independent booksellers’ association, so this is an industry event rather than a fan one, but if any of you will be there, be sure to say hi!

Er, that’s only four things. Uh. Here, have cats in an IKEA store.

more review bouncy

Marissa Lingen on A Star Shall Fall.

I’ve already admitted to her in private, and don’t mind repeating here, how relieved her review made me. Why? Because she’s a scientist, and I’ve been biting my fingernails over how the way I handle science in this book will be received. I’ve got at least two major factors complicating it, one being that I’m actively trying to grapple with the issue of how magic and science interrelate (or don’t), and the other being that I’m doing it in the context of eighteenth-century science, which is fascinatingly wacky all on its own. And right now I’m trying to deal with the nineteenth-century ramifications of the ideas I set up in Star, which means it’s a relief to know it’s worked for at least one reader of that sort.

I knew I was setting myself up for this challenge. Back when I decided Midnight Never Come would be the first in a series, and that the books would take place in different centuries, I knew I had a chance to do something you don’t often see in faerie fiction: not to show fae as totally stuck in the past, nor as completely modernized, but going through the process of change. Science & technology is a big part of that, though not the only one, so I knew I’d have to deal with these questions, and that it wouldn’t be easy . . . just as Ashes taught me why you don’t see more English Civil War-era fiction out there (because it’s bloody COMPLICATED, is why), I know why more authors don’t try to mash these ideas together.

On the other hand, if I succeed, I’ll have done something that hasn’t been done in a thousand other novels. And that’s worth a few headaches, I suppose.

Forty days, and the good news keeps coming

Booklist‘s opinion on A Star Shall Fall:

Brennan’s historical research is as impeccable as ever, and the twining of the two worlds is the best yet. Fans of the Onyx court novels, and anyone who enjoys historical fantasy, should like A Star Shall Fall.

And also bookblather:

A Star Shall Fall starts fast and goes faster, despite its apparent length. The climax is brilliant. I honestly did not want to put the book down or close it for any reason, and I was sniffly for a good while afterwards. This is one spectacular book; Brennan is firing on all authorial cylinders. I finished it and wanted to start it all over again, just to have some more time with the characters.

Forty days until the book comes out, and that means it’s time for another excerpt! You’ve already met Irrith and Galen St. Clair; now it’s time for them to meet each other. Or, if you missed the earlier excerpts, you can start at the beginning.

Also, don’t forget the contests for the launch party. Even if you aren’t attending Sirens, you can still enter a drink recipe and win a bound copy of Deeds of Men. You have until August 15th!

more review happy dance omg wow YAY

Now THIS is how to start your Monday morning: with news of a starred review in PW:

As in 2009’s brilliant Midnight Never Come, anthropologist Brennan strikes a resonant balance between history and fantasy in this new tale of the faerie domain beneath 1750s London. Halley’s Comet, which houses the exiled Dragon Spirit of Fire who nearly consumed the city in the Great Fire of 1666, is on its way back to Earth. Human lord Galen is in love with faerie queen Lune, bedding the charming sprite Irrith, and engaged to bluestocking Delphia Northwood; as he attempts to untangle these entanglements, he must also enlist members of the new Royal Society, England’s illustrious scientists, and all the multifarious faery talent he can find to fight the Dragon with humanity’s reason, magical faery instinct, and the power of sacrifice and devotion. Enchanting, fearsome faerie vistas and pinpoint character delineations make Galen’s absorbing quest one to savor and remember.

The “pinpoint character delineations” bit makes me exceptionally happy, because character is one of the things I specifically focused on in writing Star. Based on the reactions so far, it looks like it worked. Eeee! <bouncebouncebounceSTARREDREVIEWbounce>

In review news from this weekend past, Jim Hines also enjoyed the book:

This is my favorite of the series so far. The plotting is sharper, the characters are great, and Brennan continues to blend history and magic so smoothly it’s hard to tell where one ends and the next begins.

(He also says later that “Authors are, at their best, simultaneously cruel and beautiful.” Hee.)

My Monday: pretty fabulous, so far. How’s yours been?

The reviews begin!

Okay, so they actually began with Stephanie Burgis’ ARC giveaway last month. (Her verdict: “I loved Book One in Brennan’s Onyx Court series (Midnight Never Come, which was really fun), and I admired Book Two (In Ashes Lie) for how ambitious it was, but A Star Shall Fall is my favorite of Marie Brennan’s novels so far.”) Now we can add to that a review from David Forbes:

A Star Shall Fall is a a marvelous, magical novel that evocatively brings to life 18th Century London through interesting and believable characters and a wealth of historical details. The magic is interesting and surprising (the Clock Room is a great concept), as are the details about the dangers Faeries face when in the mortal world. Highly recommended.

So, we’re off to a good start!

miscellaneous bits of news

Proof I have gotten way too pale: I managed to pick up a bit of a tan in freaking London.

Anyway, onto actual news, of the writing-related sort. Various bits and pieces accumulated while I was gone, so in no particular order . . .

1) I’ve sold an audio reprint of “Kingspeaker” to Podcastle.

2) Go here for another chance to win an ARC of A Star Shall Fall (scroll down for details). Author Stephanie Burgis is, with permission, re-gifting the copy I sent her.

3) Clockwork Phoenix 3 has gotten a starred review from Publishers Weekly, with this to say about my own contribution: “Marie Brennan sets the bar high with ‘The Gospel of Nachash,’ a fine reinterpretation of the Adam and Eve legend from a fresh perspective.” Also, finalized cover art.

4) An interesting post about “Remembering Light” and Driftwood more generally. I remain faintly boggled by how strongly people react to the setting — boggled, and flattered. I really do need to get more Driftwood stories written.

5) My remaining bit of news will get its own post in a bit, so instead I’ll use this spot to mention that I’m still seeking a title for the Victorian book. For those not aware or in need of a refresher, my requirements are here and here; you can leave suggestions on one of those posts, in the comments to this post, or send them to my e-mail (marie dot brennan at gmail dot com).